too tight or what?

[illinoishusker 0]

I'm kind of in the same place as you ladies. I think times of the month can change tightness too. I'm tighter in the a.m. and looser in the evenings.

It's so hard to get used to not eating what you want. It's totally what we want, but amazing how you think about food.

I feel some discomfort with Protein shakes going down in the a.m., but it does loosen up.

Talk to your dr. hugs

[MissBS 3]

Hi Jim. Well.... not that this helps, but I am in the same exact boat that you are. I had my third fill on December 18th and before that I had no restriction. Now I am learning to live one day at a time. Just when I think I have it figured out, my band changes and everything is different. I too am wondering - is this normal?? what is normal?? I do have to take very tiny bites, chew lots, and wait a minute or two between bites. BUT.... some days, even doing that doesn't help. Yesterday I couldn't eat anything. Tried some salmon at lunch - about 2 tiny bites and I could tell that I better not take a third one. dinner was the same. Now day before yesterday, everything was fine - had a good day and 3 good meals. I can always keep liquids down, so when I have a meal, or a day, when my band is REALLY tight, I have shakes or Soup. If it was every day, I would know that I need an unfill... but it's not. I'm not losing super fast, or feeling bad...... so........ If this post sounds crazy confused, that's because it was written by a crazy confused woman. Good luck to you and if you contact your doctor, would you please let me know what he says. One more thing - I do love my band and I'm glad that I finally have restriction. Becky

[Yaherd 0]

I went to my dr and told him I couldnt eat hardly anything and thought I needed an unfill.. he said... well isnt it working? and to wait another few weeks.. he did do an upper GI to make sure that nothing was wrong... It was normal... so I still have no unfill 10 #'s down in 5 weeks.. so maybe he was right.. I can get a little more down but small bites.. and chew chew chew.. I can drink anything, but no bread, or some meats just get stuck.. and then I am done.. dont want to try to eat anything else... I love soup... lol

[stacyiam 1]

my understanding is if the liquid goes down ok then you should be fine -- also I read somewhere that the band will get looser as you lose weight? Is this true????

I had a fill where liquids passed with great difficulty and I had a .5 unfill. So SO much better...

[jkend50035 1]

I just had 3 bites of a maurice salad and 2 large olives. I could tell that it might be coming back up so I stopped. I could feel the restriction and that it wasn't going to go down. So I took it home and tried again. I could eat maybe 4-5 more bites and that was it. I know that I have to get used to eating alot less with this restriction, and eventhough I am kind of complaining, I really am not. I am so happy to have this band, and the weight is finally coming off. HALLELUJA!!!!!!!!!!

I really am relating to everyone in this particular thread, and appreciate all the comments.

[BeckyinTn 0]

I went today and the DR advised that I needed to have an unfill. It got to the point where what I was drinking was backing up in my throat. It would eventually go through the stoma but it took it a while to do that. So he removed 1 1/2-2ccs and said that should help. So I am right back to where I was before the fill at about 4cc.

[WannaBSkinnyB 0]

What are the band rules? I presume it is eating slowly and chewing thoroughly, but I'm just guessing.:thumbup:

And no bread, rice, potato or Pasta. At least that is what they tell us at our support group meeting.

[chocolate_snaps 3]

Becky I had the exact same issue:first bite pain, slow liquid draining, etc. Never having reflux, I didn't know it was an issue. I went for a fill under flouro only to find out that I was too tight and got a .5cc unfill. No biggie but a lot safer.

[BeckyinTn 0]

Chocolate-Snaps,

I thought that is what my Dr going to do too, but he told me that since this had been going on for a week he thought that it was better to take out what he put in and give my throat and band a chance to heal. He also thinks that because I have a re-occuring sinus infection that may have been the cause of all of this.I am going to an ENT specialist for this next week and I am hoping that they can help with this. So I have to wait till I am better and the infection is gone before another fill.

I saw that you are getting close to goal! That is awesome!!!

Do you have any tips that you have found to be helpful that you can share?

[Alfie 58]

Hi Becky, I always get stuck on scrambled eggs!! Maybe it's the texture.

[jkend50035 1]

I do have trouble with breads, so I avoid them completely which is good because I am carb sensitive anyway. However I had some rice pudding the other day with no problem. Also I had no problem with the dumplings in chicken and dumpling Soup. I don't eat Pasta unless it's the noodles in chicken noodle soup, which gives me no problems. I don't eat potatoes at all since I have been banded, since they are just "filler" food anyway. My problem now is the inconsistency my band shows from one day to the next, and even from meal to meal. I don't know what to expect.

[BeckyinTn 0]

To be honest I don't either and I think that is the way it is with most banders from what I have read. I am able to eat most anything right now due to the unfill.I do have some restriction, but it isn't what I want or need so I have having to be careful on how much and what I eat. I haven't tried bread or Pasta yet. I don't want to know if I can eat them because if I can then I know I will! lol

I am hoping that I can get a little fill in a few weeks.

[lookelou 0]

My husband got his first fill last November and went back on Monday for another. He was able to eat soft foods Monday night but yesterday it was restricted and still is today that he can't get anything down. He keeps throwing up when he lays down. He thinks his meds got stuck. We are going to call the fill center tomorrow. Anyone ever have that happen?

[lookelou 0]

He says he can't even drink anything. Everything keeps coming back up and he feels like he's stopped up. He's miserable. Does the band have a delayed reaction?

[jkend50035 1]

Yes!!! The band can have a delayed reaction--- It took almost 4 weeks since my last fill to feel a serious restriction. I had a hard time with everything so I went in to talk to my Doc. We talked it over and after he told me I should feel some restriction even with drinking Water, we decided to do nothing. Since then, my band has been looser some days and tighter other days.

I can surely relate to the lying down and then PB'ing thing. I was a night eater and that grinded to a quick halt when I found that after eating a bit of food at night I would lay back down in bed and then it would be stuck in my throat and I would then lose it. So I am now careful not to eat anything before I am going to lie down. Even if it is my pills.

I am at the moment drying to get a liquid Meal Replacement shake down and I am having difficulty. This is after having quite a normal meal last night with absolutely no problems--go figure!!