Hi, I am looking for any input on what might be wrong with me! I have no insurance (paid for the band myself - or will be paying it off for the next 4 years), and my recent problems have been really scaring me, and I'm not exactly sure what to do.

To start off, I was banded in mid-October of 2007 at NWWLS in Everett, WA, which is a 4 hour drive from where I am in Portland, OR. My last (second) fill was about a month ago, and I am not over-filled. I'm not feeling that much restriction, and I saw the Fluid go through under flouro. However, after this fill, I was quite light-headed for a couple of days (even turned around and went back to Everett for the flouro and reassurance that everything was OK) but this eventually subsided, and everything was fine until a couple of weeks ago.

Recently, I've been very fatigued and have random dizzy spells or periods of light-headedness and nausea. Usually when this happens and I try to throw up, nothing comes up but some foam. (I'm also quite foamy - more often than not, I could spit up some foam at any given time if I tried.) Sometimes these episodes are accompanied by heart palpitations, and since this is all kind of scary without insurance, I usually have a bit of an anxiety attack. And I always get very sensitive to cold. Other times, I feel just fine for the most part.

I feel constantly tight in the chest and a little bit short of breath, and I do feel a sensation (wouldn't call it pain really, more like pressure or acute awareness of something) in my chest, just to the right of center, though I would say I notice it more in my back. And even when I'm not having one of these episodes, I feel a little cloudy-headed.

About a week ago, something like this happened out of the blue, while we were on the couch watching TV. I had eaten a relatively unhealthy meal about 4 hours prior (Chinese, with fried wonton things, I know, bad idea) and while we were watching TV, my boyfriend gave me one of his potato chips that I had said that I wanted to taste. So I ate the potato chip (which I chewed completely) and then suddenly just a minute or two later my upper back started hurting a lot, and just got progressively worse. I got light-headed and nauseated. I had a little bit of diarrhea (nothing major), tried to throw up, but at this point all that would come up was foam and that one potato chip. I went back into the kitchen and was standing there telling my boyfriend about how I was feeling, and then WHAM I thought I was going to pass out. I kneeled on the floor and put my head on the floor, and then after a minute of completely freaking out, heart palpitations, truly AWFUL upper back pain, and chest pressure, I got more nauseated, crawled into the bathroom, threw up some more foam, had some more diarrhea, and then everything just started getting better as fast as it happened. In 10 minutes I was back on the couch again, feeling mostly OK.

The next day, I went to an urgent care clinic, and told them what was going on, and they did bloodwork (a CBC, thyroid panel, and complete metabolic profile.) Everything came back mostly OK. They said I wasn't considered anemic, but that my red blood cells were a little bit small, and that I would benefit from more Iron in my diet or a Multivitamin with iron (which I already take, but OK I will increase my iron.) And they said it seemed like I was a little over-hydrated, and that I should limit my fluids to 64oz/day. I don't buy that second part at all, because I struggle to get in 40oz of fluids per day, and can't even remember the last time I had 64oz in one day. So basically I spent a ton of money doing this bloodwork and it is telling me absolutely nothing. That doctor said he thought that an EKG would be next if the bloodwork didn't show anything, but that's goingto be expensive, and heart disease of any kind does not run in my family. Plus this all started after the banding, so I can't help but think that it's related.

If it was a problem with my gall bladder, would it show up in that kind of bloodwork? My mom had to have her gall bladder removed due to massive gall stones when she was about 45 years old.

I don't know what to do at this point!! I'm so tired of feeling miserable, and terrified, and exhausted!

Thank you so much if you read all of this! Please, any ideas of what could be wrong with me, or any advice on what I should do would be greatly appreciated!

I don't know what to tell you. Have you tried calling the doctor's office that did you banding and explaining all of this.

All I know about gall bladder problems is that you would have pain on the right side.

If you don't get many replies for some odd reason, make another post asking for the RN's on this board to please read your post.

There are quite a few medical people that post here regularly. Maybe one of them will have an answer.

Wow, I'm sorry to hear your story. I am a nurse and I think it's imperative you call the doc who banded you. The other thought I had was, I think you need to look at your diet and make sure you are making wise choices. There is something called a PB and sliming that I've read about on this website. Check it out, that might be what is happening to you.

I haven't been banded yet. I'm hoping for sometime in early April. So, please call your banding doc and please let us know what the outcome is.

Good Luck,

Susan

Hi, I get this occasionally when I have eaten something 'wrong' or too much and I think it is pressure on the vagus nerve. It is a really horrible sensation. Perhaps your band is a little too tight?

Hi, I am looking for any input on what might be wrong with me! I have no insurance (paid for the band myself - or will be paying it off for the next 4 years), and my recent problems have been really scaring me, and I'm not exactly sure what to do.

To start off, I was banded in mid-October of 2007 at NWWLS in Everett, WA, which is a 4 hour drive from where I am in Portland, OR. My last (second) fill was about a month ago, and I am not over-filled. I'm not feeling that much restriction, and I saw the Fluid go through under flouro. However, after this fill, I was quite light-headed for a couple of days (even turned around and went back to Everett for the flouro and reassurance that everything was OK) but this eventually subsided, and everything was fine until a couple of weeks ago.

Recently, I've been very fatigued and have random dizzy spells or periods of light-headedness and nausea. Usually when this happens and I try to throw up, nothing comes up but some foam. (I'm also quite foamy - more often than not, I could spit up some foam at any given time if I tried.) Sometimes these episodes are accompanied by heart palpitations, and since this is all kind of scary without insurance, I usually have a bit of an anxiety attack. And I always get very sensitive to cold. Other times, I feel just fine for the most part.

I feel constantly tight in the chest and a little bit short of breath, and I do feel a sensation (wouldn't call it pain really, more like pressure or acute awareness of something) in my chest, just to the right of center, though I would say I notice it more in my back. And even when I'm not having one of these episodes, I feel a little cloudy-headed.

About a week ago, something like this happened out of the blue, while we were on the couch watching TV. I had eaten a relatively unhealthy meal about 4 hours prior (Chinese, with fried wonton things, I know, bad idea) and while we were watching TV, my boyfriend gave me one of his potato chips that I had said that I wanted to taste. So I ate the potato chip (which I chewed completely) and then suddenly just a minute or two later my upper back started hurting a lot, and just got progressively worse. I got light-headed and nauseated. I had a little bit of diarrhea (nothing major), tried to throw up, but at this point all that would come up was foam and that one potato chip. I went back into the kitchen and was standing there telling my boyfriend about how I was feeling, and then WHAM I thought I was going to pass out. I kneeled on the floor and put my head on the floor, and then after a minute of completely freaking out, heart palpitations, truly AWFUL upper back pain, and chest pressure, I got more nauseated, crawled into the bathroom, threw up some more foam, had some more diarrhea, and then everything just started getting better as fast as it happened. In 10 minutes I was back on the couch again, feeling mostly OK.

The next day, I went to an urgent care clinic, and told them what was going on, and they did bloodwork (a CBC, thyroid panel, and complete metabolic profile.) Everything came back mostly OK. They said I wasn't considered anemic, but that my red blood cells were a little bit small, and that I would benefit from more Iron in my diet or a multivitamin with iron (which I already take, but OK I will increase my iron.) And they said it seemed like I was a little over-hydrated, and that I should limit my fluids to 64oz/day. I don't buy that second part at all, because I struggle to get in 40oz of fluids per day, and can't even remember the last time I had 64oz in one day. So basically I spent a ton of money doing this bloodwork and it is telling me absolutely nothing. That doctor said he thought that an EKG would be next if the bloodwork didn't show anything, but that's goingto be expensive, and heart disease of any kind does not run in my family. Plus this all started after the banding, so I can't help but think that it's related.

If it was a problem with my gall bladder, would it show up in that kind of bloodwork? My mom had to have her gall bladder removed due to massive gall stones when she was about 45 years old.

I don't know what to do at this point!! I'm so tired of feeling miserable, and terrified, and exhausted!

Thank you so much if you read all of this! Please, any ideas of what could be wrong with me, or any advice on what I should do would be greatly appreciated!

You have alot of the same symptoms I had when I needed my gallbladder removed. The only way my doc knew I needed it removed was by ultrasound. I would have this checked if I were you just to be on the safe side.

The band was the best thing I have ever done.

Good luck to you, keep us posted on how your doing.

I called my doctor's office and talked to one of the nurses there, and she didn't offer much info. She said that the amount of weight I've lost (about 45 pounds) was about when gall bladder symptoms usually start presenting. She also said that even if I were to come in to the office, there was nothing they could do, they'd have to send me to a hospital for an ultrasound because they don't have one there. But she said it did sound like gall bladder symptoms and that I should get to a doctor soon.

Since I don't have insurance, I guess I will wait until tomorrow and then go back to the urgent care clinic and they can write me an order for an ultrasound, and then I can go to a hospital and have one done and find out what is going on with me.

It's either that, or go to the ER, which is going to cost so much with no insurance. Though it's still an option, I suppose.

This is so frustrating.

I had a single episode that sounds much like you are describing. It also came at the same time I began refluxing at night, what they call night coughing. Have you had reflux or have you been "coughing" at night?

You know, after reading this over, it does sound like gall bladder.

My daughter had RNY and had to have her gall bladder out.

They say weight loss can cause the gall bladder problems. I remember her having pain in her back.

There is a blood test that determines this, but you do have to have an ultra sound.

QTkidsmom: I used to have horrible acid reflux before my surgery, but I haven't been having it since. Actually, I think I had it once, a month or so ago, but I was lying in some strange position and I blamed it on that. But no, no recent reflux or the coughing.

Tomorrow I am going to the doctor again, and hopefully he can get me in somewhere for an ultrasound also tomorrow. I want to get this taken care of asap - I can't take much more of this.

Good. I hope they figure out what is wrong.

I realize it has been several months since your original post and hope by now you've gotten to the bottom of things. However, when I needed my gallbladder removed the only symptom I had was being nauseated. I had an ultrasound that didn't show any sludge or any signs. Finally had a hida scan that showed my gallbladder needed to be removed.

later my upper back started hurting a lot, and just got progressively worse. I got light-headed and nauseated. I had a little bit of diarrhea (nothing major), tried to throw up, but at this point all that would come up was foam and that one potato chip. I went back into the kitchen and was standing there telling my boyfriend about how I was feeling, and then WHAM I thought I was going to pass out. I kneeled on the floor and put my head on the floor, and then after a minute of completely freaking out, heart palpitations, truly AWFUL upper back pain, and chest pressure, I got more nauseated, crawled into the bathroom, threw up some more foam, had some more diarrhea, and then everything just started getting better as fast as it happened. In 10 minutes I was back on the couch again, feeling mostly OK.

I had 2 similar episodes to this about 18 months ago - pre band. Absolutely horrific. I was asleep and the pain woke me up. It lasted for a couple of hours which I spent trying to sleep on the bathroom floor. For some reason that was the most comfortable soothing place. I went for tests including an ultrasound and they didn't find anything. I believe that it probably was a gall stone passing.

It hasn't happened since and i hope it never does. It was the most excruciating pain I have ever felt.

Hi, I really know how you feel because I been having the exact same symptoms since the first few days that I had my band on, I have almost five years with my band and i´m decided to take it off, what i´m worry about is that the nerve has been damage and i have no remedy for my anxiety, after five years of terrible suffering and when i say terrible suffering believe me, i mean it, I don´t know if I will ever come back to normal, the only treatment that really work for me is Sanax.

To be Honest I did cry when I red your post, because I have been feeling alone all these years, trying to found out what is wrong with me, the only thing that i´m sure is that did not feel this way before the operation.

I really don´t speak english very well and for that reason i can not express or say everything i would like to, but for all this matter, you have all my support.

Sorry for my english, hope we can share some information and see if we can help each other.

Saludos from Venezuela.

ATT Miguel

Fret,

Why would you go 5 years without finding out what is wrong? You didn't say what your symptoms are but some things to check would be gallbladder and band tightness.

I've had a rough year myslef with many of the same symptoms. My gallbladder checked out fine so the next step for me is that they are going to remove all of my Fluid on Friday and see if my problems ease up.

I don't know if you noticed how old the original post is, but I just thought I should point that out.

Good luck to you.

Suzanne,

Hi, the main reason why i did not find out earlier was because the symptoms, I really do not know how old is the lapband surgery technique, but what I´m shure is that there was not so many post, cases, testimonies and information in that time, there was only one forum where I did post, and nobody seemed to share the exact same symptoms that i was having, in fact, was because of that why I stooped checking the forums.

How is it possible that anxiety can be related with this kind of surgery?, of course the logic makes you think that if is this started to happen after the operation, the operation must be the cause, but is not that easy, first it can be easily related with so many other psychological symptoms that have nothing to do with the stomach or the band for the 99.9 percent of the doctors, including the one who made the band operation.

Second, even doe that i have been feeling terrible for the last five years, believe me, it´s very hard to think about getting another surgery without really knowing if removing the band will solve and stop the problems, so you constantly block yourself about the band having something to do with this, in fact I have read some post where people complain about feeling worst once the band was removed, this makes you think it twice

In this moment the band is completely open and I still feel terrible and nothing have change, I had my gallbladder removed like two years before the band.

Here is a list of almost all the symptoms.

Constant Feeling of Dizziness, but stronger in two particular cases, after eating or evacuating.

Fatigue, I feel exauted and sleepy a lot, to the point that I can sleep four or five hours during the day and then have a normal night sleep.

Gas, nauceas and Diarrhea, these ones can be related with the fact of not having gallbladder, but once again don´t remember them before the surgery.

Headkes and for over all the Above, Stress and anxiety, including some uncommon panic attacks.

These are the all that I can think now, and for what I have read, all of them are now very common to find among todays banders.

Please excuse my english and any grammar mistakes, I did tried to be the more explicit that I could.

P.D, i did not notice how old the this post was bytheway...

Have you considered that this may be due to some form of food intolerance. I would be getting allergy testing before i got my band removed.

Tiredness,headaches,digestive upsets are all common symptoms of a food intolerance. it could be lactose,gluten,chemicals - one of any number of things.

I think you should explore this prior to any further surgery.