Band Slips w/ the Lap Band

by Mindy
(Texas )

I have had my lap band for over 3 yrs now . The day I hit my goal weight I slipped my band.

You slip your lap band a few ways (or you can slip it I should say): bad placement from the surgeon, throwing up and not following your band rules. I am a stickler for the band rules and I was for the first year to a T. Never "threw" my food up.

HOWEVER, what no one told me (including my doc and he's VERY thorough) is that sometimes when you eat, when you're first learning your band, you can eat too much. When you eat too much it's as if that one last bite was too much and it "comes back up".

In band land they call it "PBing" or productive burping. THAT my friends is throwing up.

I thought in order for your band to be at risk of slipping you had to actually throw up all of your food. NO NO NO...

When your last bite comes back up, that is throwing up and your putting your band at risk. I did THAT at least once a week the first few months of my band's life. What that does is weaken your band's structure for lack of a better word.

So after my first total unfill from my slip , I got it filled again . A few weeks later I slipped it again. We think it had not fully healed from the first slip. But once you have slipped your band once, its easier to slip it again.

So my advice: do what ever you can to not have ANYTHING EVER COME BACK UP out of your mouth.

The other thing docs for some reason often do not tell you (mine did) is if you get the flu, stomach virus etc, and you are throwing up for ANY REASON GO IN AND GET YOUR BAND UNFILLED since you can slip it that way as well!

Bottom line: THROWING UP WITH THE BAND IS A NO NO and needs to be AVOIDED AT ALL COSTS!

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