sprtsmom

I had my first fill today (1cc). I can already tell that there is no restriction...and there wasn't any after surgery either. Fortunately my doctor allows fills every week until you get to that "sweet spot." So I've already scheduled mine. Lori

I had my first fill today of 1cc. I didn't look and I didn't feel anything. Nothing. Didn't even know when it was over. My port is very close to the skin and you can easily feel it with your fingers. I didn't have any anesthetic. The doctor told me to have liquids for a day. But when I got home, without thinking (of course) I reached for a string cheese and ate it without any problem and didn't even think about it until after I ate it. I don't think I have any restriction. The good news is that my MD will allow me to get a fill every week until I reach that SWEET SPOT! He will be on vacation next week so he will allow me to come this Friday (5 days) for another fill (.5cc) The even better news is that I am down 18lbs since surgery without any restriction, so once I have some, things should be wonderful. Lori

Thanks for your info. But I have a question. How much of the first fill I will be receiving (1cc) will end up being in the part of the tube that is not around the band and therefore won't really have anything to do with my restriction? Lori

I'm getting my first fill tomorrow and I am really looking forward to start losing weight. I had no restriction what so ever after surgery...so I don't think I lost any significant weight. I did have a question. How does the doctor know that the saline goes into the band and doesn't just stay in the tube that leads from the port to the band. Mine will not be done with flouroscopy. My port is very close to the skin and you can easily feel it. Lori

Great letter! Why don't you put her in touch with Wednesday. She lives in Coral Springs and has been very sucessful. Lori

My port is directly under my right breast about 1 inch below my bra line. It is very easy to feel the entire thing. My surgeon told me that when he put it in, he put it below my incision. When I lay down it does feel lower, but if I stand up it moves up. I bet it will be easy to fill (next week is my first fill) as it is right below the skin line. Lori

I too didn't want anyone to know about my band. I told my kids, ages 22 & 19, two days before the surgery. The only other people who knew were my two best friends and my boyfriend. I especially didn't tell my family as I didn't want to here their comments or have them worry or have to explain myself. Anyway, my house is the "hang out house." With both boys home from college and a big pool and backyard all the kids are here practically everynight. Many of them I know since they were little. Well about 3 days post op it became very clear that a signifcant number of the kids new. I immediately knew that my older son blabbed! I was so annoyed and embarressed. But as the days went by it became apparent that the kids had already forgotten about it, couldn't care less, didn't think about it, as it wasn't important to them. Then the funniest thing happened. My younger son's college roommate came to visit ...he lives 1500 miles away. When he came in I asked him how he was and how were his parents. He replied, "my mother just got home from the hospital yesterday, she had weight loss surgery." I guess it isn't as big a deal as I made it. Lori

I know exactly how you feel, but I feel that way for a slightly different reason. I don't want to have to explain to my family about the band at this time (I am 5 weeks post op) because they'll all just think it's another one of my "crazy diet" ideas. And to tell you the truth I wouldn't blame them. They've all seen me go up and down my whole life. So I've decided to wait until I've lost a substantial amount of weight...and in the meantime I'll just tell them I'm on a diet AGAIN. I do agree with Wednesday's husband though. If someone overweight asked me I'd want to share and I'd feel obligated to do so. So here's hoping that my first fill next Monday will be the next step in my road to sucess. Lori

So glad you found us. We all have to thank Alex for creating this new board. Before this most of us went to SPOTLIGHT HEALTH, as did Alex, but he saw a need for more and he created this about 2 weeks ago. I am 5 weeks post op, I don't have a scale (thank God), and I am having my first fill next monday (thank God, thank God, thank God). I can't wait. I don't think I lost a lot of weight so far and it's so nice to know (thank to this board) that this is normal. Keep up the good work and keep posting! Lori

I am 46 years old, divorced, mother of 2 boys...22 & 19. I've battled weight loss all my life. I've lost 100 lbs more times then you have fingers and toes. But here I am again and hopefully this will be my last bout with obesity. I've lost about 15 lbs since sugergy 7/9 and I have virtually NO restriction. I can eat anything. So I've been trying very hard to maintain some sort of "diet" until I get my first fill which will be next Monday 8/18. It's interesting how some people have severe restriction immediately and some (like me) have none. The operation itself was over in the blink of an eye. I went home the next day and was pain free except for getting up and down. It felt like someone punched me in the stomach. It took about 5 days before I was 100%, but I was never in any pain. Believe me, if you've had any kind of trouble with your teeth or have had oral surgery, that is 50X worse then this operation!!!! Now I keep thinking about next summer, when hopefully, I will be 100 lbs thinner! Lori