I just learned today from my doc that my band needs to be removed.....I've been having problems for months now. I go through spells of not being able to eat solid food and barely being able to drink! Five times I've been on Prednisone and it helps, but I don't like taking that stuff! Under the flouro my band looks pretty good, a little tilted and rotated, they said it wasn't bad. But, there's definitely something wrong. I'll be glad to get some relieve from this, but then again I so afraid of gaining back those 60 lbs. I lost. Is it possible to keep the weight off? I'm loving wearing my size 12's.

I feel the s ame way about not getting the sleeve. Can't stand the thoughts of my stomach being cut away. That's why I chose the lap band in the first place.

Well, I'm not advocating the sleeve because my daughter had it and she is fine. I too worried about her getting the sleeve. I told my surgeon and he said there are very few complications with the sleeve but I'm not so sure. My insurance wouldn't cover it but covered the band.

I had my band out for 6 months before I could get my revision to RNY...I gained 30 pounds :/. I won't tell you what to do, there are risks associated with each surgery. I will say I love my RNY and feel better then I ever did with my band. There's no reflux or getting stuck, I don't feel like I'm starving all the time. I'm 5 months out and averaging 2-3 pounds a week loss consistently (doc says revisions tend to lose slower...as long as I keep losing I don't really care how long it takes!). I do have dumping if I get crazy with carbs but have absolutely no problem with normal healthy foods.

Good luck! I wish you the best!

Saw my surgeon today. Definitely have to have my band out....he said it wasn't anything I did to harm it or anything, I was glad to hear that, I did try really hard to do right. He said it was kinda like my body was not accepting the band anymore, all because of my body make-up. I hope I'm saying it right, it made sense when he said it. Well anyway, I'm gonna miss having it. I'm gonna try really hard not to gain weight back! Ill have to buy all new clothes....now just waiting on a phone call to schedule it.

I had to have my band removed in August 2011. I did not revise. I've maintained my weight. It is a struggle, but I'm never going back to where I was before. If you need some tips, feel free to ask me! I'm sending positive thoughts your way!!!

I had my band out for 6 months before I could get my revision to RNY...I gained 30 pounds :/. I won't tell you what to do, there are risks associated with each surgery. I will say I love my RNY and feel better then I ever did with my band. There's no reflux or getting stuck, I don't feel like I'm starving all the time. I'm 5 months out and averaging 2-3 pounds a week loss consistently (doc says revisions tend to lose slower...as long as I keep losing I don't really care how long it takes!). I do have dumping if I get crazy with carbs but have absolutely no problem with normal healthy foods.

Good luck! I wish you the best!

What exactly is dumping? I've heard that term and I'm unfamiliar with it. Thanks!

Thank you monalisa2! I'll need all the help I can get!

NVM. I found this online:

"Dumping" after gastric bypass surgery is characterized by nausea, sometimes vomiting and abdominal pain. Most often it is caused by taking in too much sugar in a short time. (Which is why lap band people can get away with drinking milkshakes and things like that, even in small amounts. A small amount of a milkshake would cause a gastric bypass person to "dump" and be terribly sick - which is one way to develop an aversion to whatever caused the dumping, for sure!) I haven't come across anyone who hasn't dumped, eventually. When you are newly post op, you pretty much stick to "safe" foods, but as time goes by, you get a little bolder and decide to see if "just a bite or two won't hurt" and find out that sometimes that little bit can really cause a problem. Some people dump on high fat items. I had an experience about 6-7 months after surgery where I tried ONE BITE of a sausage - a sample at a grocery store, and by the time I got out of the store and home, I was on the couch in pain! I have not eaten sausage since that day. Different foods will cause different people to dump. The best way to avoid it is to stick to a sensible balanced diet.

What exactly is dumping? I've heard that term and I'm unfamiliar with it. Thanks!

NVM. I found this online:

"Dumping" after gastric bypass surgery is characterized by nausea, sometimes vomiting and abdominal pain. Most often it is caused by taking in too much sugar in a short time. (Which is why lap band people can get away with drinking milkshakes and things like that, even in small amounts. A small amount of a milkshake would cause a gastric bypass person to "dump" and be terribly sick - which is one way to develop an aversion to whatever caused the dumping, for sure!) I haven't come across anyone who hasn't dumped, eventually. When you are newly post op, you pretty much stick to "safe" foods, but as time goes by, you get a little bolder and decide to see if "just a bite or two won't hurt" and find out that sometimes that little bit can really cause a problem. Some people dump on high fat items. I had an experience about 6-7 months after surgery where I tried ONE BITE of a sausage - a sample at a grocery store, and by the time I got out of the store and home, I was on the couch in pain! I have not eaten sausage since that day. Different foods will cause different people to dump. The best way to avoid it is to stick to a sensible balanced diet.

Well, yes and no. Actually less then half the people who get gastric bypass have dumping, and of those, the majority of cases are mild. Dumping is essentially like a blood sugar crash. It has to do with how quickly the stomach contents are moved out of the stomach and in to the intestine. For some people it's nausea, vomiting, diarrhea. For me it's exactly like a sugar crash. My first (and only truly bad) dump was 2-3 weeks post op. it was around 10:30 in the morning, I was still on puréed foods and made oatmeal for my son and I. I hadn't eaten since the night before, ate my 1/2 cup of oatmeal, and 30 minutes later because queasy, weak, shaky, sweaty, irritable, exhausted. The remedy is to get some carbs in quick with a little Protein to prevent another crash. I felt like hell for about 3 hours. With trial and error I've learned I CAN eat oatmeal, but I have to either make it with milk (for the protein content) or drink about 1/2 a Protein shake (12 grams of protein) before I eat the oatmeal. I can eat whole wheat Pasta or brown rice as long as I have meat or cheese of some sort with it. If I've eaten a normal dinner (meat and veggies) I can eat 5 or 6 bites of dessert without incident (lucky me, I rarely have the urge to eat dessert any more!). If I sat down and ate a bowl of ice cream I'd be sick but if I ate a burger then had 1/2 a scoop of ice cream I'd be fine. Some people say they dump on fatty foods, I don't eat much that's really fatty so I haven't seen this. For me the key is making sure I've gotten my protein in, after that i can pretty much eat a little bit of anything I want. If I ate 100% what my doc says 24/7 I'd never dump, however, I'm just not that good! I seem to be more carb sensitive then most bypass patients. Once you figure it out, it's really not that big of a deal. Plus awesome motivation not to eat those brownies mid-morning that someone brought to work today (I had 2 bites after I ate lunch instead, all was well).

http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/dumping-syndrome-causes-foods-treatments

This is a decent explanation. I don't throw up or get diarrhea but I get the racing heart, nausea, sweating, etc.

I wonder if sleeve patients have issues with dumping or perhaps something similar. It seems like each surgery has it's own little annoyances, lap banders get stuck, bypass patients dump...

My surgery is Monday morning kinda nervous about it.

My surgery is Monday morning kinda nervous about it.

Best of LUCK EllieMae!!!! You will do Great, I belong to a band Group on FB and they say that having the band removed is sometimes easier than having it placed. They explain it as minor discomfort, anywhere from 3days to a week or less . Some Dr's Don't use the CO2 gas, so no shoulder discomfort, and minimal pain meds, and pre-removal post removal diet is limited. They also have good groups for WLS Or regain/revision even if your not considering it, still good information/support to avoid regain

Best wishes Ell

I wonder if sleeve patients have issues with dumping or perhaps something similar. It seems like each surgery has it's own little annoyances, lap banders get stuck, bypass patients dump...

Best wishes Ellie!

Not to hijack the thread (what i am doing ) but anyone can dump. I have done it for years. Not related to the band at all. One time it was too many cheetos, and I was on the floor in the bathroom with the sweats, nausea, and the runs. Sometimes my digestive system just moves too quickly.

My surgery is Monday morning kinda nervous about it.

I hope it went well for you! Please write and give us an update! I will be scheduling my lap band removal, soon, so I would really appreciate hearing of your experience. Take good care.

~hiddn

Had my removal surgery this morning. Everything went really well. Hardly any pain at all, no nausea, thank goodness! Have to spend one night tho......