Dilated Esophagus?

[justathing2me 146]

It’s been 6 years since I’ve logged on to this forum which used to be my go to for information! I guess it’s true when things are going good you tend to stay away. Initially, I weighed 238, my lowest with the lap band was 138. 100 lbs! But, i’ve been struggling for the last 3 years, my 19 year old daughter died in a car accident and I guess I just didn’t care anymore. I have put on 50 lbs. it’s not that I’m eating more because I physically can’t. My primary care says it’s hormonal (pre-menopause). I finally after a year went to the doctor and when they checked the band my esophagus is twice it’s normal size and I’m restricted so nothing was done. Basically, I was told to get back to the basics, small bites, chew thoroughly, etc. I guess you forget about that after 6 years!i also have a lot of reflux but the good news is my band is still perfectly placed. Any suggestions? I’ve been doing liquids but at this point, I’m afraid to even eat solids!

[Duncan730 3]

Hi, I am 11 years out with my band and I recently dealt with this issue. In January I was suffering with stomach pains right under my band and was having a lot of stuck issues with even mushy foods so I went in to get some tests because I thought I had to get rid of my band. Well it turns out that i had a small hernia and a dilated esophagus. The none surgical fix was to empty my band. My band was empty for 7 months. In the mean time I did gain back 28 lbs but most of that was due to not being able to be physical (I had surgery a month later and had an ovary removed.)and snacking all day from boredom. I had another swallow test on July 30th and everything is back to normal so I got my first fill that day.

Did your doctor say how long to be on liquids? Mine actually told me that I had a choice empty my band and allow my body to heal or consider a revision. I chose time to heal. My I chose my band over everything else because it was the least invasive and not a final decision. So I am back at it again. Slowly getting fills chewing until my jaw hurts and counting my Protein intake. Maybe getting a timeline for your reset may help. I know my pains did not stop for about 3 months. It took a long time for the swelling to go down and no time at all for all my bad food habits to come back.

When you eat do you feel your esophagus move in like a wave motion? I had that going on. When I had my swallow test the radiologist said he never seen this happen before. I was so scared thinking I messed myself up and was going to loose my band. But in the end I just needed time to heal.

[Duncan730 3]

I am still struggling. My small fill really has not made much of a diffrence. Hopefully soon I can get another small fill to get me back on track.

[Lapband2009Stephanie 11]

Hi Justathing,

I've just (re)joined bariatricpal to get some support myself. I am 9 years out. I got all the way down to 132 (120 lb loss). Than I started to gain, slowly but surely and am now sitting at 165. I am pretty certain I have a leak going on.

Anyway, I too contribute excess stress to my weight gain (divorce, career change, ft work, blah blah). Certainly nothing compared to losing a child, which I am terribly sorry to hear about your loss.

The reason I wanted to reach out to you is because you mentioned "forgetting" the basics. I suffer from the same problem. It's been so long that my life pre band seems like another lifetime and I'm not hyperfocused on the band/rules. After all the stressful times I went through, my brain thought stress before band issues. How bizarre is that? After spending years focusing on the band and being in the green, I'm now needing to relearn these basics and practicing them. I also need to get back to green (which may mean a placement of a 2nd band to get me restarted).

I think this is a common phenomenon for us 'old banders' and its one of the primary reasons Im back on the site. I need to think, breath, and be the band again so I can stay accountable and get better management of my weight again.