I'm almost 6 weeks post op, and my first fill is in 4 days.

As of right now, I have absolutely no restriction, and can and do eat anything.

I have no pain, and no ill affects when eating.

Is the fill going to help this? I'm worried that this was all for nothing.

I need to know that as the band is filled more and more that I will be able to stick to what I'm suppose to be eating and end the cycle of bad eating.

Need some input please.

I felt the exact same way until I began getting fills. To be honest my dr didn't give me much on my first fill. I already had Fluid in my band and they extracted all of it to measure and then re-injected it plus added a tiny bit more. I started off with 4ccs in my band, they added .2cc at that time. I went back a week and a half ago for a fill and they gave me 1 full cc and holy mother, I have a huge difference.

One thing that can be frustrating is that urge for immediacy. Remember, it is going to take time. Your body needed to heal. Now that it has healed you can start slowly restricting yourself until you get to the right spot. Don't lose hope.

And don't let friends and family constantly asking you how much have you lost to get you down either. I dealt with that and had to explain that I was going to lose it all in one month. Hope this helps.

Don't feel bad I'm going through the same thing. But it is my understanding that sometimes they put very little in the band after surgery. I have my first fill 7/19/10 I am hoping to have restriction cause I have none right now. I almost feel like every meal is my last. But we did this to loose weight and change our lives. Hang in there I'm sure the fill will make a difference. Just try to eat like we're are supposed to.

I kind of exp. the same thing--it's been 8 weeks and I've had one fill, two weeks ago. My band was empty when my doctor put it in. My fill was 4cc's but after a couple of days, it was like before. I feel like I don't have much restriction but actually I do. I have to pay attention more. If I eat too fast or too much, I feel like someone stuck a knife in my back, it doesn't happen to often. I have never thrown up which I heard was common. I've lost about 18 pounds total, some of it came off before surgery, since surgery day, I've lost 13.

All that said, I do feel more in control with the band. I'm eating healthier than I ever had, I've cut out a lot of bad habits like my night eating. I realize that what I did was fairly drastic and I don't want to blow it. So the band just giving me that is a lot. I figure the rest will happen, if it takes longer than I expect, that's okay also. I know I'm on the right road.

My ins. only covers a fill every six weeks but I think that'll be okay. So I guess you just need to have patience and do the best you can, that's usually enough.

I was banded on April 1 2010. I thought the same thing even after my second fill. I could eat a horse if i wanted to! :smile: I just went in for my third fill on Monday and let me say I know believe I have a band and that they didnt forget to put one in at the time of surgery:blushing: I have lost a total of 34 lbs with 120 to go!:scared2: Give yourself some time and it will work. This is a tool and a LEARNING process. I'm still learning what I can and cannot eat. food I ate last month I can not eat this month.

Best of Luck to you. You can always message me if you like! Newbies stick together!

Since most bands are installed empty - or near empty, you'll have to wait for fills to provide the satisfactory restriction you desire. But you have to have patience because that may be many months down the road. My surgeon only does small fills 4 weeks apart and it took until fill 4 or so to achieve my desired restriction. You have to focus on the fundamentals in the meantime - and especially get a good exercise regimen up and going once your doctor clears you to do so.

Good Luck!

Brad