ohjuly7878

I have the same issue. I've been banded about 4 years and have gone up and down with the amount of fluid in my band (including one complete infill about 3 months ago due to too much reflux). I've now gotten 4 fills and currently have more fluid in the band than I did when I had the infill. However I really feel no restriction. It's as if my body has learned how to get around the band, somehow! I don't think another fill is the answer..... I think I'm just going to have to lose the rest of the weight the "old fashioned way". I do hope that the band will at least help me maintain.

I think many folks find that a heating pad is very useful in dealing with the post op pain. Best of luck to you and congrats on your surgery!

I've had my band for almost four years now, and there have been many times that I've fallen off the band wagon (that is, acted like I didn't even have the band); and many times I've pulled myself back on. I've had several partial unfills and even a complete unfill (now getting back to the green zone after two fills). My point is that the whole thing is a journey... as you point out, a lifelong one.... and none of us can expect to be without detours. Forgive yourself and give yourself permission to move on.... we are all with you!

How long does your doctor make you wait between fills? Is there a minimum interval of time that must pass before getting another fill? I just had a fill 2 weeks ago and feel that I need another one. I've had the band since August of 2008 and so I'm pretty familiar with what "good" restriction feels like. I had to have a complete unfill about 7 weeks ago due to too much reflux (it was the right move, definitely, at the time) and now I want to re-fill very slowly. I feel it's better to be a little under-filled rather than a little over-filled (I'm sure you all agree). Of course, the problem is that I'm eating too much now and gaining weight. (Even if I eat the "right" foods, I don't feel truly full). Any advice would be welcome; thanks!

Thanks everyone! Your answers were a big help.

MsDuran, I hope you're feeling better now!

MsDuran, I hope you're feeling better now!

I highly recommend him. I'm his patient but I'm also a doctor myself... I was banded about a year ago by him and have been thrilled.

I'm glad your surgery is over and I wish you a speedy recovery! I am sorry this is all happening to you.

The unjury shakes are about the same as other brands, in my opinion, except maybe they dissolve better and faster. I sometimes put them in my coffee. But the chicken Soup from unjury is great, especially in the winter. I think that is worth it.... the protein/calorie ratio is the best found anywhere, and it tastes delicious. You just have to be careful to mix it with warm and not hot Water.

Fage 0% plain is my absolute favorite. I love the plain flavor but if I want something sweet, I mix in low sugar jam (strawberry or raspberry). That way I can control the sugar and find that it's delicious with only a LITTLE jam (hence fewer carbs than say Chobani strawberry). If I want something more sweet, I also love Chobani vanilla. Once in awhile for a treat, I'll have Chobani strawberry, blueberry, or peach. But in general I LOVE LOVE LOVE greek yogurt. Protein/calorie ratio is very high!

Hi all, I feel like a failure. I was banded waaaay back in August of 2008. I was down about 50 lbs at one point (I only had about 75 lbs total to lose), but now I have gained back 25 of those pounds. I think I am eating AROUND the band rather than WITH the band. As everyone says (and as I am aware), the band is a tool and we have to work with it. Today I am trying to begin "the rest of my life" and work WITH the band. In addition to getting my head in the right place (which is difficult, but at least I have *experience* doing that and I think I will succeed in that, at least for now), I believe I need to start ANEW with working WITH my band. However I realize.... I don't think I have ever TRULY worked with it. It's either felt wide open (most likely because I was eating only the easy, sliding foods) or too tight (even liquids having trouble going down... I've had to have Fluid removed twice in the past few years). I'm thinking that I have to plan to eat the "difficult" foods... chew them well and let them sit in the pouch and be mindful of the fullness. But I'm scared, I don't know if I will be able to do this... I would love to hear the nuts and bolts of how others do it. Also, at night, even the "difficult" foods go down easy.... so my plan is to stop eating at 8pm..... but again, I'm scared that I won't be able to do it. I just feel so out of control and almost convinced that I'm going to slide right back to where I was before, and worse......

I just joined the site.... my name there is "ohjuly7878"..... I'm going to request you all as friends, if that's all right

These posts are all so helpful to read. Thanks to all of you who are posting! Rachel412, your links were very useful and your words extremely comforting and inspiring. Katemck, let's decide to not feel like failures together!! What you say is so true.... sometimes I get so frustrated that I just want my doctor to give me a massive fill, and then I fantasize that I will punish myself by only having fluids! (Of course, I would sabotage myself that way as well, by having ice cream.) I grumble to myself about the band sometimes, saying that the healthy foods are the hard ones to eat, while the "bad" foods are easy. (I'm sure we have ALL said that to ourselves many times.) Also, I am sometimes sorry to have the band, since if I could "take responsibility" for my eating, then I wouldn't have needed the band in the first place! I know those statements above are said over and over again by us all. I guess the truth is somewhere in between. Let's put it this way: I've had the band for almost 4 years and although I've gained back some of what I've lost, I haven't gained it all back. In addition, none of us knows where we would be if we HADN'T gotten the band. The past 4 years have been very difficult for me (divorce, etc); so if I didn't get the band when I did, I probably would have just gone steadily up in weight over that time. All I can say is that this forum is an inspiration, and I have huge admiration and respect for all those who are here: posting, helping others, and persevering.

I have probably stretched my pouch; talked to my doctor's PA today and she said that my symptoms are pretty classic. So I'm going in Friday for a complete unfill, to rest my espophagus. Am I lucky, or unlucky, that next week is Thanksgiving?

I've heard folks post about this in the past but just wanted to know how many people have experienced what I'm going through now... I had my third fill on May 18th, and afterwards felt a LITTLE more restriction than I had been feeling (which was basically none). All of the sudden, about 3 weeks following this fill, I find I can basically eat nothing but water/coffee and pudding!! It's the weirdest thing. I don't think it's an emergency since I can get down plenty of water, and I mix the protein bullet with my water; so I am getting fluids and protein. I can even take my vitamin pill. But I would not want to stay this way forever! My plan is to continue with what I'm doing and keep trying to progress my diet slowly. I guess if it doesn't go away after ... how long should I wait?.... I'll have to get an unfill (which I've never had). Any advice would be welcome, thanks to all!

I just wanted to share what I've been doing to get my Vitamins. I hate the chewables and although the small mulitvitamin pill might be small enough to get down, it does not have enough Calcium... So I have been using the Viactiv chews; they have chews for Multivitamins and for calcium. They taste delicious, and not too many calories each (maybe 20 calories each?). I basically bite off a small piece of the square and suck on it untill it is dissolved. (I take a small enough piece in each bite so that if I accidentally swallowed it, I could probably dissolve it with hot tea.) I also find this helps with my Water drinking, since it is very satisfying to sip water after each small bite of the viactiv. I take one multivit and two calciums each day. Because I do it so slowly, those three items plus a large glass of water gets me through several hours of work in the afternoon! The only thing I notice is that the viactiv is somewhat low on Vitamin A (I think that Vitamin is hard to get in a pill), so I also try to concentrate on carrots and spinach when I eat my veggies. Good luck to all!

As usual, Jacqui's post is right on. I've personally have been banded since August 2008 and have had no complications... no PBing, no vomitting... I slimed only once and that is the day I came home from the hospital (I had stayed overnight). I also don't follow all of the "rules"... for example, I'm much more of a grazer than a three-meal-a-dayer. I also sometimes drink at the same time as I eat. I just go sloooowwwllly with everything and chew really well. I do try to stay away from the carbs but I have Cereal every day (for the fiber). Good luck to you!

I still have my coffee; although I only have 1.5 - 2 cups a day, and when I make it, I make half regular and half decaf. I drink it with half and half and no sugar. This is how I used to have it before the band, and how I continue to have it. I do find that if I have any more than that; or if I increase the amount of caffeinated coffee I drink, that I can get into problems, either with dehydration (since caffeine is a diuretic) or with gas. But if I stick to the amounts above, I have no problem... and it tastes just as good as it ever did! I guess it's a matter of finding the amount that works for you. Good luck! -Julie

I agree with Heather.... sounds like a stomach bug. But now with the vomitting, you probably have some swelling around the band. I hope you're feeling better now!

I'd like to point out that posting here, you actually have ALREADY made your first step. You didn't have to come to this board and read posts, much less post your own. So first of all, kudos to you for making it this far! I know (I'm sure we all do) what a viscious cycle the feeling bad/eating bad thing is. I'd love to say it will disappear but we all know it never will. We just have to deal with it the best we can; knowing it's always two steps forward, one step back. Sounds like you made your two steps forward, and your one step back. Now it's time to get back onto the two steps forward cycle once more. Probably the first thing you should do is find a surgeon you like/can trust who can advise you re: fills (eg, are you at the proper level now?). Also, through the surgeon's office you can probably find support groups. I am sure that you will find lots of people exactly with your issues! The good thing about the band (in my opinion, although I've only had it for six months) is that it's adjustable. I don't think you can ever say the band "didn't work". The other thing that is "adjustable" is our attitude. Sounds like you're in the process of adjusting yours! Good luck to you and don't give up!

I totally agree that we should know exactly what is being done to us/for us/inside us, and why. I guess I was just saying that I don't think the numbers (of the band) per se matter. Even in an emergency, I think all you'd have to tell them is that you have the band... I don't think the treatment would vary depending on the capacity of the band or how much you have inside the band at that moment. I believe even if you had an emergency un-fill by a doc who didn't know your particular numbers, it wouldn't be hard to just take out all the Fluid, even if he/she didn't know the exact amount you had inside at that moment. (Of course the trick in an emergency would be to find a doc who even knew how to access the port, etc. This might be a problem whether or not you knew your "numbers") Being a doc myself, I always, AlWAYS, advocate to patients that they should know and understand exactly what is happening (to them, for them, etc). Everyone needs to find a doctor that will answer *all* of their questions. However, I think the capacity of my band and the amount I have inside are not things I necessarily need to know (for the reasons above). It would be like asking, "What guage needle are you using for the fill?", or "are you using sterile saline or contrast material to perform the fill?" It's a level of detail that may not be necessary to know for one's own health and well being. I'm only trying to explain what I said up above because I in no way would advise folks to just blindly follow their doctor's advice. All patients (no matter what the problem is) should fully understand everything that is going on. Thanks for listening to my ramble! :thumbup: -Julie