NEW BAnd- 1st Fill - Need help!

[whitezgirl 0]

Hello,

I am new to the board. I got banded by Dr Cribbins in Dallas on March 30th. I have lost a total of 17 lbs. (5.5 weeks)

What I am worried about is I just got my first fill on Friday may 5th. I was in a rush out of the dr's office and didn't read my instructions. I ate a chicken fajita that same night. The next day (yesterday) I ate a kids meal happy meal. Is this normal? This is the most I have ate since I got the surgery. Do I need to call the Dr and tell them? Do I need to get another fill since I have probably stretched this one out? Will it go back smaller? I have never had that full feeling yet... Even though I am eating less, I don't think that I should be able to eat a full kids meal right after with no problem whatsoever.

Any help is appreciated!!!

[DonnaB 3]

Hello,

I am new to the board. I got banded by Dr Cribbins in Dallas on March 30th. I have lost a total of 17 lbs. (5.5 weeks)

What I am worried about is I just got my first fill on Friday may 5th. I was in a rush out of the dr's office and didn't read my instructions. I ate a chicken fajita that same night. The next day (yesterday) I ate a kids meal happy meal. Is this normal? This is the most I have ate since I got the surgery. Do I need to call the Dr and tell them? Do I need to get another fill since I have probably stretched this one out? Will it go back smaller? I have never had that full feeling yet... Even though I am eating less, I don't think that I should be able to eat a full kids meal right after with no problem whatsoever.

Any help is appreciated!!!

Hi whitezgirl,

You're almost certainly fine. I'm not a doctor or I'd say that with certainty! Lot's and lot's of people don't get restriction with their first fill OR it takes a couple (up to four I've heard) weeks until the fill "kicks in". I'm one of the lucky (?) ones and have had restriction from just the band and haven't had to have a fill yet.

Here's the thing, I think you're misunderstanding how your band works. You don't 'stretch out' a fill. When the doctor adds saline to your band, it fills up like a balloon that's been wrapped around the top of your stomach creating a small pouch. Picture it as one of those long thin balloons that clowns use to make balloon animals, tied around the upper part of your stomach. That's an oversimplification but it gives a pretty accurate idea of how the band works. Adding saline to the balloon portion of the band squeezes the opening (called a stoma) between the pouch and the rest of your stomach. This means that the food you eat sits in the pouch making you feel full on a smaller amount of food and slowly falling through the stoma into your stomach where it is digested as normal. This is also why you shouldn't drink with your meal - if you drink it washes the food through the stoma and you feel hungry sooner than you should.

As you lose weight, your stomach also loses weight (size) making the stoma bigger and allowing more food to fall through more easily. As this happens you get hungry sooner and your weight loss slows down or stops, you go back to your doctor and get more saline in the band, the stoma is smaller again, you eat less, your weight loss picks up again. You repeat the process until you reach your goal weight. yay!

The reason you shouldn't eat solids following a fill is that the process of filling your band irritates your stomach and can cause swelling. The swelling makes your stoma smaller and increases your risk of PBing which increases your risk of slippage. You should go to a liquid diet following a fill to give any swelling around your band time to subside. Some doctors say a liquid diet for 24 hours, some say 3 days, some say a week. Whatever your doctor recommends is what you should go with. I had my first PB last night and it wasn't pleasant and I really don't want to go through it again. Trust me on this one! lol

I don't think you've done any harm, but you should probably call your doctor and see what they recommend. You should probably be careful with your food for the next few weeks too, just because a fill can 'sneak up on you' or so I understand.

Another thing to know is that doctors are different in the amount of fill they give their patients. Some doctors will only give .5 saline fills until their patients reach restriction. Some doctors give more aggressive fills, I've heard of up to 2.4 on a first fill! That's a huge difference and their patient's reactions are very different I'm sure. If your doctor only gave a small fill, I would think swelling would be reduced, but so will restriction.

I hope this was helpful information and I hope it wasn't too preachy or too much information you already knew. If it was, I apologize and justify it (at least to myself lol) by saying that maybe it will help anyone else reading this post that didn't get the full info from their doctor.

Good luck on your weight loss journey and please come back and tell us when you do get restriction.

[Carol Conley 0]

Wow, Donna I think you did a wonderful job of explaining the LapBand and how the "fill" works. You should print out flyer's to handout to all of us newbies! I really liked the way you expressed yourself and gave us a visual to think about.

Whitezgirl, I would say that everything is fine if you didn't have any trouble getting the food down and you didn't have any vomiting or PBing. But it probably be a good idea to call you Physician, just to make sure what you should be eating and besides the Doc's need to know how much we need them

I was banded on 3/28/06 and I got my first fill on the May 2nd. I haven't really felt any restrictions yet, but if I don't chew long enough or if I eat too fast I have trouble getting the food to go on down to my stomach,(maybe I do feel restrictions). I did felt swollen around my port site for a couple days and I was on liquids for 3 days. I have a 10mm band and the Dr. only put 1.5cc in when he did my fill.

Good Luck, I'm sure everything is going to be fine!

By the way how did your Dr. do your fill? Mine had me lay on my back with a pillow rolled up and placed under my lower back. They said the port just popped up. My back didn't feel so great but the fill didn't hurt! I haven't read how anyone else has been placed for their fills yet.

[whitezgirl 0]

Thank you both for your replys!!! I appreciate it. In answer to how I got my fill- I didn't have to use a pillow; but I did have to lay on my bed and he numbed me first then he injected the saline. The only part that was uncomfortable was the 1st shot.

Second question to is you donna, what is PB? I have read that on several posting... is that where you have to throw up?

Also, one thing that has ME REALLY CONCERNED is what if when I ate the kids meal I got slippage? Does that mean I went through the surgery for nothing and the band won't work?

Is 17lbs in 5.5 weeks good or below average? My start weight was 257.....

Thanks again!!!

[DonnaB 3]

LOL, PB stands for "productive burp." Kind of a delicate way to say throw up! It's very doubtful that your Happy Meal caused a slip. You really shouldn't worry about a slip unless you can't swallow liquid. Really, don't worry about it - its sooooo unlikely.

Most doctors recommend 1-2 pounds per week for ideal weight loss with the band. At that rate you're pretty far ahead of the average. You're doing good.

Relax, breath. You're OK.

[whitezgirl 0]

Donna,

THANK YOU ~!~!~ Your awesome. I appreciate EVERYTHING that you have shared with me. I'm so happy that I have found someplace to go & get answers. I'm just so new & so not sure of everything. ..... your wonderful!!

[~*Wendy*~ 0]

I am so glad that you asked that question. I had my first fill on saturday, I had my surgery done in T.J I also started out at 257 and have the 10cc band, However I had a fill of 4cc's while in surgery.. (I know it's not the norm) but I was fine.. I gained 3 lbs back so I know I needed a fill.. I went in and they gave me 1.6cc now that same day I went to a party and ate.. I had about 20 Beans 1/2 oz of carne asada and 4 pieces of cucumbers with all the goodies on them..lol I thought that was to much for having just had the fill.. today I felt hungry most of the day I was eating every 2 to 3 hours! I don't eat much but I think it all ads up at the end of the day... we'll see..

surgery date.. April 3rd

Started at 257lbs

-19lbs the first 3 weeks

today I weigh 241

5.6 cc's in my 10cc band