Uncharted Territory

This whole lap band pregnancy thing is feeling more and more like uncharted territory. I knew that it would be rare, but I had no idea that most of the medical professionals I came in contact would have little to no experience or knowledge about someone in my situation. In fact, just today, I found myself educating three different medical professionals about my situation.

The medical center where I'm receiving my prenatal care is part of a large, well-known, top-ranked research hospital. It's also the same medical facility where my lap band surgeon practices. I guess I assumed that folks would at least be vaguely familiar with the lap band concept.

The first person I had to explain things to was the main high risk OB doctor. He commented that he had been involved in the cases of two women who had undergone gastric bypass and one woman who had some sort of "lap band" as he called it, but mine was the first he had heard of that was connected to a port where adjustments could be made relatively easily. He was fascinated by the concept that by adjusting the amount of the saline in the band through the port, my stomach opening could be opened up or closed down. He told me that the one woman with the non-adjustable "lap band" had actually requested a c-section so that the doctors could adjust her band tightness while they already had her "open on the table". Somehow, his conclusion from the whole conversation was, "If you feel pain, don't just deal with it - tell us and we'll make sure it's not indicative of a problem."

The second person who didn't have any concept of the lap band was the diabetes educator. I mentioned to her that I had a band and asked how that might affect the speed of food absorption or the timing of insulin related to meals. At first, she seemed confused by the question and then theorized that it might speed up food absorption. That made no sense to me so I explained the mechanics of the band to her after which she agreed that it might slow the food absorption. In the end, I figured that the answer probably doesn't matter all that much as I've been unfilled to the point that I can pretty much eat as I did before I had the band.

It's mildly disconcerting that people don't know what to make of the fact that I'm pregnant with a band, but I feel relatively well informed myself about the risks, challenges, benefits, etc., so hopefully I'll be able to adequately advocate for myself if need be.