BarbaraWM

I have had several unfills over the last year. Once it was just an overfill being corrected but the others were exactly as you describe above. In fact, I am online right now because I can't sleep. I gag lying down and have pain sitting up. This is after post nasal drip from a bad cold followed by a vomiting incident on Sunday. I thought I was doing ok but the irritation is too much so I will have to get an emergency unfill tomorrow. I have also done the barium swallow and everything was fine...it was just irritation, not the band slipping. It seems what you want to know is how do you cope without the tool working at its peak condition? The first unfil, I gained 9 pounds in a month. The 2nd, I lost a few pounds in a month or so and the last unfill was perfect. I have lost 17 pounds in about 8 weeks, so right on track. Even if you gain a pound or two during your recovery, you will get filled again and that weight will come right off. After every fill I've felt re-committed to doing it better/right and it has worked. I have lost 125 pounds in 13 months, and that's with 3 unfills. You will be fine. Just live with it until you can get back to where you need to be.

I have had a similar experience and gone though days and days of pain. I am awake right now at 3:40am because when I lie down I gag and vomit but when I sit up I have constant pain across my lower ribs. The poster who said to empty and start over is probably right. I may do the same thing.

I feel like I finally have an "after" picture. I still have more to go and I'm fairly disgusted by all my loose skin but I'm healthy, feel good and the cosmetics can be fixed. I said it before and I really do mean it, Lapband surgery was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

Wow! I just posted on my blog about my band slip too and then I read your story. Mine was because of vomiting as well but I was very lucky and did not require surgery. The pain I had, the night gagging, vomiting liquids, inability to eat or drink was definitely serious! Anyone who thinks a band slipping is not that serious hasn't experienced how awful it feels. My doctor said it is an emergency when a band slips and should not be ignored. I am working on sticking to the plan better so I don't have the experience again. I hope your recovery goes smoothly and congratulations on your weight loss. You look fabulous!

There I was, plugging along with 6.5ccs in my band. Good restriction, had just reached the 100 pound mark and then I did it. I sat in front of a tub of food I took out of the fridge with a fork and ate right out of the container. I had already had dinner, but I felt like having a little something and I was PMSing so why not a couple of forkfuls of the delicious papardelle with lamb ragu? I'll tell you why... I ate too much and then it happened. I felt horrible, like I had a burp stuck and it wouldn't move and it was painful and uncomfortable and awful. Then my mouth started to water and I knew what was coming - this wasn't a PB - it was a full on, gut wrenching, up from the core puke! After I threw up, I felt a bit better. Then I threw up again and felt much better but when I went to take some water after, it burned going down and I got a horrible pain across my stomach. Irritation, I figured. It will be better in the morning. Next morning, I took a Prilosec with a sip of water and it feels like acid going down my throat. I tried sipping warm water and coffee but couldn't even get through half a cup. Yogurt...one mouthful and I was in pain! So I thought I'd really done a number on my stomach and I'd better follow the rules until it felt better. 4 days later, I still couldn't eat without pain so I called the doctor and they told me to come right in. The PA took 0.2 ccs out and told me to continue taking the Prilosec daily and stick to the program and the irritation would fade. It didn't. For almost a week, I could barely get an ounce of food in at a time and liquids were not going down right either. I woke up in the night vomiting in my sleep and gagging -- all liquid -- for 4 days in a row. I was starting to feel weak. Monday I called and they scheduled me to come in this morning. Monday was the same... hard to eat or drink anything but I kept taking the Prilosec and tried to stay hydrated. On Tuesday, I got up and had 1/2 a cup of coffee before I realized it didn't hurt and that it went down...so I finished it. I then had 1/4 cup of yogurt and that was fine too. Hmmmmm.... At work, I had an iced coffee and 16 oz. Crystal Light again, no problem whatsoever. Went out to lunch and had some buffalo mozzarella, a slice of tomato and two seafood raviolis... yep. All good. It seemed I was cured but I wanted to keep the appointment anyway to discuss what had happened. Today, after telling the doctor my story he said it sounded as if my band had slipped with the retching and that 0.2ccs was not enough out of the band to correct a slip. Because I was so diligent though, the swelling went down and the band slipped back into place itself. Wow! I'm still on tender proteins, nothing too hard, and taking the Prilosec for a few more days but the doctor said we didn't have to take out anymore fluid and that I should continue doing what I am doing because now I'm down 106 lbs! Oh, and, he wanted to know who made the appointment because when you have the level of pain I had and the inability to hydrate, it is an emergency and I shouldn't have been told to wait until today. So, moral of the story. Slips suck! I'm back on track with 6.3 ccs in my band, feeling fine and looking forward to losing even more.

As of this morning, I have lost 100 pounds! That's 10 months and 4 days since surgery. Right on schedule. When I started this process last summer by going to the information session, I had already decided that if I could lose 100 pounds, I would consider the decision to have Lapband surgery a success. My attitude changed the day I made the decision -- I became optimistic and hopeful because I was finally deciding to do something about my weight/health/life rather than continuing to sit around complaining about being fat. By the time I had my consultation in September and then the actual surgery in November I was sure this was the way to go. I was right! Having LapBand surgery was one of the best decisions I have ever made (and believe me, I've made quite a few bad ones). My life has changed and continues to get better every day. Even with all the accompanying issues and problems I've run into over the last ten months, I would not change a thing except possibly to have done it sooner! I am going to continue to work my band so I can lose more weight, continue to live a healthy lifestyle and live a lot longer. BIKINI BODY, BABY! That's the new goal! :thumbup:

95 lbs, one day shy of 10 months.

Looking over my blog entries since my banding last November, I came to the conclusion that this "journey" is really a roller coaster ride. I've been up, down, sideways and all over the map emotionally and physically and I find that as I approach my one year anniversary of banding, I'm pretty much where I hoped and expected to be when they strapped me in and put the bar down. There are so many other changes that I hadn't anticipated. Some are simple, some are complicated but I'm rolling with it. A few observations - simple first: 1) It's a lot easier to wear heels when you're 100 pounds lighter. Besides having giant feet and not being able to find cute comfortable shoes, the pressure on the soles of your feet is geometrically related to how high the heel is and how much you weigh. (Science lesson for the day). The more you weigh, the higher the heel, the greater the pressure. That much less weight means that much more height in comfort. And, wedges are the best. 2) Exercise really does work. Although I did not lose much weight this summer, I dropped at least one pants size. My band was loose and I was eating too much but I was pretty much able to maintain my work out regimen and it paid off. Those CK jeans I mentioned a blog or so ago -- too big now -- and my underwear is so big it's bunching under everything. I'm reticent to buy too much because I feel another big weight loss surge coming on after my re-fill so... check out Macy's clearance online. Got a Michael Kors dress for $23.88 and it's totally adorable. 3) Here's where it gets complicated - emotionally, I am still a giant fat woman. It is really taking a lot of time for me to wrap my head around the fact that I am merely overweight and not circus-fat-lady fat anymore. Every time I walk by a store window that shows my reflection, I find I'm looking to make sure I'm not as big as I sometimes think I am. And some days, I'm convinced I am - body dysmorphic disorder at work or just difficulty adjusting to someone I haven't seen in 30 years -- myself? I may seek some help with this one. So, here I am, 1 day shy of 10 months since my banding. 95 lbs down. Wearing a size 18/20 (I'm 5'10" and started at a size 32). Working out 3x per week. Having more energy and joi de vivre than I ever remember having in my whole life. Was it worth the ups and downs? You bet your much smaller ass it was! Next posting to announce the 100lb mark! Look for it. :smile:

I've had acid reflux on and off and there are few things that really trigger it. Alcoholic beverages definitely make a difference, as do sodas and coffee and acidic foods like tomato sauce. I also got very bad reflux when I had post nasal drip from a sinus infection. You should try to find out the root of the acid and in the meantime, there's a few things you can do to make it better. I was put on Prilosec 2x per day and that managed it well. Also monitor what you are eating/drinking. Don't drink or eat anything within 2 hours of bedtime and if you do, try to sleep with your chest and head a bit elevated. I hope it gets better for you because it can cause longterm damage if left untreated.