Is Vomiting Dangerous

[KCGFNP 5]

I Am banded about 4 1/2 mo now. I have been stuck twice, the first tiwhiteout an hour and eventually puked. Is That dangerous for your band? The other day, episode no 2 I got stuck on my 1st bite of steak. Never will eat steak again. After a half hour couldn't stand it I made myself throw up. This happened two days ago and It hurts to eat solids. Like I feel it go all the way down. I appreciate all the comments!

[mandagay 93]

My dr said when u have a stuck episode u should go on liquids for 24 hrs after

[jennifer1 180]

after a vomiting episode i recommend going on liquids cuz your band is irritated. repeated vomiting can cause band slippage, but i'm not sure how much you would have to to cause that to happen. i have been banded almost a year and i have thrown up many times(i'm not advocating that by any means) but my band is fine. but i would definelty do liquids and then ease back into soft and then regular foods.

just my 2 cents

jennifer

[1shauna1 129]

I am stuck frequently. Can't say if it's dangerous, but I'm fine....when I've been too tight after a fill I've been PBing several times a day (hence, unfills). It's just an unpleasant reminder to follow our rules more strictly!

[elcee 3,340]

Constant forcing food up can cause your band to slip.But we have to look at the difference between vomiting and PBing.

Vomiting comes from below the band and usually involves a lot of force.This can cause problems.

PBing comes from above the band, it is not usually very forceful and is unlikely to cause problems.

If you are PBing often then you do have an issue. Either you are not eating correctly or you are making bad food choices or your band is too tight.Ignoring this can lead to problems.

As for steak - I know how you feel. I have been banded almost 3 years, have a fairly loose band and thought i could eat steak. Well it seems I can't. I spent the evening PBing/vomiting with force and when that stopped and I went to bed I couldn't sleep as I was waking every couple of minutes choking on acid. I was terrified I had slipped my band so I went to emergency. They did a CT scan and partially unfilled my band. Apparently everything is still Ok but it is now being refilled slowly.

The thing that usually(but not always) works for me after an episode like this is sucking on crushed ice. It helps to reduce swelling .

Hope you feel better soon.

[KCGFNP 5]

Thank you all! I love my fellow bandsters! Thank goodness I've only been stuck twice and had to actually vomit twice. I can promise u steak and I are OVER. I didn't realize pb is above and vomit below. I learn something all the time on here.

[Cocoabean 430]

The least amount of urping you do, the better for your band. But sometimes it cannot be avoided. I get stuck a couple of times a month or so, and I urp it up. Call it vomit, call it PB, call it stick your finger down your throat.

I call it the quickest way to get out of pain with the least amount of trauma for me. Being stuck with my stomach trying to grind the food that is stuck above my band for hours with slime abounding is just not my idea of fun.

If I am feeling any discomfort after having been stuck, I go on liquids until that stops. I tend to go in streaks, once I am stuck, I am likely to get stuck several times in a row until all swelling is gone.

I get an upper GI every year to check on placement of my band. The last one was in September, before I had a small fill. All was well then. About 2 months ago my band suddenly tightened up significantly. It stayed that way for about 6 weeks. Now it is back to normal. Odd. I have a call in to see my surgeon. Waiting on insurance approval.

[B-52 7,113]

elcee hit it on the head!!!!

I have been stuck many times, and not once did I think I vomited. I "Regurgitated" and spit it all up, but never vomited.

Two entirely different things.

That's not to say that if you were to get stuck, and did something like stick your fingers down your throat, sure you will vomit. But that's not needed to get un-stuck.

But to answer your question, yes, vomiting can be harmful to your band. I have been told it is the most common reason for band slippage.

The band is designed to let food pass SLOWLY from the top down. NOT sudden large eruptions from the bottom up.

But if you are vomiting from the band, then there is something wrong going on.

People refer to it as a PB = Productive Burp, which I totally understand.

It is the same thing as burping a baby after feeding, Few pats on the back and it's all over your shoulder.

But it is not vomiting!

[kll724 3,055]

What everyone else said is true! I have had a slip. It happended because I got a stomach virus. But, I also, had GERD before that, and had many cases of spending the night up because sleeping became impossible due to coughing and choaking. This is a possiblity from too my pb'ing. too! Good luck, Karen

[KCGFNP 5]

Unfortunately the two times I've been stuck I had to use my fingers ugh. Big diff between that and a pb.

[Cocoabean 430]

Unfortunately the two times I've been stuck I had to use my fingers ugh. Big diff between that and a pb.

I gotta agree with this one. For me a PB is just that, I burp and up comes something. Generally that doesn't get me unstuck. It might happen, but it is rare. A PB isn't usually related to being stuck.

Sometimes I can work my stomach muscles and bring it up. Or I can drink some Water and that will start a launch sequence.

[Grandcherokee 6]

Yes Water sure helps thing that are stuck......Also I hear that drinking something warm helps ....after you resolve the Stuck !

[1shauna1 129]

When I'm "sick" it's always a PB (above the band). I was vomiting once from actually being sick, and man that sucked. I wanted to vomit but because of the band, it was very difficult. The band makes a very small opening for anything to actually come back up through, and I was doing a lot of dry heaving. Eventually I was able to....and luckily haven't had any stomach issues since.

[Cinderoo 1]

Had my lap band placed in 2003. I am wondering if by saying "vomiting", people are actually referring to regurgitating a mouthful of food. Before I learned to eat appropriately, this happened to me several times. My husband was ever so patient, kind, and understanding that I would just bring an opaque cup to the table with me so I could bring up and spit out the offending food. Again, my question to readers is, are you actually vomiting or merely spitting out food that you've regurgitated.

This is vitally important to me because of the following: In 2008, I had pneumonia and took a big swig of guaifenesin to suppress my cough. Immediately I needed to throw up -- not regurgitate but actually throw up. This was my first time since I had the band placed. I couldn't throw up; just had a couple of dry heaves. Then I got a "thunderclap" headache, worst pain ever, I became diaphoretic (cold sweats) and couldn't control my bladder. What I suffered was a subarachnoid hemorrhage. I was hospitalized in ICU for over a week. Luckily, I had no permanent brain damage due to the location of the bleed. I contacted my surgeon and wanted the band removed out of fear that this may happen again but he refused, saying that he couldn't justify the surgery because he didn't think the bleed was actually caused by the band.

Jump forward three years, in 2011 I had another subarachnoid bleed. This time it was deeper in my brain and I had some significant brain damage. I had a very complex job with lots of multitasking. I was unable to perform my duties and had lost my critical thinking skills. I had to retire.

Again, the surgeon refused to remove the band because mine was the only case he had ever heard of.

I am commenting and asking because I want to find out if anybody else has had any problems similar to mine. Thanks for reading.

[Treadmillwalker 486]

I received my band in October. A portion of my stomach has been pulled up around my band to prevent slippage. Think of a skirt you have hanging down and then you pick up a little bit and it creates a fold that is sown around the band and the remainder hangs down. The band is snuggled in with my procedure. Do you know how yours is secured? My surgeon tells me most of us purge stuck food from the top pouch and it isn't harmful, but irritating. My procedure minimizes the risk of slippage.

Lap-banded and love it!