justiceaim1

I just wanted to share this in case this happened to anyone else or maybe I could help someone else. I had my band put in on 7/6/09 and I had no complications. I lost 40lbs. in about two or three months and everything seemed to be fine. I then noticed that I wasn't feeling restriction and so I would get my fills and I would feel restriction a week or so afterward but then I'd have virtually no restriction so I would get another fill. I kept doing this and talking to my doctor and getting more fills. I never had any problems like vomiting or productive burping and I could eat a normal size meal like I did prior to the surgery. I was very frustrated. My doctor didn't know why this was happening and decided to fill my band while sitting up and sipping cold water and he filled it up until I said that the water wouldn't go down anymore and let out just a little. I have 7cc in my band now which i think is an 8cc band and he said that he's never put this much in a band but to call if any problems. I didn't have any problems and the same thing happened: It worked for about a week and then it was if I had no band. I tried to eat the small portions and very healthy and I did exercise but mostly cardio, no resistance training at the time. I gained 20lbs back though. I kind of just gave up on the band helping me much especially since I don't have insurance anymore. My husband and I started an exercise program that includes a lot of abdominal and core exercises and we've been doing this for over a month and now I have great restriction. I get very full on about 1/2 cup or a cup of food and I have to be very careful about how fast I eat or I will vomit. It's as if I just got the band a month ago because this is what was supposed to have happened earlier. My husband thinks it may be because my core/ab muscles are pushing in towards my stomach now. I'm not sure but I'm so glad it's finally working. I felt stupid for doing the surgery before this.

Hi BandedBeauty007, What helped me after my Mom died was to walk everyday about two miles and to read books. The walking helps to get the happy chemicals in your brain and gives you a sense of well being and a good book is always good to take your mind off of your life. I think it's better to walk outside (if it's not too cold this time of year where you are) because it's less boring than on a treadmill and you have hopefully some sunshine and pretty scenery to cheer you up also. Hope this helps. Don't be so hard on yourself. You have made great accomplishments in your weight loss up to this point and you are going to continue. You just had what I like to call a little "hiccup" in life that slowed you down a bit but you will be right back on track and feeling great.

I just wanted to share this in case this happened to anyone else or maybe I could help someone else. I had my band put in on 7/6/09 and I had no complications. I lost 40lbs. in about two or three months and everything seemed to be fine. I then noticed that I wasn't feeling restriction and so I would get my fills and I would feel restriction a week or so afterward but then I'd have virtually no restriction so I would get another fill. I kept doing this and talking to my doctor and getting more fills. I never had any problems like vomiting or productive burping and I could eat a normal size meal like I did prior to the surgery. I was very frustrated. My doctor didn't know why this was happening and decided to fill my band while sitting up and sipping cold Water and he filled it up until I said that the water wouldn't go down anymore and let out just a little. I have 7cc in my band now which i think is an 8cc band and he said that he's never put this much in a band but to call if any problems. I didn't have any problems and the same thing happened: It worked for about a week and then it was if I had no band. I tried to eat the small portions and very healthy and I did exercise but mostly cardio, no resistance training at the time. I gained 20lbs back though. I kind of just gave up on the band helping me much especially since I don't have insurance anymore. My husband and I started an exercise program that includes a lot of abdominal and core exercises and we've been doing this for over a month and now I have great restriction. I get very full on about 1/2 cup or a cup of food and I have to be very careful about how fast I eat or I will vomit. It's as if I just got the band a month ago because this is what was supposed to have happened earlier. My husband thinks it may be because my core/ab muscles are pushing in towards my stomach now. I'm not sure but I'm so glad it's finally working. I felt stupid for doing the surgery before this.

Sounds very unpleasant. Sorry that's happening to you. Hang in there and congratulations on the outstanding weight loss that you have achieved! :smile:

I was able to go back after about four days. I just needed my husband to help me put my shoes on because it was sore when I would bend over and I didn't want to pop a stitch. I think you'll be just fine. Take care! :smile:

I had my lapband 7/6/09 and I've had so many fills I've lost track. I would feel restriction the first few days after my fill but then it seemed to go away and I don't know why. The other day when I saw my doctor again I told him that maybe this lap band thing isn't working for me. I had 7 1/2cc in my band and I could still eat an egg mcmuffin. I have never thrown up or PB'd, never felt nauseated. I can eat absolutely anything including bread. I asked him if he could fill it to the brim. He helped me sit up after the needle was in my port (didn't really hurt, just barely) and had me drink Water while he put the saline in until I could feel that it was blocked and the water stopped. Then he withdrew a little until I could feel the water go down. I'm at 8 1/2 cc now and I'm finally feeling restriction. I think my band only holds 10cc! I don't understand why my experience happened like this. He just said that everyone is different but that he's never put this much in any band before. I had originally lost 34lbs within 3 months of the surgery and it seemed to be working but maybe I stretched it or something. I thought I was pretty careful but I have no other explanation. I started to get discouraged and eating bad stuff again and gained five pounds back. Now that I had this last huge fill I'm able to eat 1000-1200 calories a day and make really healthy eating choices. I've been eating lean turkey lunch meat w/berries and a few slices of cucumbers. I'm just confused as to why it all happened like that but at least it's working now. Has anyone else had a similar experience? I feel like I'm abnormal.

Hi remodelingme, Dumb question: Am I "OP"? I'm not too informed in all of the abbreviations people use nowadays but I think you're talking about me? Hee Hee Hee! :thumbup: I read your posts and I can definitely relate to what's happened to you. Especially where you mentioned that at one point, you thought you had a leak because you'd feel restriction at first and then three or four weeks later it would be less. I can completely relate to that. It makes me think that I've stretched it or something but I know that I don't stuff myself at all. I'm very careful about it. I'm worried it's going to happen again and I'll lose my restriction. Every time I get a fill and I think I have good restriction I think, "OK, now this is finally going to be it for me." Then it goes away and I do the whole thing over again. Getting my hopes up every time. Do you think that we made a mistake having this surgery done? I have my doubts right now. -Amy :sad:

My doctor told me that the reason he does it gradually is because, when they first started doing the surgery in the U.S., doctors used to fill it up all the way directly after surgery but that they had a high incidence of bands slipping due to a lot of vomiting and problems like that. They do it gradually now so that the body has time to get used to this foreign object inside of it. I thought that was interesting. Take care- Amy :thumbup:

Didn't do too well today. Very emotional (Aunt Flo is about to visit) and I ate a bunch of slider foods and chocolate. I'm so bummed. I only ate healthy for four days and I messed it up already. I think that subconsciously I try to fail at eating right for some reason. Weird. I'm not going to worry about it though. At least I'm not physically hungry anymore. I just have to fight the bad habits that I've taken years to develop. Hope everyone is doing well and having a good day. Thanks again for all of your advice! -Amy :thumbup:

Thank you guys so much for all of your advice and input. It is so nice to know that other people understand. My doctor hasn't said anything about a barium swallow. He just said that everyone was different but when he had put in 7 1/2 cc he said that this should do it because everyone felt restriction at that point. When I didn't feel that much restriction, it really freaked me out. They're all very nice in his office and he's a great doctor but it's humiliating to keep going in there with no weight loss and, in fact, I had gained five pounds back. I almost didn't want to go in the last time. I was going to stop going but a friend of mine encouraged me to go. I just wasn't prepared for how long it would take after the surgery to feel restriction. I think that my surgeon and his office explained everything really well except that. They did say that it would take repeated fills but I had no idea that it would take nine months. It makes you feel like you spent all of that money and put yourself in jeopardy by having the surgery because of possible complications that can happen and you're still struggling to lose weight. I almost wish I had done the gastric bypass but I was too chicken. A friend of mine from work went to the same doctor and had her surgery a month or so after mine but she had the gastric bypass and she looks like a model now and had no complications. I am going to start walking again. I used to walk a couple of miles a day and I felt really healthy and rejuvinated and the dogs liked it. Thanks again!

Hi Tracy, I live in Hurst, Texas and just had the band a few months ago. I've been married 21 years. I think it's great that you quit smoking. You sound like you've got a great attitude and are very determined so I'm sure you're going to meet your goal in no time! I wish you great success and have fun doing it! :)

I know it's bad to waste food but I know how I am. If I cleaned out the pantry and ate all of the bad stuff I would ruin my resolve to lose weight. I think it looks better in the trash than on my a***. Pardon my French. I've given things to the neighbors before. They have two teenage boys and eat everything in sight. You could also give the food to the food bank or something. I just think it's good to start fresh with a clean slate and remove all unhealthy food from the house so there is absolutely no temptation. That way you can start eating better now and not later. Don't get me wrong, I don't eat perfectly healthy. I definitely have my weaknesses but I try to limit it to a single serving for that one time and I don't store any of it in the house. That was a cute argument you had with your husband. It cracked me up. My husband and I were chuckling about it. I've done the same type of thing before. It's hard to think clearly for sure when you're starving like you said. At least you went and had fish. That's healthy. You're doing a good job and trying. Eventually you won't even think about food hardly at all. The band works wonders. It's so liberating to be released from analyzing and worrying about food so much. I never imagined what it would be like to not think about food constantly. I've been doing that for a long time. Before I had the band I had this really ridiculous habit of buying the next new weight loss book and, while reading it, eating some big fattening fast food thing like a big mac meal and a pint of Ben and Jerry's afterwards. I would just tell myself that I hadn't started the diet yet and this was my last splurge before I started it. Lets just say there were a lot of "last splurges" and a lot of books and I was still fat. I'm so glad that I got the band. It's a lifesaver. Good luck with your weight loss! You will do fine! :):scared2:

I really relate to what you are feeling. I have a lot of trouble making time to work out and food planning also. It really takes creative planning sometimes. I've been so bad about going to a drive thru to eat because I'm always running from one place to another with work and school and my weight loss has slowed. It's very discouraging but I just have to plan it and do it no matter how tired I am. I will feel better afterwards. I've had a horrible problem with my hormones changing since I've lost weight also. You may know this already but my doctor told me that we hold Estrogen in our fat and when we lose weight we have all of that extra Estrogen circulating in our blood and I definitely notice the change. I cry at the drop of the hat when it's a certain time of the month and it makes no sense. I was never like that before the surgery. I feel like I did when I was in my twenties. I was pretty hormonal back then. I can't wait for it to all even out. I'm really glad I did the surgery though I just have to get used to some lifestyle changes. You sound like you're doing really good. We'll just take one day at a time.

I had the same problem of being really hungry right after surgery and I received an explanation that really helped me understand it. My band had no fill put in at the time of surgery so it was like a loose belt sitting at the top of my stomach. It was there but it was just hanging out and not doing anything for my hunger control yet because it was so loose. My doctor waited a few weeks before putting 1 cc in it and fills it up gradually because there is post-op swelling and they don't want to irritate it too much. He said that years ago when they first started doing these surgeries they used to fill it up a lot at the time of surgery and found that the rate of band slippage was really high so they stopped doing that. Our bodies need to take this change gradually. It took me about 6 fills of 1cc each to really start to feel restriction. It's a bummer because it really does require will power for several months after surgery and I had thought that I wouldn't have to do that anymore. I am really glad that I did do the surgery but that was something that I hadn't understood or anticipated before doing it. Hope this helps! Just pay attention to the doctor's rules and you will be fine. Good luck !!! Banded on 7/6/09 Pre-surgery weight 242lbs Current weight 212lbs

I'm sorry that happened to you. I agree that they should have told you from the beginning and I'd be upset about that too. I wish I could tell you something to make you feel better. All I can say is that if I were in your shoes I think I would get a second opinion and maybe a third opinion from another surgeon and if they still won't do it than maybe it's just too dangerous for you. I know it's not what you want to hear but I'd hate for something bad to happen to you. Maybe you're meant to do it another way. If you are able to lose it on your own without the band your self esteem will be much better. I'm glad that I got the band but I think I'd feel much happier if I'd been able to do it on my own. Good luck to you.

Awesome success story. Thanks for the motivation! :blushing::laugh:

I really liked the fat free refried beans with melted cheddar on it and some fresh avacado. It saved the day for me.

I had the same concerns. I was really hungry the next day after surgery. My doctor then explained to me that it can take three to four months after surgery when you've had a couple of fills before the band starts to really reduce your appetite. I also had it explained to me by Restless Monkey on this website that the band is like a loose belt at the top of your stomach and it's there but it's not doing it's job until you get enough fills where the belt starts to tighten. Everyone is different and the amount of fills that are needed to feel restriction for different people varies greatly. I wish they would've explained that to me before the surgery because it really freaked me out too. I just had to kind of eat healthy on my own the best I could (I'm not that great at that since that's why I'm fat in the first place.) until I got my fills. After my second fill (5cc in a 10cc band) I started to feel restriction and It's much easier to eat healthy now. Hope this helps. Good luck, you will do fine! :)

Sounds good to me...Whatever the reason, I'm glad for it because it helps me modify my behavior and Lord knows I definitely needed help with that. I can't be pregnant unless it's from immaculate conception! :):wub:

I just have two quick dumb questions. My dietitian had told me that your taste buds can change after surgery and I didn't really believe this. How can putting something at the top of your stomach change the taste buds in your mouth? I am beginning to think she is right though. I can't tolerate a lot of things that I used to eat because they are too sweet. I used to be able to eat anything sweet and have no problems at all. For years off and on I've done diets where I didn't have sugar and the same thing would happen for a while but I'd start eating it again and get used to it again. Now whenever I eat anything sweet or try a shake at Sonic it's so sweet it's gross to me and I can't drink it. One more dumb question: Why do greasy foods hurt so much after lap band? I know I shouldn't have greasy foods or sugar anyway to be healthy but I'm just curious about these two things. Thanks for any info or experience you have on these subjects.

The same thing has happened to me. I crave fish all the time now. I use to not care for it at all and I maybe ate it once a year if even that. Now I eat it several times a week. I got some Long John Silvers fish last night and it was too greasy and I use to consider grease a food group. I also have to dilute my Crystal Light because it tastes too sweet and I used to never think anything was too sweet. It's really bizarro.

Yeah, If you could hit the noggin in just the right spot to make that work, you could rake in the dough. People would be lining up to see you. You could charge $10,000 a person. Still a lot cheaper than surgery!!!:):wub:

What about "OMG gag me with a ginsu!" Do people say that? :thumbup::)

What you said makes a lot of sense and it's probably right. I just got confused because the dietitian made it sound like something physical happened and that threw me for a loop. I didn't know that a blow to someone's head could do that to your tastebuds! I should've had someone smack me in the head. It would've been cheaper than surgery! Hee Hee Hee! Just playing. :thumbup::)

Thank you so much for the info Restless Monkey. I forgot to thank you for another post you answered for me a while back where you explained that when we first get the band it's like a loose belt at the top of your stomach and it isn't doing anything yet before a fill. It's so nice to be able to learn and get all of this advice on this website. It is really appreciated!!! :thumbup::)