2nd Fill = Disaster!

[MyNext30Years]

Ok, so I went to a different Dr. for my 2nd fill A.) because my 1st Dr. had to have surgery and put me off a month B.) the office environment was not the cleanest at the 1st & C.) the 2nd Dr. was an actual bariatric surgeon opposed to the 1st of being just a GP. Well it was a disaster. It took him AT LEAST 15 minutes to get into the port after digging and digging. He bent up a smaller needle and had to go get a much longer one and it still took a while. I'm very sore and bruised - about the size of 2 50 cent pieces side by side.

He put in 2 ccs for a total of 6 ccs and I swallowed and all I could do is burp non-stop, I didn't feel like I was going to be able to keep it down. So eventually I only ended up w/ 1 cc for a total of 5 ccs. Although I don't blame him for the low fill amount, I totally know I coudln't have handled the whole 6ccs, I'm still VERY frustrated and disappointed that's all I've got right now.

So, I'm going to go back to the 1st Dr. next time. She got into the port w/ very little trouble last time. I will say that it's tilted towards my left shoulder - both dr's said that and that is why the guy yesterday had trouble, but my 1st dr. didn't seem to have much trouble at all. Plus the 1st dr is cheaper, but she won't bill insurance and I don't know if they'll pay anything for yesteday but it was $480 since it was my first visit. She only charges $200 for a fill and $150 for unfills.

I'm drinking liquids today and don't feel any restriction but that could change w/ solids. Frustrating - I tell ya!

Plus I have to add that I followed Dolittle's guidelines for a good fill. Extra concious to be well hydrated the past few days, only liquids prior to the fill, etc.

[karenci]

If you don't return to OCC for your fills, at least be sure that your fill Dr is using fluroscopy. Do consider returning to OCC for a 'check up' - I live in North Carolina, I just shop airfare and when there are $99 specials I jump on it. It ends up being a little more expensive than getting a local fill, but the peace of mind is worth it.

[MyNext30Years]

I feel for ya. My second fill was a horrible experience. My first fill was 1.0ccs, then six weeks later I found out my port was tipped (way to the left) and that my band was empty. So they filled me to 1.8cc (in a 4cc band) and I was fine when I left but I ended up pb'ing the next day and then lived on liquids for a month (which I ended up gaining a pound when all was said and done) until I could get unfilled.

I was unfilled down to 1.4cc and it's been a battle of filling .2cc's at a time ever since. They say most people should only need 2-3 fills in a lifetime and I'm up to 6 fills and 2 unfills. I had good, comfortable restriction from December to March of this year and then was going to get a slight fill when I started getting really bad reflux and ended up having another .5cc's out so I'm currently at 1.7cc and now that everything's under control I'm hoping to get fill number 7 in soon.

Oh the life of a bandster, hey??

How frustrating! I fill for ya! (pun intended!) Thanks for the input!

[MyNext30Years]

If you don't return to OCC for your fills, at least be sure that your fill Dr is using fluroscopy. Do consider returning to OCC for a 'check up' - I live in North Carolina, I just shop airfare and when there are $99 specials I jump on it. It ends up being a little more expensive than getting a local fill, but the peace of mind is worth it.

The nearest place w/ fluoro that I can find is in NJ (I'm in VA). My blind fills are even a 2 1/2 hour drive each way. I've called everywhere I can think of and nobody wants to take on MX patients. The fill center in NJ is at least $500 - so by the time I drive up there and spend the night I could probably fly to TJ. I've never seen the plane tickets for $99. $300 is about as cheap as I've ever seen them and my family doesn't want me traveling alone so I can't afford to go to the OCC every time plus the time off from work and away from my family. I do plan to return there eventually, I just can't do it every time. If you know of a closer place to do fluoro, please let me know!

[skinnyagain]

You shouldn't rate a good or bad fill by the amount of fill you got. Its only a number....Its what your body can tolerate. You don't want to be to tight...You won't lose, you will pB and not be happy. ---Now upset that the good dr could not get in, that would piss me off a bit!...

A good fill+ following the guidelines= weight loss....

Kim

[AngieB]

It is important to remember to not "over hydrate" as well. Since you are not a traveler per say drink the normal amount of water you would for a regular day. You have to remember the more you hydrate the more dense you tissue is as it holds water. So if you are guzzling water because you think it will get you a better fill, it may back fire in your good fill hopes.

I don't do anything extra special for my fills, other than not to eat before a fill, or if my fill is later in the day eat early and wait on food the rest of the day.

I totally agree with Kim on the fill amount. Each of us are different. My first fill was .7 cc's. See the decimal point before the 7?! I didn't even get a full cc. So don't get to caught up in that.

Steady as she goes!

[MyNext30Years]

Ok, the most frustrating part of this whole experience has got to be that I went in for my 3rd fill last Wednesday w/ my original fill Dr. and guess what?! There was no extra saline in the band - only the 4cc's she put in originally. (I should have had 5cc total.) So either I have a slow leak from the last fill or he didn't do anything. I think it's the latter since it would be very unlikely that I would leak 1cc exactly - right? I'm writing the head Dr. at that practice a letter and letting him know that I want a refund and he will be responsible for any costs if I have to have a leak fixed (I was not made to sign a waiver.) ARG

Angie, I took your advice and did not over hydrate and I now have 6ccs w/ no problem. I am definitely on a learning curve w/ chewing. I'm glad it's a gradual process.

[AngieB]

Ok, the most frustrating part of this whole experience has got to be that I went in for my 3rd fill last Wednesday w/ my original fill Dr. and guess what?! There was no extra saline in the band - only the 4cc's she put in originally. (I should have had 5cc total.) So either I have a slow leak from the last fill or he didn't do anything. I think it's the latter since it would be very unlikely that I would leak 1cc exactly - right? I'm writing the head Dr. at that practice a letter and letting him know that I want a refund and he will be responsible for any costs if I have to have a leak fixed (I was not made to sign a waiver.) ARG

Angie, I took your advice and did not over hydrate and I now have 6ccs w/ no problem. I am definitely on a learning curve w/ chewing. I'm glad it's a gradual process.

I hear ya loud and clear on the learning curve! I really feel like the first year for me was a getting to know and understand the in's and outs of my band. After over hydrating for a fill, I soon understood that lesson loud and clear.

I am gonna go in for a tweek on my fill level next month. I put it out a ways to see if eating more per meal would help my metabolism or not. If it does, then I will cancel the fill. I am a work in progress and still learning as I go.

Your 2nd fill news is such a let down and expensive. It will be interesting to see if they will accept the accountability of a botched fill or not. I hope they do.

[Lindsay]

Ok, the most frustrating part of this whole experience has got to be that I went in for my 3rd fill last Wednesday w/ my original fill Dr. and guess what?! There was no extra saline in the band - only the 4cc's she put in originally. (I should have had 5cc total.) So either I have a slow leak from the last fill or he didn't do anything. I think it's the latter since it would be very unlikely that I would leak 1cc exactly - right? I'm writing the head Dr. at that practice a letter and letting him know that I want a refund and he will be responsible for any costs if I have to have a leak fixed (I was not made to sign a waiver.) ARG

Angie, I took your advice and did not over hydrate and I now have 6ccs w/ no problem. I am definitely on a learning curve w/ chewing. I'm glad it's a gradual process.

Did you watch the saline go in and out of the need during your fill?

This is very important.

My fill nurse made me watch, to ensure I knew what she was doing ... She clearly showed the emptying of the band, then the re-filling to the proper amount. Please be very clear with your fill dr/nurse that you need to see what's going on.

[MyNext30Years]

Did you watch the saline go in and out of the need during your fill?

This is very important.

My fill nurse made me watch, to ensure I knew what she was doing ... She clearly showed the emptying of the band, then the re-filling to the proper amount. Please be very clear with your fill dr/nurse that you need to see what's going on.

I did watch him, but he used something called a stopcock which allowed him to use two smaller 4cc syringes, so each one had fluid and it was hard to tell. My other Dr. said that those types of syringes carry some dead space so that could be where the problem was. I don't know.