Duncan730

I am still struggling. My small fill really has not made much of a diffrence. Hopefully soon I can get another small fill to get me back on track.

1. I chose the lab band in 07 because it was the least invasive and not permanent. At the time about 50 percent of my coworkers all had wls and they all were looking sickly after their weightloss surgeries. So I did not want to look like that at 25. So I went with the band because I felt I had some control. 2. In the beginning I did but it was the side effect of the anesthesia. 3 months out stopped and I haven’t had any issues since. Unless I go under anesthesia then my hair thins out again. 3. The only thing I can’t eat is bread. We are sworn enemies. Some dry meets but I take my time chewing and I have not had any issues. 4.since the beginning I knew this was the right decision for me. If you are not sure before the surgery then I would wait and do some more research on the other options. 5. Staying active by walking, treadmill or elliptical, not eating after 7 pm. Always meeting my protein and calorie goal for the day. It is super easy to not meet your goals since you tend to not to be hungry until you are starving. I am told a dairy helps but It is just too much for me to do during my already busy day. I will tell you this. With the band For me I feel that yes it is least invasive but has high maintenance. Remember you may have monthly visits for fills and don’t forget that you may have some discomfort with your port area once you start loosing weight. Mine has shifted a little and i have to wrap the site when I work out to stop it from being sore. You must keep your appointments for follow up and really be careful when you are years out to follow your restrictions because you can stretch you esophagus and have to deal with pain and heartburn when that happens. I had this happen to me in January and I had to empty my band. After 7 months I am now slowly back on track with my fills. Best of luck with you decision!

Hi, I am 11 years out with my band and I recently dealt with this issue. In January I was suffering with stomach pains right under my band and was having a lot of stuck issues with even mushy foods so I went in to get some tests because I thought I had to get rid of my band. Well it turns out that i had a small hernia and a dilated esophagus. The none surgical fix was to empty my band. My band was empty for 7 months. In the mean time I did gain back 28 lbs but most of that was due to not being able to be physical (I had surgery a month later and had an ovary removed.)and snacking all day from boredom. I had another swallow test on July 30th and everything is back to normal so I got my first fill that day. Did your doctor say how long to be on liquids? Mine actually told me that I had a choice empty my band and allow my body to heal or consider a revision. I chose time to heal. My I chose my band over everything else because it was the least invasive and not a final decision. So I am back at it again. Slowly getting fills chewing until my jaw hurts and counting my protein intake. Maybe getting a timeline for your reset may help. I know my pains did not stop for about 3 months. It took a long time for the swelling to go down and no time at all for all my bad food habits to come back. When you eat do you feel your esophagus move in like a wave motion? I had that going on. When I had my swallow test the radiologist said he never seen this happen before. I was so scared thinking I messed myself up and was going to loose my band. But in the end I just needed time to heal.