MY daughter had lapband surgery 1 1/2 years ago and has lost quite a lot of weight, but has been plagued most of that time with diarrhea. She did not have it before the surgery. She is a teacher and often cannot leave her class to go to the RR, so it is a real problem for her. Also, she said when she does go to the RR, often within 5 or ten minutes, she needs to go again. It is not the kind of diarrhea where you can wait- it is the "right now" kind!!! I hope someone will have some suggestions for her- thank you!!

Hi,

I just had my surgury so I am not sure.....but I can tell you that if your daughter eats or drinks to much artificial sweetner the side effect is gas and diahreea.

I have had chronic diarrhea. I am a year and a half out from surgery. I have found that dairy and gluten make it worse. I have eliminated them but I still get it just not as often or as intense. I also have started taking citrucel 3 times a day and it has helped. I know that it is important to not take psyllium (metamucil) products as they can expand in your band and cause some severe problems. It is pretty discouraging and after some research I found that lactose intolerance is a possible side effect of the lap band surgery. I was not informed about this before I had the lap band. I still would have had the surgery had I been informed of that.

Good luck to your daughter I hope she finds some relief.

I would suggest she consult her doctor about the issue and have someone assess her bowel sounds for anything adventatious & possibly do a stool sample. Write down and monitor her diet & bowel movements (frequency, size, color, texture) for a week or so prior to her doc's visit so they can have a better picture of what her habits are and try to pinpoint what is causing it. Due to our inability to drink much fluids quickly and it can be hard to have adequate fiber in our diet with restriction constipation is often the effect and one common sign of constipation is actually diarrhea. I have never had issues with my bowels before I was banded but ever since (19mts ago) I was banded I have every kind of issue, definitely seems to be in relation to my band placement. But for the most accurate diagnosis and treatment I'd recommend she see her own physician (one familiar with the band b/c many are NOT) so that he can accurately treat her symptoms. Chronic diarrhea could be the symptoms to many different issues (infection, certain medications & antibiotics, C. Diff, IBS, Chron's disease) and not just from the band and the effects could be health hazerdous if allowed to persist unchecked. Be sure to inform the doctor that this has been a chronic condition and not just related to eating some bad food as many doctors will write off things if you dont appear too concerned about them. Hope she gets to the bottom of it soon!!

This does not sound like a band related issue. If anything the band tends to slow the digestive process down not speed it up. I would be going to the Dr and getting them to do some thourough testing and not let them BLAME THE BAND.

Yes I have recurrent bouts of it..and the urgency and cramping are fierce...hadn't thought about artificial sweetners or lactose intolarance I've been seeing on post replies....Will experiment to see what is up...Also having some swelling/.large tennis ball lump in upper left quadrant..below the ribs and just the left of my midline...doing tests for herniation or adhesions/tubing issues??? I"m two years out and not pleased with this new development.. LOTS of stuff they don't warn you about with Lap Band and I had a top CA surgeon do mine....Want it out and do WW for the last 30 lbs...can't eat enough veggies, healthy foods since banding and don't like it at all.......lost 50 lbs, but stuck...so. hope all turns out well with you!

Yes I have recurrent bouts of it..and the urgency and cramping are fierce...hadn't thought about artificial sweetners or lactose intolarance I've been seeing on post replies....Will experiment to see what is up...Also having some swelling/.large tennis ball lump in upper left quadrant..below the ribs and just the left of my midline...doing tests for herniation or adhesions/tubing issues??? I"m two years out and not pleased with this new development.. LOTS of stuff they don't warn you about with Lap Band and I had a top CA surgeon do mine....Want it out and do WW for the last 30 lbs...can't eat enough veggies, healthy foods since banding and don't like it at all.......lost 50 lbs, but stuck...so. hope all turns out well with you!

That is horrible! I am sorry you are having so many problems. I hope that you get it all figured out.

I found out that mine is just wheat /gluten and dairy sensitivity and if I eliminate those things I am great.

Yes this is my current condition and I was banded 11/11/11. I got dehydrated and had to have fluids via IV. I learned that I have C-Diff and am on antibiotics now for 3 days. Feeling more hydrated but still have upset stomach. I regret my decision now and am worried about spreading this to my loved ones.

I wanted to give an update on my condition. I was starting to have more foods bother me and so I started thinking that maybe my band was too tight. (I was at 7.5cc.in an 11cc band.) I went and talked to the nurse at my surgeons office and she said that she had heard of people having problems with food sensitivities but not to the severity I was having. After talking about it we decided that it was worth a shot to have some Fluid removed from my band and see how things went. She took out 1.25cc's. I was so worried and actually cried when she took it out, I was so worried about gaining some weight back. I had no idea how tight I was, way way too tight and I am so glad that I had some taken out. I am happy to say that within a week I saw a marked difference and two weeks out I can eat nearly anything with the exception of raw uncooked dairy. I am so excited and cannot believe that nobody has had this happen so I hope that this will help somebody.

Libby I really hope that things work out for you, I am so sorry that you are having so many struggles. I pray it gets better.

wow, love to hear it!! onward.....

...can't eat enough veggies, healthy foods since banding and don't like it at all.......

I see a lot of people on the boards discussing drinking Protein shakes and cutting out food food groups to get in 70-80g of protein a day and still stay in the 1000-1200 calorie range. I feel lucky that the guidelines I received were to get 30-40g and to eat a variety of foods as long as they're good foods. I'm not very far into my journey, but I have already learned that I don't want my band so tight that I can't get down fruits and veggies. I do have to use will power sometimes because not having my band really tight means I sometimes get a little hungry between meals. Sometimes I can stave off the hunger with hot tea, but sometimes I have a few almonds. However, it's not a hunger so powerful that I want to eat a bag of chips or something! I can totally manage it, but I know that this is not the case for everyone.

I'm eating a good variety of foods and my loss has been steady so far. I don't think I want the kind of restriction that would eliminate certain good foods from my diet because I think that would just cause other issues- I think mariedebbie is a great example to learn from!

I have had the same problem since being banded on 10/10/11. The first two weeks I was fine, but when I started more solid foods it started. I am scared to go out to lunch or dinner with anyone because I don't know how I will react. Its worse with dairy, salads and fresh fruits. I have talked to my doctor and they said its not normal and that it has nothing to do with the band. I tend to not buy that because I never had this problem before!

LouAnn. Try having them take some of the fluid out of your band and see if it gets any better. I was hesitant because I did not want to gain weight but, when I did it was much better (it took 2 weeks to see a difference). I still have to take a lactace pill with dairy and cannot drink milk or eat ice cream but it is a whole lot better. I guess that having the band too tight caused so much inflamation at my band site that it began to damage the lining of my stomach and then the enzymes needed for digestion were not being generated because of the damage resulting in cramping, gas and diaherra. I did not get this information from my nurse she said that it could cause that problem but she has not heard of it happening to that extent before. I just know from my experience and doing my own research that this is the problem. I hope that you can get it figured out and can start feeling better soon.

I now have an official diagnosis of ibs and have the dubious honor of being gluten intolerant, lactose intolerant and fodmap intolerant with fructose malabsorption, all thanks to chemo and radiation.

I m new a this but it is often the fodmaps - short chain carbohydrates - which can be the remaining culprit when gluten and dairy are cut without full resolution of symptoms. Along with a c omplicated elimination diet i have been given a stern talking to about including a soluble fibre source at each meal - non wheat contaminated oats, rice, gluten free bread, quinoa etc. This bulks your stool to reduce diarrhoea. The dietician i see is an expert with post colorectal issues, but not with lapbands, and she nearly pitched a fit when she saw my food diary - at how little i eat overall and the lack of grain foods, she has convinced me that for some of us, the health of our guts needs to override fast weight loss and the typical bandster diet can cause real problems for some people. Those healthy green smoothies i thought would heal my post cancer woes - not so much for me. Protein powders, not that i ever use them, another minefield.

Will keep you posted as to how my gut ( and its output) improves.

I had the lap band removed one year ago this month. I do NOT recommend anyone getting it. I have been plagued with diahrrhea since getting it and still have it after removal. It has changed my life and not for the better. I stay home almost all the time becausr I don't know when it will hit. I am a teacher and must wear depends to school.

That is very sad and I feel for you. However the fact that you still have it even though your band has been removed would seem to indicate that the band was not the cause. The fact it started once you were banded is probably coincidental.

What tests have they done to try and ascertain the cause?