Question About Lap Band Fills

[Justin B. 1]

I'll make it short and sweet so I dont waste u anyones time . So... I was banded on Nov.2, switched to mushies a week ago, have had a few slip-ups with full solids but everything went down fine. There is NO fill in my band. My appetite has come back almost completely as swelling goes down.Now... The question that I have is this...

If I have no fill in my band, is it COMMON for my hunger to come back completely and feel like there is absolutely positively nor estriction? Also... Obviously I have a pouch... Why don't I feel restriction or something when I eat the same exact amount of food I used to eat... Shouldnt I feel pain because isnt the pouch filling up? I figured I would still be eating less even without the fill and feeling full...

So, the questions are: 1. Why would someone NOT feel full when they eat regardless of the fact that there is no fill in the band? The pouch is smaller than my stomach originally was... How in the world can I eat the same amount of food and how can it take so much to fill me up? I am severly worried about that. 2. Is there a possibility that something has gone wrong? 3. What percentage of people (in your opinions from your experiences) after surgery end up with almost their full appetite back?

If after surgery you got all or ALMOST all of your appetite back, please post here to tell me how it all worked out, how much fill you needed before feeling restrction etc...

Could the reason be that the area where the band is (the hole that the food travels thru) is still so big that the food travels through very fast and when I eat more than the pouch can hold, it just pushes it thru which is why my pouch wont get full and hurt or anything like that? I have posted asking similar questions before and I am very sorry to repeat myself but reading the posts you al make reassures me and makes me feel so much better about this until I get my first fill and start seeing results. Thank you all so much for the feedback and all the help thus far.

[RobinJ 0]

Hi Justin,

It is perfectly normal to have no restriction after you are banded. Your pouch is not stopping the food yet. It is essentially just a band around your stomach, but the fills are what causes the restriction. I still remember being in the hospital the day after surgery and not being able to get a teaspoon of Water down. However after the swelling went down, I was eating foot long subs and my normal sized meals. Essentially your pouch is not holding the food yet. I learned that many others experienced this too, although a friend of mine had restriction without ever getting a fill...go figure.

It took me about 4 fills to get the restriction that I needed. I have a 10 cc band and the Dr. gave me 2 cc's at 4 weeks post op. Another 1 cc two weeks later. Somehow my port flipped and I had another surgery to repair it. So they started me off again with 4cc. Let me just say, I only had a little restriction at this point. Finally out of frustration and dissapointment I begged the Dr. to give me more fill than he normally would so he gave me another 3cc's, well it was too much lol and I couldn't swallow Water so he reduced it to 6 cc's and I had great restriction. I finally knew what it was like to feel full off of a 1/2 cup of food and be at my sweet spot, but this is when some foods started getting stuck too. FINALLY the weight started coming off, especially when I excercised. But believe me there was lots of frustraion up to that point. About 8 months later I started eating more than a 1/2 cup so I had another .5 which put me at 6.5 cc's. I'm perfect again.

So yes perfectly normal...The fills will give you the restriction you need.

[shrinkAdink_05/10 4]

I worried about the same exact thing. YES, this is normal. It won't be long and you'll ge dropping weight like you never have before! GOOD LUCK

[B-52 7,113]

It took me 4 months with a few fills before I could say I hit the "Green Zone" and my weight loss journey truly began.

Even then, when everything fell into place, all was not perfect but I knew then I could start applying all those things I was taught previously.

I have not had, or needed a fill since May, and it still keeps getting better all the time!

[Justin B. 1]

God... Now I love you all lol. I was just soooooo worried about this but to hear that people had their entire appetite back and that it is in fact normal is great. I wish I was one of the lucky bums that had restriction with just the band hahaha. But I have a 14cc band and my doctor said my first fill will be 3-5cc (which from what I can see is higher than most doctors normally give for a first fill). I am so excited at the thought of hitting my green zone, only being able to eat a cup or so of food and watching the weight shed off. Obviously with diet and exercise as well though.

Its just great to hear because I thought to myself, "Oh God, something is wrong inside and I won't be able to lose weight after going through this surgery. I want to thank you all for your posts so far and for anyone else that would like to post... Please feel free to add your valuable insight because I definitely want to hear everyone elses experiences.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for the re-assurance!