claire0823

I was in the exact same situation as you. With about the same weight loss. I decided to have a fill and was too tight after the fill but I toughed it out for 7 months and lost more. I was 220 and got the fill and then dropped to 169. I was aspirating at night no matter if i ate lunch at noon and nothing else that day, granted most days I couldn't eat very well and stuck with slider foods. IT WAS MISERABLE!!! If you get a fill, i'd get a SMALL fill!! I was finally unfilled 2CCs which brought me back down to 5CCs. I went back for a fill 6 weeks later and had 1.5CCs put in to be at 6.5. I just went bck and had 1CC taken out so now I'm back at 5.5CCs. My weight has fluctuated some. I am currently at 175 after the 2nd unfill. Goal weight is 155! My BMI is right at 25 right now as I am almost 5'10". I believe it is possible to reach a healthy BMI with the band. In fact, most people I know with the band have achieved this. I would just be cautious with fills from this point forward. Being too tight was absolutely miserable!

How do you deal with just doing liquids? Even after I have a protein shake, I'm still starving. In going for an unfill Wednesday but I fear I will lose any restriction then!

I'm 176 and can fit comfortably into a 12 although it was MORE comfortable when I was 169! LOL. I could fit into a Gap size 10 at 169lbs. Didn't buy the jeans so I'm not sure if they fit now or not. My goal weight is 155 and I'm almost 5'10". I think I could fit into non-plus size stores when I was around 190.

So i recently was too tight and experiencing aspirations during the night so my doctor's PA took out 2 CCs out of my band which left me with 5 CCs. I went back 6 weeks later and the PA put back in 1.5CCs. I think I am too tight again. If i try to eat Breakfast or even lunch, I PB/vomit (I say either/or because its usually just a PB but when I tried to eat a banana for breakfast, I puked it up for a good two hours, ugh!). However, when dinner time rolls around, its like I don't have a band! I just don't understand it. How can i be so tight in the morning but so loose in the evening? I'm trying to get back in with the doctor to have some fill taken out because Protein shakes for breakfast make me want to vomit (too many of those after surgery) and i'm not getting enough protein in with just eating supper, not to mention not eating all day makes me dizzy. Does anyone have any suggestions to help with this or has anyone experienced this same thing? P.S. I've tried eating mushy foods for breakfast such as eggs not scrambled completely, oatmeal, cottage cheese, laughing cow cheese, and all to no avail!

Ive heard that emergency rooms don't really do anything for you. THe doctor's nurse recommended I go to the ER where I had my surgery done but that is 4 hours from me! They still won't budge about seeing me on any day except Wednesday or Friday. I am able to get down liquids so I had a shake for Breakfast but at lunch, i tried to eat mushies and it came back up. For supper, I just ate crockpot boneless bbq ribs and part of a baked potato and some green Beans. Not sure how I can eat with little difficulty at supper but every other meal of the day is miserable... Your ulcers worry me!

I'm so sorry to hear that chester. Did they say what caused the ulcers? I didn't realize that was even a possible complication. How are things going since taking the new meds? I got my fill on Friday. She added 1.5CCs back in which brought me to a total of 6.5 CCs. I thought she was only going to put 1CC back and I was a little hesitant but then I figured "she's the doctor, she knows best". I'm back to being miserable again! I can drink liquids SLOWLY in the morning but Breakfast is out completely. (I really enjoyed eating breakfast the past few weeks!) I tried to eat a banana at 10:30 AM and ended up throwing it up for 2 hours today. I didn't even attempt lunch. I waited until supper and ate a few bites of chili which came back up. My fiance made me some VERY mushy scrambled eggs with cheese (He added in butter, milk, and some oil to make them extra mushy). I was able to get down about 3 oz but the tight feeling in my chest is still there and I ate the eggs a good 3 hours ago. I have NOT missed this feeling at all. As of this morning, the scale hadn't budged, but after work, I was down 3lbs. I'm not an expert, but I don't think the "sweet spot" is supposed to be where your chest is tight during eating. I believe I'm too tight again and probably need some more taken out! Ugh. Work is extremely too busy to take another day off anytime soon not to mention I can't really afford the gas for the 600 mile roundtrip to the doctor right now after getting a speeding ticket yesterday (when I wasn't actually speeding!) sooo it looks like I'm stuck like this until after Thanksgiving.

Just go and face the music. I'm sure a little tough love never hurt anyone :blushing: I know the doctor is probably not going to be happy with me either. I had a fun filled weekend of lots of beer, Dairy Queen, mexican food, and even a fried gas station burrito at 3AM last weekend. Thanks to all that, My 6lbs came back and then some! RIDICULOUS! My total weight gain is 7lbs since unfill but I have until Friday to work out and eat right again so maybe I'll only be up a few pounds. I've been thinking though, if I didn't gain a lb with being unfilled, they might not want to put any back in soooo showing a few lbs weight gain might not be such a bad thing. I've almost got myself talked into buying a Gold's Gym Stride Trainer 595. Anyone have any experience with ellipticals? When I was 300lbs, I tried to get on one and definitely thought I was going to die/have a heart attack after 30 seconds.

I have the Calorie Counter App from the Droid market. Love it!

I feel your pain!!! I My fill had to be pushed back a week due to work so my date is October 29th! However, with counting EVERY calorie, working out 4-5 days a week, AND the help of a fluid/water pill, I'm FINALLY down 6lbs! Now if I can just stay this weight until after Saturday! I've got a hot little size 12 strapless dress to wear to a wedding where no one has seen me since I lost all my weight! It was tight at the beginning of the week. I tried it on a little while ago and it pretty much fits perfect, if I do say so myself! I'll have to post pictures when I get back. I feel so vain saying this, but I love being able to fit into clothes and feel sexy! It's a new development

I don't know anything about the shoulder/phrenic nerve pain, but yoy mentioned you don't get soft moist foods stuck and thats what you eat so thats why you aren't losing. BEEN THERE, DONE THAT! You basically "eat around the band" to avoid the vomiting/PB'ing. Get a little bit of an unfill. It will makea WORLD of difference. The band is supposed to allow you to eat solid foods that will keep you full/satisfied for 4+ hours. I was filled to over 7CCs in my 10CC band and just had two CC's taken out due to being over-filled and everything getting stuck. I'm hoping that once I get one CC put back in, it will be the "sweet spot" everyone talks about and I will be able to eat solid foods and NOT slider foods but still lose weight! Good luck with your journey.

My doctor was the same way. He pretty much told me that I would not be able to lose as much weight as I wanted to with the lapband and that I wouldn't keep it off. I chose to have the Lapband because like the other post, I didn't want the problems that come along with bypass. I'm 5'10" and started at 298lbs. I'm currently at 179 (just gained 7lbs after being unfilled and having been filled too tight but thats a whole OTHER story! LOL) I'm at 119lbs lost and hope to get the last 24lbs off after my next fill and with lots of exercise! I was banded in December of 2008. My fiance started at 379lbs and he is at 190lbs today which is a loss of 189lbs. He was banded in June 2009. Being a man, he lost it faster and easier than me. He has been very happy with his decision to have the lapband. (He considered bypass at one point). I think I saw you have 130lbs or so to lose and its totally do-able with the band. Ultimately, its YOUR decision, not your surgeon's. In my personal opinion, I saw the lapband as a healthier, less risky alternative to bypass. I was scared to have someone re-route my intestines! I've been totally happy with my decision to have the band and not the bypass. There is a post in this section called "How the band really works" or something to that affect. Even after being banded for this long, I still found it extremely insightful and interesting. You might want to read it to help make your decision. Hope this helps!

That is s great! I have actually gained 7lbs :smile2: I think it probably has something to do with the fact that I was overfilled for so long and was basically starving and now that I am able to eat again, my body is in shock and holding onto every calorie! With exercise, the gained lbs are coming off SLOWLY.

Glad you have relief! I'm also glad you didn't wait as long as I did! Did the PA suggest completely emptying the band? I didn't want nearly as much fill taken out of my band but the PA was very adament about taking enough out so my esophagus could "rest". I am counting down the days til I can go back and the PA will put one CC back in! Did you make an appt to have a fill? This is a daily struggle because i have ZERO restriction right now.

I'm doing better today! I burned 200 calories on the treadmill and stocked up yesterday on low calorie foods! Today I had 4oz of steak and baked zuchini for supper. I was so excited to eat steak!!! (Granted the steak is not very diet friendly, but it's lots of Protein and I haven't eaten red meat in MONTHS!) TOmorrow grilled chicken with bell peppers and a slice of cheese is on the menu for supper. I think I just needed to get over not being able to eat for so long. JLDCHESTER, PLEASE go get a little unfill. I was EXACTLY like you! I would have a good day and then two weeks of bad days. I was absolutely miserable and didn't realize how bad it was until I got the unfill. My fiance was also too tight and went for a slight unfill on Monday and he is much happier as well. He has actually lost 7lbs since Monday WITH EATING because his metabolism isn't shut down! It's not worth living with a too tight band. I think some of my weight gain is due to drinking tons of Water and its water weight. It feels so good to drink lots of water and eat solid foods without PB'ing or vomiting. A week ago I would not have been so in favor of the unfill, but after going thru it, i honestly believe it is NOT worth living with a too tight band! Sue Magoo, I can't wait to try those green beans! Thanks for the suggestions! Manda, i realize i control what i stick in my mouth but if i had that much control, i wouldn't have gotten the band in the first place. It's very hard to go from being very tight and barely eating to being unfilled a great deal and being able to eat ANYTHING.

Apparently I'm not mentally ok with my fill. I'm failing horribly with being unfilled!!!!!!!!!! No matter how hard I try, I can't help but stick bad things in my mouth. The hunger pains are killing me. My stomach is constantly growling. I'm eating solid foods and protein like chicken and vegetables and trying to stick to my four ounces. I'm still starving once I finish the food. I don't know how I'm going to survive the next 3.5 weeks :thumbup:

Well, I survived until today! Apparently my symptoms are very common at the point I am after being banded. The PA said the esophogus just gets tired of pushing against the band and taking some out for a month and then going back and refilling slowly will fix the problem. She took out 2CCs. Yes TWO WHOLE CCS. Not .2CCS! I begged her not to take out that much but she stressed that my esophogus just needs time to rest and then we can work our way back up again. SHe stressed the importance of eating solid foods and even mentioned having a subway sandwich. She said YES, a little bread isn't going to hurt! I felt INSTANT relief after she pulled out the fill. But....I also felt a hunger pain down deep in my stomach shortly after which I haven't felt since pre-band! I have been absolutely DYING for a Whataburger so I just went and got it over with. I was able to eat half of a burger and a few french fries. It went down with no problem, but it was very weird to feel solid food in my pouch. Here's the kicker! It didn't even taste good. It tasted nothing like I remember. The grease and bread in the burger really made me feel kind of disgusted which is what I used to love about it. Glad I got it out of my system but I don't think eating healthy and sticking to solid healthier foods is going to be a problem. I go back in one month to get 1CC put back in! Hopefully I can find a happy medium between being filled a little more and still being able to eat solid foods. Thank you all for your support and for caring!

May not make it until Friday...can't get liquids down AGAIN. UGH! I am so frustrated with this band!

Leigha, You are not being mean at all. You're telling me everything I already know but need to hear from someone else. For the record, the soup did have lots of cheese in it for some protein. And i totally agree that it has almost no nutrients but after not being able to keep things down for so long, the potato soup was heaven sent. Eating liquids and slider foods is no way to live. I need the unfill to eat protein and MEAT for energy to work out. I've been on an unhealthy path the last month or so and that needs to change. I'm looking forward to having some fluid removed and hopefully being able to eat more solid foods and incorporating working out into my daily routine. I definitely do not want to have my band removed ever so I need to start taking better care of it. ONE more week until my appointment. It seems like its taking forever to get here. My doctor is 4 hours away which makes it hard to get there at the drop of a hat (just for clarification of why I'm waiting so long to go!).

Thanks for all the input. I have actually been toying with the idea if NOT getting the slight unfill because I have been able to get some food down and i'm still worried about gaining weight, but I'm still having the horrible acid reflux. I'm not even sure if its acid reflux but waking up in the middle of the night with food coming up is NOT cool. I've even started throwing up foam which is extremely scary! But then I've realized that eating potato soup is not really considered a healthy diet! For awhile I couldn't even get that down but its finally going down and staying down. I'm ashamed to say it but I havent kept food down in so long that yesterday I ate 5 bowls (small bowls) of potato soup! I've been living on slider foods for so long and still losing weight that I've forgotten what beef tastes like. I'm hoping that with just getting a few CCs taken out, I'll be able to eat normal foods again, just small portions. After binging yesterday, the scale showed a gain which freaks me out a little but I think my body will need time to adjust to having some food in it versus nothing. Plus, its a good time to try out the tennis shoes I bought and do a little exercising! Now if I could just convince my fiance that he needs a slight unfill.... Between the two of us we have lost a fat person! Lol. He's lost 170lbs and I've lost 125lbs.

I am SO HAPPY i found this forum!!!!! I am going through the exact same thing of waking up in the night aspirating!! I'm going in for a SLIGHT unfill in three weeks. I so hope this fixes the problem and I don't gain weight as result of the slight unfill.

I went from a 22/24 in Lane Bryant sizes to a size 10 in Gap!!! I agree with others. The sizes didn't really start going down quickly until I got into the smaller sizes. Goal is an 8 but I don't think I'm going to make that one. I'm almost 5'10" so an 8 might be too small!

Thank you all so much for your input. I feel so much better about making the decision to have a slight unfill. I'm thinking .1cc or .2cc. Like one of you mentioned, I can always have some put back in! I hope you are right about not being able to eat more but just being able to tolerate more foods. That is exactly what I want to accomplish. I tend to eat lots of slider foods because its what I can get down and I'm sure those do have more calories than eating the "right" types of foods. Appt is on September 17th for the slight unfill so wish me luck!!! Leigha, I'm extremely jealous of you eating a piece of bacon! I've tried to eat every bacon you can buy and NONE of it goes down, not even turkey bacon!

I need some opinions...I had a fill in February and have since lost 58lbs. The band was tight right after, but after a few months it loosened and I could eat very tiny meals very slowly. Since then it has progressively gotten tighter. I'm now unable to eat much of anything without it getting stuck and throwing up. Creamy chicken Soup was stuck yesterday! I've lost 123lbs since being banded in December 2008. My biggest fear is that I get the band loosened some and I start gaining weight back and I do NOT want to go back to being 295lbs! But I know I have to get something done. I was woken up last night from a dead sleep and starting throwing up something I had tried to eat 8 hours before. Has anyone had a slight unfill and what were your experiences? DId you gain weight back?

Ok, long story short. I had a fill with a new doctor who was in my area instead of traveling 8 hours to my surgeon who I don't particularly like. This doctor put 1.5CCs which brought me to a total of 7.75CCs, or so I thought. THis doctor did not pull out the Fluid to see how much was in or had evaporated. It felt no different than it had before the fill. (I had gone 7 months without a fill) So i went to see another new doctor (I changed jobs and moved across the state of Texas!). THis doctor pulled out all of my saline and found that I had roughly 6.75CCs so he gave me a fill of 1CC which brought me back up to around 7.75CCs (in a 10CC band). Now here's my real question, am i too tight?? It's been two weeks since my fill and I can hardly get down Water in the morning. It feels like it gets stuck but eventually goes down. Towards the afternoon it loosens a bit but tea will still get stuck sometimes. Most days I haven't been able to eat even mushy food much less real food. However, on Saturday, I was able to eat mushies and deviled eggs without anything getting stuck. Sunday rolled around and I'm back to the same story of water feeling as if it is stuck. I'm scared to go in for an unfill because I don't want to lose my restriction but I dont know how much longer I can take it like this! I started a new job and don't really have vacation time to take off for a small unfill. Please help!