slimmap

Sometimes I go through what you are describing. Like right now. I hate it. But sometimes, all of a sudden I'll notice that my clothes are hanging on me. Then the scale will go down a bit too. Give it another week or two. Then if nothing has happened call your doctor and ask what is going on. Good luck.

Does anybody know what is going on? I was banded in June '08 and had slow but steady fills. In Nov I finally hit that sweet spot I'd heard about (6cc's in a 10 cc band). In January I thought I needed a little tweak but ended up with an overfill. Bad acid reflux, throat swollen, etc. So the Doc did a complete unfill and all was well, except for the hunger. So every month I went in for little fills, never quite getting to that sweet spot again. In June I was at 3.5 cc's and the reflux started again. So the doc took out 1.5 cc's. In August I tried with another fill and got up to about 3 cc's and the same thing happened. So now I am having to deal with about 1.5 cc's in my band. I go for my next fill in October and am pretty scared. I am only going to ask for a tiny little squirt, like .25 of a cc.But is this going to happen again? What is going on? The doc doesn't seem to be concerned, but I am! If any of you out there have ever experienced this, would you please let me know? I would really appreciate it.

You had some very good ideas. Keeping a journal is a great idea because there are days that my band feels really good and tight, and other times when it feels like I could eat all day and never be full. There could very well be a connection between time of the month, or a change in the weather. It is starting to get cold here, and I noticed that my band is working better. Come to think of it, that is when I did best last year, when it was cold. But really, I don't know so I will keep a journal. Also you were right on target about what I am eating. I have grown discouraged and not eaten the proper foods or tried to get in enough Protein (which is not very good for my hair...it has been falling out so I have gotten back on the wagon with protein and asking myself "Am I really hungry?". It was so easy the first year. The band just did the work for me. Now it seems I am having to do some hard work if I want to lose this weight once and for all. But you raised some points that I have been telling myself recently. So I guess that I have to do as you do, and that is baby my band, eat right, get in my Proteins, etc. I am a self pay so if I need a revision I am out of luck. I couldn't afford to do this again. You are very sweet for answering my questions and being so helpful. I think, thanks to you, I have my answer. I am expecting the band to do the work for me when I should be working with my band. Anyway, thankyou again. Good luck to you also. I hope I can help somebody the way you have helped me.

Lady Blue,you sound a lot like me, and the same experiences I had. Why did this happen? Did your doctor have any answers about why they think we are fine and then choking on acid? Cos that is what happened for me. I was fine with 6 cc's went in for a fill and ended up with my first overfill with acid reflux and had to be drained and start over, over and over. Now I barely have 1.5 cc's in me and get the worst acid reflux whenever they try to put more in my band. A slip is not suspected. I gained my weight when I quit smoking 8 years ago. Why did you end up having your band revised? I am just asking because, you know, I am getting a little freaked out about this. I don't think it's the weather as this started in Feb of this year (in northern Illinois brrrrr, and has lasted up through now). I appreciate your input, and believe me I need it cos this is really frustrating me and I am not really losing weight now, which is a serious bummer. Well, let me know, if you can, about what your doc thought was going on and why your band was revised. Thanks very much.

I think that you are right. I am going to have to ask the good doctor what is going on. I have asked him beforeand he says things that I don't really understand. But I never raised the question further, as he has always known what he is talking about. But it is time for me to grow a spine and ask for some answers. It will probably involve tests, which costs so much money that I don't have. But I've come this far, haven't I ? Well, that is what I will do. Jacqui, thank you very much. Pamela

I understand what you are saying. And yes I am very frustrated. If I hadn't once felt that so called "sweet spot", then I wouldn't be feeling like this. But I have, and I really want it back. All of what you said is true, and I do need to exercise more. I like to exercise. I enjoy how I feel when I do it. But I was just wondering why this is happening. It doesn't matter if I feel good restriction at only 2 cc's. If what I feel is adequate restriction , then that's good. But I don't. And I used to. I just don't know why I get such bad acid reflux when I get feeling good restriction. Now I have come to a conclusion that I may just be one of those people who will have to just get along with a looser band. I just wondered why. I am probably just repeating myself, because I get so bummed out about this. I have lost 100 pounds, and that's good. But I still have another 100 pounds to go! If all I had to do was maintain this weight, I could probably do it. But in order to lose 100 more pounds, I need to get going...and I'm not! You see what I'm saying? Thank you for your input. I really appreciate it.

I don't think I've reached the maximum restriction that I can handle, as I have only about 1.5 cc's in a 10 cc band. But who knows? I don't have that good of restriction, and that is what is really, really frustrating me right now. I have only lost about 4 pounds in two months. As for the exercise, I could do more. I do exercise, but not enough. But that isn't the real issue for me right now. I don't have much restriction. If I wanted to, I could eat a slice of bread, untoasted and not have any problems. With even a little bit of restriction, that wouldn't be possible. So who knows? There is some restriction. I guess I should be happy with that.

Don't forget to not drink anything for an hour before or an hour after eating.

I am starving! I am sick of protein shakes. But I am already almost through the first day. Anybody have any encouragement because I sure could use some right about now.

I can drink beer or soda without any problems except one... it stretches our pouches!!! THAT is why we aren't supposed to drink it.

Good morning everybody. Are you all starting the 5DPT today? I've already had tea and now a chocolate protein shake with a serving of Benefiber added in it. It is going to be hard today. But WE CAN DO IT! We just need to remember that we want to get out of that horrible bad carb cycle (chocolate and fried potatoes) we've been stuck in. I was really bad but now I am going to stop that. Have a great day everybody.

Lovinglapband, thanks for all the great ideas. I am going to make sure today that I have what I need for tomorrow. Hopefully this will help me so that I don't blow it on day 1. Do you know if peanut butter is allowed? Like if I put some in my chocolate protein shake ? Well, good luck to us all, lap band friends. Tomorrow is the day we start cleaning out our systems and get back on track. We CAN do this.

Lipton Tea has this great Cranberry-Pomegranat tea. It's tasty and has a kick of caffeine too. I am in with you guys for Monday. Scout47, I get migraine headaches pretty bad too. It usually happens when the weather changes from cool to warm or warm to cool. It also happens when I am around bright lights a lot. THere are all kinds of triggers for us migrain sufferers. I recently was prescribed a medicine by my doctor called Amerge that gets rid of those headaches. But it is pretty expensive. Relpax isn't as pricy, and also works. But sometimes I have to take a second dose. Go see your doc. Good luck to you cos I know what you are going through and it aint fun! I think we will all feel better when we get going on the 5dpt. We will clean out our systems of all the crap we put in us. Good luck to us all!

I agree. Check with your doctor. Maybe it's nothing. But if it is something you want to get on it right away. Let us know what you find out.

You were banded a month ago and ate pasta? Probably not a good idea. But what's done is done. If I've eaten a LOT of food my port hurts, just like you described. I think it is the lap band's way of saying to not do that anymore.

I used to do the laxative thing you described before I had the band. But I think that even if you flush it out of your system, it was still there, and the body is going to adsorb those calories. Maybe it won't show up on the scale, but I don't think real weight loss is going to happen with laxatives. Nowadays I try to add Benefiber into whatever it is that I eat or drink. It mixes well. That way I stay regular, if you know what I mean. It seems like you are using a whole lot of milk of magnesia. I don't know, but I think that you can hurt yourself from using that stuff too much. Call your doctor and tell him what you are doing. Maybe you are just needing a fill or aren't eating the foods that help keep you full. Good luck.

Unjury protein shakes really help when I'm hungry. They have about 20 grams of protein in them. That would probably keep you full for a few hours, only problem is they taste pretty bad. I just had one and I am full and chewing gum to get the taste out of my mouth. But when I am desperate to get rid of a huge hunger, this wil do it.

The 5 Day Pouch Test is a plan that you can follow for 5 days. It is something people try when they feel that maybe they have stretched out their lap band pouch. It is also helpful if you've been eating lots of starchy or sugary foods. It kind of gets you back on track. There is a pretty good thread that I started about a month ago concerning the 5 day pouch test. Also, there is a website you can go to that tells you exactly how to follow it. Just do an internet search for the % day pouch test, and it will take you right there. Personally, it worked well for me whenever I have gotten too far away from the eating plan I should be following. Check it out and see if it's for you. As far as PBing... I think it stands for Productive Burp.

I am in Illinois. I couldn't remember posting and so I looked back to see what I wrote. Imagine my surprise when I saw that this post was from almost a year ago! Aug 16, 2008. As I read my questions about the 5 day pouch test I felt that a year later, it still works for me. I am doing better than a year ago and newly banded...I think I finally figured out what restriction feels like. And it is still hard to stop eating the crap. But now I just a whole lot less of it or I feel ill. Is your doctor in the Peoria area? That is where mine is.

I think sliming is one of those warning signs that you are too tight. Call your doctor. I just got a fill today and know already that I am too tight. I have to drive more than an hour one way to get there. But what are we going to do? Good luck and let me know what happens.

:confused:What is happening? 6 weeks after getting an unfill due to an overfill, I feel great restriction. I like it, but am wondering if this is a symptom of something scary like a slip. In June I had a fill. There was a lot of stress in my life and after 10 days of coughing acid all night long, I got an unfill. I think I have something like 2.5 cc's in a 10cc band. Well at first I was very careful and I did okay. Then, I started to eat things that I shouldn't and I gained a few pounds. So I did the 5 Day Pouch Test to get myself back on track. I lost a few pounds and had pretty good restriction, but was always hungry an hour and a half later. So I made an appointment to get a little fill. Now, I have this great restriction. I truly don't know what is going on. Do any of you have any idea? Because I sure would like to know what is going on. Thanks.

My goodness! You are right! I have heard that before about a dry pouch. I am off to start on the Water. I think you have helped me out before, so thanks again!

I had a fill on or around June 3 and the unfill was 14 days later. Now, around the last few days of July I am feeling restriction.Nothing bad, no PBing or anything like that, just restriction. It is probably nothing, and I will check with the doc on Monday. And no, I am bad about my water. I am probably only drinking 32 ounces a day.

Hello. My question is, does anybody have any advice on what kinds of foods stay in the pouch longest ? I've used chicken breast with a little bit of refried beans mixed in. That has given me some help. But I am still a month away from when I can get a fill (if I even need one). And I would appreciate it if anybody had any ideas that worked for them. Thanks.

Thanks. Even though I have completed the 5dpt, and have shrunk my pouch, I am still struggling. I seriously need a fill but can't get one for 2 weeks! I am going to have to try to follow my own advice again. But this time it will be even more difficult because I have to try not to gain any weight for 14 days! We all have to hang in there. Thanks again to everybody.