Restriction in the am/afternoon; should I re-fill?

[gadgetlady 4]

I'll try to make a long story short here. I was banded on 2/6/06, and have lost between 15 and 20 lbs, pretty much due to pre-op and post op liquid/mushy diet. My first fill was on 3/21/06 (1 cc) and I left for a cruise on left for a cruise 3/30/06. I've had no significant change in my weight loss since the fill, but I suspect if I hadn't been on a cruise with readily available high-calorie foods, I would have lost a few more pounds.

I'm currently scheduled for another fill on April 11th. I've never vomited or had a pb but I have had some sliming. I am not a morning person and typically wake up late and drink a shake when I start to feel hungry (2-3 hours after I wake up). Then I have a snack sometime in the late afternoon and a late dinner. I can usually eat whatever I want during dinner, but have noticed I have more trouble getting things down during the day.

On the cruise, I ate more than usual, as well as more MEALS than usual. I had some difficulty with getting lunch down, but chalked it up to overeating and not chewing enough. On the last day, because of departure from the ship at an early hour, I woke up early and had Breakfast. I had my worst sticking/sliming/almost vomiting episode ever, from cream of wheat and one bite of scrambled eggs. That was yesterday, 4/6. I've been really careful since.

Today, I had a shake, some sugar-free pudding, and applesauce. I had trouble getting the applesauce down.

Now I'm wondering if I should go in for my next fill on 4/11. If I don't go then, my dr is out of town until 4/25. I don't know if my sticking issues are due to: time of day, flight issues (I've read some people are tighter after flying), or ???

Opinions would be helpful, especially from those who have time-of-day sticking issues (i.e. tight in the am, loose at night). I could stand to be tighter at night, but I don't want to be "CLOSED" (i.e. not able to get down a shake, applesauce, etc.) during the day.

TIA!

[Alexandra 55]

We are just discussing this on another thread, so I'm just going to copy my comment from there:

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[Fluctuation in restriction...] is a WIDELY experienced phenomenon that hasn't been very clearly explained, but you are not alone. My personal theory is that gravity works throughout the day to redistribute the fluids in our body, so that tissues near the band might thin out even while our ankles swell. Though the effect may not be visible, it only takes a little change in Fluid levels (whether in the band itself or in the tissues surrounding it) to change our perceived restriction.

People also report increased restriction in the morning, which IMO is the reverse happening. Lying down all night means Fluid can settle higher up in our bodies, including in the tissues of the stomach.

We are made of Water, remember. And that Water moving around is a powerful force. Eating more in the evening may only make it worse, since that can make us feel tighter in the morning and around and around you go. So try to even out your eating through the day so that you're not so hungry at night. More fill will NOT fix this, it's just something you have to learn to work with (or around).

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If I were you I'd wait until the 25th to have another adjustment. Patience is key with banding, and you may very well be at a great level of restriction just now. Don't be in a rush to tighten the band as much as possible as soon as possible, because it's not an infinite road. Give it time, try to work with what you have, and the 25th will be here before you know it.

[gadgetlady 4]

If I were you I'd wait until the 25th to have another adjustment. Patience is key with banding, and you may very well be at a great level of restriction just now. Don't be in a rush to tighten the band as much as possible as soon as possible, because it's not an infinite road. Give it time, try to work with what you have, and the 25th will be here before you know it.

Thanks for the input, Alexandra. I never know what to search to find old posts on topics -- seems if I search something like "restriction" I'm overwhelmed w/ the result.

I will call on Monday and reschedule the fill. I wouldn't mind being tighter in the evenings but certainly don't want to be tighter in the daytime.

I don't know how to get more food in during the day if I can't get it down, though. More shakes? I sure would love to be in the shoes of the people who are restricted at night and not during the day, as evenings are my "gobble down" time.

[Alexandra 55]

I don't know how to get more food in during the day if I can't get it down, though. More shakes? I sure would love to be in the shoes of the people who are restricted at night and not during the day, as evenings are my "gobble down" time.

I know it sounds weird, but not eating at night may help you feel less restricted in the morning, because less food in your tummy will mean less swelling overnight. For one or two nights it will be hard, but at some point you may feel less restricted in the mornings and able to eat more earlier in the day. Eating Breakfast, no matter how slowly, is really important. Nurse a Protein shake if that's all you can do, but don't wait until lunch to have your first nutritious meal.

Try to white-knuckle through it for a few days and see if it helps. Good luck!!