Extremely Frustrated

[pixelkitten 0]

I was banded a little over a year ago, and have had 16 fills/unfills between then and now. I've never really felt the restriction my doctor and other patients have described; it seems to be one extreme or the other. Either I'm unable to eat more than blended Soup or crackers without coughing up my food/vomiting, or I'm able to eat everything with no feeling of fullness.

I am a self-pay patient, and was only able to pay for the surgery with a loan from my bank (which I'm still paying for now). Adjustments cost over $200 each, and I can't afford doing them twice a month like I have been typically. My current insurance does not cover any sort of bariatric surgery. Do insurance companies allow a switch in policy AFTER an operation like this?

I have not had them check to see if I've had a band slip (although I've heard that is terribly painful and I am not experiencing much pain), but I am terrified to have them check -- if they find anything wrong I can't afford to pay for any further treatment!

My doctor's main office is over an hour's drive from my house, so my options for seeing him are either 1) drive over 1 hour M-F to see him, if I can get an appointment, or 2) wait until there's an opening on a Tuesday when he's at a satellite clinic closer to my home. What should I do if I have an emergency on the weekend?

At the moment, I'm feeling too tight again: I have been living on Soup and ice cream for 2 days now, and this morning I tried a couple small spoons full of tabouleh and now I'm at a point where I can't even keep my own saliva down. My question is, has anyone else had this much difficulty with their band? What should I do? I'm out of money to keep paying for this!

[HarperClaire 0]

I understand what your saying. I also have a hard time finding the quote "Sweet spot" they talk about. I go back and forth and with your current situation you will have to go in and get some Fluid out. I had that happen and it got more and more restricted like the band was irritated. My husband drove me in the middle of the night to my clinic and we had a surgeon I'd never met but was on call unfill me a little. It got really scary driving and spitting into a cup. I would call sooner rather than later. Maybe find out if a local dr would be willing or able to monitor your fills? I just had a baby and have started over again. I'm at the point were i wish I would have had the bypass, at least I would be done and it wouldn't hurt. I keep telling myself to be positive and give it another try. If I don't lose a lot this time I may have it removed. I hope I helped or at least understand and feel your frustration.

I was banded a little over a year ago, and have had 16 fills/unfills between then and now. I've never really felt the restriction my doctor and other patients have described; it seems to be one extreme or the other. Either I'm unable to eat more than blended Soup or crackers without coughing up my food/vomiting, or I'm able to eat everything with no feeling of fullness.

I am a self-pay patient, and was only able to pay for the surgery with a loan from my bank (which I'm still paying for now). Adjustments cost over $200 each, and I can't afford doing them twice a month like I have been typically. My current insurance does not cover any sort of bariatric surgery. Do insurance companies allow a switch in policy AFTER an operation like this?

I have not had them check to see if I've had a band slip (although I've heard that is terribly painful and I am not experiencing much pain), but I am terrified to have them check -- if they find anything wrong I can't afford to pay for any further treatment!

My doctor's main office is over an hour's drive from my house, so my options for seeing him are either 1) drive over 1 hour M-F to see him, if I can get an appointment, or 2) wait until there's an opening on a Tuesday when he's at a satellite clinic closer to my home. What should I do if I have an emergency on the weekend?

At the moment, I'm feeling too tight again: I have been living on soup and ice cream for 2 days now, and this morning I tried a couple small spoons full of tabouleh and now I'm at a point where I can't even keep my own saliva down. My question is, has anyone else had this much difficulty with their band? What should I do?

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[candieee1974 0]

Wow, sorry to hear that your having a tough time!! My question to you is, why are you getting so many fills/refills??

Are you eating the right foods? Are you chewing slowly? Has your doctor done any Xrays on you to see if it has slipped? I would definitely ask him about that asap! If you have medical insurance, they should cover any tests that you need to do because it could be life threatening (even tho most likely its not, but they don't know that). Are you going to support groups? It's very, very important to get tips and other concerns on what you should and should not eat, also, a nutritionist would be helpful too if you can get one through your insurance. You definitely can not live on just Soups, that's not even enough Protein first of all, my advice to you is to first see your doc, if not that dr, then get a second opinion, and have him order some tests, (upper GI) then look around or ask the office if there are support groups in your area to help you. Good luck hun and I hope you get this issue fixed asap!!!

[pixelkitten 0]

Wow, sorry to hear that your having a tough time!! My question to you is, why are you getting so many fills/refills??

Are you eating the right foods? Are you chewing slowly? Has your doctor done any Xrays on you to see if it has slipped? I would definitely ask him about that asap! If you have medical insurance, they should cover any tests that you need to do because it could be life threatening (even tho most likely its not, but they don't know that). Are you going to support groups? It's very, very important to get tips and other concerns on what you should and should not eat, also, a nutritionist would be helpful too if you can get one through your insurance. You definitely can not live on just Soups, that's not even enough Protein first of all, my advice to you is to first see your doc, if not that dr, then get a second opinion, and have him order some tests, (upper GI) then look around or ask the office if there are support groups in your area to help you. Good luck hun and I hope you get this issue fixed asap!!!

Hi candieee,

I do feel that when I'm ABLE to eat, I'm eating the right foods. I was raised on healthy things like veggies and whole grains, but in the past year i've had such a huge battle of extremes: either my band is too tight or too loose. I've had a few blocks when I don't chew enough or if I take too big a bite, but I really do feel like I've figured that part out. My problem is, the correct-sized bite and chewing that works one day won't work the next day for me. It's almost like my stomach randomly decides to swell or loosen every day, on its own.

I don't have insurance, so I really don't want to ask for an x-ray unless there's a good chance my band has slipped. My doctor does NOT use fluoroscopy when doing fills/unfills -- he'd charge even more for that if I requested it, because it would mean admittance into the hospital and not just a regular visit.

The reason I've had so many is because my stomach will tighten, I'll vomit and it will swell more, then I'll have to go in for either a slight or complete unfill (depending on the severity of it), then start over again or re-fill slightly once I can eat large quantities again.

When my stomach is so tight that I can't eat much of anything, I'm generally so hungry and dehydrated and desperate that I stop thinking about what's the healthiest option -- I just want calories! I still seem to lose weight during these times, but it's probably all Water weight from the dehydration.

At this point I'd be sooo relieved if I could find a doctor willing to take a look at my problem (and possibly willing to do fills/unfills) in my local area, under my insurance (Kaiser ***).

Sigh!

[Rachel412 116]

How are you feeling today? Are you able to eat? I've never been too tight (or at a good restriction for that matter) but my understanding is that the too tight fluctuation happens to a lot of people, seemingly without any rhyme or reason. I would think that since you know you're prone to it, your best bet is to stay on the looser side, so you don't close up as often. But I completely understand your frustration in the fact that you got this operation for a reason and you're not getting the benefit of the surgery at all. I wish I had some good advice for you, but all I have right now is sympathy...

[losethemess 14]

You mentioned that band slippage can be pain, not necessarily. I think you're hesitant about getting an x-ray, which is understandable it's expensive. I honestly think your doctors office is to blame a little for your problems. My Nurse practitioner filled my so slow. Only 1 cc at a time at first after 6 cvs only .2 ccs every 4-6 weeks. Maybe they filled you too quickly. This back and fourth shouldn't happen. An experienced lapband office should know at what rate to fill patients.

You also need to really sit down and figure out if you really are doing everything right in order to be successful with your band. You say you eat whole grain and vegetables. Whole grain are carbs and extremely hard to get through your band. Veggies are the same. Protein, Protein, protein. My nutritionist said the only thing the band is really meant to restrict is protein. Start logging what you eat and when you eat, go a support group like someone suggested, watch YouTube videos they are so extremely helpful. Make sure you are always eating protein first.

I really never feel full. Restriction for me means if I eat one more bite of that chicken, tuna or fish I'll vomit. Restriction doesn't means full ever. I really restrict my self. Be 100% honest with yourself. Are you exercising eating the right portions?

Good Luck

[pixelkitten 0]

How are you feeling today? Are you able to eat? I've never been too tight (or at a good restriction for that matter) but my understanding is that the too tight fluctuation happens to a lot of people, seemingly without any rhyme or reason. I would think that since you know you're prone to it, your best bet is to stay on the looser side, so you don't close up as often. But I completely understand your frustration in the fact that you got this operation for a reason and you're not getting the benefit of the surgery at all. I wish I had some good advice for you, but all I have right now is sympathy...

Rachel,

Thanks for your advice! Actually I was still unable to keep anything down today -- I managed a sugar-free smoothie earlier, but have "lost" it since . The worst part about an ongoing episode like this is I can't lie down -- the instant I do it causes me to vomit. Talk about a looooong night.

I'm going to call my doctor first thing in the morning to make an emergency adjustment -- I'm going to probably take out all or most of the Fluid in my band.

I like your idea of keeping it on the looser side in general -- at this point I'd much prefer having to restrict my own eating more often than going through this the rest of the time!

[Rachel412 116]

You poor thing I hope you were able to get in to see him.

Rachel,

Thanks for your advice! Actually I was still unable to keep anything down today -- I managed a sugar-free smoothie earlier, but have "lost" it since . The worst part about an ongoing episode like this is I can't lie down -- the instant I do it causes me to vomit. Talk about a looooong night.

I'm going to call my doctor first thing in the morning to make an emergency adjustment -- I'm going to probably take out all or most of the Fluid in my band.

I like your idea of keeping it on the looser side in general -- at this point I'd much prefer having to restrict my own eating more often than going through this the rest of the time!

[pixelkitten 0]

Follow up: I went in for an adjustment this afternoon, and they removed all but 2 cc's of Fluid from my band. I'm able to drink fruit juice now! Hooray!

[HarperClaire 0]

Try to take it really slow, it will feel so good you'll get brave!

[Humming Bird 275]

Follow up: I went in for an adjustment this afternoon, and they removed all but 2 cc's of Fluid from my band. I'm able to drink fruit juice now! Hooray!

I think I read in another post yesterday about how much they put in and take out when they have done these 17 fills/unfills. It really sounds to me like the amounts are way too large and you will never find your sweet spot at that rate.

IMHO they should have only taken out .2cc (point 2) , not 2 whole ccs.

[pixelkitten 0]

I think I read in another post yesterday about how much they put in and take out when they have done these 17 fills/unfills. It really sounds to me like the amounts are way too large and you will never find your sweet spot at that rate.

IMHO they should have only taken out .2cc (point 2) , not 2 whole ccs.

Generally I'd agree with you that 2 ccs is a lot to take out at once, but my stomach was so swollen and sore at this point that nothing was getting through at all. I need to heal before I can deal with any more Fluid in my band. My confusion is that in my last couple of adjustments we've really been taking baby steps (.25 ccs at a time), so I don't know why I suddenly had problems!