ABLOND

Just a comment on your "first bite" syndrome. This is a common complaint amongst bandsters. I read an excellent suggestion on how to avoid this: take your first, small bite. Wait for it to pass the stoma...give it two full minutes before you take you next bite.
This can prime the band (sort of tell it that food will be coming in) so that you don't get stuck on the 2nd and 3rd bites.
For some reason, there are people that suffer from this first bite syndrome. But if you bite, swallow and wait, it should result in you being able to eat the rest of your band-friendly portion without any stuck incidents.

I was banded in November of 2011. I lost 12 lbs the first 2 weeks and then nothing for the next 3.5 months. Late March I got my 3rd fill and had a visit with my nutritionist. She really made a big difference. I was able to clean up about 300 calories I was eating a day and the 3rd fill gave me enough restriction to start my journey.
I was eating the wrong foods so that the band couldn't work it's magic. Unknowingly I was eating slider foods that didn't stimulate the valgus nerve. Once I made that correction, I started to notice the signals. Not always of course. Unfortunately with the band, most of us have to pay closer attention to what goes in our mouths than other WLS patients.

Good luck and come back and share any good tidbits of info the nutritionist gives you....

Im not on liquids but you are making me hungry...lol I'm gonna remember this for my next fill...and the 24 hour liquids afterwards...

ok, dumb question coming....what is ribs broth? lol

OMG Countrysweet you just took the words out of my mouth..."I have this overwhelming fear that I'm going to be hungry again in just a few hours so I eat more"...that's what I find myself doing over and over.....and I know I have to stop the madness....

Look up portion plate on ebay

When I get home I'll see if there is a brand logo on it. My surgeon said he orders them by the cases

May I ask how many CC's you have in your band?

OMG Countrysweet you just took the words out of my mouth..."I have this overwhelming fear that I'm going to be hungry again in just a few hours so I eat more"...that's what I find myself doing over and over.....and I know I have to stop the madness....

that's what I have in mine and feel little to no restriction....but I try my very best to control my portions and though i'm eating way less than I did before the band, the weight isn't coming off and waiting on the green zone is trying my patience...lol

Every surgeon is totally different. My surgeon gave me a small plate with pictures ( I've looked at it but not used it). He told me that he would be happier if I filled the whole plate with Protein but if I were going to have carbs to not go over the set limits. I can eat anything and felt I might be eating too much and he told me not to worry about that because I was losing the weight the way he hoped I would. I've plateaued for about a month but I started body measuring last month, and this last month, though the scales only show a 2 lb loss, I've lost 5 inches. I can really see the difference in the mirror and my head is starting to catch up. I'm not walking straight to the big girl section at the store, I'm not surprised or embarrassed when someone tells me I look good and I don't really notice the unhealthy foods I have to walk around to get to the healthy ones. I actually believe I've got this now. Oh, and I look forward to exercise. Go figure!

Has your band/tubing/port been checked for a leak? Does the filler take out your saline prior to filling you to verify that the fill level noted at your previous fill is what they are seeing when they pull out the saline to control it?

Hi - I haev a 10cc band...went to a 7.5 then had to go back down to 4 and now I'm back up at 5.5...?!?!?!? :/

I am definitly learning when Im hungry versa when Im bored. I know this sounds gross..but I eat tuna daily..2-3 times a day.. It satisfies me, Im good for like 4-5 hours after one can. Not sure Im suppose to eat a whole can, but Im not full when Im done. I just satisfied. And as far as only eatting a cup. I have to make myself stop at that. Cause I could definitly eat more. But I step away from the table, start cleaning up from the meal..then see if Im still hungry or satisfied.
I go this Thursday for another fill. Which will be my 3rd one. Im at 3cc of 10cc band. I had prior had a fill and I asked if she would give me more than normal due to the face I had lost my insurance and was paying for the fills out of pocket now. So she did..and OMG..let me tell you..she took me from 2 cc to 5cc. WOW! Way to restricted!! Couldnt get anything but liquids down for a week later. Went back, had some taken out to bring me to 3cc..Thinking I need to just inch up to 4 see how that goes for a while. But Iv been a platueu for about a month..So..Im ready to get this thing tightened.
Best of luck to you BeachBish...were all here for you while your taken this journey..We totally get it.
lapbandchic73

Iv heard of people saying that they start yawning and also their nose starts dripping when there eatting. And sayin that, thats a sign that youve found your "Soft Spot"? Can someone please explain this to me. Cause Im goin on 4 months since my surgery and nothing like that has happened to me.
Just wondering..
lapbandchic73

Im not on liquids but you are making me hungry...lol I'm gonna remember this for my next fill...and the 24 hour liquids afterwards...

ok, dumb question coming....what is ribs broth? lol

OMG Countrysweet you just took the words out of my mouth..."I have this overwhelming fear that I'm going to be hungry again in just a few hours so I eat more"...that's what I find myself doing over and over.....and I know I have to stop the madness....

Hi! Maybe you can tell us the PERFECT days meal...

I generally do a Protein shake in the am. I work so that is simple and 30 grams off the bat first thing in the morning.

Protein Bar at 3ish...

chicken or fish at lunch w/veggies and same at dinner.

I am told to get 90 grams of Protein a day ...
the Water is the hardest for ME! I am loosing only 1 # a week...I've lost less than a # a week...since June.
~~~ VERY DISCOURAGED!!

Update.... I had an appoinment with the doctor on March 26 about my slipped band. After being on a full liquied diet for 1 month, my band did not correct itself. I was old that I would have to have surgery. The baratric clinic does not fix the band. They will remove it and i will be reversion to the sleeve. I am glad about that But disapointed about having to do it all over again. I have to do the whole process over again, as if i were a new patient e.g. seminar, nutrition classes. I also have to be deflated for 3 months. I am so disappointed. This has been a BIG bump in the road! It looks like my sugery will be in late June, early July. Ugg. Good news.... I lost 7lbs being on the liquied diet. I have been tracking what I eat on MYFITNESSPAL and making sure that I keep my Proteins up.

I don't think you are crazy - AT ALL! In fact because I have recently been both unrestricted and restricted so much that I couldn't even get Fluid down I can tell you that there is a very fine line between the band working and not working... all in MY opinion and experience.
That said, at 7 cc's I was still very much able to eat quite a bit albeit I am a pretty compliant patient so eating what I'm supposed to be eating but still able to eat more than a cup a sitting - then at 7.5 I was definitely feeling like "ok, this is how the band is supposed to work" in that I was only able to eat less than a cup especially earlier in the day but by days end (when I personally need the most restriction) I was still able to eat over a cup of food at a sitting. So, I went in for another fill really believing that I'd never get restricted enough - boy oh boy - I learned the HARD and DANGEROUS way where I was so tight I couldn't eat or drink anything and nearly collapsed my esophagus. Now I'm back to 4cc's and WIDE open - like I can eat a hamburger from Fudruckers open.
I've got to wait 30 days to be able to get a fill again - but now I know that my sweet spot is somewhere near 7.5 and I'm hopeful that doc will get me back there next fill. Even if he gets me to 7.0 I'll be happy. Also, I have learned that not eating before the fill and eating fluids the next 24-48 hours after a fill is VERY important b/c of swelling that may not occur right away - I'll definitely will not eat solids until a few days after a fill b/c I believe that me eating solids after a fill contributed to the trouble I got into last month.
This is probably too much info - but to offer some commiseration I don't think you are crazy I just don't think you are adjusted to the level you need to be at with your band.

I agree with the previous post. It all depends on the person. But remember that once you start loosing weight all the fat around your stomach is gone and the band starts to feel loose, so you won't feel restricted any more, you will Plateau and stop loosing. Sometimes a person just need less than 0.5 cc fill in order to feel restriction, as incredible as it seems, it happens, sometimes 0.5 is too much and 0.2 is nothing...
In my personal case, I started to feel on the green zone with the second fill, but as much weight was gone i started to feel less restricted and I starting to go more often for fills. I am currently on 7 cc's, maintaining and feeling OK on portions and appetite control. I've been with these 7cc's for more than a year.
Also remember, as the quantity matters, it is very important to eat the right foods. If we want to loose weight, we need to forget about carbs, sweets, milky shakes, fry foods, pizza, breads and sodas. Those items are a No-no regardless you have a band or not, but your band won't tolerate that behavior on your part. Remember is only a tool, but you have to make the right decisions. Allow yourself to one indulgence a week. It really works!
Good Luck. Maria

Had surgery 2 19 13 with 2cc in band. Six weeks later had 2 cc and the 1 and then .5 and .5 with my last fill being 9 3 13. Yesterday I had .5 removed due to the fact that I have been coughing and spitting up phlegm after I eat. I had 6cc for over 7 months and it took that many trips back for fills to get it right. Every 6 weeks until I saw green for sure. 90 pounds gone with about 10 in the wings waiting to go. Everybody is different. Read about one man who had 18 fills before he got it right.

Yep, it took 6 fills in six and a half months to hit the SWEET SPOT. Lost weight all along, but I exercised daily, cut out most carbs, and limited myself in portion. The band did help with portion sizes, meaning I could not eat a plate of food and SECONDS, but, I still felt like I was trying to control portion sizes. With each monthly fill, I felt the band helping more and more...... But, I truly didn't hit the SWEET SPOT until 7 months out!