grace65

Hello jack and thanks for responding. I went in to see my doctor this week again and the band had actually gotten worse even though I had been on liquids for a week. I took all Fluid out and the band immediately got back in position. It was a close call. Honestly, I can say I have huge issues with over eating. It is not what I eat it is how much I eat. And having the band is soooo hard. Your head still says that 4-6 ounces is not nearly enough to get you through till the next meal. When I really look back I bet I probably ate 1 1/2 cups of food at a time when I got busy and couldn't eat properly. Amazingly, a year ago when I had the surgery me just eating 1 1/2 cups of food would have been a great feat. So now it is all about measuring. I see I can't cheat or I will be in pain and back in the OR... YUK. This was a big wake up call. It was embarrassing. You can't hide your eating habits from a barium swallow. NOPE it is there plain as day staring right at you. I wish I had a band for my brain. I don't have a counselor or support group at home. But I come to this site and read, read, read. I am so grateful to all those that post all sorts of things because it is truly helpful. Good news is I am ok and just need to do liquids for a week then they recheck. I also discovered that I am really lucky. After reading these threads I realized that most people don't get barium swallows with every fill. My doc does it each and every time. Fills are free for 1 year... no limits. Then after that it is $100 a visit. I feel like after a year I know so much more than before and my body has adjusted to the band. Now this year I will work on my brain! Now, on this site I have read the thread "What I ate today" or something like that. I need to start posting there for accountability. But I also see people eating bread and Pasta which I think is a huge no no for me. I haven't ever been able to get bread down. And pasta isn't any easier. Seems like all I eat is grilled chicken salad. I really need to get a good set of favorites into my rotation. If anyone has suggestions about how to get my head right I welcome your constructive criticism and words of advice. Hang in there everyone and thanks so much for listening. Grace

Band-aided, I am so sorry you are struggling but please draw the line and don't do this again. It is not healthy what you are doing. Trust me... I totally get why you do this fill and unfill yourself. At the moment I would give anything for an unfill as I am in terrible pain from acid reflux. But this just isn't the way the band is supposed to work. Please go talk to a counselor and make a vow to yourself not to do anymore filling or unfilling. I'm just sure that this is bad for your health! Grace

I am devastated, mortified, scared, depressed... you name it. I went to my doctor last week due to severe cases of acid reflux and not being able to keep food down. They did the barium swallow thing and it showed my pouch was stretched (that's what the nurse called it). She did not take any Fluid out of my band but sent me home on liquids for a week. I go back on Tuesday and it seems worse now than a week ago. I haven't been able to eat all day and can't keep Water down tonight. I am stressed out and miserable! This same thing happened in November but no one mentioned my pouch being stretched. It just showed the barium barely moving through. So they took some fluid from my band. First question... is a stretched pouch the same as a slipped band? Second question... can overeating a few times make this happen? Third question... if I go in on Tuesday and tell them to take all fluid out of the band will that help? I am guessing overeating got my pouch stretched out. I have pushed it a few times because I get soooo hungry. The nurse said the pouch stretches over time... several weeks. I just wonder why she didn't remove some fluid if I was irritated and stretched??? Help me out here fellow lap banders. I am so worried and don't want surgery again! Grace

I love slimfast shakes. I eat them for Breakfast and if I am in a hurry for lunch or dinner. I don't use them twice a day usually, though. I just don't like to get too hungry since I have been banded. food doesn't go down fast and it's hard when you get really hungry. Grace

The band can tighten on it's own due to stress or hormones?? Really??? Anyone else heard of this?? I have been under a lot of stress lately and I am seeing a doctor and trying to regulate my thyroid and hormones at the moment so I would love to know if this is a possibility! Barb, Thanks for your reply. I guess that could explain why the fill was fine at first and then got tight. How does it get tighter on it's own... do you know? Anyone else with this kind of experience??? Grace

I have read each post and feel like I can identify with almost each one. I had my banding done last year in February... coming up on 1 year. I have lost 35 pounds. Man this is a slow process! The good news is I was a low BMI bander (due to losing a lot of weight before the band) and needed to lose only 60 pounds to get to my goal. Too bad I didn't band while I was at my heaviest... Oh well, at least I am not gaining it back like I have in the past! My concerns have to do with acid reflux. I had a fill last June and all was fine. I went 3 months, lost about 10 pounds then in October nothing went down. I mean it was so hard to eat! I threw up with phlegm often and it was very sporadic when I could eat. So I get the one day I can eat one day I can't feeling. However, for the first two weeks of November I couldn't eat a thing without being in severe pain from acid reflux. I went in and begged them to tell me I was just too tight and that I had not slipped the band. My band was fine but was way too tight. How can I go from June thru September and be fine then my band gets tight in October and is unbearable in November??? I ask this because after they took some Fluid out of my band everything was fine. I was still only able to eat small amounts but didn't throw up. I felt really good. Now, I am back to severe acid reflux again! What in the heck? Can I get through it without taking more out of my band? Is it just irritated? Do I go back to liquids for a few days? I do not want to get an unfill again. :thumbup: Last night, (Valentine's Day) I was miserable. I could not even get down Soup. I was up all night burping up teaspoon amounts of my own spit/acid. I mean it was just down right unbearable. Is there a medicine to help with this? Help!! Thanks, Grace 65

Louise, I am so sorry about your band having to be removed. That is my biggest fear! Will they be able to put it back? I think this is the reason I have avoided going in to the doctor. I don't want to hear it has slipped. I have put a call into the nurse just to ask questions. I am not totally sure I have slipped because there are days when eating is no problem. It just seems strange that I'm eating good for 2 days and then having issues the next 2. Weird! My band is my lifejacket so I'd hate to lose it. I am finally into clothes that look good and I was actually able to buy a bra that is not special ordered! I was sooo excited to put on a new outfit and feel good. So needless to say I am going to be devastated if it has slipped! I think I might go to broth over the weekend and see if it gets better. Oh the dread of going in for the barium swallow! So after one episode of arfing up food you can make it slip??? Sundance, I can totally relate. One nugget... geez it is the 10 nuggets, large fries, and diet coke that got me to have surgery in the first place! What makes me think 1 nugget is going to fill me up. But seriously, 2 nuggets and I'm good to go. I do think I tend to eat too much because even 1 cup of food is sooooo much less than I ever ate in one sitting! Now only 1/2 cup and I'm stuffed. Sometimes less than 1/2 cup... so how do I shut my head up?? So what do you think is going on with you and your band? Could it be that we are just a little too tight? Oh I do hope it is just a little too tight! Please cross your fingers ladies. The thought of surgery to have it removed will just depress me to no end! I just started feeling good about myself again and not having the band is like losing all control! YIKES :biggrin: Grace65

I have read many posts on this site over the last 8 months. I was banded in February and I am losing weight so I am happy. My last fill was in July and it was fairly tight at first since I hadn't really been losing much weight. Since that fill I notice a huge difference in the amount I can eat. Now I know what people mean by only being able to eat 1/2 cup of food. Well about a month ago I think I over did it and I ate something that really wasn't to good for me. I think it was grilled chicken (you know kind of dry so wasn't really a smart choice, duh). Anyway, the end result was having to run to the bathroom and get rid of it. This wasn't the normal PB or Slime as I have read about. **Sorry for the graphic nature! This was a full out throw up. The kind where you get all red in the face and strain. It really made me nervous afterwards. Since then I seem to have days when it is hard to get things down more often. Then when I eat something it burns. Only sometimes but when this happens I am miserable! I seem to have the PB and sliming more, too. Of course, this could be that I wait too long between meals and eat too fast, too. ??? I wish I just knew what it was. I need to make an appointment for a barium swallow to be sure. I've just been sooo busy and putting it off since it is a long drive to my Dr. My question... if your band slips... do you know it right away? I am so terrified of this and have been so careful but I think I did something when I ate that chicken. ??? The last month it seems like I have days when I can eat just fine and then the next day it hurts again and it is tough getting it down. Is this slippage or normal for having a tight fill?? Thanks a bunch for listening and giving me your thoughts! Grace65:eek:

I know I felt the same way! I was hungry right away and I was told I really wouldn't want food for the first two weeks. HA! I drooled over each and every commercial dealing with food (and that's a bunch!) I drank a bunch of Protein Shakes, I thickened broth with cream Soups and finally at the middle of week two I broke down and ate potato Soup. It made me feel so much better. I was so weak from just broth that I didn't feel like doing anything. Just hang in there because it does get better. As far as restriction goes that took me a while. My doctor was pretty quick to give a fill. I got my first one 4 weeks after surgery. Then another one a month later. Then another. I was banded February 29th and in July I finally knew what everyone was talking about when they say they feel restriction. I found out about what it is like to eat too fast and get sick. I now can eat about 1/2 cup to 1 cup of food at a time. This has been a huge learning curve for me. Portion sizes still get me. I get my plate, put a smaller portion than usual and still can't eat but 1/4th of what is on the plate. This is my head still telling me I am hungry. My stomach gets full so fast it's just had to imagine it is time to quit eating. This has been quite a journey. I wish you luck on yours! Grace65

Hello Victorious Valentines~ I absolutely suck... seriously. I was banded 2/29 and I have lost a whopping 12 lbs (and that includes the 6 I lost preop). Yep... 6 pounds lost preop and the next 6 came off the first 2 weeks after surgery. By week 3 postop, I felt no different than preop so I just ate like I used to since I had "suffered for 7 weeks. Went in for my first fill 3 weeks preop. Felt full the first day and by day two I cheated and ate normal food instead of liquids. Didn't have a problem with that. Went in 3 weeks later for fill #2... 6.5 cc in a 14 cc band now. I still haven't lost weight and can still eat most anything. For example my favorite lunch is a Jason's deli turkey wrap with steamed veggies. I can eat the entire thing if I go slowly. I have times when I eat steak or chicken and feel like I am gonna die. It is like I can feel it going down bit by bit. I tend to eat less when I eat those types of things. Unfortunately, I can eat chips and salsa with no problem what so ever. This is my weakness... I am addicted! Mexican tostados just go right down. What the heck??? For all that read this site, the head is so hard to change. Mentally, I am no different and I fret about not eating as much and worry about getting really hungry later. I am a wacko for sure. Now, here is the weird part. My last fill was 3 weeks ago. I feel like I can eat less now than right after my fill. Isn't that backwards. I think I have had a few bouts with sliming. Not really sure. But last night I was at a restaurant and felt like I was going to hurl. Then a bubble came up and the food went down. I was surprised at how full I was and I stayed full. My question to you all is why didn't this happen right after my fill? The feeling full part. Right now I am out of town with DH at a seminar. Each morning I have ordered spicy turkey tacos for Breakfast. The first day I ate all the filling out of the tacos and I ate the hash browns. The next day I ate all the filling and only half of the hash browns. Today, I could barely get down the filling of one and ate 3 bites of hash browns. This scenario sums up my last three weeks. Leave it to me to be the weird one of the bunch and for my experience to be exactly opposite. I am scheduled for another fill next week. Do I get it and risk not being able to eat anything. Of course, I am feeling the mental anguish of not being able to eat. I think I need a 12 step program for food!:frown::wink2:

No Fill??? Wow, not sure about that one. You have lost 31 pounds and that is fantastic!!! I was banded February 29th and have had 2 fills already. However, I have only lost 12 pounds. And that was in the first two weeks after surgery. Nothing since then and I gained two pounds during the 3 weeks between fills. I had my second fill last week. Now I feel a little more restricted. I am hoping this time works. I don't have any answers for you but I can only give what happened to me. My dr doesn't want me to lose more than 1 pound per week. So maybe that is why I got a fill??? Good luck with your eating. It is soooo hard to change habits especially with out feeling the restriction. I know that until last week I could eat like I always did and not feel full. I just tried my best to eat smaller portions. I did not do well with my food choices. I am having a hard time with that part. I still have the same old cravings so I have to get the old head straight! That is the hard part for me. :rolleyes2::smile2::smile2: Grace

Thank you, Crystal for the kind words and advice. Everyone said this would not be easy and that the band was a tool to help. This is soooo true! I need to practice patience! Well, I am off to walk my dogs before it rains. Gotta get two miles in so I can put that on the "good" list! Grace

I can identify with everyone on this post. Banded 2/29. First fill was 3 weeks postop on 3/20. Before the fill I had already progressed to a cheeseburger. I could only eat half but I ate it! I was so upset with myself. So I looked forward to the fill. Followed directions with liquids but on the day I was supposed to do mushies it was Easter and I cooked for the family and ate what they ate. I did cook a healthy dinner but I ate big portions and felt nothing. I am working at home this week and I seem to be getting back to old habits... a handful of pringles here and there, ice cream for dessert last night... UGH! Yesterday I got stuck with nothing to eat at lunch and went right for Whataburger and ate a whataburger jr. minus the top bun and had no problem wolfing the small fries. I am hating myself right now. I paid for my surgery on my own and one would think that would be motivation to do well...??? Yep, I stink at this. Then I get the looks from the husband while I eat. Then the comments, "Wow, you can still eat a lot. I thought this would mean you couldn't eat as much?" Yeah, well doesn't he think those same thoughts are in my mind??? I have another fill in 2 more weeks. The scale hasn't changed much... 2 lbs up, 2 lbs down. No loss or gain really. But for $13,000 it would be nice to see it go down. So, while I put on the happy face for hubby and tell him that my fill just isn't right yet (which is the correct explanation) I still feel depressed. I felt restriction the first day of the fill. I could barely eat 1/4 cup of potato Soup. And I was not hungry. I still am wondering what it feels like to have restriction for more than a day. I am just going on will power for now. I am also trying to remember not to drink with my food. I do it unconsciously it seems. I am in the habit of fixing something to drink for everyone when I set the table so now I am trying to drink a lot of Water before I sit down to the table. This is ok isn't it??? Sorry to go on and on... I just need to get these yucky things out so I can perk up and try to move forward with a good attitude. My new goal is to write down and praise myself every time I make a good choice. I am also going to write down bad choices. My hope is at the end of everyday I see my good choices out weighing my bad ones. Can someone tell me how long does it take to get rid of head hunger? I try so hard to tell myself ... You are not hungry but I still go to the pantry when I walk in the door and reach for something. Even if it is a small nibble of nuts or 3 chips or a piece of fruit. I have issues of eating when I know I can't possibly be hungry! Too bad they don't do lobotomies (isn't that the surgery on your brain?) when they do your lap band! :thumbup: Trudging onward for two more weeks till next fill, Grace65 :crying::eek::wub: