My band is a nightmare!

[winthropgrad08 0]

So I've had the band since November 20, 2008. The good news is that I've lost about 55lbs since the last time I checked (about 2 weeks ago) the bad news is that I'm having serious complications and no one is able to help me. Let me explain........ I orginally had my surgery in Atlanta, GA by Dr.Steinberg (great doc). I've been out of town the past three weeks on business and for the past week I haven't been able to eat or barely hold liquids down. At first I thought I had a piece of food stuck so I assummed in time it would pass (my mistake). Well after letting almost a week go by I decided to take myself to the emergency room in Tampa, Florida. Big freak'n mistake! It was almost like my issue was foreign to them. No one was truely able to understand what was going on in my situation. God forbid you go to an emergency room on the weekend when bariatric doctors don't work. I was given an I.V because I was dehydrated and they did a CatScan to see what was going on. Well it just so happens that my band slipped all the way to the top of my stomach. The E.R doc said that my stomach is the size of an 18 month old baby but that I should be o.k for another week or so until I get back into town. It struck me as being a little odd since I'm not able to hold down any fluids or food. I'm now stuck in limbo with what I should do. My doc back home won't be back in the office until Tuesday so even if I did go back he wouldn't be able to see me until then. All I want is for this band to be taken out for good! I've suffered so much and I'm just so sick and tired of all the complications I've had. With that said I haven't even listed everything that has gone wrong. I'm miserable!!!!:w00t::smile2:

[KelinTx 1]

I hope you will keep us posted when you find out why this happened! I am in shock that this occurred within 6 months of being banded. If i may ask....were you compliant with the post op dietary rules, im just curious.

[josephine 1]

I am sure you are miserable and would love to get the band out of you but there must be something you are not doing correctly. Unfortunately you have to wait until Tuesday to see your doctor, most likely they will give you an unfill if you have a fill and ask you to probably go on a liquid diet for awhile. You wouldn't have gotten this band unless you needed the help with your weight issues.

It is excellent that you vented. As you can see no one didn't know what to say to you because you didn't ask for help or support. I believe you just needed to be listened to. You are or have been doing incredible as far as your weight loss so don't let other mishaps get you down. I know you haven't explained other issues you have had but, think about it, are they your errors? Do you need to rethink this and try treating your band in a different way? You need to teach the band, don't let the band run your life as it won't teach you anything except how to throw up if your treat it wrong.

Josephine

[ParrotheadCathy 0]

I agree with Josephine. You've gotten it off your chest in a place where others do understand your feelings. I would head back here to Atlanta, see your surgeon and see what he says. I have read where others have had band slippage and their doctors have put them on a "full liquid" (you'll remember the cream Soups, yogurt, cottage cheese, juices, milk, Protein Shakes, etc.) for a period of time and in most of those cases, their bands have slipped back to where they belong. For me, I would want a good discussion on what made the band slip in the first place so that if I inadvertently did something that made it slip, I could avoid it in the future. But the main thing here is to see your doctor as soon as possible and find out what he recommends. And, please, let us all know what he says and how you're feeling. Here's hoping you tell us you're feeling MUCH BETTER.

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

I am sure you are miserable and would love to get the band out of you but there must be something you are not doing correctly. Unfortunately you have to wait until Tuesday to see your doctor, most likely they will give you an unfill if you have a fill and ask you to probably go on a liquid diet for awhile. You wouldn't have gotten this band unless you needed the help with your weight issues.

It is excellent that you vented. As you can see no one didn't know what to say to you because you didn't ask for help or support. I believe you just needed to be listened to. You are or have been doing incredible as far as your weight loss so don't let other mishaps get you down. I know you haven't explained other issues you have had but, think about it, are they your errors? Do you need to rethink this and try treating your band in a different way? You need to teach the band, don't let the band run your life as it won't teach you anything except how to throw up if your treat it wrong.

Josephine

WHAT???

What makes you think the OP "must be doing something incorrectly?" There are potentially a great number of things that can go wrong for someone who has done everything absolutely right.

To automatically blame the person for doing something wrong is assuming the band is free of complications and that's just dead wrong. I don't like the blame game, I did everything absolutely right and lost my band anyway. There are a great number of things that the person has no control over.

Please don't assume someone is doing something wrong when the band does not work and causes misery and grief.

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

There are many people who have the band and it works fine for a period of time.

Then, all of a sudden it does not anymore. Maybe the stomach just doesn't like having a big piece of silicone wrapped around it?

[di1138 8]

Are you sure it is band related? It seems everyone I know is having a stomach virus. Maybe you are sick?

[Elisabethsew 50]

So I've had the band since November 20, 2008. The good news is that I've lost about 55lbs since the last time I checked (about 2 weeks ago) the bad news is that I'm having serious complications and no one is able to help me. Let me explain........ I orginally had my surgery in Atlanta, GA by Dr.Steinberg (great doc). I've been out of town the past three weeks on business and for the past week I haven't been able to eat or barely hold liquids down. At first I thought I had a piece of food stuck so I assummed in time it would pass (my mistake). Well after letting almost a week go by I decided to take myself to the emergency room in Tampa, Florida. Big freak'n mistake! It was almost like my issue was foreign to them. No one was truely able to understand what was going on in my situation. God forbid you go to an emergency room on the weekend when bariatric doctors don't work. I was given an I.V because I was dehydrated and they did a CatScan to see what was going on. Well it just so happens that my band slipped all the way to the top of my stomach. The E.R doc said that my stomach is the size of an 18 month old baby but that I should be o.k for another week or so until I get back into town. It struck me as being a little odd since I'm not able to hold down any fluids or food. I'm now stuck in limbo with what I should do. My doc back home won't be back in the office until Tuesday so even if I did go back he wouldn't be able to see me until then. All I want is for this band to be taken out for good! I've suffered so much and I'm just so sick and tired of all the complications I've had. With that said I haven't even listed everything that has gone wrong. I'm miserable!!!!:thumbup::thumbup::laugh:

Please don't think that you caused the slip. Obviously, you were doing everything right since you lost a significant amount of weight.

The fact is, slips and erosions do occur for no reason and the band simply is not for everyone. I lived in misery with mine for 3 years and just revised to the VSG on 4/1. I suffered from constant heart burn, acid reflux, and could no longer sleep in bed despite not eating or drinking a thing for 6 hours or more before going to bed. I followed the rules and tried the acid blocking drugs and could no longer deal with the quality of life the band afforded me.

Sometimes, the band fails the person... not the other way around. I hope you feel better soon and keep us updated on your outcomes.

[39andholding 0]

Are you still in Florida, or stuck for very long? Maybe you can consult Dr. Grossbard in Zephyrhills. Medical care in the Tampa Bay area does seem back-asswards in many respects. So I feel your pain.

[dispatchc15 3]

Hello Oregondaisy,

I have been schedule to have the lap band in Monterrey, Mexico on May 18th by Dr Zapata. Just wondering are you still going with the swine flu going on the Mexico? Now I'm a little afraid of going.

[kerimezz77 0]

Wow,

I had mine the same day. I think I remember you. I am Keri, and had mine at 1pm that day. I am praying for you. I have lost about 49lbs, and have "knock on wood" no complications.

Keri

[winthropgrad08 0]

Update***

Firstly, I wanted to thank everyone for all the information and responses in general. I ended up driving back to Atlanta first thing Monday morning where my GREAT surgeon Dr.Steinberg insisted I see him ASAP. He was completely taken back by how horrible the treatment was at Memorial Hospital. He told me firstly that there was no reason for a catscan to be performed and that in fact the should have completed an xray for a much better image. Secondly, he couldn't understand how someone who wasn't a specialist would conclude that a band slipped when in fact it DIDN'T. That darn doctor in the ER really had no clue what he was looking at. Needless to say after see my REAL doctor in Atlanta he realized that my stomach was having a really really bad reaction to possibably something I ate, neither of us were sure why. My stomach was so swollen that it looked wrapped around my band. When I drank the barium it just sat at the top of my stomach because it was so inflammed. He took out all the Fluid which released all the tension in my stomach. I am feeling almost 100% better now.

For those who are reading this who are considering the band you need to realize that it's a learning process. Not everything will go as planned and you won't have the answers to everything. It can be a real struggle at times and it takes A LOT of work along with dedication. It's not a quick fix and it's a lifetime commitment. I love that I'm losing the weight but in the mean time you shouldn't be completely miserable with the experience. Each day that goes by I'm learning something new about my body and the band.

Thanks again to everyone who responded and allowing me to vent out my frustrations. What a long journey this has been.

[circa 0]

glad to hear you got it all worked out! hopefully that will be the end of your issues.

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

Just remember if this happens again, that it is not your fault. If you follow the rules and still have problems, you will join many of us who had band problems in spite of doing everything we were told. That is why I had mine removed and got the sleeve. I will now have restriction for life without another fill or unfill. Those fills and unfills were just too much of a problem for me to keep dealing with.