Need helpful answers from experienced bandsters

[Itz Time 0]

I had my first fill today - do not feel any different, absolutely no restriction at all. I didn't have any restriciton after my surgery either. When is this all suspose to happen???

I only lost 6 pounds in five weeks from pres-surgery to today's fill. Very frustrated.

[Alexandra 55]

If you've been hanging around here any length of time, you'll have seen similar messages from SCORES of people. The fact is that the first fill may very well not make any significant difference in the way you feel. It may also take a week or more to "kick in." No matter what, you shouldn't be trying to eat solid food until tomorrow, and on liquids you won't feel any restriction.

Give it time. The first fill is often a "baseline" and only has minimal if any effect on the way a bandster feels. It's often only the second or even the third adjustment when any real difference is felt. But your experience may be different, and you may feel something in one day, one week, three weeks, or maybe not until you have more Fluid in your band. The rule of thumb is always to take it slowly after an adjustment until you really see what the effect will be. Don't leap to conclusions just because you don't feel anything that day.

[Chickie 15]

I was going to say pretty much what Alexandra said.

The first fill often does very little to restrict. It is the first fill for a reason - you go back for a second.

And as Alexandra said, it can take anywhere up to a coupe of weeks for a fill to kick in. That is why surgeons usually do not offer fills closer than 4 weeks apart. This give you a chance to see if the fill kicks in, if you lose anything with that fill amount, and to let you adjust to that fill level.

[robinsibert 0]

I would say you aren't having enough "fill" put in. My first fill gave me some restriction but I didn't know what I was supposed to be filling. My second fill was much different. I now understand what they say about being full and "restriction" . You should have your doc put more in.

[Chickie 15]

If this bandster is only 5 weeks post op, and has just had their first fill, I would say this is pretty normal. You would be hard pressed to find a surgeon who will give anyone who was only banded 5 weeks ago a huge (or even slightly larger) fill.

The idea of slow, small fills is to allow you to get used to the fill amount, and to lean to eat comfortably with that amount of restriction before moving onward and upward.

[juliegeraci 7]

Can your doctors office and ask for another fill. It took me 5 fills to finally get restriction. That being said, it really stalled my weight loss. I finally started to lose after several months. If you don't want that to happen with you then go back in for fills. My doctor makes you wait 2 weeks in between. Some of mine were stretched out more than 2 week, more like 4 weeks. I was only losing 1 lb a week average. I am now losing 2 lbs a week at 3 ccs. Good luck.

[Valerie617 1]

I didn't start to feel restriction until my 5th fill and that was very discouraging for me. I didn't really understand what a restriction felt like until my fifth fill.

[juliegeraci 7]

Valerie, I second that. It took me forever to reach the right fill level. It feels like it was well over 6 months of getting fills. If I were to do it all over again, I would want my doctor to be more agressive. I hear people say it only takes them 2 under fluro.

[Valerie617 1]

julie - it's reassuring to know that I'm not the only one who didn't feel restricted until my 5th fill -- my fill appointments are SIX weeks apart. For a while I wasn't losing anything - then after my 5th fill, I started losing only one pound a week.

At that time, my doctor told me I was completely filled - then I went for an appointment a couple of days ago, and he say he was putting "a little more" in (sixth fill). I really didn't understand that, but he explained that it would add a little "pressure" and compared it to inflating a tire. I still don't understand it - I thought once you reach a certain fill level that's it --

Anyway, I'm on my second day of liquids after this latest fill and if I could lose 2 pounds a week, that would be amazing! Now my next appointment is in 11 1/2 weeks - seems long to me.

[pjrugby 1]

Hi everyone, hope this message finds you well

I had my first fill just over a week ago, and felt nothing, and was so upset, and this site really supported me.

i have to say this week i have tried to be more positive (4 gym visits and lots of planning of meals) i think i am feeling fuller than pre-op but can still eat a lot. i spoke to the hospital who appeared shocked that i don't feel very much, and they asked if i can eat the same as before ? I told them that i haven't tried to eat a 3 course meal so don't know exactly, but i can still eat a big plate of food. Is it just me ? But if i hear any more medics tell me its just a 'tool' and not a miracle i will scream. My tool isn't doing its job, if it were an electric drill i would take it back to the shop.

I want another fill asap, but have to wait until i see my surgeon in 4 weeks i feel a bit powerless ! its hard to keep my motivation going ... i am a Cereal yo yo dieter.

can anyone explain why it can take a while for your body to feel restriction after the fill ? this confuses me.. as the fill is immediate i thought the bodies response would also be ? its been over a week now, so i am sure i would feel something by now.

i haven't a clue what PB feels like, as not had anything like that.

am trying to motivate myself to go to the gym today !! but its not going to plan so far :rolleyes

[Carlene 12]

But if i hear any more medics tell me its just a 'tool' and not a miracle i will scream. My tool isn't doing its job, if it were an electric drill i would take it back to the shop.

Paula...your comparison made me laugh. At times, I have felt the same way. Usually that's a polite way of saying that you have to follow the rules in order to see results. You will always and forever be able to out-smart the band, no matter how many fills you get, and some people truly don't "get" that (which is not to say I think you are one of those people). It's a little like being hugely pregnant and having people ask you - all the time - "Haven't you had that baby yet?" DUH....

can anyone explain why it can take a while for your body to feel restriction after the fill ? this confuses me.. as the fill is immediate i thought the bodies response would also be ? its been over a week now, so i am sure i would feel something by now.

Again, I thought so, too. But my DH is one of those people who experience a "delayed reaction" to fills. I don't think anyone knows why. My own restriction is immediate, but his takes as long as 2 weeks to max itself out.

i haven't a clue what PB feels like, as not had anything like that.

It's really a non-event, unless something gets stuck....a lot like an over-fed baby spitting up, but without the formula smell/stain on your shoulder.

am trying to motivate myself to go to the gym today !! but its not going to plan so far :rolleyes

Keep working on that! Exercise multiplies your efforts by about 100%.

[Alexandra 55]

can anyone explain why it can take a while for your body to feel restriction after the fill ? this confuses me.. as the fill is immediate i thought the bodies response would also be ? its been over a week now, so i am sure i would feel something by now.

We have to remember that the amount of saline in the band is not the only element that goes into creating restriction. I personally am one whose fills have taken up to three or four weeks to "kick in." My theory (and it's one my doctor likes, though it's not proven) is that our stomach tissue reacts to the increased pressure of a tightened band by thinning out--it's the body's natural reaction to an unnatural pressure where there was none before. It takes time, sometimes lots of time, for the stomach tissue to return to its previous density and thickness.

This doesn't seem at all odd to me, so it continually bemuses me that everyone finds it so amazing that fills can take time to be felt. Our bodies are systems with a billion moving parts--it's often not as simple as "press here, and this happens..."

Give it time, see how you react. There's a very good reason doctors want us to wait at least four weeks between fills. MANY people have jumped the gun, gotten more fill too early, and had to have it taken out. We knew going in that this wasn't going to be an instantaneous change, and that patience is the name of the banding game.

[juliegeraci 7]

Valerie, I know what you are saying. It took me forever to get the right fill level. I went back up to 3ccs last week and weighed in yesterday at my doctot's office, down 4.5 lbs. I can't believe it.

[merelou 0]

Havent "posted" to the list before and probably a lot of what I say/ask has been said before. I was banded in May last year, and after the first 2 months went back to my surgeon for a fill each month. I have an 11 band and I kept waiting for the expected restriction to happen. I friend had had a band done the year before, had small amount of "fill" put in at the time of surgery had gone home and just kept losing until she reached goal weight and still is very limited in the amount she can eat. Well it has worked out differently for me, after an initial fast weight loss and then beginning the fill routine, after each fill I felt no different, by the time I got to 10 in an 11 band I finally experienced PB'g if not careful but really I can still eat more than I need to lose weight, still eating much less but have found I can still go up in weight overnight, just as before. It even seems easier to do so? For me, there clearly will be no real restriction and I will still have to "diet" by head control for rest of my life it seems which is disappointing/frustrating. The only real difference is I can experience PBing and I cant say I feel hungry but re training the brain after a lifetime of bad eating habits is very difficult.I was 66 when I had it done and wish I had known about it sooner.Does anyone else have the same experience?

Thanks.Merelou

[bebopsma 0]

It took me 5 fills and 6 months to start losing. Have patience and before long you will have lost it. Enjoy. Celebrating 130lbs. Only 50 more to go. yaaaaahhhhh