no restriction so frustrated

[skunklady 3]

Ok here goes, i was banded june of 2010, i weighed 215, i did fine and lost 60 lbs over the last two years, then in october of 2012 i felt i was more hungry and was putting on a little weight so i went to my gastro for a fill, when the asst dr looked at the band under floro i was told it had prolapsed and all the Fluid had to be removed for one month, i was pretty bummed to say the least, after the month i had gained 10lbs and they put a couple ccs in the band, sfter a couple weeks of no restriction i went back to be told it had prolapsed again, fluid was removed again for one month (this of course was during all the eating holidays of course) i went back in dec and had it filled again, again no restriction even though they say looking at the band under fluro that it is tight enough!!, finally in febuary of 2013 i went back to see the surgeon himself instead of his assistances and told him about everything that had been happening, he pulled up the photos of the past fills and unfills and said it had NOT prolapsed!!!! he took me down to radiology and under fluro checked with blue dye and confirmed all was well he put me to 3ccs and said i was tight!!! well guess what?? i have absoulutly no restriction what so ever and have gained 30 lbs through this mess and have during this mess i had new insurance with no bariatric coverage and recieved a bill foe 1700.00 for all the times i was back and forth for fills!!! i have gotten so desperate i purchased 19 gauge 1.5 inch needles and saline and am planning on adding a fill by myself!!!! PLEASE anyone that can add insight to any of this please help i am desperate, frustrated and fat again,!!!!!

PS every time i went back in i was questioned about my eating and made to feel this was my fault and i have to do better, WELL hello i am obviuosly an overeater and had the lapband fpr help in this area!!!

[CHEZNOEL 4,061]

I think it is dangerous to do the fills yourself. Too easy to pick up an infection.

[line-dancer 810]

I agree it is dangerous

[Summerrain 520]

Don't do those fills on your own, very silly and dangerous.

Just make your appointments with your surgeon from now on and if you've been unfilled then as you know it's going to be a slow process to get back to greenzone and in the meantime you just have to rely on willpower.

If you're not happy with your aftercare team shop around for another.

Go back to basics and if you have go journal all your food intake, might help till you're back where you need to be.

[skunklady 3]

Everytime the dr looks at the band under fluro they say its tight enough yet i can eat anything, it's like i have no band at all, i just can't figure out why it looks tight enough yet its not!! i want to feel that restriction again that i used to have, i knew without a doubt when enough was enough!! I found another dr who wants 500 to do a fill, and i'm more than sure it wont be enough again, plus thats quite a bit of money

[skunklady 3]

Summerrain, if i had the willpower i wouldnt need the band and i'm pretty sure it's the same with you, i am currently doing weight watchers.

[DELETE THIS ACCOUNT! 12,703]

First off, doing a fill yourself is not only downright foolish it's dangerous. If you think you have problems now, just wait until you poke a hole in your tubing or cause an infection in your port resulting in having to have the whole thing removed. Seriously, calm down, be rational, and don't do it.

Going forward, insist on your surgeon only, no one else there. This way you can be sure you're not getting jerked around by his obviously incompetent staff. (I hope he fires the one responsible, btw)

You say your doctor says you're tight but you don't feel restriction. You also talk about being an overeater. You have to realize the band's job isn't to physically stop you from eating anything. That's why it's so important to stick to band sized portions because the majority of us can still easily overeat if we really want to. The band is there to keep you satisfied on less food for longer periods of time, not control how much you can physically eat.

Have a look at this link by Dr. Simpson, I really think it will help you a lot: http://drsimpson.net/fills/Lap-band-eating/lap-band-not-restriction/lap-band-and-restriction.html

Don't give up, you can do this, but don't do anything foolish either. You've already come this far and sabotaging yourself isn't what you need.

Best wishes.

[skunklady 3]

Thank you Missy for the info, i personnaly think we are all overeaters which is what led us to get banded, but before they took the Fluid out the first time i would eat much smaller portions and be completly satisfied and full for quite awhile, i rarely ate bread or fries because they were hard on me were now those things don't even faze me, i am doing weight watchers to help me and am doing pretty good but still feel hungry at times, it's just this feels like it was perfect and now it feels like such a failure, very difficult, but i do think i'll give my surgeon another shot.

[DELETE THIS ACCOUNT! 12,703]

Thank you Missy for the info, i personnaly think we are all overeaters which is what led us to get banded, but before they took the Fluid out the first time i would eat much smaller portions and be completly satisfied and full for quite awhile, i rarely ate bread or fries because they were hard on me were now those things don't even faze me, i am doing weight watchers to help me and am doing pretty good but still feel hungry at times, it's just this feels like it was perfect and now it feels like such a failure, very difficult, but i do think i'll give my surgeon another shot.

Oh I agree, a lot of us are overeaters. I know I used to be a downright binge eater. I didn't have a piece of pizza, I ate the whole dang pizza then finished it off with a side of fries. Believe me, I understand completely.

I would have a talk with your doctor and tell him exactly what you just described- that you're still hungry far too often. He may see the band under fluro and think it's fine, but what he sees isn't necessarily reflective of how you are feeling. Even a tiny fill as small as .1cc can make a huge a difference. It can truly be the difference between too hungry and just right.

So, talk to him. As you said, give him a shot to make this right. But...if he isn't willing to work with you? Then you really might want to start shopping for a new doctor.

Hang in there.

[Summerrain 520]

Summerrain' date=' if i had the willpower i wouldnt need the band and i'm pretty sure it's the same with you, i am currently doing weight watchers.[/quote']

Skunk lady you are 100% right there is no way I could have lost nearly 100 pounds without the band, that's why I ended up morbidly obese but having the band wasn't easy from day one, I still used to get stupidly hungry on the small portions I had to eat and I swear sometimes as my kids walked passed me they looked like a big juicy steak but I persisted ( as have other banded people). During those times I stuck to my portions and if I was still hungry I kept myself busy and distracted doing anything that didn't revolve around food, I'd go to bed hungry and wake hungry for months but somehow I found that inner strength to do what I needed to do till the band started working.

Now you are right 3 cc is not enough for you but at the time of the fill that's what they can probably safely put in each time. Heck if they put in 8cc's in my band the first time I'd have been so restricted I would have been able to swallow my own spit.

In the four or five months it took me to get to greenzone my fills were either .4, .2, .3ccs every two weeks till I got to just over 7ccs in my 14 cc band and hit greenzone, after that as I lost weight I'd go in for top ups and at nine months I have 8.2 cc's in my band and in greenzone.

Now I know it's frustrating and has been costly for you but if you were unfilled it's going to take time to get enough fills in to get you back to where you need to be, it's like starting over again and obviously that person that misdiagnosed you is incompetent. Speak with your surgeon complain to him through no fault of your own you have been put in this situation by that incompetent staff member of his and you've thrown away good money as a result, maybe he will give you a few visits where you don't have to pay, no harm in asking.

But to think if doing it on your own is dangerous and I totally understand your frustration but if your surgeon is the better choice then see him regularly even every few weeks for small fills till you are where you need to be.

[2muchfun 8,928]

It's entirely possible the doctor misgauged the fill and filled on the safe side. I would recommend you do what most of us have to do and that's to keep going in till we get that fill that gives us some restriction.

If you're going to insist on filling yourself, why not lean on a nurse friend or someone who has some experience?

[catfish87 3,471]

Good advice from the above posters.

I'd add that according to your surgeons profile, you must have been one of his first patients, because he has three years of bariatric experience. Lots of folks on here have more experience with thier band than he has, again, this according to his profile. My band now DOES provide me restriction, no question about it. I have NO HEARTBURN, NO REFLUX, just great restriction. My fills are also done under fluoro, while doing the barium swallow.

It is frustrating for you, I know. If you can afford to, continue to firmly explain to your doc that you do not have restriction...then look elsewhere for relief.

BTW, was your surgeon the one who filled you initially when you had good restriction? Maybe his "tight", or proper restriction is different than someone else's??? Happens lots of times on this forum too.

Best of luck to you!

[skunklady 3]

Thank you guys very much, this has been so frustrating and when i go in the office they try that well you need to eat better or so people never feel restrictions and i think to myself why have we all gotten these bands then?? it's crazy, the last time i even felt like an idiot because i broke down in tears in his office, and i felt stupid cause theres people in this world very sick and i'm crying over gaining weight!!!! and by the way i am an lpn so i do have experience with needles and have watched them fill this port without numbing medicine many times!!! but i will see him again before i attempt that!!!