Sweet spot, fact or fiction????

[woodkd 0]

I have heard of this elusive sweet spot but have never had the pleasure of reaching it since I was banded 8 months ago. I have restriction, it hurts to eat, but I do feel hungry. I never have had the situation where a 1/2 cup is enough and I don't even think of food for another 4-5 hours, I'm hungry again in about 2-3 hours!! How about others, is there really a sweet spot?? Or is this a myth??? I'm goin with the myth!

Debbie

[La_madam 20]

Debbie, I have the "sweet spot" to be a myth but I ave also heard it to be true from fellow bandsters. In my own experience, I do not think I ever have hit it or ever will. I am 10 lbs from goal and have lost 90 lbs in a little over a year. I have had 3 fills in that time. I do not plan on getting any more fills. Somedays it feels like I have great restriction and I do not get hungry for hours and hours and other days I have no restrictiomn where I am hungry again within 1-2 hours. I just take it as it comes. I'm trying like hell to get these 10 lbs off using my head more then the band but the band is there to help me, no doubt about it. This is just my experience

[LadyJoe 0]

This is a real hard thing for me. I have been banded for 10 weeks and think maybe it is time for a fill. But I can not tell for sure because with some meals I have immense restriction and with others not very much. Last night I ate 3 oz of roast and a couple of carrots and felt like I ate a ton. But today I can eat a cup and a half of salad. I feel of the wagon for a week so I am trying to get back on and I have a heck of a time exercising. So I feel like maybe my weight loss has slowed down because of me more than the band. But aren't you suppose to get a fill about now. I do not know, my frustration level is high. Should I go in and start trying for that "sweet spot" or am I just not doing my part?

ANy help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Jody

[Vera 7]

Sounds like "sweet to me." After 2 years and 2 different bands (this one is real tight) Inameds 9.75cm band is smaller than the AMI/swedish band.

If you don't feel restriction ..get a fill.

I'm haveing the hardest time chewing, everything feels like rocks going through..

My first band was good, but this band ROCKS.

Last night I ate 3 oz of roast and a couple of carrots and felt like I ate a ton. But today I can eat a cup and a half of salad.

I love fruits and vegis..thats my roughf-e

meat is very thick in the tummy salad is a good thing!! Look at vit and nutition. Iron...I feel so happy to eat a salad.

Restristion ... morning to night ...Lady., It does feel good

[Alexandra 55]

I am a believer in the sweet spot. But it's a totally subjective thing--it's not like you can ask your doctor for it!

The sweet spot is that place where we are satisfied, not hungry between meals, and able to eat reasonable amounts of healthy food without problems, and are losing weight. LadyJoe, it sounds like you're right there! You can't compare roast beef and salad in terms of how easy or hard they are to eat--roast beef and salad are two completely different things! I can eat a lot of salad too, and am glad of it.

The sweet spot can come and go from day to day, too. Restriction is a function not only of how much saline is in the band, but also how our bodies are on any given day. There are so many variables that we really have to assess our restriction level over time, I think, in order to decide whether we need a fill. One loose day does not mean all restriction is gone, just like one tight day doesn't mean an unfill is necessary.

Woodkd, I also think the sweet spot can be a function of time and behavior. If it hurts you to eat, I'd say you're eating too fast or not chewing enough. Restriction shouldn't hurt, it should just tell you when to stop. If you pulverize your food more effectively before swallowing, you might be able to eat a bit more at a sitting which would in turn let you feel less hungry between meals. Another way time helps is by letting our brains catch up to the fact that 3 ozs of meat is sometimes an entire meal by itself. Hunger after meals is as much a mental thing as physical, and someone with brand-new restriction may not have mentally accepted the small portions as "enough."

Last point: It is not surprising, to me, that we are sometimes hungry 2-3 hours after our tiny meals. Our bodies have to adjust to the changes as well, and it can take some time for our systems fully accept that meals are only 400 calories or so. As time goes on the same meal will indeed serve to satisfy for longer, and the day will come when you are surprised to discover it's dinnertime and you weren't even thinking about it. lunch was 5 hours ago and you've just been busy! When that happens, you're at YOUR sweet spot. And it might just be this fill that does it. Or maybe it will be the next one. But it's there to be found, when all the pieces are in place.

[babsyintx 0]

Hi,

I believe in the sweet spot, but I dont believe that it is a constant thing. Last year, I had really good restriction, almost never got hungry and then it went away. Since then, I have not been able to find it again, but I do the best I can with what I got! As others mentioned here, it fluctuates from day to day, your body gets used to it, you lose weight etc... And then the search begins again.!!!

So ya just keep trying!!! Right now, I am at 2.4 in my band. I have had more, but at this stage of my journey, I am more worried about maintenance rather than loss, although I would like to get to 170 or less....

Babs in TX

[hagerteresa 3]

I don't know about the sweet spot theory but can say I've been very happy with my fill level since I got it in february. Most of the time I can eat what I want (with the exception of bread) without getting sick and getting satiated. I wasn't losing for a few months but I think that is mostly because I stopped working out after my car accident and leaned too heavily on comfort foods (mashed potatos, homemade choc. chip Cookies, etc). Now that I am working out again and eating more appropriately I have seen a wonderful decrease in the scale numbers. Like everybody else, sometimes I definitely feel more restricted than other times but rarely does a meal go by that I feel no restriction. salad is one of those foods I can almost eat endless amounts of and don't reflect well on my restriction level. Best of luck, Teresa

[DeLarla 22]

My surgeon says it's a myth and a "crutch" for banded people to hold on to so they can avoid doing the work it takes to lose weight. He said so many people keep getting fills looking for a non-existent "sweet spot" simply because they don't want to make healthy, permanent changes. I tend to agree with him. I've had two ports. They gave me my first fill when they removed the first port. Then I got a 2nd fill when they replaced the port. But then they took out the 2nd port with no fill to hold me over. I know damn well that I have enough restriction to lose another 50 pounds, but unless I make the decision to eat like a banded women, I'll never lose another ounce. According to my surgeon, people want to be so tight they can't eat a pea, and when they are that tight they lose weight and therefor think they found that "sweet spot."

[Alexandra 55]

According to my surgeon, people want to be so tight they can't eat a pea, and when they are that tight they lose weight and therefor think they found that "sweet spot."

That is absolutely NOT my definition of "sweet spot." Too tight does NOT equal sweet.

[Banded14yr 2]

In my humble little opinion, I believe that everyone is so different that some may find what they consider their "sweet spot" and others won't.

I found what I believed was my sweet spot after my second adjustment. I started out a bit too tight, but it loosened up to a perfect "fit" in my opinion. I couldn't tolerate breads or a lot of meats. I was eating a lot healthier because I had no choice. No pizza for me, I wouldn't even be tempted because I knew I wouldn't be able to tolerate it. My mistake was wanting a "tweak" fill 4 months later. That really messed me up. I ended up losing all of my restriction and basically have started from scratch to get my restriction back. I blame myself for wanting a "tweak" and not just leaving well enough alone. Hard lesson learned on my behalf.

I just feel that everyone's bodies are so different. I have a Swedish band that holds 11cc's. I'm filled to 9.2cc's without optimal restriction. There are many other's that have the Swedish band that don't ever require a fill level over 5cc's. 1cc may work great for one person and not do a thing for another.

Before obtaining what I call a "perfect" restriction level I would have serious doubts about the "sweet spot" theory, but since I've been there done that, at least for me, there is such a thing as a sweet spot.

[Mariposa Bella 3]

According to my surgeon, people want to be so tight they can't eat a pea, and when they are that tight they lose weight and therefor think they found that "sweet spot."

I have to disagree with your surgeon Miss De Larla, I had tons of restriction with this last fill and only saw a very little weight loss, I think that because my body was not consuming enough it was hoarding every little bit that I could eat. I wish I would have left my second fill alone and waited it out, because my third one was so terribly tight and made me so terribly miserable.

I have been pretty depressed lately about the amount of intake I was doing. I was starting to regret getting the band, because I could hardly eat anyting. I even called the dr and asked for an unfill, but he is moving and wasn't seeing patients, I have loosened up a bit, thank God, but I am still very limited to what I can eat. I love salads and can't eat lettuce, and that sucks. It is tough being banded, not easy at all. Yesterday, my husband told me that I'm really starting to look thinner, he said, sure is easy with that band, huh?? I'm like, you are soooooo wrong, it is hard as hell to have this band, it takes so much darn will power to eat correctly and eat right. He has no clue. Sometimes I wish I could have had the discipline on my own to eat healthy and then one day if I wanted to splurge and eat a HUGE steak the size of Texas I could, but I can't and I just have to learn to deal with that. So regarding that "sweet spot" I couldn't tell you if it exists because I haven't been there yet.

Oh, almost forgot, DeLarla, the picture of you and Penni on the other thread, you guys are so beautiful, just beautiful.

[KarenB 0]

In my humble opinion and my doctor's as well, it does exist. And, shock of all shocks, I am there! It wasn't easy, I had to learn to do liquids after PB'ing & almost closed up entirely, but then I had some taken out & a tad replaced after that, and lo & behold, 2 weeks later, sweet spot here I am! I'm just enjoying it while it lasts!

[HarleyNana 10]

Karen, I'm happy you have found your sweet spot, I'm still struggling with this tight fill. As little as I've eaten, I feel like I should have lost 10 lbs in the last 3 weeks, LOL.