How many fills before this thing starts working?! :)

[MayBandster 0]

I was banded May 3rd, with a 2cc fill at the time of surgery. My first fill was 6/22 when I got an additional 3cc. I've been scheduled for my next fill on 7/27.

After the post-op diet wrapped up I was having so many uncomfortable "stuck" episodes that I've basically modified my diet to be primarily soft foods for the last month, or eat so slowly and such small bites that it can pass through without getting stuck. But of course in doing so I've been able to eat almost as much as I did before surgery and my weight loss has plateaued.

How many fills did it take you before you could eat normal-consistency foods but not get stuck? I'm ready for this thing to start "working" and get out of this feeling like I have to circumvent the benefits of the band to not end up in the bathroom five minutes later.

Thanks!!

[Rachel412 116]

You need an un-fill. If you have to resort to soft foods or "sliders" to get food down, you're too tight! I have a link to a good article in my sig- 2 good articles, actually. I think they'll help you understand better what the band should be doing for you.

[MayBandster 0]

Everything I've understood previously is that the band is meant to slow the emptying of food from the upper stomach pouch. My problem is that even a single bite of chicken or other non-soft food doesn't get slowed before it enters the restricted part of the stomach -- instead it gets past that point and gets stuck. If I got an unfill, I can't imagine I would ever get a feeling of satisfaction from a smaller volume of food because that same bite would pass quickly out of my upper pouch. (And I'm not using the term satisfaction to mean feeling full -- I chose that term because one of the articles you referred me to said "the band will help you... by allowing you to feel satisfied after the small volume.") Am I completely misinterpreting the purpose of the band and the feeling I should be having?

[Rachel412 116]

So when they started doing the band surgery, they thought just what you're thinking- that the band causes a small upper pouch of stomach to fill up, and that small pouch would then empty slowly, keeping us feeling full. They've recently realized that this isn't true at all. When we eat, each bite passes through the band within a minute. I personally know this to be a fact because I can feel everything that passes through my band (liquids, food, burps even!).

So when we eat dense Protein, I think of it as a strength game at the fair. SOMEHOW the dense food rings a bell in our stomach, and that bell triggers our body to say "I'm not hungry anymore, thanks." If we're eating just shakes, or chips, or food that slides easily right through the band, that bell doesn't get rung as easily. Our stomach doesn't really fill up- not the upper portion, and not the lower portion either unless we overeat. It's just that the hungry signal gets turned off, and if you're at a good fill level, it gets turned off after a small portion of food and it STAYS off for 4-5 hours after eating.

I'll give you an example of my lunch today because it was a really bad series of choices. I was at church after a long week of VBS. We had a pizza party to Celebrate the week, plus to reward everyone for helping to clean up. I ate three pieces of cheese pizza, a brownie, and a cookie. If I had finished the first piece of pizza and waited 5 minutes, I would have felt satisfied and that would have kept me satisfied until dinner, but I quickly started on slice #2 instead of stopping. When I was to the crust of #2 I realized that I wasn't hungry any more and I was satisfied. Not hungry, not full- satisfied. But I WANTED to eat more and I lost the willpower battle. So I had a 3rd piece, and then both Desserts. The band didn't stop me from eating and I probably could have eaten more! I chose it IGNORE the feeling that the band was giving me in order to eat more pizza.

[honk 780]

Per my doctor is you can't eat 3 oz of solid Protein and solid veggies you are too tight.

[CalicoskiesNC 2]

I am asked a series of questions when I am there for a fill/exam. If I say I can't eat meat or bread easily, I won't get a fill. Dr says you should not have stuck epi if you are eating right. Being stuck often is sign of being too tight. Tells me that being too tight will lead to complications. Having reflux is another sign.

[Coco's Mum 1]

Rachel - I'm going to memorize your example - thanks so much for sharing it !!

[SageTracey 608]

Thanks for sharing, Rachel. I've had an "I want to eat" day, triggered by a big social weekend, overtiredness and leftovers begging me to eat like I used to! I knew the battle was in my head so compromised with a small sandwich and a half brownie and actually realised that was all I needed to feel satisfied. Plus I know I danced enough last night and moved enough furniture today to burn off a few extra calories. (The rest of the leftovers go to work tomorrow for my workmates to eat for morning tea!)

[Rachel412 116]

Sage, you did better than I did this weekend- pizza friday, BBQ saturday (I ate a burger patty and some salad, but then had half a cookie, and some chips, and crackers, and 2 servings of some sort of fruit and meringue and lemon crust dessert... oy) but I'm hoping to be back to geing good to my band today. It is far, far too easy for me to ignore that "I'm satisfied" feeling and give in to the "I just want to eat more" voice in my head!

[NJGirl32 43]

Rachel-you are absolutely right! I had a really BAD weekend too. I ate the Ultimate Feast at Red Lobster (yes the bisquits too)! I mean seriously! How depressing is that??!!

When I was first filled I feltthat sensation and knew I could only eat a small amount of food and was happy with the small portion, but times have changed in just a week or so!! I had a taste of what the band can do - I do need a fill to bring back that feeling of having enough with a smaller portion.

It is a downer to think you underwent surgery have 6 incisions on your belly and can still eat an entire mea! WTH?! Not a good weekend, BUt I am trying to regroup and think through what I could have done differently and how to handle potential roadblocks in the future.

[sandy1 1]

I was banded May 3rd, with a 2cc fill at the time of surgery. My first fill was 6/22 when I got an additional 3cc. I've been scheduled for my next fill on 7/27.

After the post-op diet wrapped up I was having so many uncomfortable "stuck" episodes that I've basically modified my diet to be primarily soft foods for the last month, or eat so slowly and such small bites that it can pass through without getting stuck. But of course in doing so I've been able to eat almost as much as I did before surgery and my weight loss has plateaued.

How many fills did it take you before you could eat normal-consistency foods but not get stuck? I'm ready for this thing to start "working" and get out of this feeling like I have to circumvent the benefits of the band to not end up in the bathroom five minutes later.

Thanks!!

What Rachel says is right on and worth repeating!!!-So when they started doing the band surgery, they thought just what you're thinking- that the band causes a small upper pouch of stomach to fill up, and that small pouch would then empty slowly, keeping us feeling full. They've recently realized that this isn't true at all. When we eat, each bite passes through the band within a minute.

Get in touch with your DR let them know that you can only eat soft foods and ask if they recommend a un-fill.

Get off those slider/soft foods. The band is not going to work for you eating food like that.

You should not get stuck if your band is not too tight and you chew your food!!!!

[steveelea 61]

l32' timestamp='1309712761' post='1634570']

Rachel-you are absolutely right! I had a really BAD weekend too. I ate the Ultimate Feast at Red Lobster (yes the bisquits too)! I mean seriously! How depressing is that??!!

When I was first filled I feltthat sensation and knew I could only eat a small amount of food and was happy with the small portion, but times have changed in just a week or so!! I had a taste of what the band can do - I do need a fill to bring back that feeling of having enough with a smaller portion.

It is a downer to think you underwent surgery have 6 incisions on your belly and can still eat an entire mea! WTH?! Not a good weekend, BUt I am trying to regroup and think through what I could have done differently and how to handle potential roadblocks in the future.

NJGirl I too was like you and after about a week after each fill I too could go on to eat massive portion sizes....I have just read the link that Rachel had added to her signature and wow it helped me a lot thank you so much Rachel....I have been banded since November and have had several re operations due to faulty ports and am determined to make this work for me even after all of my setbacks and reading that link that Rachel has just made it all click into place for me.

The only thing that I dont understand about it is that it says you should stop when you get that gentle nudge or feeling, which i get, but my surgeon and dietition say that I should eat tiny bites for a full 20 mins then stop or I am less likely to have satiety between meals...anyone have any ideas on this??

[Momto3redheads 18]

Wow I couldn't eat three pieces of pizza if I wanted to - without throwing it back up immediately....ouch! I have definately been there when I have eaten too much when I was hungry or in a hurry without thinking about it...and I was miserable afterwards.

In the beginning of the journey with the band we tend to be a lot more tentative with eating - it IS scary....you are learning a new way to eat and it will take time for it to be second nature to you. But if you can't take some solid Protein, say half a chicken breast or half a hamburger patty...and take SMALL bites and chew chew chew and be able to keep it down...then you are definately too full and need some taken out. You shouldn't have to stick to soft slider foods - and in the long run you will gain weight doing that....

Hang in there - it takes time to work the band and figure out where is right for you....it can be frustrating, but it is worth it!

Kim

[MayBandster 0]

Thanks everyone for your input! After my well-deserved smack down I did some experimenting that night and had a solid Protein meal. I ate slowly and listened to what my stomach was telling me and indeed didn't get the stuck feeling even though I was eating the same sort of stuff that was getting me stuck just a few days earlier.

In retrospect I realize that my doctor told me two things that I ignored... 1st was that in the first three days after my first fill I should eat soft foods since my stomach was going to have a natural swelling reaction to the first fill. 2nd was that I really should be waiting quite some time before adding liquids on top of the food, and definitely not trying to wash food down if I began to feel stuck. What I realize was happening is that indeed I was too tight in the first days after the fill, but by the time the swelling went away and I loosened up I was eating soft foods so I wouldn't have even known. I did the complete opposite thing of what I was supposed to be doing! :-)

So in the days since my first post, I've eaten numerous meals of solid foods and had no problem. I can tell now that I think I'll still be okay with another fill or two, but I'm eating slowly and getting used to the idea that I need to stop and figure out if I'm still eating because I'm not satisfied or because of habit. More often than not I can realize it's because of the latter.

Still more work to be done no doubt, but deconstructing the feeling I had in the first few days after my fill definitely helped me understand better what I should/shouldn't be expecting with this band.

-Brendan

[Rachel412 116]

The only thing that I dont understand about it is that it says you should stop when you get that gentle nudge or feeling, which i get, but my surgeon and dietition say that I should eat tiny bites for a full 20 mins then stop or I am less likely to have satiety between meals...anyone have any ideas on this??

Hmm... I'd listen to your doctor. Depending on how much you consume in those 20 minutes, as long as you're having an appropriate amount of food in that amount of time, I'd say it was ok to keep going past the little nudge.