Hey All. Here's my story. I had a son in 2008. Was overweight for years prior to that. Gained 50 pounds during that pregnancy. In 2010 was banded. From 2010-2011 I lost a whooping 90 lbs, wasn't at goal yet, but had to stop losing because guess what......i was pregnant. Sadly I miscarried at 20 weeks, most devastating thing I've ever gone through. I had so many complications with my band while pregnant, dehydration, extreme restriction, nausea, constipation....you name it i had it.

Well we tried to conceive again, it should be easy right? After all we had conceived before so easily. Welllllll dam, that's not what happened we tried and tried to no avail. Ohhh yeah at this point I was at goal, I was looking cute with a whopping 120 pounds off my body. I was now 5"10, 150 pounds. We ended trying Inter uterine insemination (IUI) in Nov 2011, that didn't work and we were out of pocket $300. We tried unsuccessfully to conceive for 4 more months, naturally. We finally were prescribed Clomid (ovulation drug) at tried another IUI, this time we were out of pocket $700. Well it was worth it because it worked. I am now 2 weeks pregnant. With IUI or IVF you know almost precisely what day your conceived.

Up until this point my band had been pretty darn tight, restriction was at it's max level.... anything tighter and I wouldn't be able to breath, lol. I had a bad episode a week prior to finding out I was pregnant. I woke up choking, I think I aspirated my food, in fact I know I did. Lap bad nurse requested that I come in immediacy for an unfilled. Went in Friday, March 29 and was completely unfilled to avoid future complications during pregnancy. I now feel like I had never been banded. I can eat ANYTHING, im actaully thinking about food now.....it's horrible, I think I've gained like 10 pounds in 5 days. Emailed nurse, give me some of my Fluid back PLEASEEEEEEEE.

i'm in a similiar boat, where i only have half my restriction right now. i'm a 10cc band i've got roughly 3cc. i have some restriction (though not much), but i'm able to eat whatever i want without getting stuck typically. it's an odd feeling because prior to getting pregnant bread was out, steak was out, etc, not that being unable to eat bread was a bad thing. i don't know of doctor's who actually put fills in during pregnancy though. i know someone else was talking about it above, but my doc personally wouldn't. he wanted to take it all out but i fought him on it. i may end up with more being taken out before the end but i'll cross the bridge when i get to it.

the weight gain is hard to watch, at least it's been hard for me to watch. i was within 100 pounds of my goal weight (i hadn't been this small in over a decade...it was quite the feat) and to watch it start creeping back the other direction at the pace it was was very very difficult. it did eventually level off though. instead of watching the weight jumps between doctor visits, i'm back to 1 or 2 pounds (thank goodness). be mindful of what you're eating. a food journal really helped during that time when i was visiting my nutritionist. we were able to look at what i was eating and determine there really wasn't much to change and that my portions were fine. my body was adjusting to pregnancy, though if i don't watch what i eat like a hawk, i can eat too much food in one sitting =/

hang in there.

Sounds like you need at least a small fill.

I think Im a little confused here, how far along in your pregnancy are you? it says 2 weeks but thats not even possible since you cant detect the pregnancy hormone until at least 4 weeks (not to call you a liar, but I think Im lost lol)

As far as your empty band goes, you must not put yourself in the mind frame "I can eat whatever I want" AND do exactly that, but think more like "I have the ability to eat more of a selection, however I WILL sick to my correct portions and use moderation".

Every pregnant mother should be able to enjoy the cravings she has, but regardless of whether you are within a "normal" weight range or someone like us who has had weight loss surgery, you should always remember that to lead a healthy lifestyle food needs to be eaten in moderation.

I actually do not agree that you need another fill, because honestly, what if within another month or two you develop the over tightness and sickness again, then you'll be right back where you started and have it emptied again.

I recommend talking to your dietician and your ob, they will be a great support for you and your journey to a happy healthy pregnancy.

Good luck!

I think Im a little confused here, how far along in your pregnancy are you? it says 2 weeks but thats not even possible since you cant detect the pregnancy hormone until at least 4 weeks (not to call you a liar, but I think Im lost lol)

You can detect pregnancy at early as 10 days after conception via a blood test. Blood tests are much more sensitive to the levels of HCG in the blood as opposed to much higher detection thresholds in a home pregnancy test. If you have pin-pointed your ovulation day, its easy to time your bloodwork if you suspect you are pregnant.

I too am pregnant (6.5 weeks) and am curious how my band will be impacted. I have been having the opposite issue with my band where it is too tight and am scheduling a defill. I was banded in 2009 and have lost 100 lbs. I have been maintaining for over a year and havent decided yet how I feel about having my band completed defilled.

I have requested some information from my surgeon regarding prenatal nutrition as my appt with my OBGYN isnt for another few weeks.

Good luck & best wishes for a safe & healthy pregnancy!

You can detect pregnancy at early as 10 days after conception via a blood test. Blood tests are much more sensitive to the levels of HCG in the blood as opposed to much higher detection thresholds in a home pregnancy test. If you have pin-pointed your ovulation day' date=' its easy to time your bloodwork if you suspect you are pregnant.

I too am pregnant (6.5 weeks) and am curious how my band will be impacted. I have been having the opposite issue with my band where it is too tight and am scheduling a defill. I was banded in 2009 and have lost 100 lbs. I have been maintaining for over a year and havent decided yet how I feel about having my band completed defilled.

I have requested some information from my surgeon regarding prenatal nutrition as my appt with my OBGYN isnt for another few weeks.

Good luck & best wishes for a safe & healthy pregnancy![/quote']

During my 2nd pregnancy I had a lot of complications. My band was so tight from vomiting that I had trouble drinking Water. I miscarried at 20 weeks, so I never got an unfill, I was on the verge though. My band doctor says when I get pregnancy again, she'll completely unfill me. I miscarried again so we are trying again.

I think Im a little confused here' date=' how far along in your pregnancy are you? it says 2 weeks but thats not even possible since you cant detect the pregnancy hormone until at least 4 weeks (not to call you a liar, but I think Im lost lol)

As far as your empty band goes, you must not put yourself in the mind frame "I can eat whatever I want" AND do exactly that, but think more like "I have the ability to eat more of a selection, however I WILL sick to my correct portions and use moderation".

Every pregnant mother should be able to enjoy the cravings she has, but regardless of whether you are within a "normal" weight range or someone like us who has had weight loss surgery, you should always remember that to lead a healthy lifestyle food needs to be eaten in moderation.

I actually do not agree that you need another fill, because honestly, what if within another month or two you develop the over tightness and sickness again, then you'll be right back where you started and have it emptied again.

I recommend talking to your dietician and your ob, they will be a great support for you and your journey to a happy healthy pregnancy.

Good luck![/quote']

Hello everyone, yes you can detect pregnancy as early as 10 days I got two positive pregnant tests as well as a positive HCG blood test, nothing more accurate than that. Typically pregnancy is calculated based on your last period. We did an IUI treatment so I actually knew the day I conceived. Trust me....for someone who is going through infertility treatments our dates are accurate and we keep track of everything. Anyway, I had a chemical pregnancy (early miscarriage). I'm currently on my 2nd round of clomid 100mg this round 3rd IUI is scheduled in 13 days. This whole getting pregnant phase is emotionally draining.

I did get a fill, since I am no longer pregnant. Instead of the 6.7cc's that was taken out 5.5 cc's was put back in, pending an upper GI which is scheduled this week. I really regret getting it all of my Fluid taken out. I should have waited at least until I started experiencing problems before getting a complete unfilled. The stress of being pregnancy, is compounded by the fact that your are eating like a ravenous animal, which is exactly what I was doing. Of course during the next pregnancy if and when I experience any problems I'll get a complete unfill. The next time around I'll wait until it's absolutely necessary.