I'm a little over a year since surgery (and 120lbs gone ; ) )and I'm embarking on one of my weigh-loss goals which is scuba diving. My girlfriend and I are headed to Hawaii in June and have our first scuba certification class in a week or so.

Has anyone been scuba diving with a lapband, know anyone who has, or knows of any side-effects considering pressure changes under Water.

My band is empty as I never needed a fill so I'm not anticipating any problems.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Never been with my band but enjoy yourself to the fullest! I LOVE Scuba diving! I wish I could go. :thumbup:

I'm a little over a year since surgery (and 120lbs gone ; ) )and I'm embarking on one of my weigh-loss goals which is scuba diving. My girlfriend and I are headed to Hawaii in June and have our first scuba certification class in a week or so.

Has anyone been scuba diving with a lapband, know anyone who has, or knows of any side-effects considering pressure changes under Water.

My band is empty as I never needed a fill so I'm not anticipating any problems.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Not a diver myself, but I've seen this question posted before on at least one forum and saw where others had experienced no problems diving after banded.

Hello,

The first advise i want to give you is to discuss this matter with your surgeon, and with a doctor specialized in hyperbaric issues.

I am a certified diver, and I have been diving regularly since my surgery, without having any problems. Of course, it is my body, and my band, so it does not mean you will not encounter problems. You should definitely check with your doctors before trying.

I talked with my surgeon before the surgery, and he told me that my lap-band was guaranteed to resist to pressures up to 4 bars (30m deep). He did not see why my lap-band should prevent me for diving. The hyperbaric physician I see every year for my check-up does not see it as a problem either.

DAN (Divers Alert Network) sees at least 2 potential problems with diving with a lap-band: gastrointestinal barotrauma, if a gas pocket forms in your stomach and your lap-band prevents it from dilating when you go up at the end of your dives, and increase chances of vomiting under Water if your meal gets stuck above your lap-band before your dive. (http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/medical/faq/faq.aspx?faqid=190)

I never experienced any of these problems, and I made around 100 dives since my surgery, to depths ranging from 20 to 45 meters (yes, deeper than the official limit for my band).

For the last time, one case is not the other, so check this with your own physician before doing anything.

I wish you the best experience under the surface...

I'm adding scuba diving to the list of things I want to do once I drop the weight

I can't wait to go back to diving after my incisions heal!

My band is empty too and I got scuba certified a few months ago. We only dove to 40 feet but I had no problems whatsoever. We took four open Water dives in the ocean.

It was great! I've always wanted to be certified and it was everything I thought it would be.

Have fun!

I just LOVE scuba diving - I'm pretty sure I was a manatee or a dugong in a past life - I love the ocean but I hate boats!!!

I finally convinced my hubby to get certified last year, and we've been on a few dives this year together. He's chomping at the bit to get back in the Water, but doesn't want to dive without me, and my surgeon wants me to not swim for a long time, so hubby will have to wait.

I'm hoping to go up to the Great Barrier Reef with hubby, possibly early next year... He won't know what hit him! (I've already dived up there, so I know how good it will be!) Plus there's been an ex-military ship sunk near us that we can dive on...

I can't wait!

Spoke to my dietician today about diving again (I want to start up again with the new season in March/April) and she thought I would need at least 1 ml out. Given I have only just started being filled the thought of being released fills me with dread. For the courses I want to do I would only need to go down to a max 22 m / 72 ft with experienced trainers who know about the band some start at 6 m / 20 ft.

I am tempted to start with the courses that are completed in shallower Water, having liquids only before and after and see how I get on.

Has anyone else with a restricted band been diving? Have you had it relaxed so you can go?