B-52

Not sure when you were banded, or how much restriction you have, but I assume it was recent and very little in your band..... Even after I had my first fill, which was 4 cc, I GAINED weight....what did I expect to happen? My band was not yet fully adjusted... When I saw my Dr., he laughed when I got on the scale... He referred to the Yellow-Green-Red chart o the wall and said THIS is our goal....to get you to that place....until then, it's all a struggle just as if I was not even banded.... And he was 100% correct.....he did get me to that place on the chart, and since then it has all been EASY ! No more struggles with old fashioned dieting or controlling hunger, just like they advertised.....

Whatever your Dr. says....My Dr. tells his patients no, but he does know I do, not soda but I still have a beer or two here and there.... If it was me, I would tell newbies definitely not....there is much more you have to learn about your band....and to drink carbonated drinks, again from my standpoint, you need to be able to "listen" to your band and understand the different signals / feedback you get.... I also like Pellegrino.....but again, I can monitor my self and my band with each swallow.....

Hey..it's your body...your health and your life...YOU have to do what you feel is right for you.... My Dr., not that anyone should compare...gave me 3 fills in 3 month increments since surgery, and I have not had a fill since.....he was aggressive and said up front he would be as aggressive as long as I wanted to be.....

I know people who like to go "Slow and easy" and I also know people who got frustrated and even sought out a new Dr......(small private group I belong to) There is nothing wrong with 2nd opinions...actually expected in some cases... I'm not suggesting anything, I've heard both sides..... BTW, one person I know was paying out of pocket per visit/fill and felt her Dr. was just dragging it out for the $...one visit per month....

Misery loves company......unfortunately there are people here on this forum who need to wake up and realize just how much of a positive life changing event this WLS can, and will be...... And I'm not just throwing out cliche's

Thank You....the band is a constant...our bodies are constantly changing....and our pouches can expand and contract..... Like a wedding ring or a watchband...some days it is comfortable, some days tight and some days loose.... And the reasons for this are as numerous as there are stars.....just know it comes and goes...and the tighter you are in the first place, the more sensitive you will be.... At least I can detect subtle changes throughout the day....starting very tight upon waking up in the morning....and sometimes feeling like it is not even there in the evening....sometimes..

This may be more information I need to share, and I certainly DO NOT endorse or recommend this to anyone.... We travel a lot...many times outside the country.... I am always afraid I will get food poisoning or some bug....and fear uncontrollable vomiting.... So I carry a syringe with a large bore needle with me when I travel to remove the saline from my band in an emergency. Let's just say I am more than qualified to do this, and If you think you are, you may want to speak with your Dr. about it.... Also I should say my port sticks out there under a thin layer of skin having no belly fat....a blind man could do it with one hand. tied behind his back.......

So you were able to drink liquids with no problem before you left the Dr.'s office? Then later...it became difficult to do so...when the welling started? Si when the swelling goes down you won't have a problem anymore? At least I think I understand the situation..(?)

I always finish my workouts with a "Recovery Shake"...fortunatley my health club has a Juice bar that makes different varieties from scratch....(also my breakfast because I start my workouts between 5-6 am)

Bandster Hell is that time period between surgery, and the point where your band is finally properly adjusted where your hunger, portion sizes, and all else that goes with the Green Zone finally kicks in..... It took me 4-5 months to get there, and another 1-2 to figure it out, adjust myself and get in the "groove" Until then, all you can do is "White Knuckle" it, fight the hunger and do traditional dieting...just as beforew the surgery...Bandster Hell!

Speaking for myself...the best thing I ever did was get rid of things lie fitbit, and quit counting calories altogether....I could not see the Forrest because of the trees and was getting confused and complicated.... My approach is I eat healthy foods, and a lot less tanks to the band....and I exercise and stay as active as possible..... Not something I need to be scientific about...just a "New Normal" lifestyle..... I have plenty of thin, fit, healthy friends and I NEVER see them counting calories....they just live a certain way....and that is how I want to live the rest of my life....free my diets, calories and all that stuff......Life with the band....that's all....

If you look at my profile pics...you will see I do not have all the loose skin many talk about....not sure of the exact reason but some of the things I do claim to help with skin/body tone.... Aerobic EXERCISE...5 days a week (including running).....ALWAYS get my daily required WATER and PROTEIN....and 30 minutes in a SAUNA or STEAM ROOM 5 days a week followed by an ice plunge.....(like the swedes jumping in snow) Not saying that is the answer...but something worked...and still is working for me.... I have not lost any weight in over a year...and yet I continue to drop in clothing sizes....go figure....

For me...don't sell the band short...get out of the way and let the band do what it is designed to do... I feel many people over think something and make it more difficult than it actually is.... It took me 5-6 months to figure that out....to let the band be in charge and dictate WHAT I eat, When I eat, and HOW MUCH I can eat.... After that it has become all MAGIC...the EASIEST thing I have ever done, and STILL IS...it was ME who made it difficult.... I stink at dieting, failed every time...I was a food addict, could not control myself and would eat all day...I could not follow any rules....so I had surgery to correct all that...once I learned not to fight the band and what it was trying to do....that's all it took.....my band is not a tool, it's THE BOSS....

Aside from a medical issue...the band cannot fail as long as one chooses to stay out of the way and let the band do it's magic....so all those waiting for a downfall will be in for one surproise, if not already.....

No, my Dr. always just said 24-48 hours of liquids..... But is sounds like good advice to me....I have noticed people trying to eat the wrong foods when their bands are possibly irritated, traumatized, only to continue to agitate it...then they go back and get an unfill tthinking they were too tight....then wish they had another fill because they can eat too much.... And back and forth and back and forth.... In my experience, I had to learn to co-exisit with my WLS....

Don't know the answer....but it seems a common issue that when someone gets a total un-fill, it is never quite the same.... does not make sense to me, but I hear it all the time....

Why do we need fills? What is the purpose? IMO, the purpose of getting a fill is to CHANGE, and ALTER the way we eat, what we eat, and most importantly how much we eat..... It can be very difficult to find that perfect balance..... All too often I hear about people who at the first time getting stuck, etc, they run back to the Dr. to get a un-fill because they are out of their comfort zone....when in fact it can very well be what/how they are eating..... The same people who get that un-fill are many of the same who are asking for a fill a few weeks later....and complain they are always hungry, and the band is not working.... In order for the band to do it's magic, WE ave to change...we cannot continue to be what we used to be....THAT is what got us fat in the first place and THAT has to go away..... I know a person who has had 12-13 fills, and about 6 un-fills.....she just does not get it...she cannot accept the fact that she must change and that she cannot continue doing what she did before getting banded.....

I am at the same place as you are...I am at my goal. and beyond....no reason to get another fill.....but yet at times I feel I can eat more than usual...when this happens I go on straight liquids for 2-3 days....some people call it the 5 day pouch test, which IMO is kind of silly, it's not a test and the regime is not needed....,....a few days of non solid food is all it takes....as you're eating Soup, shakes etc, you can feel the difference start to happen as the band tightens up again.... I do this at least once a month....gives the band - pouch a rest...dilated pouch returns to normal....all things get "reset" and feel I am right back where I need to be...and no need for a fill.. Before a fill, try giving the band a rest....just go all liquids for 2, maybe 3 days and see what happens....you may find what I and others have found to be the only true thing you need to do as "maintenance" .. BTW, for those Newbies reading this, you have to have good restriction in the first place for this to do any good for you....I read all the time people who have been banded only a few weeks / month and want to do this, where in fact what they need is a fill to get to the Green Zone of restriction....

AMEN!......why have WLS when you can diet???? WLS is NOT a diet...it is life altering....

Going into ANY store and buying ANY clothes in a normal to small size, and they ALL fit good....like I never had clothes fit before....ANYTHING! Going to the Gym and run on the treadmills in the front row for all to see....and notice people checking you out....not hide in the back rows, corners...

I can sense when this happens by the size of my portions increasing....when this happens, I go full liquids for at least 2 days to give it a rest and a chance to restrict....it always helps for me..... But keep in mind, I have a right band, and rely on feedback from my band for just about everything. So it is easy for me to tell if things change up a little.....

Most people I know wait..a week is not that unusual.....should treat it gentle after a fill also...it can be irritated and inflamed from the fill and continued stress will only keep it irritated....promoting you to get a unfil...then a month from now you wish you didn't.....seen this scenario 100 times.....

I have head hunger all the time....(or used to) but for me, it's all about the Band.....the band takes away my real hunger, and has changed my tastes even... I have fantasized about certain foods...went to the store, bought it, took it home and spent time preparing it.... Took one bite, and immediately the band took over and I asked myself "what am I eating this for? I don't need this...heck, I'm not even hungry" And I wind up throwing it all away in the trash.... That is one of the ways this band has developed a new lifestyle within me.....The band has taken away my hunger, and cravings, and eventually changed my thinking (Head hunger)...not entirely, but nothing I worry about any more.... Come to think of it, succumbing to head hunger is why I always failed at traditional diets....first a little cheat here, then a little cheat there...like a house of cards... But the Band...this is different....I can't really cheat, and I know I cannot fail...as long as the band is there, fully adjusted.

To me, that was / is a deterrent to learn to change my eating habits.....I was a food Addict...and episodes like that..(there were many) only happened when I was doing something I should not be,, and/or NOT listening to my band..... BTW...I have not eaten Red meat in over 20 months...too risky for me with the band, so considering the health benefits I gave it up altogether....along with other food types....much to my Dr's delight...all my Dr's.

I can't work out by myself either..... That's why I wear an Ipod and work out with U2, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Bad Co, Bob Segar, Pink Floyd....to name just a few....(showing my age)