Ok, so I had surgery on 9/21/09... and finally after 8 fills, I am feeling restriction... but yakking (sorry, TMI) a lot of my food up... I am sure that it is due to not having any restriction at all prior to this. I guess I am looking for guidance as to what I should be doing, because I have been kind of half-*ssing it at this point because I could pretty much eat whatever I wanted (there are a few foods I couldnt get down previous to this fill).

Interestingly enough, I should have had 7cc's in my 14 cc band and the Dr was stumped as to why I wasnt getting any restriction. So he removed the Fluid which only amounted to 5cc's when there should have been 7. He said it was possible that he had missed on previous fills (which take about 7 stabs for him to find the port) so I am kind of peeved that I paid for 7 fills which really only yielded 5 fills.

Anyway, any help is much appreciated!

Now that you have restriction you need to work on technique. Cut your food to the size of a pencil eraser, lay down your fork between each bite, eat SLOWWWLY to give your body the chance to tell you its full and chew, chew, chew. Also if you have been drinking with your meals at this point you need to stop that as well, it will fill your pouch and cause the contents to swell giving you the too full feeling. Good luck (I still struggle with these things too!)

When I feel tighter, it helps me to actually count the number of times I am chewing each bite. You want to chew at least 20 times per bite. And, more if it still doesn't feel like mush in your mouth.

Another thing that's helpful is to eat your Protein in combination w/a sauce or eat a bite of watery vegetable (like zuchini, salad, tomato) in between bites of protein.

And, eat SLOWLY. If you feel any discomfort at all, put your fork down and STOP for awhile. I am using some caps here because this was the hardest one for me to learn. I thought I could eat through the discomfort. Big mistake! As you sit there, you may realize that you cannot eat another bite or you may realize that you do have room for more. But, give your body some time to give you the signal. It still drives me crazy to leave a tiny bit on my plate, but I have learned that even just a tiny bit more can push me over the edge from satisfaction to pain.

Hey Jen. You are the only other CDH surgery patient I know. I thought I would commiserate with you. It has taken so long to feel restriction. I went in a couple of months ago and BEGGED for more - seriously! He started giving me 2ccs the last two times and finally I'm feeling some restriction. I still need another 1 or 2ccs I think, though. My port site looks like I've been punched a few times in the gut - ugly blue bruise. It does seem to take about 5-6 stabs to get it into the port. What is up with that?

I do blame his nurse. She actually said in front of me to the doc that she didn't think I should get 2ccs again and told him to do 1cc. He saw my snarl and did 2ccs. Smart man. Think I might need to muzzle the nurse, though. :cursing: