Issues eating basic foods with lap band

MissingMyOldSelf

A little background: I've been a band patient since 2009. We found out in 2010 that the band had a leak, and I was going every two months to get filled (at $100 a pop).

2011, I started producing a lot of slime (aka, drainage to those not banded) while eating, which we found out were caused by my enlarged tonsils and always having strep throat. I was vomiting just about every other day because of so much slime.

2011, I also told my lap band surgeon that I wanted completely unfilled because I was tired of always coming in to get filled when it was obviously not helping matters. Plus, I wanted to stop vomiting from not letting food go through. They criticized me for it, and randomly harass me with phone calls, saying I need to come back. Sometimes, I will get 3-4 calls a week from the office.

2012, I start randomly producing slime while eating again, and having issues eating certain things. This has gotten worse over the past year. And, thanks to company insurance regulations, anything weight loss surgery related is no longer covered.

Fast forward to this week. Already, since Sunday, I've not been able to eat anything that's not soft, mushy food related. Thankfully, the soups, puddings, and soft foods in general are able to squeeze through. I just sat down for 2 hours trying to eat about a cup of salad with grilled chicken breast, some grapes, and salad dressing... and I've made it to bite number 3. I'm painfully stuck, and it will take either vomiting, or waiting it out for hours to get through.

No amount of "warm tea will help your insides relax" helps. No matter how small of a bite I take, how many times I chew it.... nothing will work.

I'm just trying to figure out suggestions on days like today where I can't eat anything more than a soft solid. I have no idea why I randomly produce more slime than other days, and why it gets to be so freaking frustrating. I think I make matters worse by getting upset about it.

I would love to get this d@mn thing taken out, but insurance won't cover the surgery, and I don't have another $10,000 just laying around for it. I've tried talking to the surgeon's office about removal, and they said that they don't cover issues with the band, and because they "don't know if there's an issue with the band at the time of surgery."

This was honestly one of the biggest mistakes I've ever made in my life, and I really worry about when hubby and I try for children, and succeed... what if I have a lot of days like this where I just can't eat anything?? I refuse to resort to just drinking protein shakes!!

Any and all help you could give would be SO greatly appreciated!

PS -- I've already got an appointment with my family doc to see what he suggests about finding another surgeon and how we can get insurance to cover this, especially noting that this is hindering a lot of my life.