desertmom

Hi I had the band 30 April and have had a lot of abdominal pain and reflux since then.I have lost 50 pounds.Gained only 3 while on holiday this summer (miracle I should say!!) I am frustrated because at this point I am living with the reflux and outeating the band......meaning grazing to much carbs during the day...BUT...even though I am having problems I think the band can work really well if you dont have complications.....

hi I think a lot of us ask the same question while on liquids but it really gets better as far as the eating's concerned..... Just keep the faith and stick it out,it is really going to be ok. Get some slim Soup.Low cal and very satisfying.Also, Optimel liquid yogurt is great.Dont torture yourself at this stage by not eating enough "nice" liquids.... Hope you feel better soon..

Hi I definetely know that my dr uses something different than saline.I forgot to check the name of it.Will find out what it is when I go back.

hi My dr put me on a fat free diet for 2 weeks.Everytime I said I would do liquids for that time he said no,no.... fat free only.Fasting 12 hours pre-op.

hi Nexium and Zantac and bob's my uncle......I feel one hundred persent better at the moment.If I eat to late at night or eat to much still have heartburn but if I behave the medication helps a lot.Also no calsium channel blockers for me....changed my bloodpressure meds to and that has helped as well. ok,just thought I'd say.....at the moment I love the band again....I losing weight and feeling ok......

hi It is so good to hear that you are doing so well. Yo-yo dieting, losing and gaining 100 pounds every 2 years for like the past 15 years have changed my size.I started at 318 pounds pre-op and am 273 now.Size started at 30 and is now 26.Age of course also plays a big role....... Keep up the good work!!!!!!

hi I take prevacid everyday.I also got the reflux when I would try to exercise.Now I swim a little but no real exercise....bad bad.....I tried for about 6 weeks (after the initial 3 weeks...) and well,reflux reflux. Prevacid and less Water.....I know this sounds strange but drinking to much water seemed to make it worse.And I chew sugar free gum and that helps for the reflux and heartburn....I dont know why....I read about it on a website..... Hope it goes away......

hi Dont underestemate South Africa.There is more band dr's now than we realize.I am from the capital Pretoria and depending on where you are going (big city versus small town..)there will definetely be fill dr's,dont worry about that. A lot more weightloss surgery there than before.Even an operation where they just do the lower limb malnutrition switch of the RNY and people lose a lot of weight and keep it off.(I was still to scared for that...) Good luck with having your band replaced.Relax and dont worry.SA as far as being banded's concerned will be a breeze.

This band is just the strangest thing.I can eat any type of meat cooked any way but all vegetables and all fruit gives me heartburn and reflux. When I eat only meat the heartburn seems way less.......

My best friend in this country.For 4 days after the operation she visited and then 2 days later asked me to go for coffee (we go out a lot in this place)I said I wasnt feeling up to it yet.The next day she phoned to say we should go to a movie,I wasnt feeling up to that.Then we went over for supper and I couldnt eat,was still on liquids and that was that. We have been excluded from our Friday brunches (Friday is Sunday here and everyone goes brunch buffet at hotels)Even when having cookouts at home we havent been included.Everytime she needed to talk about something I saw her and finally she didnt even say goodbye when leaving for summer...... Must say she is a very spoilt person and everyone dances a lot to her tune.I never minded it because I could still keep my distance when I wanted but well,enough is enough and that is not friendship. You never know the people you call your friend for long because everyone is only here for a few years at a time and then move on again... Anyhow,people that I didnt consider my friend actually showed more friendship in the past 3 months than I knew possible.So this is a good learning experience as well. I must say what with heartburn and reflux in afternoon we havent been social like before and dont entertain like before.That will surely change after summer.

I just cannot understand that more of his patients are not experiencing the same symptoms that I have.Some are on Pariet and Nexium but I couldnt find one that had this "bubbling liquid" in the throat like I have.I dont really think that the problem is only food related.Sometimes when I havent eaten anything it is as bad as just after a meal. Anyway,I will definately do something about this after my holiday.Summer here is just difficult.I dont think he even does operations here in summer.I have made contact with more of the local patients and will start a support group later this year.Then I suppose one might see if anyone else have the same issues. It is just no different with liquids.Even when my stomach is empty I sometimes "gurgle,gargle,dont know the right word....fluid.. Not having a pouch doesnt make any sense to me.I just wish it was different.I didnt have the other ops to not have complications.who knew that I would have these problems. I will go to another local dr that does the band and see what he says about it.Point is unless I am willing to pay another 12000 dollars what is my options?And having experienced this,who would pay that much to take another risk of not knowing if it would be different (my dr says even if he moved the band my body would most likely react the same to it again.....) Anyhow,no use crying over spilled milk as they say.....Life goes on.But this has really changed my outlook on things a little.A stupid thing like swallowing or not being able to can really ruin one's day quite easily.

hi I am doing better.The very bad heartburn seems to be gone.I still have lot of Fluid in my throat and real difficulty swallowing at times.Sometimes starts in morning even before I have eaten anything and some days only starts at 16:00. It seems that one can learn to live with everything though and seeing as there is no answers for me, that is what I am doing.It is not comfortable and I dont by any stretch of the immagination feel normal or even like before but I have run out of options about this.It is still very disapointing to me that I have to live like this now but again,options?I drink Pariet,Librax,Rennies and anything else the dr feel I should to try and relieve this. My frustration is that I dont have restriction and I need to make this band work and lose weight so I can have it removed again.Yes,that seems to be the dr's answer for my problems but I am not going to let him do that until I got some value for my money from this band. I have lost a huge amount of centimeters already and 43 pounds so all was not in vain. I still hope that whatever is causing this will just dissapear one day and I will be like all the other bandsters. Thought the band helped one lose weight.Never thought it would be heartburn and reflux and not being able to swallow that would make me lose weight.Oh,by the way,how do you skip a fill?

:think Hi I've had 2 fills.4cc in 9cc band.First fill didnt feel much...second fill lasted for 2 weeks and just like that all restriction gone again..... We are going on a yacht cruise in 3 weeks time and I am scared to go for a fill before then.But I can eat a lot again and when it is physically possible I seem to struggle with my head a lot............gained 4 pounds this week...... How long does restriction last after 3rd fill? Thanks

ok stop!!!! I have done exactly the same the past week and for 4 days have eaten "normal" amounts and food.Still same portions than my 4 year old. but I kept on nibbling stuff all the time.Yip,diet ice cream (2) crisps low fat (2) yogurt full fat.....little block of chocolate (havent done that since banding) even had 2 slices of toats...... And everyday the scale just moved up and up... Today do something drastic.Sit down and decide what you are going to eat for the day.Plan it and do it...drink your Water.Look at yourself in the mirror.... If all else fails do the cabbage Soup diet (LOL)I am......and it sucks but Protein with veg seems like heaven now.... OK,I am doing therapy for myself in your threat,sorry........

hi Rene, I have side effects.And yes one can manage it but it would have been prefrable not to have to....Had these problems since the first day after banding.Never had it before.Am a model patient.Hate the idea that people think one does this to yourself with wrong eating or drinking.I have "cheated" with food twice in 10 weeks and in my previous life that would have been considered a small snack. Heartburn and reflux.Im not very restricted but only able to eat 90 grams of either fish or chicken breast most days twice a day as I am restricted in the morning.(Physically Im able to eat a lot more though...but reflux dont allow it...)Almost anything else gives me heartburn. I am losing weight fast because I really cannot eat a lot and dont.i cannot drink anything but water and havent for almost, heck I dont even know,more than a month... It is not easy but when everyone mentions that I am losing weight it is worth it.I just dont know the long term selution to this problem.I also know that my experience is not the rule.Most peoples band is positioned differently and works just fine. Just read and see how many people,after about 4 weeks,say I dont even know I have the band....until I eat to fast...... Good luck

-has it gone away? -how long did it take to go away? -do you take meds everyday? -everyone says you need to go get tested, etc. how long do you wait before you go to your doctor? -can a prescription usually cure it? Hi No it hasnt. Taking meds everyday but on good days I tend to want to not take it but like today I have. Got tested after 8 weeks.Barium swallow (band is placed high-dr says that is his method..)H Pylori,negative....dont know what else to do.... Prescription keeps it under control for a lot of people.Most people in fact. Keep the faith,it might just take a while to resolve.Start taking Prevacid.I take it now and it is much better than anything else before that.I still have bad days when nothing helps.Then I sip luke warm Water all day to just help me keep my voice..... What does Aloe Vera do?

hi I have a cousin band (french) that takes 9cc of saline.There is a british board that Im on and a huge amount of the woman there are going to this dr for the band.I cannot find longterm patients of his but the longest is one year and she takes prevacid everyday to stop reflux and heartburn.Some say they get it only if a fill is to tight. I really dont know what the long term implications of this might be.The dr is so popular and is banding a huge number of people. My problem is I stay in the middle east and I am selfpay. Do I want to spend another 30000dhs at another dr now?I want this guy to fix whatever the problem is and at his cost.I payed for a service and as far as Im concerned if the issues are not resolved I didnt get the service I payed for. O,they say he creates a virtual pouch but not a real one.I am not even confused about this anymore just irritated by the lack of real information I can get.I understand that if food will sit in the esophagus it will dilate.It will aslo wear out the lower sphincter if it is placed to close to it. I would also never recommend someone to trust the medical care here.My opinion has changed all together over the past few months.I have had to take a very firm stance the past few weeks and insist on the barium and fluro and insist on being tested for H Pylori.I will know the results of that tomorrow and actually hope that it is positive just so that maybe when that is treated I might be fine after all. Anyhow,Im having a good day today and will not complain on my good days. Bad days however is a different thing. Anyhow,I am on a lot of medication now and some days it seems to work and some days not.I am losing weight however and will give this a chance to see if I dont just have a gastritis or something.

Hi (another hijack) Alexandra,I have really tried everything to get to the bottom of what is wrong.Am going for H Pylori urea breath test on Saturday.Had barium and fluro to see posistion and flow of the band.Radiologist said proximal displacement of the band, my dr says thats the way he places the band. It seems he doesnt creat a pouch,places band high and fixed to the esophagus,he has never had a slippage in 1200 patient but it seems that more people than just me take protronpump inhibitors so more people must have heartburn and reflux problems.It comes and goes and the dr really treated me like nothing was wrong and I have to just accept that. Thing is I was totally prepared for the band.Totally positive about it.Researched it for 2 years,exited about the fact that I will lose weight.I totally dont feel the band or "side effects" in the morning until round about 16:00 in the afternoon when all this starts.I never knew that heartburn can absolutely overshadow everything else in one's life.It is such an awfull feeling.Sometimes even my voice changes completely and I cannot swallow.I have to concentrate all the time to swallow. I started having these symptoms directly after the operation.It doesnt seem food related at all and everytime for the first few days after a fill I have no symptoms at all. Living in the middle east doesnt make this easy and I will go see a Dr in South Africa in December when I go on holiday to find out if he thinks something is wrong. I know this is not normal.I can see from everyone else's experience that this can be such a positive thing.The 39 pounds is just because I have decided to take advantage of this and lose as fast as possible.I need to benefit from having done this one way or the other. O, the dr actually told me that a very small persentage patients reject the band and I might be one.I had a temptrature the first week that well just was and then slowly went away.My own theory is that the band is placed to high and that the dr just dont want to reband me.My concern however is the long term damage to my esophagus but again dr says there will be none. Sorry for long "high jack".I have been so desperate and am now having to make peace with the fact that help isnt just around the corner and this might be as good as its gonna get until I remove this band.I live day by day and will see how long I can last like this.It seems the moment they took my money that was it.I was on my own. Anyhow,I surely cant find many people with same problems but the one's I can had the band removed which I dont want to do.Being self pay is of course a big concern and I dont want to spend all my savings on this. Ok,enough.I still believe that the band is a good idea.With the other surgeries the complications,when they happen, is too huge and sometimes untreatable (is there a word like that?)

hi I hate this band.I have had severe heartburn,reflux and spasms in my esophagus.I dont get any sign of being full and half an hour after eating even 4oz I want to explode....I have a very restricted feeling physically around my chest area.I get so thirsty that I cant speak sometimes....(I drink at least 2liters of Water every day) Have this changed my life? Yes and sometimes adjusting to this is so hard because I can only drink water and eat like 3oz of Protein at a time.2x a day mostly.....No social eating or drinking,going out and even walking through the mall causes pain in my stomach.Do we know what is wrong?No,the band is very high on my esophagus but the dr says rebanding wouldnt change anything.......so,Pariet helps a lot...(same as Prevacid)I cannot do any exercise that makes me "shake" or move to fast but I can walk. Would I do this again?I think so.I have lost 39 pounds in 2 months and I really have hope of getting thin.I am low carbing all the time which is tough but if I dont I dont lose weight. I am going to work with this band for 12 months and if my symptoms havent changed I will make a different plan. Most people say:"I love my band" and I dont understand that because I feel so bad at times but it seems that almost all are very happy with it.I get so jealous because I had high hopes of this improving my life (which it will if only I lose weight.)

hi EMLA is a cream that you can use to numb the skin area completely.We used it is SA for my child that had a skin implant every month and now here in Dubai I buy it at any pharmacy.It is a topicat anaesthetic. Ask your pharmasist about it maybe you need a script for it there.Here you can buy practically anything without prescription. For me it really works.Dont even need a skin local when doing fill...

hi I have a big band and it seems that there is more problems with the amount in them.I am on another board where most members get the big band and when you read there you can clearly see that there is issues with amounts. I live in the Middle East and the band surgeon comes form Belgium ( he does half of the British ladies that get bands in Belgium) It is very,very hot here in summer.Already 42 degrees Celsius and will climb to 50 soon.I wonder if that is why they are doing this.Mind you,I am seeing him again early next week and will ask what the stuff is that they use now and why they seem to think the bands lose some saline.

My friend had her op end Feb and she just phoned me from Saudi a few days ago.She had to cut her hair short.She was losing a lot and it thinned a lot.It does seem to be around 4 months that people lose more hair.I know for a fact that my friend is not eating enough protein...she likes carbs a lot and eats rice, bread (battle but eating it..) and poridge a lot....

Hi I was also very scared the first time.It was actually a good experience.I do put EMLA on the portsite half an hour to one hour before I go to dr.That way he doesnt even give me numbing injection.Emla numbs the skin area and I dont even feel the needle.All I feel is when he feels for the port but I must say he has been spot on everytime. Dont worry it will be ok..

hi I went for my second fill today and the dr told me that they are not going to use saline anymore and he removed all the saline.He then proceeded to put in something that he says have a higher density molecular structure than saline and will not evaporate.He took out a full 2cc that he put in the band 2 weeks ago so no leak there.....I am so sorry I didnt ask the name of it.He did say that the saline tends to dissapear "little little" from the band.So I have 4cc of something else in the band.......

I started feeling ready for water an hour after food.Then I would eat a 15 calorie sugar free ice lolly (10 minutes...)then I would start sipping water until next mealtime.Yes, I get hungry fast but try to stick to water until mealtimes.....(sometimes its tough though)