Hi, I've had my band for 6 years now and feel confident that I could do the fills myself. In fact, I had to hold an ER doc's hand to do my last removal. I swallowed a pill too big to go down and it was quite painful, so went to local ER as there are NO DOCS in my area willing to see me since they didn't do my surgery. Anywho, I know I need a Huber needle and have found them online. Just wondering if anyone has attempted to or if anyone does their fills themselves?

So out of all of you that say it would be easy to do, why haven't you already if it's no big deal. I want someone to post a video on you tube of this and then I will believe you but alot of you are all talk :redface:

Good point

Just wanted to mention one thing- if you do your own adjustment and your surgeon finds out, do you think he/she would continue to treat you??

Your actions could lead to complications then you expect your doctor to take responsibility for correcting that.

Also, would the insurance cover any complications caused by self manipulation?

I don't think it is too much worse than people that tattoo or pierce themselves at home and that happens every day.

I wouldn't do but I wouldn't get tattooed or pierced either.

When I landed in the local ER after my motorcycle crash last summer, my band was *tight* from the trauma of broken bones and stress. The idiots in the ER tried to give me frigging Pepto Bismol as I told them I was banded and was complaining that I barely swallow my own spit, but I felt nauseated. I immediately got on my cel phone and called my band surgeon. I finally got an anti-nausea med that melted in my mouth and was OK after he told me to tell them what to give me. He said if necessary he'd walk them through the process. My point being that if trained medical ER staff aren't familiar and proficient with this process, what makes one think one can do it ones' self? Crazy talk. If you want to be a fill nurse, then get trained as a fill nurse and make it your new career. Don't go giving shite advice on a forum.

Oh, and if you don't use huber needles on your port, it lessens the ability of the membrane to seal as you are cutting a "V" shape flap out of it. All the clinic staff has to do is X-ray or fluoro the port and see the 'whisker' like appearance left by the hypodermic needle versus the huber. There are new huber needles that look a lot like hypos, but aren't. I strongly suspect the RN suggesting her doctor is using a hypo *is* mistaken and is setting herself up for a leak, infection or a piece of the silicone membrane floating around in her abdomen. Pass, thank you.

Be well.

Ducati Bonnie