Hi,

I was banded 2/27/08 and I have several issues. I feel like crying...I don't think I made the right decision. It doesn't appear to be working for me.

I had my first fill 3 weeks ago. Here are my problems:

(1) little weight loss. I've lost a total of 18 pounds but 15 of it was during the liquid/mushy stage. I am losing very little now. Even after a fill I can eat a pretty large portion of food. Plus the band doesn't keep you away from bad food. I have made little progress on weight loss in the past month (down and up the same 3 pounds).

(2) of most concern are these spasms I started getting this morning (before I even woke up), in my stomach area. It doesn't really hurt but really annoying--not something I could live with. Has anyone else had these?

(3) Pain in my left side, near the port area and sometimes lower. Sometimes it's just pain and sometimes its a burning sensation.

But the spasms concern me the most. Has my band slipped or is something else wrong?

I'm very very discouraged. I have another Dr.'s appointment May 5. I don't know if I can wait that long.

Linda, How did the dr. visit go?

FYI, I've discovered I have the same pain sensation in my lower port area when I over eat and it takes a while for the food to be digested.

I just noticed that your ticker said you only have 1.5 pounds to go till your goal weight. Wow! Good for you!

Thanks! I'm pretty stable at this wgt., a half a pound or pound lighter is the variation, so I'm happy.

You are getting down there too! Don't give up, I know it's hard, especially since you see how good you're looking now, but it will be worth it!

Linda--I have that fluttering in my stomach/esoph area when I overeat. I am really curious to hear what your Dr. told you. Please,post the results! I will be calling my doc this week to ask. Silly me, I went in last week and didn't even think about it!

Good luck to you!

alright, i was banded on friday may23 and so i am just trying to get used to having this foreign object in my body. i'm hoping that the pulling sensation will stop soon. also, the reason why i got on this morning was to see if anyone else experienced the "fluttering" on the stomach and so i see that ya'll have (it feels like it's trying to push the band off). i hope and pray that my stomach will finally get used to the band being on there because it almost makes me want to gag when it does that.

Hi

I was banded on May 20th and it appears that the surgery didnt work the same for me as it worked for others. When most people eat things that they arent supposed to it comes back up but that is not what has happened to me. Of course I have not had a fill yet but after I eat a little of what I am not supposed to eat ( mashed potatoes that shouldnt be eaten until week 4) I get this very full filling that is followed by spasm's. The band is working for us but it is working for us in a different way. The spasm's are a sign of your stoomache telling you that you are eating the wrong thing. This is where I learned how different this surgery is from the gastric bypass. I guess this is where will power comes in but I have quite gotten there yet. The best thing that I can suggest is maybe taking an appetite suppresent. I am going speak with my doctor about taking phentermine until I can get my first fill.

I hope everything works out great for you....

Be blessed....

Let me know how your journey continues to go so that I can know what to expect........

Samantha

Hey

You are not alone. I was banded on May 20th and I have been experiencing all these funny feelings in my stomache as well. I get the fluttering and I also get the feeling that the liquid and food are getting stuck somewhere. I have also been getting spasms here and there. And at night time the gas pains can be horrible. But as each day goes by it is better than the last. At first I felt like I couldnt hardly breathe or catch my breath. Spoke with the doctor and his nurses about all of this and they said that this was all normal.......

One more thing..after surgery I didnt really experience pain from the inscisions I experiences pain from the air that they blew up my stomache with to perform the surgery. I had gas pains in my stomache, chest and shoulders. I thought I was having a heart attack. Doc explained all normal. Told me the best thing to do is get up as quick as you can start walking again. Go back to work as quick as you can and he was right. I am not all the way there but i do fill better from one day to the next. I am still having the horrible gas pains but they get better each day. If I eat the wrong stuff they are worse but that is just encouragment for me to eat the right thing..

I hope your journey goes well...

Samantha

Hope you feel better

well, my stomach does the fluttering thing when i haven't had a bite. maybe i should try eating something small.

How are you all eating?

I was banded May 7th and I am still not supposed to have food. The closest thing I have had to food since the end of April is cottage cheese. My Dr. has me on full liquids until Wednesday-21 days after surgery (I CAN'T WAIT!). I don't think I could have tolerated food before now even though I have wanted it. I feel great- although am starting to get a little hungry and am ready to chew something. I am just curious. As for the gas pains I did suffer with those for about a week and a half - I only stopped having the pains in my stomach and shoulders a little over a week ago. That is normal- your body has to absorb all the gas they blew up with.

Please follow your doctors eating plan - there is a reason for it - your stomach is healing... You can damage your stomach by eating too soon.

here is a quick update on my situation. I see the progress I have made. I originally wrote that I had lost 18 pounds. Well I'm happy to report that I'm now down 25 pounds. It is still very slow and a learning process. I don't know why but sometimes I feel much more restricted than other times. I wonder how much of it is in my head. For instance, I struggled this last weekend. Was it because it was a "holiday" that I associate with food and I was out of my routine or was the band looser? don't know yet.

But the fluttering sensation. I only had that one day. I mentioned it to my doctor and he shrugged it off as nothing. He said that lower left abdomen pains are gas. He also said that minor pain or discomfort in the port area is common if you move a certain way. I have noticed that once in a while I still get a pain in my left shoulder. I'm going to ask him about that at my next visit.

Wow all those gas pains are making me nervous that I will have them too. I'm quite a baby... my threshold for pain is very low, I hate that. How long did it take everyone to recover enough to go back to work/normal activity?

I won't be done with my required 6 month "diet classes" until November so I was hoping to schedule the surgery during the Christmas break since I'll be starting college full time in the fall and I don't want to miss any days if possible.

Also, has anyone had problems with constipation? I've had serious, chronic constipation since birth.:scared2: I finally found out that I have to have about 70 grams of Fiber a day, along with about 1.5 or 2 litters or Water every single day, just so I'm able to go to the bathroom (no matter how healthy I eat). Are you still able to take the fiber supplements (I take 4 heaping tablespoons of psyllium husks in orange juice) after your banded?

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend.:smile2:

Hi,

The recovery was not that bad. I had the surgery on a Wed, was home Thursday night and back at work on Monday (desk job). I think I might have taken liquid Tylenol for the left shoulder pain which lasted about 5 days. I don't think it's that long for other people.

Now constipation is a problem. I never was constipated before the band but now am. I'm not taking anything for it but was thinking of starting a stool softener (going to ask my Dr. first). I would definitely run your serious constipation problem by your doctor if you haven't already. It could be an issue. You are eating a lot less and differently too (more protein)

Well it seems recovery time is very low. That's great. Why is there shoulder pain involved? Is that due to the gas problem that some seem to be having?

I am very worried about the constipation problem. 2 years ago I had a blockage problem and I couldn't find a dr. to help me for 4 months!!!! I didn't eat solid food for 4 months and lost 50 pounds. Finally I found a dr. that would take me seriously and admitted me into the hospital immediately and removed the blockage 4 days later....soooooo I'm hyper sensitive to constipation now.... I'm a worry wart...hehe

Linda, hang in there..I was where you are..I was crying..wanting the band out of me, but thanks to the wonderful people on this very site, I saw that I was not alone and I am doing wonderful. I am getting healthy (notice, I didn't say thin) but healthy for the first time in many years. I can't wait to finally be healthy and as others have said, this is a tool, not a miracle. I think often we see others who have had it for many years and are smaller and we want instant help. Hang in there...you WILL make it..you were strong enough to make this healthy decision for yourself...believe in yourself, YOU CAN DO IT!! We are all here in the same boat, paddling the same direction, and fighting the current with you...God bless and may He give you strength!!

Donna::sad:

Well it seems recovery time is very low. That's great. Why is there shoulder pain involved? Is that due to the gas problem that some seem to be having?

I am very worried about the constipation problem. 2 years ago I had a blockage problem and I couldn't find a dr. to help me for 4 months!!!! I didn't eat solid food for 4 months and lost 50 pounds. Finally I found a dr. that would take me seriously and admitted me into the hospital immediately and removed the blockage 4 days later....soooooo I'm hyper sensitive to constipation now.... I'm a worry wart...hehe

Have you tried Miralax? I have had periods of diarrhea and constipation over the past 3 weeks with the pre-op and post-op diet and recovery period. I purchased the Miralax prior to surgery just in case I might need it. I had very bad diarrhea (I know...TMI) the first week but the second week was a totally different story. I just couldn't go to the bathroom and didn't feel like I was every going to go. I took the Miralax, which is tasteless and has no texture, and within 24 hours I was regular again. It doesn't cause cramping or anything like that. I believe that you can get it in a liquid formula but I bought the powdered formula and am very pleased with the results.

I purchased it at my local grocery store. I decided to go with this rather than the benefiber that I usually take as I didn't want to contribute to the gas problem. Here is a link... MiraLAX

OH...and just so you know...I have a very low pain tolerance. If I can do this...so can you! I made my Dr. aware of my anxiety regarding pain and he really took that into consideration when determining what pain meds to put me on. He understood what I needed because I was open and honest with him. It's not something to be embarrassed of...some people can tolerate and others can't.