Questions for those banded a while

[Guest shmeier]

I feel bad because I most often post when I am feeling really desperate and that is what's going on for me again.

I was banded 4/2003. Lost 40 lbs. and gained 30-35 back. Have been either too tight or too loose...

Here are my questions:

1. How often do you PB? It seems like many people loosing are PBing alot.

2. Has anyone ever been at 1cc and had heartburn and can't eat much. I feel now at 1cc like I did a year ago at 2.2cc.

3. Why is it that I am the one person who cannot change psychologically? I feel like I have no willpower. (ie... I make bad food choices, and when my band is tighter, I get it unfilled because I don't like it)

4. Does anyone else get their loosened because they don't like that they can't eat alot and don't like the little bit of discomfort from the band being tight?

5. Is tightness in the esophagus normal with the band? Nothing bad... it just lasts about 20 minutes or so usually.

6. Is slim in the back of your throat normal when you eat even after just a few bites?

OK, that is enough for now... any answer would be greatly appreciated!

[leatha_g 4]

I have been banded only one month less than you and in all that time I have not PB'd over 6 times. No, it is not a good thing to be pbing on a repeated basis.

My loss has been slow also, due to a less than aggressive 'diet' approach. I have not really deprived myself of anything and most definitely have eaten too much of what made me fat in the first place. I, too, am having that head hunger problem and have decided that I need to seek some counseling if I want to win this battle. Thankfully, I have been able to stave off any serious weight re-gain, but I definitely watch the scale and sometimes fight the same 5lbs over and over. This has been happening especially since Labor Day.

How long has it been since you had your band checked under flouroscopy or Upper GI?

That esophageal tightness you speak of sounds normal to me. It may be that it is your band signaling that you have had enough to eat? I don't know for sure. Is it during eating or while not eating?

The only time I would get my band 'loosened' would be if I were having severe symptoms such as reflux, pbing excessively or inability to swallow anything. Otherwise, if I could eat a few bites of Protein and not feel too hungry, I would say it's doing what it is supposed to do.. ??

You are not alone. I think most of us go through the moments of weakness and wondering if we'll be the one person the band does not work for. The only thing that concerns me is that recently I've heard Jessie Ahroni stating that even though we don't have that 'window of opportunity' that bypass patients have, it is pretty clear that the best weight loss period is proving to be in the earlier stages of being banded. This means if I wanna 'get what I came for', I need to get busy.. lol.

Definitely keep posting. You need all the support and encouragement you can get. Not only that, but reading what others are doing right or wrong may also plant that one seed that you need to make this a success. It's proven that the support is very valuable, so don't cheat yourself out of that. Good luck !

[Penni60 45]

As we have been told when we were banded and have heard time and time again the BAND is a tool to help us learn how to lose the weight. We have to work with the band to reach our goal.

Who is your band doctor?

How often do you see your doctor for checkups?

Do you follow the band guidelines?

I PB once a month maybe if that, but only because I don't listen and stop eating before it hits. Then when I do I have to give my esophagous a rest cause it gets all irritated with the PB. I do liquids for one day after a PB episode. Learned the hard way to do that. Was never told that till I came here.

If you are unfilling because you don't like the feeling then it might not be time for you to be banded. I am sorry if that upsets you but you have to want to work with it not against it. If you are trying to eat like you did before being banded then the band will not work for you and you will gain your weight back.

Just my honest opinion. I had to do some head work after being banded as well. I had to give myself a good talking to and get on board to lose weight. It isn't easy and I was pretty rough on myself but if I wanna lose weight I gotta do the work.

[La_madam 20]

I have only PBed 2 times in 7 months and have lost 70 lbs so that statement of PBin alot and losing is not true. Have you had your band checked recently? I was just diagnosed with esophagitis today becasue I had tightness of my esophagus like you explained, I had spasms for a week and still do but not as severe..I have onbly had my band tightened 2 times since surgery and never loosened.I have learend to eat slow and tiny bites so I do not feel that uncomfortable feeling..every once in a while a big bite slips through like last week which led to my esophagitis..I will never do that again! I'm sorry you are struggling, one thing that helps me when Iam struggling is this board and all of the people on it. Support has been key for me! Maybe try posting more often, not just when you are desperate..we are all here for thesame reason..lots of love & support here on this board..Give it a try

[Alexandra 55]

Shmeier, you've gotten great advice here from wonderful people. I don't have much to add except that if you do NOTHING else try seriously chewing each bite to smithereens before swallowing. Then put your fork down for a count of five before taking the next bite. Eating that slowly and deliberately does a couple of things that could help:

--making it less irritating to eat, and more enjoyable

--slowing you down so you can feel full before taking that one-bite-too-many that might result in a PB

--making your meal take more time and effort so that when you are full your hands and mouth can also experience the sensation of "enough" along with your stomach

It is very hard to really internalize the changes banding makes on our eating habits. Believe me, I know. I've gone right back into gulping and taking giant bites now that I have almost no restriction after an unfill. And I've been banded a while.

Successful weight loss with the band is a team effort--us and the band--and takes a leap of trust to allow it to teach us the right way to eat. You are not alone. But you can do it...we all can.