SuzanneG

Thanks emjay and Mimi. I actually think I'm going to ask him to leave the Fluid out of my band for a while. For the moment I'm doing better without it and I feel amazing being able to eat real food. I think I'll just continue to enjoy it until I lose my mojo of losing with no band help, then I'll start with tiny fills when I start struggling. A lifetime of dieting has taught me that this too shall pass, but for now, I'm in the zone and I'm losing on my own. Mimi, please be careful, a too tight band is what caused my slip. Just food for thought.

Wow, Mimi, be careful. Being too tight is what got me into this mess in the first place. My surgery is scheduled for August 16th. So far, I've lost 2 pounds since he removed my Fluid. HUGE difference being able to EAT AGAIN!!! Yay! Nothing's changed for you? Still having trouble? Mabye you could request a specific amount? Mine was taking out .1cc each time, then .5cc and each time my band would tighten back up on it's own. It totally SUCKED. I'm going to be very cautious and conservative on fills this next time around!

Thanks Mimi, How are you doing now? Weren't you having symptoms of too tight also?

I just hung up with my doctor. He wants me to have revision surgery to reposition my band. He thinks I have a slip and I have a small hiatal hernia. I'm a little worried about future slips since I've read that if you slip once, it can happen again. Anyone have a slip fixed and it held? How about one that didn't? Either way, I have to try since my insurance doesn't pay for the sleeve yet and I'm afraid of gastric bypass. I'm waiting for his office to call me to schedule the surgery. The really tricky part is that I'm about to change jobs, now I have to try to squeeze in 1 week of post-op in between jobs. Just my luck. Meanwhile, it has been wonderful to be able to eat real food again. After a year and a 1/2 of being too tight, I haven't even craved a single sweet since he took all the Fluid out of my band. I hope I can get back on track and get the rest of this weight back off. Wish me luck.

For me, I buy the Skinny Cow or WW ice cream in single servings, like the nutty buddies, the ice cream cookie bars, etc. Then I allow myself one per day as my snack. I could never be trusted with ice cream in a 1/2 gallon or quart container. How could I stop? ha ha

Mimi, I guess it's true that great minds think alike! :-)

I had problems with getting too tight even when tests revealed my band was loose. We're still trying to figure it out. Right now all Fluid is out of my band and I feel 100% better. However, has anyone mentioned gallbladder to you? That sounds like it could be your gb. Keep us posted.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Sharon, You sound like you are having very similar problem as me. I'm having my second endoscopy done tomorrow, but I doubt they will see anything. They did one last October and it showed that everything was fine. The only problem with that was that my symptoms slowly got worse. Not sure what they will find tomorrow, but after reading LBT my symptoms are consistent with a slip. However, when they check me, they say my band looks fine. I read where a couple of people had the same experience and they took the Fluid out for a few weeks, then put it back in and things were better, until it happened again. I don't know what they are going to do with next. Let's keep in touch and compare notes.

How can you get an endoscopy with Fluid in your band? Are you sure they didn't remove it first? I've had one since banding and they took all the fluid out, did the endo, then put the fluid back in. I'm having another one tomorrow, the doc took out all my fluid last Friday. I was having symptoms of being too tight one minute and I could eat like a lumber jack the next. I also had heartburn and nausea. Both heartburn and nausea are symptoms of being too tight, but I've had fluro, pressure test (new way to test pressure in the band), and endo, all say my band placement is perfect and nothing looks out of place. After doing some research on here, it almost looks to me like it could be a slip. Some folks say your band can slip in and out of place, so that it appears fine during tests but slip out of place randomly. Why did your doc order the endo to begin with? What kind of problems were you having? I'll be very curious to see what they do wtih me. My doc kept telling me my band was loose, but I was PBing on Soup, yet starving. Bad combo for sure. BTW, as for fill room, I've heard they can fill your band to capacity and even a little beyond that, so hopefully they will be able to get you to correct restriction. Let us know what they find out.

I was low BMI when I started and my insurance company denied me the first time through. Don't be surprised if you get denied as I think many insurance companies automatically deny anyone who isn't Iron clad with the requirements. Be prepared to appeal and if you don't get through on the first try, you likely will on the appeal. Save the weight gain as a last resort, but it would probably work too. I have offered my appeal letters up many times on this site and have shared them with many people with 100% success. If you end up needing an appeal, I'd be happy to send you what I have for a sample. Good luck to you and let us know how it turns out!

You definitely need a fill, you are in Bandster Hell. It's tough, but you'll get through it. Try to focus on low carb and high protien and that will help alot with the cravings and your weight. Plan some healthy Snacks that will allow you to munch without ruining your weight loss efforts. For me, calorie counting is very sobering if you are eating too much. Not a long-term fix because it's too much trouble, but if you count your calories for a few days, it'll help give you pause the next time you reach for the double cheeseburger. Call your doctor and schedule a fill ASAP. Keep us posted and good luck to you!

I would eat what you feel comfortable with, your body will give you honest feedback. As long as you aren't gaining inches, I wouldn't worry too much about the scales. Especially being a man, you have a lot of muscle and if you are building on that, the muscle you gain will weigh more than the fat that you are burning off. I know for me when I'm working out, I def have to eat more and I never lose weight, but I do drop in size which for me is the most important thing. Keep up the good work, you're doing great!

Dang, I just discovered Muscle Milk and liked it. Anything on Unjury? That's my gold standard.

Definitely sounds like you need a slight unfill. If you keep going the way you are, you'll do what I did and develop some seriously bad eating habits. Soft foods are inharently higher in calories. Do yourself a favor and call, you'll be glad you did.

So glad you are feeling better. Being too tight is never a good thing.

Oh, OK. I have family in Cincy. South Point is right across the river from Huntington, WV and Ashland, KY. Not too far from you....

Andrea, What did you decide to do? How are you now?

I think you'll be glad you called. Let us know how you are doing after your appt.

Thanks emjay. BTW, what part of Ohio are you in? I'm originally from South Point, OH.

I just had my Fluid removed for the same reason. Do you feel better since having the fulid out? I feel 100% better. I had nausea, vomiting, and heartburn....all GONE. Now the question is, where do I go from here?

You should definitely call your doctor and have a tiny unfill. Being too tight is really bad for you and can ultimately make you gain weight.

Well, they took ALL of my Fluid out on Friday. I was at 6.8 in a 10cc band. My symptoms are all gone! I feel amazing. I'm going to try to do WW until we can figure out what to do about this. The doctor's office is supposed to call me mid-week to see how I'm feeling. He's asked for an endoscopy for this Friday, but I feel like I don't need one. I'm not sure where we'll go from here. I'll keep you guys posted.

Thanks emjay, I'll keep you posted.

Fret, Why would you go 5 years without finding out what is wrong? You didn't say what your symptoms are but some things to check would be gallbladder and band tightness. I've had a rough year myslef with many of the same symptoms. My gallbladder checked out fine so the next step for me is that they are going to remove all of my Fluid on Friday and see if my problems ease up. I don't know if you noticed how old the original post is, but I just thought I should point that out. Good luck to you.