3rd fill today - very dissapointed - need your thoughts

[heyred1 0]

Thanks so much. I have had 4 fills and i'm at 5.5. I'm hoping one more fill will do it for me. Your post gives me hope.

[JamieNP 20]

I am glad I found this thread. I have had my band for a little over a year and have lost about 80 lbs. I am near my goal wt. I went in for my yearly check up with the surgeon and we decided to put a half a cc in the band. I lost all of my restriction! I feel like I didn't even have the surgery! I am making the 2 hour drive to see my doc tomorrow and am praying there is noyhing wrong.

[ElfiePoo 109]

dr told me that "restriction" is a cop out and that I have to learn to eat properly, 1/2 cup increments and the fact that I could still drink 16 oz. of Water while he was putting in the saline, he told me that my sensory / gag reflex could be off and that because of that I need to me "more careful" because I could eat too much and stretch out my stomach..

Restriction is not a 'cop out'. It is why we get the band. Great...another doctor who thinks it's a placebo.

No offense, but your doctor is an ass. If 'restriction' (the purpose of the band and what it does) is a 'copout', then getting the band is a copout and and as a responsible professional, he shouldn't be doing the surgery on anyone. Sorry...I have a low tolerance for stupid doctors who, above all, should know better.

.

[illuminationlady 7]

I'm with ElfiePoo. Restriction is not a cop out. I went to a support group meeting last night with banders there. Many who have restriction. One gal is struggling with it. She can only eat less than a cup of food in a sitting and is staying full for 3-4 hours. She also admitted to sometimes not chewing properly or taking too big a bite of food and PBing. When you have restriction the band tells you how much to eat. These people are losing weight (the one's with true restriction) and keeping it off. I was very impressed and can't wait to myself be there with restriction. It can take many fills to reach restriction. I would really question this statement made by your doctor. Maybe he ment something else; like the band is not magic and we all need to make good food choices. But you definetly need true restriction for the band to work properly for you. Best wishes to you.

[jms462001 9]

I was banded on 10/29, went in for my 2nd fill today and gained 1 pound, have only lost 25 total, 8cc in already and feeling no restriction..dr told me that "restriction" is a cop out and that I have to learn to eat properly, 1/2 cup increments and the fact that I could still drink 16 oz. of Water while he was putting in the saline, he told me that my sensory / gag reflex could be off and that because of that I need to me "more careful" because I could eat too much and stretch out my stomach. UGH, I came home and cried...but tomorrow I will get over my pitty party and start over...if I do not see results by Mar 3rd appt, I will be asking lots of questions and finding other options.

I don't understand how you could have gotten to 8cc's with just 2 fills. Those would have each been very large fills to get at one time!!

[jms462001 9]

Oh gosh I feel the same way! I have had 2 fills. After the first fill I felt nothing. After the second fill I felt it, very small sensation but still I felt it and was thrilled, I thought the band was finally going to start doing its job. Now I am back to not feeling a thing. I go for fill #3 on Monday and will ask about pulling it all out to measure it and then re filling it. I HOPE I DONT HAVE A LEAK! Can that happen?? It's plastic so I am sure its not impossible.

I am hoping the frusteration will be gone soon, I too have been messing around with about 3 pounds...up down up down up down .... thats why I got the band, to get off this friggin roller coaster!

Don't despair. It takes many people 5, 6 or more fills to reach true restriction. You are early in your weight loss journey. You will get there. Just be patient!

[curiousinoh 0]

I go for my 2nd fill next week. I'll update everyone. I got 5 ccs in my band on my first fill and felt nothing eating amount wise. Now I will say if I eat fast like another lady said you can end up kinda stuck because you need more time in between bites to tell you that you're full. But, I can eat as much now as I could before the band.

To the girl who said her dr said restriction is a cop out. Really? Then why is he doing the surgery? Sounds like your doctor screwed something up and now wants to convince you to do it on your own. What he said is crazy. If you aren't going to have restriction why the hell would you have the surgery. If he had said that to me... everyone in the office would have heard me question his abilities. Hope things get better for you.

[luvmy2dogs 2]

Well, I'm at 9.5 in my 9cc realize band, and am feeling very frustrated with my lack of restriction. I had a fill last Thursday of .25 cc. I'm already over my band max. When I told him I was hungry he looked at me like I was nuts. I feel like he doesn't believe me. I have never had a really tight band. It's always been pretty loose. He did the fill under fluro and agreed the band looked loose. The .25 didn't seem to make much difference. I don't know what the heck is wrong with me. I feel like I've been hungry all day today. UGH! I'm depressed! I have lost a lot of weight, and I know that, but I exercise obsessively. I run about 30 miles a week. I feel like I've done a lot of this on my own with just a little help from my band. I love my band, I just want it to give me a little more help so I'm not hungry.

[curiousinoh 0]

I had my 3rd fill today and so far I feel no difference at all. I was at 6 ccs and they put in .7 today so now I am at 6.7. If I dont feel anything in a few days I am going to call and ask to come back in two weeks and not wait the entire four weeks they normally make me wait.

[illuminationlady 7]

Well, I'm at 9.5 in my 9cc realize band, and am feeling very frustrated with my lack of restriction. I had a fill last Thursday of .25 cc. I'm already over my band max. When I told him I was hungry he looked at me like I was nuts. I feel like he doesn't believe me. I have never had a really tight band. It's always been pretty loose. He did the fill under fluro and agreed the band looked loose. The .25 didn't seem to make much difference. I don't know what the heck is wrong with me. I feel like I've been hungry all day today. UGH! I'm depressed! I have lost a lot of weight, and I know that, but I exercise obsessively. I run about 30 miles a week. I feel like I've done a lot of this on my own with just a little help from my band. I love my band, I just want it to give me a little more help so I'm not hungry.

I'm so sorry you're having such a tough time. I don't know what to tell you either. It just seems impossible to be above what the band holds and have no restriction. I finally have restriction and I'm lovin' it. I hope it all works out for you. Best wishes!

[atgoalgal 0]

I posted this, or some of this on another thread and wanted to share here...

If it's any consolation, it took me a long time to get to my sweet spot It was frustrating, but I really learned to use my band along the way - like eating more dense and fibrous foods when I'm feeling less restricted. I did get to my sweet spot - and I will still get a small fill when I think I need it. I am one of those people who is sensitive to a small amount of Fluid, so adding a few drops was the difference between a good fill and being hungry for me. (it was a good thing that the cost of all my fills was included in my surgeon's one-time fee; I was cash pay) I think its an art and a science. I also found that it's super important to be able to describe what u feel to your doctor. Here are some things I would talk about - how much plain white meat chicken can you comfortably eat in one 20 minute sitting (no food lube) and 2) how long since your last meal do you go until you start feeling really hungry - and that doesn't mean you passed a Taco Bell sign - and it smells good... I actually put together a powerpoint slide to talk about it with my surgeon. I'm happy to email it to you if you PM me with an email address (Illuminationlady, I promise to dig it out and send it later) Don't think I can post a powerpoint here. Yes, for those who are asking, I'll eventually, post it on my blog, but I haven't gotten there yet...

Now about leaks, they are very, very rare (yes, been there, done that too, wasn't a big deal, once it was fixed). If your doc can pull out most of the Fluid in your band you don't have a leak. I thinkwwe worry about that too much and I think it was my way of handling fear that I would fail again. So I had a leak, it's rare, it was easily fixed and I lost all my weight and am maintaining. Hope this helps!

[jms462001 9]

I posted this, or some of this on another thread and wanted to share here...

If it's any consolation, it took me a long time to get to my sweet spot It was frustrating, but I really learned to use my band along the way - like eating more dense and fibrous foods when I'm feeling less restricted. I did get to my sweet spot - and I will still get a small fill when I think I need it. I am one of those people who is sensitive to a small amount of Fluid, so adding a few drops was the difference between a good fill and being hungry for me. (it was a good thing that the cost of all my fills was included in my surgeon's one-time fee; I was cash pay) I think its an art and a science. I also found that it's super important to be able to describe what u feel to your doctor. Here are some things I would talk about - how much plain white meat chicken can you comfortably eat in one 20 minute sitting (no food lube) and 2) how long since your last meal do you go until you start feeling really hungry - and that doesn't mean you passed a Taco Bell sign - and it smells good... I actually put together a powerpoint slide to talk about it with my surgeon. I'm happy to email it to you if you PM me with an email address (Illuminationlady, I promise to dig it out and send it later) Don't think I can post a powerpoint here. Yes, for those who are asking, I'll eventually, post it on my blog, but I haven't gotten there yet...

Now about leaks, they are very, very rare (yes, been there, done that too, wasn't a big deal, once it was fixed). If your doc can pull out most of the Fluid in your band you don't have a leak. I thinkwwe worry about that too much and I think it was my way of handling fear that I would fail again. So I had a leak, it's rare, it was easily fixed and I lost all my weight and am maintaining. Hope this helps!

I still cannot eat plain white chicken meat without "lube" and have not come across many people at support meetings who can. I know it's not because my band is too tight because I have always kept it rather loose by preference. I am surprised you and your Dr. feel everyone should be able to eat plain white chicken meat easily even over a 20 min period.

[luvmy2dogs 2]

I can eat plain white meat chicken with no problem. :-(

[luvmy2dogs 2]

also, how do you know if you don't have a leak if your doc doesn't take the Fluid out. I asked him about this once, but he didn't seem to pay much attention to me. He did say you can't take ALL of the fluid out to check it. I just feel like at 9.5 cc I should have some kind of restriction. He said it's because I lost so much weight. ??

[atgoalgal 0]

I still cannot eat plain white chicken meat without "lube" and have not come across many people at support meetings who can. I know it's not because my band is too tight because I have always kept it rather loose by preference. I am surprised you and your Dr. feel everyone should be able to eat plain white chicken meat easily even over a 20 min period.

I think you make a fair point, white meat chicken has never been a problem for me, but I know it can be for some people. You might try another solid dense Protein, but cottage cheese or yogurt are probably not good indicators. I'm not saying that it should be easy, I'm suggesting that it may help you describe what how much solid food you are easily able to eat in order for you and your doctor to have a dialogue. Does this make sense?