Pouch Size Question

sprtsmom · October 6, 2003

I'm trying to understand the "anatomy" of the band. It would seem to me that regardless of the amount of fill, the pouch itself is still the same size. Therefore regardless of how tight the band itself is, there should be no difference of what can go down the esophagus into the pouch as that area wasn't touched. The only difference would be how fast/slow the pouch empties.

So why do some foods...like steak..or for me fish...come right back up. Why do some foods "hurt" when they are first going into the pouch?

Why does one feel more restricted at different times of the day?

I'm so confused.

Lori in PA

7/9/03

239/216/125

shellyj · October 6, 2003

hey lori!

i think the reason some foods hurt when going into the pouch is because it is to big of a bite. i notice i get the golfball feeling sometimes when i am just starting to eat...what i do drink 12 oz Water before eating, this lubes the throat then the first few bites take super small bites and chew extra well. i notice i dont have near the problem when i do this...

if you dont chew well enough the food cant pass through the band into the stomache, thats why steak, pork (for me) are harder to get down. they are harder to chew into pieces they are more like chunks and the meat (to me) ends up being dry.

i also mix my meat bites with veggies to add extra moisture!

i hope this helps!

Alexandra · October 6, 2003

Lori, in answer to your question about how restriction can change, I think it's because our stomachs are not rigid things. Depending on all sorts of factors the stomach muscle may vary in thickness from time to time, and when it does the size of the stoma will change.

The esophagus plays a role in moving food down into the pouch, where the stomach itself starts the process of moving it through the stoma. When the pouch is full, or even maybe when the esophagus senses that it's getting there, it might clamp down a little to prevent that next slightly too-big bite from going down. I know I've felt that, and it's definitely an esophagus thing, not a pouch/stoma thing.

There's so much unpredictability in the way the band works from person to person, so it seems to me that the variables have to be with the people and not with the band. A beautiful mystery!

donali · October 7, 2003

I was informed by another bandster that I had NO idea how small my pouch was, because without real restriction food passed through very quickly. So once I got restriction, I was SHOCKED at how little it took for the pouch to be overfilled.

So, although the pouch size itself does not change (I don't think, anyway!) with successive fills, the emptying rate does. Only then do we get a true sense of how small the pouch is, and how much room those first bites take up when there is no place for them to go.

I also tend to have discomfort on the first couple of bites, particularly if I am very hungry. It's almost as though my stomach needs a chance to get "primed" before it's ready to receive food. I also believe that the first two bites are bigger and less chewed than the following ones, which adds to my discomfort. Someday I will learn to take very small, well chewed first bites, and start out slowly to give my stomach a chance to catch up. Someday... lol

As far as your feeling of restriction changing throughout the day, and from day to day, this is a very commonly reported phenomenon, and has been chalked up to many things, the most popular theories being stress and hydration.

If you wear rings, chances are they are very tight first thing in the morning, because your hands are swollen when you first wake up (that's true for me, anyway). Throughout the day the swelling in my hands go down, and sometimes by evening my rings are so loose they're almost falling off. They rarely get THAT loose, but sometimes they do. I imagine it's the same with the band. Those days when we'd swear someone stole our band while we were sleeping because we could eat a FULL restaurant meal AND dessert, are invariably followed by a day when we can hardly eat anything at all.

Flexibility is the key, and being emotionally prepared to roll with the "punches".