Hello, everyone!  I am not sure why I  received this post thread from OH, as it has been years since I was involved in band issues or Band education.

I will take this chance, though, to say HI! to all of my old friends who may remember me.

I have been one of the lucky ones. I was banded in March 2003, and remain at goal weight (BMI 22) for more than 11 years, and my Band is fine. (With the exception of one year when I regained 10# with no fill while I was caring for my mother with Alzheimer's. That weight came off when I decided to put myself first) )

I rarely have any trouble. However, let me tell you that KUDU is not  a band-friendly meat! My fiance and I spent 6 weeks in Africa last summer, and Kudu is frequently served. It is tough, stringy, dry, and one bite almost made me barf. 

The Band, sadly, did not live up to it's expectations for a great many people. We had such high hopes...

I know many who lost their Bands, and many who have turned to other procedures. I wish them all well. Still, the requirements for ALL procedures are basically the same: We must change our lifestyles and comply with eating and drinking limitations. 

I am getting married in October, after living together for several years. Jim is a retired University Biology/Environmental Sciences Professor, and we share a love of hiking, photography, travel, and much more. We just bought a wonderful home on the Coast, and will move  next month. 

I am not involved in Band education AT ALL any longer, and have not kept up to date on Band or WLS issues. Please don't email me questions or concerns, as I cannot reply.

The very best to all of you - 

Sandy

I'm really so  sorry to hear this - but this is exactly why a yearly routine fluoro is so important. MANY problems are found before symptoms occur, and often while they still can be fixed fairly easily.

However, it's pretty unusual to have such a serious problem with NO symptoms at all. I don't know of ANY cases in more than 7 years of my banding experience  where there was a "major slip" but absolutely no symptoms. I'd urge you to get a second opinion, since you're not having a bit of trouble. It may be entirely possible , with a highly-skilled surgeon, to simply re-position ore entirely replace the band in the same surgery. 

Don't give up quite yet - you have not really looked at all possible options. You may even want email Dr. Curry here about your situation. (Find his thread at the top of the page here) Scan or email him a copy of your BA swallow also, and see what he thinks. 

There are also surely other band docs near you to consult in person. It's your right and - really - obligation to yourself to do this before you accept band-removal surgery in a situation that is not urgent. 
 
Good luck - sure hope things end up OK for you.

Sandy r
band educator

Colon cancer is a very serious issue, and we all need a first screening at age 50, then regularly therafter. Those with a hx of colon cancer in the family, like my family, start with colonoscopies at 40-45, and then every 2-3 years. Not fun, but SURELY better than colon cancer, don't you think? 

It's very important to get very well cleaned out. If you don't , then the polyps they are looking  for may be hidden and not found and nipped out.

What I did, and was taught to me, was to start the prep much earlier than for non-Bandsters. I started mine a full 24 hours before the procedure. This left plenty of time to get it all in, and totally clear your bowel so there is NO color at all to the loose "stool" you are having. WE can easily drink a couple ounces every 15 minutes for several hours. No need to gulp it all in a short time, which we can NOT safely do. 

Having a Band is NO reason to try to get away with an incomplete bowel prep. Think about it - we are trying to reclaim our health from obesity by losing weight - WHY in the world would we want to do a poor bowel prep and have a polyp that can easily turn into cancer missed and not removed??

Just start the prep early, after oking it with the GI doc, and you'll be fine.

Sandy r
 6 colonoscopies in the last 15 yrs, and lived thru it

Cathy, This is called a seroma, and is quite common at the port si in the days after band surgery. The fluid can be manually expressed if the doctor has instructed at surgery about seromas, so then the fluid rarely builds up  enough to require needle drainage.

Is he having you now gently squeeze out any  further fluid, so it does not build up and require regular needle dainings? This is the common practice and treatment.

Sandy r
band educator
at normal BMI goal 6+ yrs
banded 7+ yrs

Hi, "peaceful" - Needing a new fill really has little to do  with weight lost.   But, if we have not lost anything for more than 4 weeks in a row, it's time take a look at SEVERAL things, and needing more fill is the LAST thing to consider, never the first.

It's important to understand that we will never lose every week or even every month - but if we are striving to improve and refine our eating, choices, exercise, and lifestyles, we WILL resume loss again. And those are the lessons that will allow us to keep the weight off this time - it's not the band at all.

WHEN we might need more fill has more to do to do with how the present fill is, and how you are doing with eating.

If you now cannot eat well on ANY days, you are not eligible for a fill. please NEVER get more fill if you are having ANY trouble with the present fill !! The too-tight days would be even worse. think about this! Never get more fill when you're having ANY trouble with the present fill. Doing so - and docs agreeing to give more - is a big part of why so many people get into band trouble.

Take a look at what you are eating.  On the days you can eat "everything", are you choosing solid protein and veggies?  The only meals that will make the band work are based on protein. Are you starting every lunch and dinner with solid protein? always stopping at 1-1.5 cups total, even if the band does not make you stop? If not, people are begging for dilations.

  If you are eating soft foods or liquid foods, don't expect the band to help . If you choose this type of meal, you'll need to SELF-limit to the 1-1.5 cups of foods that will discourage pouch and esophagus dilations. we can never eat until we are too full to eat more. That is not the primary purpose of the band. the band is meant only to dim hunger between meals - again, ONLY if we choose a good band meal) so that we can work hard on improving our eating, choices, and lifestyles. That is all we're going to be able to reply on in a few years, when the esophagus becomes accustomed to the band pressure and no longer gives reliable stop signs.

See this link for more on "When do I need more fill?" Hope this helps. Your doc should be giving you similar guidelines, and not leaving his patients out in the dark.

http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/LapBand/4137018/When-do-I-need-more-fill-Education-document-re-post/#33781943

Sandy r

I'm seeing an awful lot of people here with signs of a too-tight fill. It's essential that we understand that the #1 reason for ALL the major and monor ban trouble, including those leading to stomach damage, band loss, and even esophgeal cancer from ongoing reflux - is trying to keep a too-tight fill.
I'm afraid that not many docs are educating well on the signs and symptoms of a too-tight fill, or the definition of a GOOD fill. we are NEVER meant to be trying to tolerate the largest, tightest fill possible. We want AS LITTLE fill as possible, to still give us some help.
I hope this education document that i have posted here regularly over the last 5-6 years, will help. It was developed for and approved by the major surgeon I worked for for several years as a Patient Educator. 

What is a GOOD fill vs a fill that is too much and dangerous ?

It's important to know that, even with a fluoro, a good fill can be
very elusive. A fill that "looks perfect" on a fluoro can still turn
out to be way too tight in a hour, a day, a week. The usual swelling
that is common after a fill occurs in the next few-24 hrs, not
immediately. The only thing that matters in the end is how well and
safely you can EAT, not what the x-ray "shows." It also takes some
fills 1-2 weeks to "settle in", and we cannot tell how a fill really 
is until then. This is why at least 4 weeks between fills is very
important, and this is addressed by the band manufacturer in the
professional literature they provide surgeons.

This is why many US docs rarely use a fluoro with routine fills. They consider it unneeded
radiation (to the ovary area in women) that does not tell enough to
justify it's use. a fluoro DOES have it's good place, though, in 
certain other  cir****tances - assessing possible band/pouch problems, for instance. IMO, we all need one every 6-12 months, to try to catch any problems starting to arise. 

I personally chose to get only one fluoro a year, to check band
position, pouch size, etc - never with every fill. 

Since a fluoro is only a clue to a good fill, WE must therefore be
responsible for knowing what a good fill is, and never trying to keep
a too-tight one. Way too many people think that if the doc says "this
fluoro looks great" and sends you home, that the fill IS always good,
and they must put up with any pain or problems. Just not so! I wish
it were that clear-cut.

With a GOOD fill, we can:

1. easily drink fluids from the time of the new fill, and get the minimum 80-100 oz a day in
2. be able to eat 1-1.5 cups of good bandster food per meal most of
the time. Less than this will never meet nutrition needs for health
or safe loss. we are never trying to at as little as possible. 
3. with good bandster choices, we can meet the daily (on average)
protein, fiber, calcium, good carb, and omega 3 oil needs
4. we never have pain when eating, unless we forget a rule
5. we rarely have vomiting, pb's, or sliming. this means 1-2x a month, max, imo
6. With a good band meal, we feel satisfied (not FULL - there is an
important difference) for 3-4 hrs
7. we will be losing, averaged over a month or two, about 1-2# a 
week, as long as we are being reasonable in food choices, exercise, 
and fluid needs. we have to do our part too - the band is not a magic 
cure.

A TOO-TIGHT and UNSAFE fill is:

1. being unable to swallow your own saliva, and/or having painful burping
2. being able to eat only a few bites per meal
3. being scared and worried when we eat
4. not being able to eat a wide variety of foods
5. Struggling to meet fluid needs
6. ANY REFLUX. this means ANY! :-)  (See the "reflux" document) 
7. ANY regular pain or trouble, including pb's, sliming, barfing
8. Being unable to eat the solid meat/chicken/ fish that is the basis
of most good bandster meals. WE need these daily. 
9. Having to rely on soft foods and liquid foods like protein drinks,
soups, ice cream , etc to get enough to eat and feel satisfied (This
applies only after we are back on regular foods, of course, not in
the post-op diet phases)
10. a too-tight fill is harmful to the stomach, and the #1 reason for
ALL the major band problems, some requiring more expensive surgery and
even band removal. We have to take very good care of our stomachs if
we want the band to stay safe and last inside us.

One of the hardest things we have to change is the thought that the
less we eat, the more we will lose and the better we will do. this is
very untrue, and very unsafe. when our bodies are deprived of
adequate calories, they refuses to lose well - if at all. When our
calories are too low, the metabolism "Set point" is way too low, and
we VERY easily regain. This is a big reason why we all regained plus
extra after all previous diet attempts.

The "starvation mode", when we are eating too little for safety and
stop losing as a protective mechanism, is VERY real. We must eat
ENOUGH calories, but still just a bit less than we need, to lose
safely and in a way that will STAY the heck OFF this time!!

We have all lost weight before, and sometimes a lot of weight, but we
did it in an unsafe way that caused deprivation and poor health, and
all the weight plus more just came right back again.

THIS time, we need to learn and follow better ways to be successful
with the Band, maintain lost weight long-term, and regain our health.

c. Sandy Richards, BSN, MN
Band Educator
banded March, 2003
At normal BMI goal 6+ years