Just got back from having my second fill. This time I know better than to try to predict how it will work until it's had time to settle in. Of course I didn't notice any immediate difference (unless you count belching a couple of times within a few minutes of leaving the office, and with the way I belch after being banded, I put no store in that), but I know it will take time for the stomach to adjust to the additional pressure in the band, so for now, I'm just in waiting mode. Waiting and liquids mode today. Waiting and mushies mode tomorrow.

Apparently, I am totally average so far according to my surgeon. He said most people lose 3-4 lbs per month the first couple of months until they get a sufficient level of fill. Yup, I'm right there. I told him that unless I ate a cup or more at a time, I was hungry within 2 hours of eating. Totally normal. And I also mentioned that the first fill actually seemed to make a difference for the first week or so, then the noticeable effect went away. Again, that's normal. Good to know that I'm not somehow an oddball for my experiences so far.

He gave me the option of choosing between 3 levels of fill: Aggressive = adding 3cc; Moderate = Adding 2.5cc; or Conservative = Adding 2cc. I went with moderate, which brought my total fill up to 5.5cc in an 11cc Realize band. Aside from my anal retentive soul liking the idea of being at exactly half-full, I also felt this was the right decision at this time. Part of me really wanted to go with the aggressive fill, because, hey, it's not like I don't want to lose as much weight as possible as fast as possible, but the larger part of me thinks that if I can make this journey without ever experiencing a stuck episode or the joys of PBing, that would be just fine with me. Also, I'm a bit of a wuss about stomach discomfort; to me, vomiting is the most horrifying experience in the human repertoire, and I dread it for more reasons that just not wanting my band to slip. I'd rather go through just about any type of illness than have to vomit. I mean that. So the idea of going slowly seems to make sense to me. I knew I didn't want to be super conservative, because I get uber-frustrated when I don't lose, but since my surgeon is fine with filling every 3 weeks, I figured I could do 2.5 until then and see where it takes me.

Fingers crossed. In the meantime, I'm going to go make some soup and pay an inordinate amount of attention to any and every sensation between my neck and my belly button.

Because I'm obsessive like that. Duh!