I Need Some Advice...

[AustinRaver 0]

Hey everyone. So I had my band put in on 12/01/11. I have a 14cc band. My surgeon put 5cc in the band during surgery. I have had 1 fill (6 weeks after) where they gave me 2cc. So now I am at 7cc.

Here is my issue...

well, after surgery I felt pretty great. I could eat a small amount after a few weeks of healing and I would last 4-5 hours before even thinking about food again. toward the end of my 6 week stretch before my first fill, the hunger started. I could eat almost anything it seemed like. without thinking I would binge on things and I am pretty sure I have stretched out my pouch. So then I had my fill which put me at 7cc. the first few days were awesome. my band felt good again and I started to loose weight. well now I am back to eating a lot more and always feeling hungry. even on days where I eat super healthy and exercise my ass off, I still feel like I am on a diet again. I just want to be able to eat right and feel full for longer and continue to lose weight. I have been so bad lately that I am worried I might have even caused a slipped band or that I have screwed something up. I mean, I am at 7 of 14 (half full) on my band. I assumed that half full is quite a bit. the nurse who did my fill even said "in no way do we want you to be close to 14cc" but I am worried that it is not working right for me. I am crossing my fingers that a few fills more will help. any advice on this or similar stories?

lastly, is there anything I should do diet wise pre-fill? I have read online people saying to like fast on Water for two days before fills, etc.

any thoughts?

-Austin

[Grider 92]

Im anxious to hear the answers too- if i did not see the scars - i dont know I have a band, but I know it's early in the game, only one fill. Some days I feel something tightening but mostly nothing. I only buy the best foods to eat and try to keep that 1/2 cup in my mind. So no junk foods,etc and Portion Control -but waiting for the red flags and whistles to say " STOP FULL - WARNING- OVERFILL- STOP, BAND has reached it's maximum capacity!! warning!! bahh bahh - hmm-- maybe I watch too many movies? I think people have said if you strech the pouch etc you feel sick somehow? Hope you gets lots of answers.

[B-52 7,113]

I can't comment on the size of your band versus how much it is filled etc. That aside, you are not describing anything uncommon. Having a fill during surgery will usually subside because the surgey inflammation.

Also people who get restriction initially, usually loose it. It can take some tweaking before it is right.

Even when one is in the green zone, as I am, the band can be tighter on some days, and other days I feel as though I could eat anything.

I have learned to live with these fluctuations, and can even control them by the types of food I eat.

So you either need an additional fill(s) or you should lay off solid foods for a few days.

[SageTracey 608]

All normal! As you lose weight you lose a pad of fat between your stomach and band so your band can feel loser and you need another fill. It's different for all of us but I haven't had a fill on my last three visits and definitely feel restriction. I am still losing weight well but the band is only one part. I also manage my food choices and exercise well. The band helps me to manage my portion size.

[readytogoforit 172]

first slow down. I understand how you feel but I see you racing. Scared to death and racing. Try to go one day at a time, sometimes it's one minute at a time. Do not give in to every thought about food that pops into your mind. have a drink of Water. do something to distract yourself. go for a short walk, anything but eat crap.

if you have "junk" in the house, THROW IT OUT.

you did not go through this surgery to give up. you'll make it, trust yourself and breathe....

[Bdumont 2]

I agree with getting the junk out of the house. Both my husband and I had band surgery. He had his in April 2010 and lost 100 lbs in a year. I had realize band in May 2010 and still haven't reached 100 lbs. I did have a slip up this year around the holidays and showed a 3 lb gain at my doctors office, which I go to every two months. It is the only time I went without losing weight. I went for close to a year before I really felt resistance but I was determined that I was not going through that surgery for nothing and kept to the diet. I did sometimes feel that I made a mistake having the surgery when I could have "done it on my own". That of course was before I felt resistance. Now it is really working. I am having a problem with my esophagus but hopefully that will work out ok without having to have all the Fluid removed. Please hold on, keep to the diet, get the junk food out . . . if it is there you will eat it. I know that is true. Drink lots of Water all the time. My doctor does not tell us to prepare for the fill in any way. He just said to eat soft foods for the first two days afterward. Usually we have it done in the morning one day and by the end of the next day we can eat our regular foods. Please don't give up. I wish there were support groups that people could go to. I think that would help me a lot. I did try and come here at the beginning and just did stay with it. I'm trying again. It's been two years almost for me, so I have experienced some of the issues of having a lap band.

GOOD LUCK TO EVERY ONE.

[Jean McMillan 2,973]

As much as I love my band, I have to say that it's a fickle mistress. It can take several fills to achieve optimal restriction, and then as you lose weight and the fat surrounding your inner organs (including your stomach) shrinks, your band will feel looser so you'll need more fill. Also, restriction can be affected by the time of day, the climate, medications, allergies, hormones, and the position of Mars in the sky. You'll feel more restriction when you're making healthy food choices of SOLID foods, less restriction when you're choosing to eat soft and slider foods (some of which are healthy, like yogurt, but a lot of them are high-calorie and nutrient-poor, like ice cream and potato chips).

We're all sick of dieting by the time we have WLS, but in a sense success with the band does involve dieting. Your band can't make good food choices for you, it can't make you exercise, it can't make you say no to trigger foods. That's all up to you. I'm over 4 years post op, 2 lbs. below my goal weight, with excellent restriction, and I still have to work on all of that in order to maintain my weight loss. It's a lifetime project.

Finally I have to say: just because you can eat anything or overeat doesn't mean you should. Overeating can indeed stretch your pouch and/or esophagus and it can indeed cause your band to slip. Nowadays self-control seems to be a no-no word, but Portion Control is up to you, at least until you learn your soft stops. Your band won't ring a bell or flash some lights when it's time for you to stop eating. You have to eat slowly and pay close attention to how you feel as you eat. Soft stops are usually subtle - a hiccup, a sneeze, a sigh, a burp, an urge to clear your throat. If you eat through that kind of signal, looking for your pre-op sense of satiety (what I call "Thanksgiving dinner Full"), you'll go on struggling indefinitely. Success with the band is a lot of work.

Although it's possible that you've stretched your pouch, only an upper GI study can prove that. If you go on overeating, it'll just make the situation worse. So I suggest that you make yourself do the evil D word (diet) for a week, pay very close attention to your satiety signals, keep a food log including the times of your meals or Snacks so you can get a handle on how long your satiety lasts, and only then go back to your bariatric surgeon to discuss another fill.

Jean

[elcee 3,341]

Excellent advice

[vivelaja 11]

My MD did not ask for any special type of prep diet prior to my first fill which was 2/1/12 other than the norm lap band eating . I was supposed to go back to liquids for one day and mashed food the 2nd day after the fill.

I don't think my band stops my hunger, it does however, limit the volume of food that I can eat so I feel physically unable to eat more even though I know that I've only eaten a small amount.

I've had two unpleasant incidents and both occurred because I had not eaten enough that day and was overly hungry when I finally ate in the evening.

The first incident was my first day back at work (pre-fill). I immediatly reverted to my old habit of not eating most of the day so I was STARVING when I got home. I ate a small bowl of lentil Soup that pre-band would have been nothing for the old stomach but was too much and too fast for the banded stomach. OH MY GOD, I thought I was having a heart attack. My left shoulder, my side and my chest hurt for about 10 minutes! Thank god I had already discovered this forum and had read about this reaction to eating too much too fast.

The second incident was yesterday when I ate a boiled egg-I thought I had chewed it enough but apparently, my stomach did not. For about 5 seconds, I felt like I couldn't breathe, then I felt like I was going to vomit. I then felt the food becoming unstuck and finally, sweet relief!!

My theory is this surgery works because of fear (at least for me). Fear about experiencing those 2 incidents again so I'm going to do my best to watch my volume, my chewing and how fast I eat. I also need to try to eat more regularly to avoid getting so hungry.

My advise is just the basic that most of us were told before our surgeries: (eat quality Protein first, eat slowly and regularly to avoid that starved feeling, etc). If I'm not starving, I have more control. I hope this helps.

Good luck to all this week and Happy Super Bowl Sunday!

[1shauna1 129]

I don't think I've ever seen it recommended that you fast on Water for two days before a fill! I do know my clinic suggests eating lightly the day of the fill, and then liquids for two days afterwards. But I understand how you feel...and it's normal that you lose restriction as you get thinner in some cases. But I don't think you're anywhere near to being overfilled, and you would definitely know if you were; you wouldn't be able to get/keep anything down. Just take a breath and go back eating the bandster way, and then see if you need another fill ( I think I should take my own advice here! lol).

[gonnabethin 10]

You are NORMAL!! Your band Is new and your going TOO fast!!! Drink more Water, eat more raw or steamed veggies- they take forever to process.... Fills are not the answer. You are still in the OMG what have I done phase-- having a band is a mental screwing, yet I wouldn't go without my band babysitter (I'm 6yrs out-- near goal)!! You didn't get fat over night-- thin doesn't come fast or easy.. You are now aware of why you get a psych work up for bands!! There will be days you could eat all day- then days you can't get yogurt down! Slow down, listen to your stomach and band..... Hungry days eat bulky raw foods, salad, cauliflower, brocolli, carrotts, celery. Drink more water, cut carbs WAY back. Tight days drink Protein and dance in the joy of no appetite. Two months is hardly enough time to be on solids. This journey-- is a life long marathon Not a sprint!