I had my surgery on April 12 and as of today i am down 36 pounds without a fill and since April 27 my bmi has gone from 42.5 to 35.0. My doctor advised me that since i have been doing so good with the weight loss that he feels i do not need a fill as of now. Has anyone else not had a fill?

I have left the fill decision in my doctors hands as he is the expert. I have been eating pretty good and started running about a week ago. I need some advice should i get the fill when i see my doctor on the 27th of this month or leave it as i am now as long as i continue to lose weight?

Congrats on your awsome loss so far. I was banded on 3/22/10 and had my 7 week f/u this week (no fill so far). My dr. told me he would not do a fill this I am eating more than 1/3 of what I did pre band and start to gain weight. I asked if there are people that never need a fill and was told sometimes it might be 1-2 years out. Good luck and keep up the good work

Hi/Pre-Band/Current/Goal

251/229/205/150

Weight loss is one indicator used to determine whether a fill is necessary. Another--equally important one--is how you feel. I've lost weight consistently since banding--but do not yet have reliable restriction. The weight I have lost has been, to a very large degree, weight lost due to dieting.

If you are losing weight because you're white-knuckling (still starving, but working hard to lose), this is very important information for your doctor to have.

I think it's important to work with your doctor, rather than leave decisions to him. The latter presumes that he can intuit what is going on, when in fact, he cannot assess how you feel at all. He needs your input.

I'd make the decision based on how long I felt satisfied after eating. When I can easily go 3-4 hours without hunger, I don't want a fill; the band is doing its job. If I get hungry within 2 hours of eating, I need a fill--no matter how well I'm losing. (I eat the same way whether I feel restriction or not, so my rate of loss is not a reliable indicator of how the band is working.)

I was banded in Jan 2010 and to date have only had one fill. My doc goes by both weight loss (which has been consistent) and also by how I feel, as said by someone else. If you are starving and fighting to stay on your "diet". Then you are likely not making the best use of your new lapband. Its supposed to help along the way.

As my weight loss slows....i'll have him "snug it up" a bit to help me along. If you feel good and are not struggling...more power to you!! You'll know when you need a fill :biggrin: Good luck and congrats!!!

Don't sweat it. I had my surgery on 31 December, and have not had a fill yet. As long as you are losing :thumbup:and feeling good, what more can you ask for?

I am almost 9 months in and I have never gotten a fill. As long as you are losing weight there is no reason to get a fill. Good job btw!

Wow -- I'm surprised by the comments above. But, I'm wondering if some of the posters may have had the band installed with a bit of a fill in it. I know that there are some doctors who do that.

My band was not installed with a fill, and I had a heck of time during Bandster Hell. I found that I could eat basically anything (I didn't push it) and that I was just as hungry as before the band. But, once I got to restriction, all of that changed!

Go by how you feel, not by what timing sounds right. If you aren't getting hungry and are eating less and losing, just keep on doing what you're doing! You've been doing fantastically so far!

Best wishes,

Catherine

To the OP - do you feel like it's YOU doing all of the work or do you feel like the band is doing it's job, too?

As far as fills go I believe that they are needed(for ME), I was banded 2-24-10 and I had to wait 2.5 months for my first fill and can only get one every month. My band was installed empty and my first fill was 1.5cc in a 10cc band so I did not feel any difference, but I think that as I lose weight and start getting fills I hope by the time I am at my ideal weight the band will help me maintain and I will not balloon back up like I always have done before. Alot of my weight has fallen off not because of the band but because of my change in eating habbits and the amout of excercise I do not, I really want the band to "kick in" and start working but untill then it healty eating and portion control even if I am still hungry! To the OP if you are losing weight you are doing the right thing, keep it up but try and get a fill if you think you need it. You went through surgery and I believe you should utilize the new tool you have to work with but dont rely on it, you have done great with 36 lbs in a month!

Hello, my doctor says that some people can go a long time for a fill because the placement of the band gives us some form of restriction because everyone's stomach wall if different. Some may have a thick stomach wall or a thin one, that's why you may not need one right away. I was banded on March 19, 2010 and had my first fill on May 4th with 2cc total in my 10cc band and I feel that I have restriction, I tend to fill it more when I eat meats first like I am suppose to. Can't say I am hungry just eat when I am suppose to so I can get 80 grams of protein and 900-1200 calories a day.

I LOVE MY BAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was banded on March 1st, 2010. I have lost 55 lbs. so far. I was concerned that I was losing too fast. My doctor said that as long as I had energy and making sure I get my protein in that I was fine. He even told me that I didn't need a fill. I have an appointment next week for another follow up. I'm curious to see what he says this time. I'm still losing, but its at a slower pace.

to answer your question i sort of felt like i have had no restriction at all until today. I tried a piece of turkey (lunch meat) and i guess did not chew because i felt a feeling i have not felt since i was banded. I guess it was the stuck feeling. Thought i was going to throw up for about 5 mins and after walking around and burping it went away. Before today i would have said it was all me but i guess the band has been working all along i have just been lucky and have not gotten stuck. I have tried just about everything and have had no problems at all!!!!! I will just bust my but and try to do this without a fill because from what i understand after the fill it happens alot more frequently. Guess i could be wrong:eek:

Scott;

What you are experiencing is not all that unusual. And if it is working, I wouldn’t spend too much time trying to analyze it.

There are people who go through their entire Band experience without ever having a fill, and they are able to lose the weight they need to lose. Others seem to need fills quite continually, and even when the band has reached capacity, it doesn’t seem to be enough. Most peoples experience falls somewhere in the middle.

One of the interesting parts of the Band experience is how totally individual it is. Everyone seems to have a unique experience in one way or another.

Even though there are several different types and sizes of Bands, they are very close in specification. But the range of diversity in the human body is huge. Measurements vary dramatically between people, thus the performance of the Band is going to vary dramatically as well. And the way the Surgeon places it is going to have an impact, too.

My point is that even though it might seem strange that you are doing well with no fills, the fact is that simply having the band in place might be all that you need. It DOES work this way for some people.

The time might come when you DO, in fact, need a fill….but there is no need to have one if you don’t absolutely have to. And, thus far, it doesn’t sound like you do.

So if you can get by with no fills, just enjoy it. No needles, no co-pays, no trips to your Doctor…..Enjoy it while you can!

S.

I was banded 12/20/08 and have lost 90 pounds with NO FILLS. I cannot explain it and I am one of a few people from Dr. Atkinson's office in Las Vegas that have reached goal with no fills. I am off all meds and living life to the fullest, being at a weight that I only dreamed of getting back to a size 8-10. I am told that maybe down the road if I ever felt the need I could have a fill, but am not going to have one because everybody else says you have to have one because you have the band. We are the chosen few that have not needed a fill and the Dr. says this is okay. Enjoy your new body and only worry about things that need fixing and leave the good stuff alone.:Dancing_biggrin:

I was banded 12/20/08 and have lost 90 pounds with NO FILLS. I cannot explain it and I am one of a few people from Dr. Atkinson's office in Las Vegas that have reached goal with no fills. I am off all meds and living life to the fullest, being at a weight that I only dreamed of getting back to a size 8-10. I am told that maybe down the road if I ever felt the need I could have a fill, but am not going to have one because everybody else says you have to have one because you have the band. We are the chosen few that have not needed a fill and the Dr. says this is okay. Enjoy your new body and only worry about things that need fixing and leave the good stuff alone.:tt2:

That's amazing!! Way to go!!:thumbup: