teachermommy832

That is really strange! I have to crush my Metformin, and if I have to take Darvocet for my headaches, I have to crush those too. The only pills I don't have to crush are my Levoxyl and my BP meds.

My surgeon took my off of Metformin (for PCOS) and Spirnolactone the day of surgery, but when I went for my appt with my endo 3 months later, she put me back on my 1500 mg dosage. My testosterone levels had actually gone up instead of down, so I'm not free of the horse pills (which I have to crush) just yet.

Hi Lisa, I've asked that same question myself. My doctor had just switched over to the Realize band when he did my surgery, so I definitely feel a little guinea-piggish right about now. I guess I'll have to see how this plays out over the next couple months. So awesome to hear from another Houston teacher and mommy!

Hi Everyone, I hope y'all can give me some insight, because I'm at my wits' end. I've had my Realize band for 5 months, and the last 4 have been hell. I vomit at least once a day, and have developed severe reflux. For the past 2 days, I have not been able to eat/hold down any food, not even soft foods or "liquids" such as grits. I've lost 56 pounds, but I am absolutely miserable. I don't want my surgeon to remove my band, but I can't continue to live like this. I am terrified of gaining this weight back, because I couldn't get it off without the band before. Has anyone else experienced this? Your insight would be greatly appreciated.

Hi BJean...I did have the scope procedure on 12/1, and the results were normal. No damage to my esophagus, no slippage, nothing. Thankfully, I've actually been able to get some soft foods down these past few days along with shakes--I almost cried when I was able to get down some macaroni and cheese for lunch yesterday without throwing up once. (This was even more special to me because I'd left my Breakfast and lunch shakes at home by accident, and the mac and cheese was my "emergency stash"!) Dr. Davis told me at my appointment on Thursday that he was able to "stretch out" my band a little bit with the scope instrument, which explains the vast improvement. I can literally feel a difference--before he told me that, I noticed that I didn't feel nearly as tight, and the constant pressure in my chest had eased. He is monitoring me for the next month, and if I do well with the shakes/soft foods diet, he'll hold off on removing the band until I get closer to my goal weight. I am cautiously optimistic, and feeling a LOT better. Thanks for checking on me!

How interesting...my surgeon is Dr. Garth Davis! I am sorry to hear that you are having a similar experience. I only received one fill, and from the moment I got that fill, the hell started. My surgery was June 12, and with the exception of vomiting that kept me in the hospital overnight, I was fine. The first month was great--I lost steadily and had no problems with eating. I started having problems keeping food down soon after my fill in July, which caused them to remove 2 of the 3 CCs they put in. I continued to get worse, so in September, they completely unfilled me. You would think that I would be able to eat, but instead, I developed severe reflux and vomiting. Most days, if I can get a half-cup of Soup down without vomiting, that's an achievement. Dr. Garth wanted to put me in the hospital Thanksgiving Day, but I held him off by going on all Protein shakes until my scope procedure on Tuesday. He suspects that I am suffering from "band intolerance"--apparently my body isn't liking this band at all. He wants to revise to RNY, but that scares the crap outta me! I keep trying to tell myself that this isn't my fault, but it's really hard to accept that the one method that has actually worked in my weight loss battle may be making me very sick. I appreciate the feedback everyone, and I'm glad to know that I'm not alone, particularly in my saga with the Davis Clinic.

I too may have to have my band removed. I have had nausea, constant vomiting, and an inability to keep food down for 4 of the 5 months I've had this band. I am supposed to have a scope procedure on Dec. 1, but I may have to go to the ER today---not my idea of a happy Thanksgiving. Please keep us posted on your progress.

Hi Everyone, The last month hasn't been a cakewalk to say the least. When I got my first fill in July, my dr put in 3 cc. The first few days were cool, and I lost another 7 pounds. Unfortunately, things went south from that point. I began to have daily stuck episodes, particularly with my first meal of the day. It got so bad that even Soups with noodles or vegetables got stuck. Two weeks ago, I went in for what was supposed to be my 2nd fill, by they wound up taking out 0.3 cc plus air after I described my symptoms. Apparently, daily stuck episodes aren't normal. They had me to come back in two weeks which was this past Thursday (Aug. 27). I'd had no change in the stuck episodes, and no weight loss. He did a complete unfill this time. Doc thinks that my esophagus is spasming, which could cause the stuck episodes. When I got on the scale this morning, I'd actually gained 2 pounds. Does anyone have any suggestions on what I should do? I don't want to undo my progress, but I'd like to eat without being in excruciating pain!! Losing more weight would be great too, especially since I'm nearly three months into this journey!!!

Hey Restless, Thanks so much for your advice. Unfortunately I had two bad vomiting episodes this week. That really scared me because even with the problems, I hadn't vomited since the night of the surgery. I went straight to the hospital from the clinic after getting sick at work. They did an upper GI study, and nothing had slipped, so that was a huge relief. My doc is still at a loss as to why I started throwing up AFTER the unfill, so I'm on liquids for 7 days. I took your advice, especially on the Water intake and chewing, but the only thing I can get down easily is Soup and liquids. I'm really beginning to wonder if I'll ever eat normal food again. If you have anything else to share, I'd appreciate it.

Hi everyone! I'm 2 weeks post-op, and I wanted to share a few of my before/during pics. The 1st one is from about a month before surgery; the 2nd one is 1 week post-op.

I think HELL isn't a strong enough word to describe his staff LOL. I almost switched doctors at the last minute because of the BS they put me through. I definitely agree that they are not fans of the band, but they will do it if they feel the patient can handle it. Did I mention that their staff sucks? (ha ha)