Scared to death in CT.

Hi everyone, I am new to this site and I have a question I hope someone can answer. I had a Gastric Bypass almost 4 years ago I was 288 and now I'm 198. I did go down to 170 and just recently I've noticed I can eat so much more than I have since the operation. Someone wrote that we shouldn't drink any soda or carbonated drinks of any kind,my Dr never told me that, now I read that it makes your pouch stretch and I think that is what's happening to me.My question is this does anyone know for sure if you can have the lap band put on to slow your eating down so I don't gain back any more weight. I am making myself sick worrying about this I have gained back almost 30 pounds and before you know it it will turn into 50. I am scared to death. Also does anyone know any doctors in the eastern part of CT that deals with this??? Thanks Janc57

Carbonation will not stretch your pouch-- unless you have forgotten to belch or otherwise pass gas. Pouch stretching can occur if you have habitually overate and if you drank while you were eating (that can cause the food in your pouch to swell, if it doesn'****hrough and make you feel more hungry). If your pouch has stretched (and a little stretching is typical), you can have a band inserted (this is actually one form of the surgery where a silastic band is placed around the pouch). However, depending upon whether you were transected or not, you might have a staple line disruption (which would allow the food entering your pouch to enter into your remnant stomach). But, you are catching your problem early on-- you are on the road to regaining control. In addition to addressing what might be the medical reasons for your weight gain, think about what emotional factors could be prompting you to eat more. Being out almost four years as well, I have days when I feel that I too am ready to slip, when overeating seems like a pretty good solution to what ails me rather than the useless crutch I abused for years. What reels me in is lots of support group meetings, peers who understand the daily struggles and being able to reach out to professionals with experience in eating disorders. Hope you find the solutions that will work for you. Good luck.

you need to start back at square one- with your surgeon's office- if your surgeon has a dietician. If not find a dietician who is knowledgeable in gastric bypass. If you don't want to go back to your old surgeon think about making an appointment with a new one- and get in and ask these questions. you can be worked up to see what is physically going on with the pouch - and maybe you are a candidate for a revision. Chances are it is okay and you need to really work on it- check out Paula's post- this is the information Dr Aranow's patients get on pouch rules- how to use the tool you have. I also suggest South Beach diet book- follow the diet but scale down the portions as needed. Get to a post op support group meeting in your area- where are you?? http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/CT/postdetail/42642.html?vc=0#42642 the above link is to paula's water loading/maintainence rules of the pouch from Dr Aranow. if it doesn't work scroll back to August 14th under older posts and you will find it. Good luck.

Sometimes what can happen is that the foramen (hole) from your pouch to your intestine opens wider as you get farther out rather than your pouch getting bigger and needing a band. Some surgeons are doing collagen injections into that foramen to help regain the full feeling, they do it endoscopically. One more reason to keep in touch with your surgeon and explore your options. They can scope your pouch and see what you need help with, besides nutritional support.

Thank you all for your suggestions. My problem is I had my surgery done in Rhode Island I got remarried 2 years ago and we moved to CT. to get away from all the nonsense. Now I work at Day Kimball Hospital Homecare and I have all new medical I don't know any doctors around here so I don't know where to start. I just got a new PCN (Personal Care Doctor) but she doesn't know too much about these surgeries. She is going to check into it for me though. Anyway, Im happy to see there are so many people out there that are willing to help in any way they can.Again Thanks Janc57

There are lots of Dr's in Ct that are wonderful. You can research them through the surgeon secion of the site, or perhaps some folks will mention their surgeons in posts to follow. Mine was Dr. Aranow out of Middletown, CT which is not exactly the area you're looking for, but not too far off either. Stretched stoma (which Jennifer I think is referring to as a foramen- a word I don't know), fistulas, staple line disruptions and streteched pouches (to a certain extent this one is normal and expected) are all possibilities that a post op much live with. This is why we MUST MUST MUST stay in the care of our gastric bypass surgeons for the rest of our lives. While these things are possible, they are rare. It is more likely that the cause of your gain is simply lifestyle and diet related. Putting a ring on your stomach is not a highly common practice, but is done in some cases by some doctors if the surgery has failed. Let me repeat that- if the SURGERY has failed you. That may not be the case for you. I assume that your Dr is no longer practicing or that you do not want to see him. So, PLEASE get yourself to a doctor that will follow you. Just call around and let the office know about your concerns and issues, then you can see where to go from there. It's important to get checked out and make sure you're 'in tact' as far as the surgery goes. Then, once you determine your medcal status, you can create a plan of action to move forward with loosing what you've gained back. Lots of people experience regain. You're not alone, that is certain. It can be beat. The first step is recognizing it and you've done that! Now, you can take the next step and take care of your health. Good luck to you.