kelly111

Why did you gain weight back? Didnt you still have fluid in your band? I didnt think the band was just to lose the weight initially but rather to maintain it for the rest of our lives. Do you disagree or could you explain why you would remove the band and then have a new one put back on?

I have had 2 fills now and Im at 4.5 ccs. I feel restriction, finally. Sometimes I am able to eat way more than 1/4 c food. Other times I take a few bites, it gets stuck, I slime and sometimes I need to throw up. For the previous 2 months I was eating whatever I wanted and still gaining weight. Not 1 pound lost. Now, since my second fill, Im losing very slowly. I think I may have lost 3 pounds so far. I believe after my next fill I will be where I should be. Right now I know I cant eat bread, so I dont. But I know what you are saying. Prior to this most recent fill...I was eating whatever. Now I cant and its ok. This is a much more slow process than I was understanding it to be. Doc said I can expect to lose maybe 1 pound a week, maybe less. Jeeeezzzzz....

Several of us commented on Fills. You should be able to go back and read about all of them. Its nothing. They put a needle into your port and put a little fluid in. You will drink a little water to make sure it goes down ok. Its very quick and simple. You may or may not feel a tiny pinch when the needle breaks the skin. Really... its nothing.

Its been 2 month and 2 fills later. I just recently started losing weight. Its only been 3 pounds but Im happy with that. My question is this: Until my second fill I could eat whatever I wanted with no porbs. After this 2nd fill....sometimes I eat a few bites and I feel it getting stuck, it hurts and IM done. Other times I eat normally. I never know what its going to be. Last night my family went out to dinner. I ate 2 bites of fish and spinach and drank a gulp of water and ....blah. I sat there for 20 minutes trying not to throw up and then it passed. I was able to eat small portions of my meal and everything was fine. I was drinking water while eating. What is the deal? Does anyone have suggestions of how to NOT have food get stuck? I know to eat slowly ( I dont have a choice in that) and I know I cant do heavy carbs. Just wondering if anyone has found something that works for them. Its so embarrassing to having that feeling when you are out to eat.

yep!!!! Read my blogs and you will understand. It has been 2 months for me and 2 fills... still not losing weight. Doc told me everything was fine and its ok. I was filled 2 days ago and I finally feel restricition now, sometimes. Expect a very slow process. For some people it goes quickly but not for me. You wont have restriction until you have a fill and you might be like me and it will take a few fills before weight starts coming off. Until 2 weeks ago... I was still gaining! Dont worry.... you'll get there

After 2 months of feeling pretty good and being able to eat anything I wanted....I got a fill 2 days ago and today I ate 1/2 piece of toast and 2 bits of egg and ....blah. I sat with it for about 10 minutes until I realized that it wasnt going to go down. I went to the bathroom to throw up. Its different than throwing up before. Now it comes from the chest area , not the belly. I felt better afterwards. Later today I was able to finish my food with out problems. Is it normal for foods to work sometimes and not others? How ofter do people throw up?

I am more than 2 months post-op and I find myself feeling very jealous and envious when I read all these blogs. Seems like everyone is losing weight but me. I spoke at length with my doc about this and he said I am doing just fine. Since my surgery date I have only lost 1 lousy pound. I have had 2 fills now and I find that I am eating much less and sometimes I feel restriction and sometimes I dont. I currently lave 4.5 cc in the band. I love workouts so I dont have a problem there. My doc said that because I was smaller when I had the surgery ( size 16 and still am a 16) that it will take me longer to lose weight. He said I should expect to lose one pound a week. Ok.... but....I read over and over again that people are losing much more more than that. Has anyone else had an extremely SSSSLLLLOOOOWWWW weight loss? Does anyone have any words of wisdom?

Stop worrying about what you are eating. If you havent had a fill yet you have no restriction. When I was at that stage the doc explained to me that everyone eats that way. The point with lapband isnt to be on a DIET the rest of our lives, rather it is to eat well ( most times) , exercise and live well. The eight will come off because you wont be able to eat as much anymore. I do have to say I have had 2 fills now and Im still able to eat mostly what I want. My body is really having a hard time with this weight loss and I find myslef becomming very jealous of all of the people losing so much weight. I have lost one lousy pound since my surgery. Dont let yourself get "food consumed". Havent you done that enough in your life? Just relax and let your band work for you ( after a few fills of course)

Ive had plenty of those days. I eat whatever I want. I have had 2 fills now. Obviously I cant eat as much as I use to but if I want Taco Bell I have it. You shouldnt have to be so restrictive with yourself. I can tell you that once you have more than 4cc's in your band, you wont be able to eat that way. Trust me on this. You have the rest of your life to learn and live with this tool on your belly.

What went wrong? I am only 2 months post-op and sturggling because I have done nothing but continue to gain weight. How are you sabotaging your band? With the band tight are you still able to eat whatever you want? Im so sorry to hear your story and wonder if it wont happen to me as well. Im just so curious to learn a little more about your story.

Whats wrong with hot dogs and peanut butter? I eat both of those often. I believe the point is to lessen the calories consumed and burn fat. If any of us were good at "diets" then we wouldnt have gone through this surgery. My dietician explained that we can eat whatever we want... just in moderation. Dont get down on yourself. I really dont think its that big of a deal. Best of luck to you.

Your fine. I was able to eat real food after 5 days. Its been 2 months post-op for me and I havent lost a pound, but I HAVE gained 5 ! I could scream! I dont believe you are suppose to feel like throwing up. That only happens when you eat a certain food that gets stuck or you eat too fast. Your band should be healed by now and you should be on your way. Good luck to you

Thats awesome. Im so jealous!!! Im 2 months post-op and I have only GAINED 5 pounds! I have 3cc's in my band now and Im still not losing a thing. Damn! Its so frustrating and I get so jealous hearing stories like yours. Good for you though!

I must be honest with you. There are 6 bariatric surgeons at the clinic I go to. I attended a lengthy seminar prior to surgery and learned that there is no reason to stay on liquids/mushies for longer than 2 weeks. They explained that the stomach has mostly healed by then and unless you are throwing up.... its important for your stomach to get use to real food. I cant believe some docs leave you on liquids for that long. It sounds crazy and counter-productive to what the body needs in order to heal...according to renown bariatric surgeons. If I were you, I would talk to your doc about advancing the diet and do a little research on your own about the importance of eating real food 2-3 weeks after surgery. I was able eat real food at 5 days. No problems at all. 2 months post op, I still can eat whatever I want without problems.

I felt perfectly fine 5 days after surgery. The soreness and gas pains were gone then. Its also when I started working out again. I was on mushy foods for 10 days then was able to eat normally. I was banded 7 weeks ago. I was very hungry and was able to eat everything I wanted. Sure, I tried to eat well....but I was able to anything and as much of it as I wanted. I was filled last week and I have found the only thing that gets stuck ( for about 10 minutes) was bread. I eat whatever I want, still. I dont even eat too small of bites of chew things that well. I eat normally. The only difference now is that I eat about 1/3 of what I sue to eat and it satisfies me. My problem is this: I have gained 5 pounds since being banded. I havent lost a thing! Im going back in for another fill in a few days. Im hoping that will help. I would have thought that eating much less ( good food) and working out 5 days a week would enable my body to shed at least a few pounds but that just isnt the case. I can tell you that my story is the exception according to what I read on here. I just want you to be prepared for your own journey. MOST people lose weight right of the bat. Im a little disappointed in spending 14K on this surgery and after 2 months have only gained weight. BUT.......I do believe it will eventually work. Best wishes to you and please keep us posted

To the person who posted that you cant have restriction on fluids....I have a question. Last week when I had my first fill, he put in 4cc's and I couldnt get the water down. He had to take 1 cc out. It was an awful feeling. I would call that "restriction" with fluid. Im second guessing myself now because the very next day I was back eating whatever I wanted. Every now and then I feel a sensation and I stop eating. But when it goes away in a few minutes I reusme eating. Im still only eating 1/3 of what I use to but I have not lost 1 pound yet and its been 2 months. Is it normal to feel restriction with the water when the fill is done and then a few days later its like nothing happened?

I was wondering how many CC's folks have in their band and where they feel restricted and losing weight.

The surgery will go fine for you. Its a very simple proceedure and you will only have some slight soreness and some gas pains for a few days. Its not that big of a deal. Im he same size you are and I heard the same things. Im 7 weeks post-op now and I have not lost one pound. Thats abnormal and Im sure you will do better than me. Im doing all the right things according to my doc but I think my body just wants to be fat. My best advise to you is to not get your mind set on losing weight very fast. I thought by now I would have lost 10 lbs and all I have done was gain 5! Its a very long and slow process. Even after a fill Im still not losing weight. With that being said Im sure this will end up being a good decision for both of us. Just keep your head clear, your body healthy, and your spirits up.

Thank you for that advise. I was thinking there was something wrong with me. Last night I had a slice of pizza, ate at normal speed and chewed normally. I was fine. I only had one slice. Prior to surgery I would have eaten 5 slices.... so if nothing else at least I know Im eating less. I JUST WISH I WOULD LOSE SOME WEIGHT. Im trusting that after the second fill I will be ok. Hard to believe that simple process of "filling" takes 5 seconds and it costs me $200 ! Ive thought about stealing one of their needles and doing it myself. ( Just kidding, but I really did think about it) LOL

I aksed 3 bariatric surgeons this very question. All referenced the "theory" about the CO2 expanding the band. None of them believed it. They all said it has no nutritional value so its not good for you but they also all said its perfectly fine to have in moderation. They suggested letting some of the bubbles out prior to drinking. So go ahead... enjoy a diet soda from time to time.

Im so glad you posted because until now I have not talked to anyone else who has gone through what I am going through. My doc did give me an aggressive fill with 4 cc's at first... but I couldnt get the water down so he took 1 out. I thought that would be perfect. I stayed on liquids until that evening when I was able to eat whatever I wanted again. What size are you? Have you lost any weight yet? Do you exercize? Do you eat carbs? Im so tired of people telling me that this is a lifestyle change and I need to change the way I eat. Well, no crap! I know that. I thought the band would HELP me! I dont think people understand how frustrating this is because most of them are losing weight as they should be and feeling restriction. Im glad I found you!

Thank you. I love my doc! The place I go is a bariatric place, its all they do. There are 6 bariatric surgeions who do LapBand and Gastric. They have been doing it 20 yrs. I really dont feel like its them... it must be me. I asked about pre-op diet and he said it was not necessary. He said all my labs were good, workout routine was good and I was on the small side ( for this type of surgery). I totally realize I needed to change my ways of eating, which is why I chose this proceedure. Again, I though it would limit the food I ate so that I could lose weight. That hasnt happened. Im still gaining weight. Like I mentioned, Im not snacking on ice cream and cake at all. I feel like I eat pretty well. I do eat carbs though. Doc said that should be ok because of how hard I workout. I dunno....Im stick and feeling like this was a huge waste of money. Im so envious of all of you who say how much weight you are losing and how you can only eat little bits at a time. Im just not there. I think I will call him to see if he can put another few cc's in. He is very confident that I will lose weight and says Im his "star pupil" because of how ell I have tolerated everything so far. Well, thats all well and good.... but I would like to lose some darn weight, ya know?

I feel the same way. I spent a lot of money on this and the only thing that has happened was that I gained 5 lbs! Yep, I gained! I was filled on wednesday and he put 3cc's in and still I am able to eat whatever I want. I have asked others what is going on and if they could advise but, your right, no one seems to be commening any more. I am frustrated beyond belief. I have been told to eat fewer cals and lower carbs....well....I didnt pay all this darn money to put myself on a diet. I was assuming I went through all of this to have the band help me with that part. Right????

To answer your question: I had no pre-op diet. He said that wasnt necessary because Im not that big ( size 16). My post-op diet lasted about 8 days. Since I tolerated everything very well he said it was ok to eat normal food. So now...I eat anything I want. I eat exactly the same way I did before only about 1/2 of the portions. The only reason its 1/2 of the portions is because I WANT TO LOSE WEIGHT. Its not because I cant eat any more. I could eat the same portions as I did before but I realize that is what was making me fat. I do hard workouts 5 days a week. Usually I do the P90X series and if you are familiar with those you know they arent easy. Yes, I am eating too many calories.... which is why I chose the LapBand proceedure. I THOUGHT that would help me restrict my calorie intake. I dont eat milkshakes, ice cream or stuff like that. I eat whatever I make my family for dinner. I guess I will call the doctor. He knows how I feel and felt certain that this fill would do the trick. I did too since I actually felt the water going down. But that changed very quickly. What am I doing wrong? Obviously Im not great on a "diet" and I didnt spend 14K to be on a "diet". I thought this would provide the restriction I needed to cut the calories so that I could eat well, exercise and get back down to a healthier size. Im so disappointed with the band and myself.

So I had a fill the day before thanksgiving. He put 4ccs in but took 1 out because I couldnt get the water down. He told me to be very careful because this is still an aggressive fill. I have gained 5lbs since surgery so he really wanted me to feel restriction. Well....I fell no different. I ate a plate of food yesterday ( thanksgiving) including bread and pumpkin pie. I felt no restriction. Now today I woke up and had a cheese sandwich with double protein bread. I feel nothing. Is this normal? When will I start to feel full quickily or be unable to eat more than 1/2 cup of food? Im almost 7 weeks post op and all I do is gain weight. Please help!