1st fill & I have some ????

[luvmykidz 0]

Hey there! I am having my 1st fill in the morning & I'm wondering a few things. I had surgery 9/21 & have lost around 40lbs since the pre-op diet phase. The weightloss is definitely nothing to sneeze at (especially w/o a fill), but it has slowed down significantly!!!! Plus, I am getting hungry sooner & can eat larger amounts if I choose to. Will the weightloss pick back up after the fill? If so, what should I expect (how much? how fast?)? Will I feel restriction after just one fill, or will it take several before I actually experience the restriction? Thanks so much for your advice & encouragement!!!

[kiz 1]

There's really no way to answer your questions because it depends on a lot of things. For example, some doctors give a more aggressive fill than others, some people tend to swell more and for a longer period of time, the size of our stomachs and the amount of fat around the stomach plays a role in how snug the band can be tightened at each fill, the amount of weight you need to lose overall sometimes affects the speed of loss, etc.

Congratulations on your terrific weight loss to date, and good luck with your fill this morning. Just stick to the guidelines your doctors gives you for your after fill diet, and I'm sure you'll continue to do beautifully.

[ParrotheadCathy 0]

Kiz is so right! My doc gave me 4 ccs on the first fill. LOTS of docs give only .5 or 1 cc. That's a wide spread. 4ccs on top of the .6 that was remaining in my band after they tested it in the operating room was too much at the time and they actually had to remove 1 cc. My next fill was .5, and my third fill was 1.0. EVentually got to 6.1 and had .3 removed and I am at my sweet spot.

Any fill is a step in the right direction but I would hazard the guess that nobody hit their sweet spot on the first fill either.

[luvmykidz 0]

holy smokes!!!! they put 8ccs in my band for my 1st fill!!!! :sad: why so much? what does this mean? during the procedure, they also completely overshot the band & went through it, so the saline was sent into the abyss. that doesn't mean they punctured my band & now i will have a leak, does it?

kiz & parrotheadcathy - thanks so much for all of your help & encouragement...ya'll are the best!

Edited December 3, 2009 by luvmykidz

[kiz 1]

Wow, that was a big ol' fill. I've never heard of anyone getting that much. How do you feel, and what size band do you have?

Chances are, the doctor didn't hit the tubing, but it does happen on occasion. I would think with 8 cc you would feel restriction. Sometimes people don't feel anything with their first few adjustments depending on how aggressive their doctor is with fills and how their body responds, but with 8 cc, if you don't feel anything, I'd be surprised.

[ParrotheadCathy 0]

Luvmykidz ... you do not mention what size band you have but I'm entertaining the suspicion that it's the 14cc version. If so, 8cc in a 14 cc band is somewhat equal to just over 5cc in a 10cc band (which is what I have). And, we're all different. for me, at 6cc, I got stuck at least once and usually more at every meal. EVERY MEAL. I hung with it for a while but asked for a bit of an unfill, and just .2cc (down to 5.8) fixed it. But ask your doc what size band you have if you don't know .... it's really like comparing apples and oranges when you look at two different size bands. Then remember that Realize bands are 9cc, and there is the older version of the Lap Band that is 4cc. Don't panic over 8cc!

[Noura26 0]

that seems like a lot for a first fill, but as another person said, maybe you have a 14cc band (although i thought the new bands didn't hold as much) anyways i'm assuming you're one a liquid diet for a few days? I would suggest paying attention to how much you can drink at one time and how easy (or hard) it goes down. just make sure that if you're having any trouble swallowing or holdinig anything down that you contact your doctor and have him adjust things.... no need to be miserable! Best of luck to you!!

ps. i just called my dr today and told him i can't wait until the end of jan for my next fill... i need some restriction !! :w00t: