not in the plan - 2 years post op

This isn't where I expected to be 2 years post-op. I was hoping to be able to send out a Christmas card with a picture on it for once. Nothing doing - I didn't even send out cards!
I lost about 60 lbs over year one and have gained back half of that. We're having troubles getting the band tight and in the meantime, I've fallen off the wagon with food choices and exercise. It sucks. I obviously can do this... but can I do this for the rest of my life? Last week I was thinking maybe I should have gone the other route - bypass.

I've had a fill at every doctor's visit over the past 2 years. (that's at least 10 fills). He's pretty conservative but my goodness. I've never had anything get stuck. I can still eat bread and steak.  That's not my normal fare, but I do try once in a while to see if I can still tolerate those foods. It seemed whenever I'd get a fill, the doc wasn't able to get out all the fluid that the records said I should have in my band. Finally in December, Doc did a check for leakage in the band - negative!
(All of the sudden though, he found the missing fluid that he hadn't been able to find at the last two visits!) Some of that fluid didn't get measured on the way out so Doc had to make a guesstimate regarding how much to put back in after the leak check. It's been about 5 weeks and things since then and things "feel" like we're getting close. Once in while things really go down SLOWLY and that's as close to "stuck" as I've ever been. I have another appt next Tues and hope we'll take another baby step toward my success.

I hope I can turn around the bad habits I've gone back to. I need to get back here for some support.
Once again, this is not where I expected to be two years out. I'm hoping to turn things back in the right direction in 2009.

Sarah

I hope that you are getting close and are on your way back to getting closer to your goal.  I am glad that you haven't given up!!!  That is a positive sign that one day you will get to your goal!

 If you have had 10 fills and never had trouble with any food.  If you have been in for a fill twice and the doctor did not find fluid in your band.  

It sounds like more than a normal problem.  Has your doctor ever done a fill under xray?  Perhaps you should ask for this.  Perhaps you have a leak in your port? perhaps he has missed several of the fills he thought he gave you?

I say this because i had a near miss with the first problem and it turned out to be the second (missed port).  A quick trip to the xray tech and it was obvious not only that he had missed the port but also that my fill was progressing.

You have every right to ask for more diagnostics and you should have some restriction 2 years out-that is way to long to an extreme not to have checked further.

Tina

I have every confidence in my doc.
After the last couple of fills last year and still no progress. He wasn't able to retract all the fluid that was supposed to be in the band. I was gianing weight. We went to radiology for the leak tested. He emptied the band and injected plenty of barium - 5 ccs I think. There were three of them there, checking from port to band for any leaks. No one saw one, not even me. I wasn't sure whether that was good or bad. I would have been nice to know what the problem was... but it was nice to know I wasn't facing a "redo".
Doc put saline back in and then had me swallow the barium so they could then watch things flow through the system. All looked good.
I'm not complaining about my doc. It's more my choices and the fact that my band must've been in a pinch or something.
I'm anxious to see what's in store for me next Tuesday.

I am so sorry you are struggling.  It really seems like you have not reached full restriction.  I am constantly amazed at these conservative doctors.  I understand that if you get your band too tight it causes problems, but having said that.  SIMPLE solution take it out.  Why would we go through all of the expense, danger, etc. to get a surgery and then slowly and possibly never get the band to work the way it was designed to do? I have seen so many people post on this board that their doctor is conservative and it takes them a year or two to get to restriction. 

Often times this just leaves the person frustrated and easily able to revert back to old habits and not reap any benefits of the band.  I was blessed because my doctor is a self-stated "aggressive" fill doctor  so his patients will get the benefits of the band immediately.  He gave me a small fill in surgery, and I have had two fills since surgery and that is it.  Each fill was fairly large.  He made sure I did not have problems, but certainly didn.t want me to wait a year or two to reach restriction.  That just doesn't make any sense to me.  Sorry I seem to be ranting, but I just feel bad for you and the others out there who have to work so hard to be able to use their tool if at all!

I think you should demand a larger fill and try to reach restriction while you are at his office and make sure you do it in the middle of the week not on a Friday so if you have problems you can get right back in for a slight unfill.  If you get your band to be working how it should, I know you will be able to get on track!  Good luck

I think Doc is conservative with me because I'm 2 hours away. I have to take an entire day off of work if I'm having a problem etc. He always wants me to remind him how far away I live before he does the fill. I appreciate that he is thinking of that before he does a fill. I am closer now than I've ever been, but in the meantime my bad habits have returned, as you have eluded to.
Your thoughts are much appreciated.
Sarah

In order to lose weight you must have good restriction.  It sounds like your current Doc has trouble getting you there.  Has he ever done a fill under fluoro??  If not that is something to consider. 

I got refilled right after they did the leak test. This was basically an upper GI as I understand. We watched the whole thing. The fill and the barium passing through afterward. My first fill was under fluoro and this was basically the same situation as I understand it.
Thanks, Sarah

The good news is, you don't have a leak.  So start focusing on those choices and let the band do it's job and I'm sure you will have success.

That's what I'm hoping for. It's gonna be completely up to me once this band thing gets ironed out. Hope I can get back in the saddle. I ate fish again last night. Made some homemade applesauce. Was out on the cross country skis twice on Sunday (just for a little while though). One thing at a time!
Thanks, Sarah