What if my "Sweet- Spot" is non-existant?

[stars94 0]

Hi everyone. First let me say, that I LOVE this board! Everyone here is so supportive and helpful. I was banded on Dec 14, 2009 ... and have been successful (in my opinion) so far with weight loss (lost about 45 pounds so far). I have had 5 fills so far too ... 4cc, 1cc, .5cc, .5cc, .5cc ... for a total of 6.5cc in a 10cc band. At this point they (the PA at the surgeon's office) does want to do any more fills, and is starting to really push back on my fill requests at apointments, because he is afraid that they won't have any more space to fill later on, that in essence I will run out of "real estate". The problem is that I DO NOT FEEL ANY RESTRICTION! Really very, very little. Yes, I'm hungry, yes I can eat WAY more then I should be able to, yes I can still chug down Water etc ... I do not get stuck, have not experienced PB'ing or any vomiting. I do not feel that my band is contributing to my success. I am doing this so far with will power alone. I am really careful about what I eat, no junk food what so ever. And I have picked up excercising 3 times a week on adverage. This is what worries me ... like so MANY diets before in my past, I've lost weight just to lose steam eventually and gain it all (and more) back. I DON'T want to see this happen! I know that they haven't found my "sweet spot" yet, I really hope it does exist ... I know that they are the "experts" but I wish they would fill me up a little more quickly, I'm getting really frustrated.

[MrsShannonDennis 10]

Sounds to me like something is up....not to scare you but that doesnt seem normal. I have a 10cc band and my doc said most people find their sweet spot at 5-6.5 cc. Im at 5.75CC AND super tight. Have they check the band? leakage? slippage? etc.? That is sooooo not normal to be able to eat that much with that much restriction. at 6 cc I could not swallow my own spit. I know everyone is different but thats a lot of fill amount in your band. Are your docs listening to you? Have you told them how much you can eat? If you are dropping consistantly, I wouldnt worry about it, but if there is no change, something is up. Hang in there...its a tough road sometimes.

[btrieger 21]

I have a 14 cc band and haven't had a single fill yet and I am managing to get stuck. Something does seem weird.

On the other hand, what ever you are doing is working if you are losing weight. Congrats!!!

[vlp1968 83]

Doesn't sound like your doctor is listening. Even though I am loosing steadily my doc has done a fill at each appt. I don't bother to go unless I want a fill. I would seriously consider finding a new doctor. I feel he should be taking into account how hungry you are. Best of luck! Keep us posted.

[crzytchr 3]

Hi everyone. First let me say, that I LOVE this board! Everyone here is so supportive and helpful. I was banded on Dec 14, 2009 ... and have been successful (in my opinion) so far with weight loss (lost about 45 pounds so far). I have had 5 fills so far too ... 4cc, 1cc, .5cc, .5cc, .5cc ... for a total of 6.5cc in a 10cc band. At this point they (the PA at the surgeon's office) does want to do any more fills, and is starting to really push back on my fill requests at apointments, because he is afraid that they won't have any more space to fill later on, that in essence I will run out of "real estate". The problem is that I DO NOT FEEL ANY RESTRICTION! Really very, very little. Yes, I'm hungry, yes I can eat WAY more then I should be able to, yes I can still chug down Water etc ... I do not get stuck, have not experienced PB'ing or any vomiting. I do not feel that my band is contributing to my success. I am doing this so far with will power alone. I am really careful about what I eat, no junk food what so ever. And I have picked up excercising 3 times a week on adverage. This is what worries me ... like so MANY diets before in my past, I've lost weight just to lose steam eventually and gain it all (and more) back. I DON'T want to see this happen! I know that they haven't found my "sweet spot" yet, I really hope it does exist ... I know that they are the "experts" but I wish they would fill me up a little more quickly, I'm getting really frustrated.

It takes different amounts for people to feel restriction. My friend was banded 2 weeks prior to me with the same size band. She needed to hit 7 ccs to have restriction and I hit restriction with 1cc. I do have a question, though..are they pulling out what is in the band to check the level of Fluid before they give you a fill? It is possible that you have a leak OR that they aren't hitting the port each time, so if they aren't pulling it all out, please request that next time.

[BetsyB 9]

I don't think it's at all unusual not to have restriction at your level. It takes many people longer to reach a sense of restriction---and very, very few of them go on to "run out of real estate."

As the band gets fuller, fills of smaller increments can really make a difference.

I don't really understand the PA's resistance. The aim is for you to achieve restriction, whether that be .2 ccs from now, or 2 ccs from now, or 2.2 ccs from now.

What s/he wants does not correlate with the reality you're experiencing---and what you are experiencing needs to be the guide.

I would ask for the doctor's input on this. They really need to work with you to achieve appropriate restriction--and if that means that they push their comfort envelope a little, so be it.

You're not going to overshoot the available space. You're nowhere near that point. But let's say you get right up there to the wire. That's okay. If you find restriction right exactly at your band's max, then you've found restriction in a way that fits in with the guidelines for that band.

I am not sure why you're running into so much resistance. It's not like if you ignore the situation, it's going to improve spontaneously!

(FWIW, I have 7.3 cc and while I think I'm approaching good restriction, no one has even begun to suggest that continuing fills is inappropriate.)

That is sooooo not normal to be able to eat that much with that much restriction.

The point is that she doesn't have restriction. Whether you did, or I did, or anyone else in the doctor's practice did is irrelevant. The doctor's office should be working to achieve the best result for her. And that means listening to her experiences, and tailoring their approach to her response to her band.

Edited March 30, 2010 by BetsyB