Bawilliams1

Don't feel bad guys! I hace a 4.0 cc band (9.75 cm) and I have absolutely no restriction. I have 3.4 cc's in the band and I am terrified that I will get up to 4.0 cc's and still not have restriction! I am on my second band. My first band slipped. With my first band I was too tight at 3.0 cc's! I don't understand what the difference can be? I am going for another fill on 12/22. I am praying for restriction!

My BMI was barely over 34 when I got banded. It took me 3 months and 3 fills before I started losing weight. My band was actually too tight and that's when I lost most of my weight. I PB'd a lot and now I know that I really shouldn't have been doing that! I have a new band now because the first one slipped. I went from 196 down to 132. The weight loss started in July of 2005 and I was at 132 by the end of February 2006. I haven't had restriction since May of 2005 when my band slipped. I do have a new band now and I have had four fills, but I still don't have restriction. It's been a long, tough 7 months with now restriction! I weigh 140 right now. I am just counting calories and working out 5 days a week trying to get back to 132. I can't wait to get restriction again! I have a horrible fear that for some reason this new band is never going to restrict me. It's a 4.0 cc band and I am already at 3.4 cc's with no restriction. I don't have that much room left to add more saline! My first band was too tight at 3.0 cc's. I am wondering if things aren't different this time around because I was at a BMI of 34 when I got banded the first time and then I was at a BMI of 23 the second time around. Any thoughts. To answer the original question .... Yes, i think it's harder for lower BMI people to lose the weight and the smaller you get the harder it is to continue losing. Atleast that has been my experience.

Please listen to everyone in these posts! I am here to tell you that PB'ing all the time will cause you to lose your band. I am proof! As much as I hate to advertise my stupidity, I am on my second band now because my first band slipped. I am assuming it slipped because I PB'd all the time. That was a $15,000 lesson for me!

I got rebanded because I had a slip the first time around. I have had four fills so far. You can see the details of those if you scroll up on this thread. They have all been under flouro. The fill doc said that my band is in the perfect position on my stomach. That was just on 11/29/06, so I would hope that nothing has changed since then. I know that I have a 4.0 cc capacity band right now. The first band I had was also a 4.0 cc band and it was the 9.75 cm. I am going to see my surgeon on the 22nd for my six month post op check up. I am going to verify with him that I have the same exact size band this time. The only difference would be if this one is the 4.0 cc 10.0 cm band. I don't really think that would make much of a difference, but you know how sensitive these darn things are. Anyway, either band only holds 4.0 cc's, so I don't really think it would be that much of a difference. What do you guys think?

Getting rebanded is not the norm. If it was, I wouldn't have gotten banded to begin with. Although, obviously, I would do it all over again. I am happier with myself than I have ever been in my life! My band slipped. I got banded with Dr. Kuri on 4/14/05 and in 1/06 I felt something really weird, but not painful. I went to my fill doctor and my band had moved just a tad. I kept getting my fills adjusted up and down (mostly unfills) until one day in 5/06 I realized that I could have eaten an entire plate at a mexican restaurant. I went to get a fill and the reason that I could eat so much was because my pouch was HUGE! Even if I had been as tight as I could get it wouldn't have helped because my pouch was so big. The bottom part of my stomach that was supposed to be below the band had partially slipped up through the band. My new surgeon called it a "prolapse". There is no way to know for sure, but I PB'd just about every time I ate. I am assuming that is what caused the slip. I know now that I was really too tight, but at the time I just wanted to lose weight and I knew that I shouldn't be doing that, but I just wanted to be thin! I never thought anything that serious would ever happen to me. So, please listen to me before you even get banded. If you have problems keeping food down, get an unfill. Don't fight it and risk having a slip! I talk to people all the time in the doctor's offices that tell me that they throw up all the time and they have had no problems with slips. I then tell them to be careful and explain what happened to me. Everyone is different. I don't like advertising how stupid I was to do that to myself, but I don't want others to go through the same thing. Hope this helps. If you follow the "band rules" I am sure you will do great!

I just wish I was feeling gurgling now! I wish I was feeling something! I'm telling you, it's like I don't even have a band, other than having a lot more burps come up than I would without a band. This is my second band, so I know how to recognize fullness and restriction. With my first band I was way tight at 3.0 cc's. That's another reason why I am so worried this time around.

Sorry, just checking my new signature!

Here is my fill "history". I have 4.0 cc capacity band. First fill was 1.7 cc's. No restriction. Second fill as 1.2 cc's for a total of 2.9 cc's. I felt restriction one time when I ate chinese food. I could feel the food gurgling down through the band a lot, but I could eat as much as I wanted. Third fill was .2 cc's for a total of 3.1 cc's. I went back two days later because I no longer felt the gurgling or anything and I could still eat as much as I wanted. Fourth fill was .3 cc's for a total of 3.4 cc's. I have absolutely no restriction! I can eat as much as I want! I just have a lot of air coming back up when I am not eating or drinking. Isn't this crazy? I am worried that I am going to get up to 4.0 cc's and I still won't have restriction!

I got my first band with Dr. Kuri. He was very nice and I was extremely pleased with everything. I couldn't belive what a "breeze" the whole thing was! I had my surgery at his old hospital. He is in a nice new hospital now so it will probably be even better. The hospital I was in only had about 12 patient rooms! I ended up getting rebanded this past summer in Dallas. My band slipped. Dr, Kuri agreed to try to fix it, but a few days laterhe had a consultant contact me. I had to get back in touch with him and he told me that he looked at my x-rays and talked it over with the other surgeons and they agree that they didn't want to try to fix my band. I was at my goal weight that I wrote down on his paperwork and he said I should have learned better eating habits by then. I was a bit disappointed in him over that. He knows that people who get banded can't rely on "eating habits" to lose or maintain weight. If that were the case I wouldn't have had to get a band to begin with. I felt like I got "brushed off" because I was at my goal weight. He was nice about the whole thing and he is very nice in person too. I sm not trying to say anything negative at all. I am just sharing my story. I think he is a great doctor and if you use him I am sure you will do fine.

My situation is a little unique. I first got banded by Dr. Kuri in TJ Mexico. The band slipped. I don't blame Dr. Kuri for the slip. I am sure it was my PB'ing. I ended up getting rebanded in Dallas, TX. The only thing about Mexico that leaves a "sour" taste in my mouth is that Dr. Kuri agreed to try to fix my slip, but when he found out that I was already at the goal weight that I wrote on my paperwork, he called back and told me that he and the other surgeons agreed that I should have learned better eating habits and that I should just continue on with the slip even though the band wasn't really doing it's job anymore. He said if I started having compliocations like reflux or vomitting he would be happy to remove the band. The only "complication" I had from the slip was being able to eat "normal" amounts because my pouch was HUGE! So, I found a g reat surgeon in Dallas that I was referred to by my fill doctor who is also in Dallas. Now I am paying on two bands! Lucky me! That's the other thing that bothered me about Dr. Kuri. I guess the whole money thing isn't really his concern. Also, he seemed like such a compassionate man and so knowledgable. He knows that anyone who has to get a band in order to control their weight usually can not just "learn better eating habits." He knew when he put that band on me that the intent was for it to be there for life. I felt like I was put on the back burner because I had already lost the weight I said I wanted to lose. That was true, but I still had to maintain that weight! Anyway, that is my story / situation regarding Mexico vs. United States. By the way, I did get more personal attention in the hospital in Dallas, but the hospital in Mexico was just fine. I couldn't talk to the nurses, but luckily my roommate was hispanic and she spoke spanish! I have had additional surgery in Mexico as well. I had an arm lift at a clinic with a surgeon that was recommended by Dr. Kuri. His name was Dr. Sergio Soberanes. He was great! I felt like I was on Dr. 90210! The outside of the building was a bit scary, but his clinic was the penthouse of the building. His wife was the anesthesiologist and the were wonderful! They also had someone pick me up and take me back to the airport in San Diego, CA. I would consider going back there for a breast lift/augmentation someday when I get atleast one of my bands paid off!

Did you know that there is a wonderful fill doctor in Dallas that will see people who were banded in Mexico? His name is Dr. Maese. I love him so much! If you are interested I will be happy to give you the specifics. He only charges about $200 - $250.

I have experienced this as well. It is sore because you just had a fill. As crazy as this might sound to you, if you get another small fill in a month or two, you won't feel that "gurgling" when the food goes down. In my opinion the gurgling is happening because the band is tight enough to slow the food down, but not tight enough to hold the food in your pouch and then empty very slowly over the next hour or so, which is what I am understanding is actually supposed to happen. That is just my experience in the past. I know that everyone is different.

What does DH stand for? I am assuminh the H is for husband, but what does the D stand for?

Sorry to hear about your misfortune, but I would like to give you a high five and say that I hope you have every success !

I had absolutely no health problems before I got banded. I was just tired of being fat. I am 33 and I had been fat since I was 5 years old. I have a wonderful husband that married me fat and doesn't care if I gain or lose weight. It was all just for me. I wanted to look good.

I don't have restriction right now, but even when I do, I have found that I can eat large amounts of popcorn. I guess that's a treat if you stick to the low fat varieties!

I never thought I had a very fat foot, but I have always worn a size 8 shoe. Now I find myself buying a lot of 7-1/2's. Maybe it is because of the weight loss!

The big social effect that I have noticed is that men pay more attention to me. I guess that's pretty normal, but I noticed it in men that I already knew. Like men that I worked around. They weren't rude to me before, but maybe they never went out of their way to say hello when I was fat, but now that I'm not they always smile and say hello. I always said if I ever got thin that I would have a t-shirt printed that said "If you didn't talk to me when I was fat, don't talk to me now!" Isn't that bad? I haven't gotten the shirt!

I am on my second band right now. Both bands were 4.0 cc max fill. Right now I have 3.4 cc's and have no restriction. I am very upset/nervous. With the first band the most I ever had was 3.0 cc's and I had a very hard time getting fluids down and I PB'd every time I ate which is what I assume caused my band to slip eventually. I also went from an empty band up to 3.0 cc's within a few weeks because I went to several different fill doctors. I just wanted to get the show on the road and lose weight. I am sure that might have contributed to my slip. So, I lost my band, but I got a new one. Things have been different this time around and I don't know if that's because I weighed 196 when I got the first band and I weighed 134 when I got the second band. I guess time will tell! All I want for Christmas is RESTRICTION!!!!!!!!!!

I too have a 4.0 cc band and right now I have 3.4 cc's in there with NO restriction! The flouro always shows the Fluid going through very slowly, but by the time I get back on solid foods I can eat as if I don't even have a band! This is my second band. I had a new one put in this summer. It's the same as my first band and on the first band I was too tight at 3.0 cc's. I am very confused! The doctor draws out my fluid before he fills me to make sure it's all still there and there is no leak. So far it has all still been in there. He's three hours away from me so he doesn't know that I still have no restriction. I am going to see him again on Dec 22nd and I am going for my 6 month post op check up with my surgeon. I will have LOTS of questions for both of them!

Mysherrijo, Thanks so much for your comment. I am feeling much less nervous about all of this, but I do still have the fear that I am going to get filled up to 4.0 cc's and still have no restriction! Good luck with your unfill. I also know what it's like to be too tight. That did happen to me with my first band.

I am so nervous about my band right now and I was hoping I could get your opinion. I had my band replaced back in June because my first band slipped. Everything is going great with my new band as far as placement, position on my stomach, etc. What I am concerned about is fills and restriction. On the first band I was actually a bit too tight at 3.0 cc's. I had a hard time getting fluids down. On the new band I am up to my fourth fill and I have 3.4 cc's. When the doctor does the fill he immediately does a flouro and the fluid took quite a while to go through the band. He made me go sit in a tv room and drink plentyof water to make sure it wasn't too tight before I left. (I drive 3 hours to get to my fill Dr.) I thought I finally had restriction and I was so happy, but by the time I went back on solid foods I had and still have NO restriction. The fill was on Wednesday afternoon and today is Monday. I am scared to death that I am going to end up with 4.0 cc's in my band and I still won't have restriction. Do you think my stomach is too small for the band to work or do you think that the surgeon would have known that when he replaced my band? Also, after reading so many posts on complications I am wondering if my band could be eroding into my stomach and that is why I can't get tight. Would it erode this quickly? I got the new band 5 months ago? Wouldn't it be tighter if the band was cutting into my stomach and wouldn't I have some sort of pain? Also, if my old band didn't erode into my stomach is it very likely that the new band would? If the band was eroding would there be any indication of that on my flouro when my pouch is full of the fluid they give you to swallow? Please give me your opinion! I don't go back to the doctor until December 21st and I am going to go nuts worrying about all of this! Thank you so much!!!!

Thanks to you guys who have bothered to read my post and reply. I feel a bit better now!

Please stop PB'ing on purpose. I am now on my second band because I did that pretty much every time I ate and my band slipped. I have a nice new 4.0 cc band and right now I have 3.4 cc's in the band and I still don't have restriction. I was too tigh with my first band at 3.0 cc's! I am just beside myself over it too. Whether you go to counseling or you stop on your own, please don't do that to yourself!

My port is placed in a position where it actually "clicks" against my botton rib bone when I try to do crunches or ab exercises. It does not hurt. It's just weird!