ReadyOrNot

I had my surgery on 3/12/09, and have felt great ever since, have lost about 25 pounds so far, but I am now experiencing some pretty severe lower back pain, I've had it for the last 3 days and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. Anyone else experience this after surgery? Could it have anything to do with the lapband?? I've never had issues with my back before so this is all new to me.

No, its gone the opposite way for me, I have no idea why it would get worse like that, you might want to run it by your doctor to be safe.

Everybody reacts differently to fills, I've had 2, and ended up getting a slight un-fill after both because I was too tight. The first time he unfilled me so I was at 2 cc and I didn't feel any restriction at all, the second time he took me from 4 to 3 cc's and I feel A LOT of restriction, probably too much really, such a slight change made a huge difference for me. I was worried at the second un-fill that I was going to go back to no restriction again, but that certainly wasn't the case this time. I've even canceled a fill I had set up for last week, because there is no way I could deal with more restricion right now, which is something I never thought I would say in the beginning!

So I'm relatively new to this process, a little over 3 months out, and have had 2 fills to date, and am not sure I'm feeling the way I should be. I have pain, like stuck pain, whenever I eat pretty much anything but soup or ice cream. Sometimes I can wait a couple of minutes for the pain to subside then continue eating for a bit, other times it gets so bad I'm throwing up in the bathroom after my second bite. I am very careful to chew, chew, chew, but it doesn't seem to help. I'm guessing I might be a bit too tight? Or is this just the way you feel with the band when you get restriction? I understand not being able to eat bread/pasta, but am to the point where everything feels painful to eat and its really frustrating. I really don't want an unfill, because before this fill I wasn't feeling any restriction at all and felt as though I could eat anything I wanted if I chose to, so I don't want to go back to that, and I am losing weight a lot faster now of course. I'm just hoping this isn't what the "sweet spot" feels like, because I don't know if I could live with this feeling forever, for the short term I can deal while getting to my goal, but not as a forever.

How long did it take you to see your own weight loss?? For me, I've lost 40 punds so far, and although most of my clothes are falling off me, I can't see any difference when looking in a mirror at myself. Others have noticed and started to comment, but I still can't see it.

I am always starving after my fills, but its my own fault, I've only had 2, but on both of them I haven't eaten anything before my fill, once because I got busy and didn't have time, and once because I was thinking about my weigh in and didn't want to blow it with my lunch, silly I know! So after my fills I am starving!

I didn't notice anything until after my first fill. Once my recovery was complete and I was back on solid foods, I could eat anything I wanted, tried not to, but felt as though I could eat the same as before my surgery. After my first fill I couldn't eat as much as before, but there weren't many things that I just couldn't tolerate, and while I was eating less than before the fill, I was still eating too much. The biggest difference came after my second fill, which is where I am at right now, there aren't many things that I can eat at this point, I think I am a little too tight now. I haven't found my sweet spot yet, still working on that! Besides the restriction I started feeling, as I'm losing weight I can now feel my port which is really strange to me. Kind of scared me when I first felt the big lump in my stomach until I realized what it was!

For me when I feel like I'm stuck, I get this awful pain right in the middle of my chest, right under where my bra hits, and I feel like I have to walk around or stretch my stomach out until it finally passes. A couple of times now I have been immediately nauseous with the stuck feeling and have to run to the bathroom to get rid of whatever is causing the pain. Not fun!

wow, you have done great!! Congratulations!!

It has become a bit of an obsession for me as well, I am constantly thinking about how many calories/how much Protein or fat are in what I'm eating now. I never thought about that before, I don't think I could have added up all the fat I was eating in a day before, scary!! I am so excited to step on the scales first thing in the morning and see my progress, that I don't want to screw it up by eating too much or drinking empty calories. My doc told me the band will get looser as you lose weight because you lose the fat under the band as well, so that is why you notice less restriction as the weeks go on.

I agree that I need to change my thinking about the unfill, I don't see it as a failure really, but I do think I will stop losing weight as quickly as I have been with an unfill, and I don't really want it to slow down. But on the other hand I don't want to hurt myself or my band either, so I will leave it up to my doctor, and go with whatever he feels is right. I guess I'm just happy to hear that this isn't normal, or what the "sweet spot" feels like because I know couldn't live with this forever if that were the case!

Thank you all for your responses! I have another appointment for a fill on the 17th, I won't be getting a fill that day but I'll keep the appointment to check in with my doctor and tell him how I've been feeling. I'm really secretly hoping he doesn't want to do an unfill, but whatever he thinks I will go with. In the meantime I will try and slow my eating down, maybe even try the hourglass thing, see if that might be the problem, that I'm just eating too fast and not chewing as well as I think I am and I should be. Thanks again for the advice!

If only it would come off as fast as it goes on!! :tongue2: Great job on your weight loss!!

I didn't have anything like that happen to me, but I have heard of others who had their bands placed too high. I would definitely run it by your doctor and see what he/she thinks if it doesn't start to improve soon.

I started eating normal foods the night before I was supposed to and nothing bad happened to me. I personally don't think 12 hours will make a big difference at all.

I just asked my nutrionalist about this at my last appointment, throughout the process they told us no carbonated bevarages period. So I asked her a couple of weeks ago is that forever, and why, and she said as long as it's in moderation, it shouldn't be a problem. She said the reason they say no carbonation is because drinking soda is not a healthy habit and they want us to be as healthy as we can be. She said an occasional carbonated beverage wouldn't stretch your band, but it might be uncomfortable to drink depending on the person. I'm sure this contradicts what many other doctors/nutritionalist say, everything about this surgery seems to vary from doctor to doctor but that is what I was told. I haven't tried anything carbonated yet, and probably won't for a long while, but at least I know my docs true take on it now.

I think you'll be fine, my doctor wants us to stay on liquids for 36 to 48 hours after a fill, and then proceed with caution, but if you were able to tolerate it ok, I wouldn't think it would cause a big problem. The way I understand it is the liquids after a fill is to let the swelling go down a bit before you eat so you don't get stuck, so if you were able to eat it and not get stuck I would assume you are ok?

I find that strange too, but have no idea why. For me it varies from day to day moreso than morning to night. Some days I can eat a whole salad for lunch with very little problems, while others I can't even look at the salad without feeling sick. Its very odd!

I've never heard of such a thing, stretching yes, exploding no!

that is tough, its something I struggle with a lot myself. I find myself wanting to run through a drive thru and grab a fattening snack like old times when I'm out running errands, or wanting to order in Chinese food for supper rather than make a salad at home. And honestly, sometimes the old habits win out, but I'm happy to say that I'm able to control my cravings MOST of the time, and opt for the healthier option instead, and I'm very proud of myself when I do. I try not to beat myself up too bad when I slip up, I just enjoy the "treat" and go back to better choices the next time. I know this will be a battle I'll fight probably for the rest of my life, because I am addicted to food as well, but I'm hopeful with the band on my side I'll be able to win the war!

I've been complimented on my weight loss by my parents, my sister and my husband, they all knew about my surgery and have been very supportive of the whole process. I am anxiously awaiting the time when someone who didn't know about my surgery comments now!!

This is a journey you have to go on for yourself, not anybody else. If you are ready to commit to a huge life style change and follow the rules of the band, then the band will work for you, if you aren't ready for that commitment yet, then the band might not be the right choice for you right now. You can't listen to what every else says, only you know what is best for you. I didn't tell many people of my surgery, the ones I did tell I knew would be supportive of me regardless of my weight. I didn't want the additional pressure of everyone watching every move I make and judging everything I put in my mouth. There is stigma that comes with being over weight but I also find a stigma with weight loss surgery. People thinking you took the easy way out when you could have done it by yourself with no surgery if you just ate less, which we all know works for a while but then the weight comes back. I'm relatively new to this process having only been banded for 3 months, but so far I'm really pleased with the band, and can see how this will help me stay on track for the long haul, as long as I don't give up on the band, the band won't give up on me.

Congratulations!! That is great!

I thought it was strange that there are such big differences in the pre and post op diets as well, I think it is because there are no set ground rules for this surgery yet that are widely accepted, I think each doctor does what he/she thinks works best for their patients. I was lucky enough to get a doctor that didn't require the 2 week pre-op diet, and had a relatively fast moving post-op diet, not quite as fast moving as yours though! That would have made recovery much easier for sure! Good luck to you!

I knew it was going to be a slow process from the beginning, but that doesn't mean that I don't wish it would melt off faster, because I do for sure. Before I got my last fill, I didn't have much restriction at all, so it didn't feel like the band was working, which again I knew could happen, but I didn't think it would happen to me type thing. I thought I would be one of the rare people to get the band and restriction before their first fill and I was wrong. But having said all that I am very happy with the progress I've made so far, having lost 27 pounds in just under 3 months is something I couldn't have done without the band, fill or no fill!