Hi

I have had my lapband in for about 18 months now and am currently 26 weeks pregnant i still have my fills it was recommended if i could not keep up enough calories to go and have all my fils taken out (eek) ..

At first my body just seemed to know it needed the extra food and it let me eat what i needed and more .....

I craved meat a hard food to eat as you all know i would take my time and i managed to eat it ...... My weight gain to date i could not tell you i refuse to get on the scales but i still see a skinny pregnant woman in the mirror , I am at my goal now so weight loss im not to worried about untill bub arrives .......

At times food is hard but you have to be persistant and take your time i tend to eat on and off allday as i can at the minute as im not working .........

I intend to breastfeed but still hope i want need to have any fills taken out i have brought a milk supplement to add to my daily food intake to give me the added boost i need .....

I was sad to read people have sent others hate mail thru simply not having a band fill undone when pregnant !!!!!!!!

Are we not here for the same reason being over weight at some point ??????????

And a simple reality being a fat mother puts you at as many risks as a skinny one ........now im off to eat sweet n sour chicken with veg and rice i might only eat half but in 1 hour of 2 i bet i eat the rest ....................

skinnysuzalu x

ps. our baby is measuring right on record x:tt2:

Well I actually just got an unfill this morning per my OB and I can tell you I am already scared I mean when I took a drink of water and it went right through I almost freaked out as I was looking for the restriction I am so used to and well I started to think Oh crap what have I done I don't want to gain alot of weight I am so scared!!!!!

I am also 26 weeks and i've kept the majority of my fill the whole time and the baby is right on track. At about 8 weeks i had about 0.3 cc taken out and so far that had been it. But in the last week or so my band has been fickle. Some days i can eat a meal (like Easter) and then other days nothing but mushies go down. I scheduled a slight unfil for today just to be on the safe side. I figure i'll probably only get another 0.2 cc out but at the level i'm at that always makes a big difference.

I always kept my band pretty tight and going into my pregnancy i probably had over 7.5 cc in there. I'm just paying attention to how i feel and adjusting when i need to.

I'm not gonna lie, i'm sort of scared to have any out going into my 3rd trimester. I've managed my weight really well so far and my ob is happy with it. I don't want to go from a little tight to wide open, but hey, if all the sudden i'm too loose, i'll just adjust again.

My band has been glorious in helping me have a healthy pregnancy. I feel great and was lucky enough not to have any morning sickness (which is probably what helped me keep my fill... if i was throwing up i wouldn't have needed an unfil).

Anyway, good luck to the pregnant ladies out there and to the future banded pregnant ladies. I never could have done this without the band and i love knowing i have my secret weapon to get back in shape after i have the baby.

That's great that keeping your fill has worked well for you! I know this is all personal experience, not exactly scientific evidence, but just wanted to say that it's possible to gain a reasonable amount of weight without a fill also. I had a complete unfill at 8 weeks due to a gall bladder attack. Freaked me out because I had planned (with doc's blessing) to keep a fill as long as possible.

At 32 weeks, I'm up 17 pounds, a totally reasonable gain. So . . .keep that fill as long as you can, but don't be afraid of the unfill! I've focused on enjoying the healthy foods I've come to love eating as a bandster, and when I want to "indulge" in something that isn't totally band-friendly, there are a LOT of healthy options that used to get stuck that I can freely enjoy. Raw veggies, large-leafy lettuce salads, some whole grain breads, etc.

Good luck to you all!

Im 8 weeks and I havent gotten any of the fills taken out. but since ive gotten pregnant ive been able to eat breads and meat. everything is going down. so i havent been worried. My husband is nervous he wants me to call my doctor between appointments and make sure that im ok. I forgot to bring it up and the first check up.

Hearing that you have all faired well with little or no fills removed makes me feel so much better. I didnt get to my goal weight when i got pregnant im still about 45 lbs away. so unfilling scares me so much.

I am 18 weeks and I don't plan on unfilling at all, I think I am capable enough to get enough calories with protein drinks, bars and other healthy snacks in order to have a healthy baby..

Congratulations! I wanted to tell you a little bit about my pregnancies. I was banded in May of 2003. Lost 130 lbs in about a year and a half and then found out I was pregnant! I just assumed that I would never get pregnant after trying for 14 years and then suprise! I'm sure it was the weight loss.

Anyway, my first preganancy I had my band almost completely unfilled at about 23 weeks because I was experiencing really bad reflux and heartburn. I gained 40 pounds during the pregnancy. It took me about a year to lose it because I was trying to do it without my band but that didn't work out so I finally got my band refilled and was able to lose it and keep it off.

In October I found out I was pregnant again! This time I thought I would stick it out and not get any removed from my band. Well, here I am 37 weeks pregnant and miserable because of the nausea and the inability to keep anything down most days (not even water). As of about 8 weeks ago I was ok and had only gained 8 pounds. As if today I have actually lost 14 pounds in the last 8 weeks due to me bemying stubborn thinking I could last it out and not have to get any taken out because the Dr. keeps telling me the baby is fine.

Well all that being said, I have an appt. today to get some taken out of my band. I have less than three weeks to go but I am so miserable I cannot take it anymore. Yes I am worried about gaining weight but my baby is more important and although the Dr says she's fine I feel like I am starving her. Also, I have been so weak and dehydrated that I can hardly get out of bed most days. So don't be stupid like me and think that you can keep your fill the whole time. If you get sick, have some removed it's just not worth it. You can always get refilled and lose the weight again!