Overeating and expanding my stomach...how do I shrink it??

[Ms. NYC 0]

I have been eating alot and I have had my first fill but I can still eat a nice amount of food.< /p>

So I think I have stretched my port and now I have to shrink it.

Please advise.

[Lap_dancer 8]

I posted this on another thread so I'll share:

Think You Need a Fill? THINK AGAIN

By Nikki Johnson

Do you remember that feeling you had when you first had your band placed? For a while, everything was great. You didn't experience hunger, you felt satisfied with a small portion of good food, you had more energy, and you were thrilled with your initial weight loss progress.

If you are like most people, your experience changed over time, Some of those feelings of hunger returned, and you stopped losing weight. You knew you needed something, so you went to your surgeon's office and asked for a "fill" right? If so, you might be surprised to learn that it is your thinking about your band, and not the band itself, that needs adjusting.

The LAP-BAND Bad Word

Paul O'Brien, MD, FRACS, is a skillful, compassionate surgeon and a foremost expert on the LAP-BAND System. he was involved in its design in the early 1990's and placed the first band in Australia in 1994. Since then, he has treated thousands of patients and is recognized worldwide for his expertise. When his patients utter that worst of four-letter words, "fill," in his office, they are asked to throw a dollar in the Red Cross donation bucket--a reminder that, according to Dr. O'Brien, thinking about a "fill" is just wrong thinking.

How can a concept that we hear about so constantly be so very wrong? Dr. O'Brien's answer is simple: "Any adjustment to the band is something that only takes place in the context of clinical consultation--part of a relationship of trust, honesty and communication between patient and surgeon--that is much more key to the success of the patient than the precise number of milliliters of Fluid in the band. This concept of partnership is the central theme of Dr. O'Brien's new book, The Lap-Band Solution--A Partnership of Weight Loss.

Patty's Note: Available on Amazon.com ISBN#9780522854121

Like many people, you might assume that weight gain or a sustained plateau means an incorrectly adjusted band; in fact, you may be right. But you may be surprised to learn that weight gain sometimes results from a band that is too tight. This is part of the reason why the "fill" concept is so misleading. If your surgeon determines that you are not losing weight as you should, then discovering why that is happening is crucial. Sometimes adding Fluid to the band will only make matters worse.

Life in the "GREEN ZONE"

Most people who have the LAP-BAND operation will have an amazing feeling of disinterest in food for the first week after surgery, before any adjustments are even made to the fluid in the band. According to Dr. O'Brien, that lack of interest in food is referred to as satiety. A related but different feeling is satiation, or the feeling you get as you are eating, precisely at the point that you don't need any more food to eat but you do not have an uncomfortable feeling of fullness. These two feelings--satiety and satiation--are what the properly adjusted band helps you achieve, allowing you to maintain your new healthier eating habits.

Your careful observation and truthful sharing of your feelings and eating behaviors, combined with the expert care and training of your surgeon and his or her staff, can make the very individual determination of whether your band is properly adjusted much more accurate. In order to help create the most effective partnership between themselves and their patients, Dr. O'Brien and his colleagues at the Australian Centre for Obesity Research and Education have developed a concept they refer to as the "Green Zone". When patients are in the green zone, they experience satiety, satiation after properly-sized small meals, and satisfactory weight loss or maintenance.

However, there are also yellow and red zones, both of which indicate that the band is not optimally adjusted. If your band is too loose, you will not have the benefits the band's hunger-controlling mechanism. If your band is too tight, you will have trouble eating properly and may actually gain weight because the foods you can eat more comfortable, that tend to be liquid and calorie-rich, like ice cream and chocolate, do not provide the proper nutrition. Learning to recognize when you have the feelings and eating behaviors that signal a problem can help you give your surgeon the information he or she needs to help you keep the band optimally adjusted.

Thinking Adjustment

Once you have eliminated the concpet of "fills" from you Lap-Band vocabulary, you will be able to let go of much of the conventional thinking connected to it. Perhaps you have heard talk about the "ideal" amount of fluid in the Lap-Band. While it may be helpful to have some idea of how much fluid is in your band, Dr. O'Brien says there is no magic number. No perfect amount of fluid will provide the best results for everyone. He says, rather, that "whatever volume of fluid is needed to achieve the [feeling of non-hunger] is the correct volume." When you notice that you are feeling hungry or are not losing weight, your body is telling you it is time to revisit your partner in weight loss -- your surgeon. your success absolutely depends on this relationship. So rather than thinking "adjustments," adjust your thinking, and, in partnership with your surgeon, find a lifetime of health!

For more information about all of the themes discussed in this article, please see Dr. O'Brien's book, The Lap-Band Solution--A Partnership for Weight Loss, which is available fro Amazon.com. We also invite you to visit LAP-BAND® System Forum - Home for more information and supportive resources.

You should You are You should

ADD FLUID OPTIMAL REDUCE FLUID

Hungry Early prolonged satiety Difficulty swallowing

Big Meals satiety Reflux - hearburn

Looking for food Small meals satisfy Night Cough

Satisfactory weight loss Regurgitation

or maintenance Poor eating behavior

[juliegeraci 7]

If you can consume a large amount of food you need a fill again.

[Chickie 15]

I have been eating alot and I have had my first fill but I can still eat a nice amount of food.

So I think I have stretched my port and now I have to shrink it.

Please advise.

You cannot stretch your port. The port is the bit they stick the fill needle in to fill the band.

You can stretch your pouch, but as you have only had one fill, that is unlikely. What is likely is that the swelling you had from the first fill has gone down, and you are able to eat more again.

It's not a bad thing to be able to eat food while banded, provided you are losing weight. So if you are still losing, it's not really a problem. And if you are not losing, before heading to the doctor, you need to have a look at what you are doing in the way of exercise (are you doing enough?) and what you are eating (are you eating the wrong types of food, drinking with meals and so on)

If you are really worried, talk to your doctor.

[Wendell Edwards 73]

I have been eating alot and I have had my first fill but I can still eat a nice amount of food.

So I think I have stretched my port and now I have to shrink it.

Please advise.

"Is it possible to stretch out the small stomach, or "Pouch"?"

The pouch seldom enlarges, because it is created in an area that is very resistent to enlargement. The esophagus above the pouch will usually stretch before the pouch itself does. That is almost always caused by repeatedly over-eating, AKA "Stuffing the pouch". Not very many people do this, but if they do, it can result in "Esophageal Dilatation" or stretching of the esophagus, which can be a very serious thing. The usual remedy for esophageal dilatation is to completely unfill the band for a period of time, in the hope that the esophagus will shrink back to it's original size. In some instances, where the patient refuses to stop "Stuffing The Pouch" band removal is necessary.

The only way to tell if this condition is present is to have a doctor order a fluoroscopic examination with a barium swallow.

[DonHoll1 0]

If you think you are eating to much you probably are. You should follow your doctors guidelines. If you are worried that you may have done some harm, talk with your doctor. Best of luck. Donna

[Beka 0]

I posted this on another thread so I'll share:

Think You Need a Fill? THINK AGAIN

By Nikki Johnson

Do you remember that feeling you had when you first had your band placed? For a while, everything was great. You didn't experience hunger, you felt satisfied with a small portion of good food, you had more energy, and you were thrilled with your initial weight loss progress.

If you are like most people, your experience changed over time, Some of those feelings of hunger returned, and you stopped losing weight. You knew you needed something, so you went to your surgeon's office and asked for a "fill" right? If so, you might be surprised to learn that it is your thinking about your band, and not the band itself, that needs adjusting.

The LAP-BAND Bad Word

Paul O'Brien, MD, FRACS, is a skillful, compassionate surgeon and a foremost expert on the LAP-BAND System. he was involved in its design in the early 1990's and placed the first band in Australia in 1994. Since then, he has treated thousands of patients and is recognized worldwide for his expertise. When his patients utter that worst of four-letter words, "fill," in his office, they are asked to throw a dollar in the Red Cross donation bucket--a reminder that, according to Dr. O'Brien, thinking about a "fill" is just wrong thinking.

How can a concept that we hear about so constantly be so very wrong? Dr. O'Brien's answer is simple: "Any adjustment to the band is something that only takes place in the context of clinical consultation--part of a relationship of trust, honesty and communication between patient and surgeon--that is much more key to the success of the patient than the precise number of milliliters of Fluid in the band. This concept of partnership is the central theme of Dr. O'Brien's new book, The Lap-Band Solution--A Partnership of Weight Loss.

Patty's Note: Available on Amazon.com ISBN#9780522854121

Like many people, you might assume that weight gain or a sustained plateau means an incorrectly adjusted band; in fact, you may be right. But you may be surprised to learn that weight gain sometimes results from a band that is too tight. This is part of the reason why the "fill" concept is so misleading. If your surgeon determines that you are not losing weight as you should, then discovering why that is happening is crucial. Sometimes adding Fluid to the band will only make matters worse.

Life in the "GREEN ZONE"

Most people who have the LAP-BAND operation will have an amazing feeling of disinterest in food for the first week after surgery, before any adjustments are even made to the fluid in the band. According to Dr. O'Brien, that lack of interest in food is referred to as satiety. A related but different feeling is satiation, or the feeling you get as you are eating, precisely at the point that you don't need any more food to eat but you do not have an uncomfortable feeling of fullness. These two feelings--satiety and satiation--are what the properly adjusted band helps you achieve, allowing you to maintain your new healthier eating habits.

Your careful observation and truthful sharing of your feelings and eating behaviors, combined with the expert care and training of your surgeon and his or her staff, can make the very individual determination of whether your band is properly adjusted much more accurate. In order to help create the most effective partnership between themselves and their patients, Dr. O'Brien and his colleagues at the Australian Centre for Obesity Research and Education have developed a concept they refer to as the "Green Zone". When patients are in the green zone, they experience satiety, satiation after properly-sized small meals, and satisfactory weight loss or maintenance.

However, there are also yellow and red zones, both of which indicate that the band is not optimally adjusted. If your band is too loose, you will not have the benefits the band's hunger-controlling mechanism. If your band is too tight, you will have trouble eating properly and may actually gain weight because the foods you can eat more comfortable, that tend to be liquid and calorie-rich, like ice cream and chocolate, do not provide the proper nutrition. Learning to recognize when you have the feelings and eating behaviors that signal a problem can help you give your surgeon the information he or she needs to help you keep the band optimally adjusted.

Thinking Adjustment

Once you have eliminated the concpet of "fills" from you Lap-Band vocabulary, you will be able to let go of much of the conventional thinking connected to it. Perhaps you have heard talk about the "ideal" amount of fluid in the Lap-Band. While it may be helpful to have some idea of how much fluid is in your band, Dr. O'Brien says there is no magic number. No perfect amount of fluid will provide the best results for everyone. He says, rather, that "whatever volume of fluid is needed to achieve the [feeling of non-hunger] is the correct volume." When you notice that you are feeling hungry or are not losing weight, your body is telling you it is time to revisit your partner in weight loss -- your surgeon. your success absolutely depends on this relationship. So rather than thinking "adjustments," adjust your thinking, and, in partnership with your surgeon, find a lifetime of health!

For more information about all of the themes discussed in this article, please see Dr. O'Brien's book, The Lap-Band Solution--A Partnership for Weight Loss, which is available fro Amazon.com. We also invite you to visit LAP-BAND® System Forum - Home for more information and supportive resources.

You should You are You should

ADD FLUID OPTIMAL REDUCE FLUID

Hungry Early prolonged satiety Difficulty swallowing

Big Meals satiety Reflux - hearburn

Looking for food Small meals satisfy Night Cough

Satisfactory weight loss Regurgitation

or maintenance Poor eating behavior

My surgeon and lap band consultant work on the "green zone" system and its great we have a big consult before any fills take place and my consultant goes over my food diary and I have to ask 'zone' questions to figure out specifically where I am. Its great because I know they are truley listening and doing the best for me and my band not just filling or unfilling because I asked for it.

[lizzie_07 0]

I was wondering if I had done any damage as well. I'm on the puree stage (solids in 5 days) and for the last 4 or 5 days I haven't had too much to eat in total for the day but I have kind of combined some of my meals and Snacks and I know I ate more than 1 cup of food at a time. I am worried that I may have stretched the pouch or caused damage to the band. I know I need to get back on track but do you think a few days of doing this could have caused harm?

[Jason Mauger 0]

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[Lap_dancer 8]

I have had two fills and was banded in 2007. My first adjustment was three months after banding after the swelling had gone down. My doctor at the time was very conservative with fills. After the second fill I had a good stride of green zone. Once I had lost so much volume in my stomach, the fat, I had dropped about 75 lbs. I noticed a change in appetite. I went in for a fluorscope visual of my band, it was good, and measurements were taken. A year and a half later I went back in and had lost about 11 inches in arms, legs, etc. The scale indcated an additional loss of 64 lbs. Again, the Nurse-Pract. at the new location was very conservative. She removed the fill Fluid to check for clarity, and replaced it with new and increased it only slightly. I wanted to share and ask you all if you have been excercising and notcied a change in hunger from workouts. I began belly dancing for my choice of excercise, much work in the stomach and I found it was very tight. Over the past two years, I have only dropped 40 lbs. It has now stalled and for the past 8 months I have stayed spot on the same weight. I have found over time that things do impact my intake of food. Cold liquid is an absolute no do with food. Food will pop out like a golf ball and I can almost predict it with the slime increasing in the back of my throat. I stop eating at that point and wait. The volume of food intake I am able to handle is over a cup instead of the 3 oz. in the green. I go through phases and am not hungry at all and suddenly, the crave begins. I was surprised I ate two boxes of Girl Scout cookies! Time for a check up. While I do agree there is addiction/psychological influence, I do believe the band is a tool and consider it that.. The tool allows and does not allow specific things. I have heard with too tight of a band, some experience reflux, heartburn, etc. I have not experineced that. I am gauging my progress by the sensation of feeling full. Right now I get hungry again within a few hours unlike in the beginning. Time for a fill. Appt scheduled.