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I'm curious how many fills it took you to feel restriction? AND Over what period of time this took? Here's my info: Surgery Date: July 26, 2011 (received a small fill) 1st fill - 4 weeks later - no restriction 2nd fill - 3 weeks later - no restriction 3rd fill - 2 weeks later - still no restriction (I think I'm at 5 cc's) Next Fill 10/26 (4 weeks later)

I was banded 9/16. Lost 14 lbs in 3 weeks, then stopped dead. Gained 2, lost 1.5. Went to the Dr 3 days ago and he said that since a lot of my post op loss was water, I was just re-hydrating. He didn't fill me at my 4 week visit on Friday because, even though I had gained 2 that week, I was still on target with 1 - 2 lbs loss per week (what he said goal should be). He said I could decide in 2 weeks or wait until my next visit in 4 weeks. Since last week though I have felt very bloated, pain in the band area, almost like a gas pain. He thought the pain was possibly from my diet coke (s) so I cut those out, but still having the "gas" pain, which I hadn't had weeks 2 -4. Hang in there...start exercising at least 15 mins/per day.

It's normal to not lose or even gain some weight after surgery. The first month or so is all about healing, not weightloss. I was banded Dec 2010, the same happened to me, I lost about 13 or 14lbs the first week and then maybe another pound or 2 until my first fill, 6 weeks after surgery. Once I started getting fills the weight started coming off slowly. The more fills I get over time, the more restriction I get followed by more weightloss. I have months where I'll lose a good amount of weight, and some where I only lose a few or none at all. For some of us it may take a few fills to gain restriction. You have to be patient and be very careful with what you are eating in between fills. If you aren't feeling restriction prior to fills you will have to diet all on your own as best as you can until your band starts helping you. The process of getting the band is so exciting and patience is the last thing we have when we've been through so much. We just want results right now, and that's understandable, I think most of us felt and/or feel that way. But that's not the reality of it (for most of us anyway), results may take a while. So just be patient for now, don't be upset if you gain a few pounds or if you're stuck at a certain weight, it's ok, you're on the right road. Give yourself time to recover before you start pushing yourself or being upset with yourself. The scale will start moving in the right direction before you know it.. Good luck!

I am so glad that this topic was posted. I was banded 9/27. Lost 22 lbs 2weeks pre and 2 weeks post, and now nothing. Very depressing. I am eating next to nothing. I get my first fill in a couple weeks. Hope that will make a difference. Think positive!! This too shall pass.

Visit the September 2011 topic and you'll see you have a lot in common with all of us banded about the same time. Remember that for 4-6 weeks your body is healing. Until you get your first fill the band isnt working optimally. It's more that the swelling and healing and lower activity combined with lower calories has our bodies confused. Stay off the scale for a week. Rest. Let your body heal. Be patient. We're in for the long haul. Becky Banded 9/19

What this study doesn't appear to take into account is the long term weight loss success of the 2 procedures. Perhaps one of the reasons that banding patients statistically take the weight off and keep it off vs. bypass patients is that they work harder to achieve their weight loss goal. That is....going strictly on what the article and study are saying about the tendency to make poorer eating choices as a banding patient. The other reasons are physiological of course, but could it be that you tend to cherish and protect something that you work harder to attain. Most of these studies are just a numbers game anyway, IMHO.

My husband baked the yummiest muffins about a week after I was banded - they smelt divine - I could have happily killed him. But as the others have said you are responsible for what you put in your mouth and I also agree that you should be doing the shopping or at the very least give your husband a list. Keep a supply of crystal light or something similar at home for when he drinks soda. And who says that you can't eat out/ having a band doesn't stop you doing that. Go to restaurants, pick something that you know you can eat and is a healthy (or healthier) option . And don't forget the 80/20 or 90/10 rule. No one expects you to be a dieting saint 100% of the time - the occasional treat helps makes life pleasurable.

I'm on protein shakes for breakfast and lunch and then 4oz of lean meat and 1 cp of veggies for dinner. I can add berries, extracts, and SF pudding to my protein shakes for flavor. I get the Body Fortress ($15 for 2lbs, 26g Protein, 100 cal, 1g sugar, and (i think) 4 carbs). I have the chocalte that I blend with just soy milk and ice and its awesome. Then the strawberry I put frozen strawberries (no sugar added) and the soymilk & ice. I bring those with me to work for breakfast. Then for lunch, since I'm not dragging my Ninja blender (<-- awesome!) to work, I'm bringin the premade Muscle Milk light, that is not so great. Between lunch and dinner I'm pretty hungry but I'm making it. For dinner, so far, I've had chicken breast, with either garlic and herb or lemon pepper seasoning. Then, some veggies. I was at a Mediteranian deli the day before my pre-op started and I had these grilled lemon saucy zuchinni things and IT.WAS.AMAZING! So I've basically been recreating that every night so far. I just put lemon pepper on my zuchinni and grill it on the George Foreman grill its soooo good. Another night I took some butternut squash, cut it up like fries, put some sea salt on it and roasted them, yummy. So far, that's all i've done. What other recipes have you all tried???

I just had a really dumb moment, I looked at the bottom of my own profile and saw my Doctors name and thought it was your doctor. Sorry but do let us know how it goes

This is something I recently posted to someone researching. I would say that there are three regularly occurring post-op posts that you should be aware of as you prepare. Being aware will help you deal with the psychological aspect of the band in the weeks and months following surgery. 1. Be aware: You may experience a lot of discomfort after surgery that is pain related. People vary so much on this and of course everyone hopes to be one of the "bounce right back" folks, but be prepared to be in a lot of discomfort for up to a week or even more. It is NORMAL to be depressed and/or regret having the surgery immediately post-op. 2. Be aware: It is very likely that your weight loss will stall or even reverse (meaning actual gains) during the first weeks to month after surgery. This is counter-intuitive to people, because they just had weight loss surgery AND they are on a liquid diet and not eating. But it is NORMAL to plateau or even gain Water weight while your body is recovering from the stress of surgery. Try not to despair. If you keep at it, you will begin to lose weight soon enough. 3. Be aware: A lot of people feel very hungry and ready to eat eat eat almost immediately after surgery. For a lot of people, the band alone doesn't do anything for weeks to month until it is filled. This is what people refer to as Bandster Hell. A smaller subset of people do feel a reduction in hunger right away-- but if you don't go in automatically expecting you'll be a lucky one, then you won't be as baffled and disappointed if you aren't. It is NORMAL to feel hungry and frustrated until you reach the appropriate fill for your body, and that may take weeks to months. Knowing these things and expecting them will help tremendously with your emotional reaction to the band. If any of these things happen to you, you are in good and prolific company. Don't despair! Figure out before your surgery how you might cope with them when they come up and odds are, they won't be a problem for you. Knowledge is the key. I would add the following to that list: 1. The average loss at 2 years with the band is 60% of excess weight, according to band literature. So if you need to lose 100 lbs to be in a "healthy BMI", then the average person will have lost 60lbs by the end of year 2. This is the average, which means that there are going to be a few people who lose 0 lbs in 2 years and an equally few people who lose 100+ lbs in 2 years. Most people are going to be right around that 60% mark (I wish I knew what the standard deviation is, that would be even more helpful). 2. Weight loss is not constant and linear for most people, even if they are very very consistent with their eating behavior and activity level. It seems like it should be-- calories in/calories out-- but there are a lot of people that tend to lose in cycles and you may be one of them. For me, I lose weight in chunks, then I "plateau" for a few weeks, then I drop another bunch of pounds within three days, then "plateau" again. You may also be one of those people-- don't let it worry you. 3. Exercise may temporarily stall your weight loss or even make you gain, especially if you are starting or intensifying your program. I have been working out consistently for the past two weeks after about 10 years of nothing. I have GAINED weight even though my eating hasn't changed and I'm burning more calories. That's normal. I know if I keep at it, I will drop that plus some more and have a healthier heart and more stamina to boot. 4. This is hard work, even though the band DOES make it easier if you let it. I get full on small amounts of food-- not "stuffed" full like I was used to, but "ok, I've had enough and my body doesn't need more" full. This is REALLY hard to get used to. Full is never again going to feel like full has felt in the past. But, I can still eat past the point where my band says "eh, you've fed your body as much as it needs" and very very often my brain says "do it, you know you want to, mmmmm it tastes so good, just one more bite!". It is a real struggle sometimes to listen to my band and not my head hunger. I actually have a little mantra when I'm eating and being mindful. I say "if I'm not going to listen to the band when it says stop, then why did I bother with this surgery in the first place?" That tends to turn down the volume of the head hunger. I think people naturally go into this surgery very optimistically. They go to the seminar and the surgeon and the carefully selected successful patients of that surgeon talk about how amazing it is. They come on this board and look at the success story forum, and the "I lost 100 lbs" forum, and the "before and after" picture gallery. They see people's tickers (like mine) who have lost huge amounts in months, not years and they expect only the best , most luckiest results, and ignore the fact that the average expected loss in 60% of excess weight at two years. I understand this because I did it too, and I fully believe that I have been incredibly LUCKY so far and that it's "easy" for me to say this but I do think that bandsters who are really in touch with reality and not overly optimistic are going to be able to emotionally adjust to banded life better. Do not get the band if you expect it to work like bypass. If you want super fast results, and you want malabsorption, then get the bypass. With the "plusses" of the band, including its adjustability and its reversibility, come some costs and one cost is that it requires adjustment which is unpredictable in some ways, and it's associated with a slower rate of loss.