Hi everyone!

I was banded Nov 2008, after my 2nd fill a couple months post op I found the "sweet spot" everyone talks about....lost 70 lbs...everything is great...until now. Recently I have noticed that I am not chewing my food up as much as I used to- if I feel something stick it passes very quickly. Is it possible that after this much time since a fill the band has become more open? Is that even possible? Or is it possible that I have stretched out my band? I know you can stretch out your pouch but the band?

You are supposed to go back and see your Dr at least twice a year for life, even when you think you have ideal restriction. Over time a small amount of fluid will be lost from the band which will make it looser. You need a small fill to top up.

As you lost weight, you probably lost visceral fat, or the fat that was around your stomach. This too would result in the band getting looser. But yes, you should be going in to see the doctor on a regular basis (whatever that is for 2 years out).

Good luck!

I'm almost 2 years out (22 months) and am still going in about every 2 or 3 months. However, I'm still in the losing phase, not maintenance.. so maybe that's different.

Thanks everyone for your responses! I just called to make an appt and I have to go through the HMO hoops for a referral :-( Oh well it is definitely worth it!

Thanks Again!!

You could easily need a top up fill. Even with no weight loss, restriction wanes slightly over time. You lose a bit of fluid from your band due to evaporation/seepage too. Tiny amounts but it makes a difference.

OMG!! Congrats. How are you doing it. I was 304 got down to 217 as of last april, had 4cc taken out due to to much vomiting. I have gained back several, i mean several lbs. I went back to eating little sunday. I have lost 6.5 as of today. But, I am starving. What do you eat in an average day.

I'm almost 2 years out (22 months) and am still going in about every 2 or 3 months. However, I'm still in the losing phase, not maintenance.. so maybe that's different.

OMG!! Congrats. How are you doing it. I was 304 got down to 217 as of last april, had 4cc taken out due to to much vomiting. I have gained back several, i mean several lbs. I went back to eating little sunday. I have lost 6.5 as of today. But, I am starving. What do you eat in an average day.

Hello! I went from 298 to 199, and am now back to 227 !!!! And thats just since Nov when i had some Fluid removed - also due to excessive vomiting. It sucks! I FINALLY got into a size 16 jean, and now I cant wear them any more. Talk about feelin glike a failure! I mean, deep down i know I'm not ... but still :-( What did you do differently ? I've been trying the past 2 weeks to lose again, but not having any luck. Suggestions????

Bobbie

Thanks everyone for your responses! I just called to make an appt and I have to go through the HMO hoops for a referral :-( Oh well it is definitely worth it!

Thanks Again!!

Shanricci - I'm in kind of a similar situation as you, about 21 months out and never have any vomiting problems, can eat much quicker in the past 4-5 months than before without any problems, but know I still have restriction because at times I just have to wait until the pressure passes. I went and had a flouro done to check my band a couple of weeks ago for my own peace of mind and I have a mild dilation. Doc says it pretty normal after this amount of time to have some sort of small dilation. Nothing to be concerned about yet, since I have no other symptoms (reflux - mainly). Just something to keep an eye on (my plan annually) to make sure it stays that way. This may be the case for you. As long as you have no other issues, you may have a mild dilation - but don't let that worry you too much. You just have to be more diligent about paying attention to your full signals or quantity portions - my doc adheres to the belief of no carbonation and reiterated that as a concern for dilation, but I don't drink any so that can't be a cause.

Best of luck to you and let us know how it turns out.

I'm not doing anything all that special. I work out almost daily for a minimum of 90 minutes (things like body pump, rpm, yoga/pilates, step .. not all on the same day!!). I weigh and measure 99% of what goes in my mouth. I keep a food log over at www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate, and I'm totally, brutally honest with myself when I record my food.

I keep my band a little on the loose side, I don't want it so tight that I can't eat normal foods.

I cook most of our meals, we eat out generally once a week. The things I cook are lean and green. Mainly chicken & turkey, Some fish, little red meat.

4cc's is a lot to have taken out. I'm not surprised that either of you are hungry. Can they start putting Fluid slowly back for either of you? I had a small fill (.2cc's) in April, which made me too tight. In May I had that .2cc removed. then a visit with the NP in July and she didn't fill me then because of the unfill in May. I struggled a bit, but pushed through with exercise and lots of Water and I had extra veggies at meal times. Finally got more fluid (another .2cc's) in September and weight loss started back up again. Another .25cc's in December and it's working again.

I go in fairly frequently and get small tweaks to my band.. I think that's key for ME. to keep it tight enough to diminish hunger & cravings, but loose enough that I can eat solid dense Protein & veggies. It's a fine line to walk.

Want2BThin asked what I eat in an average day. Here's what I had yesterday:

6am, 2 cups coffee with my Vitamins.

7am 1/2 cup of steelcut oatmeal & apples,

10am 50 calorie packet of Beef Jerky,

12Noon Syntrax Roadside Lemonade

3pm 3oz Rotisserie Chicken 1/2 cup Green Giant Healthy Vision veggies.

7pm 4oz Ground Sirloin patty (90/10), 1/2 cup Steamed Veggies

9pm 3 Wasa crackers, 1 laughing cow cheese wedge, 1.5 ounces avocado, 1 crystal lite candy,

11pm 100 calorie Chocolite Protein Bar.

Totals for the day: 1106 calories, 101 grams protein. A bit too much protein. I should cut back somewhere..

My schedule is a bit weird because I drink protein after my workouts and that puts my lunch later because I'm just not hungry for a while after drinking the protein. Usually I eat a full cup of oatmeal for Breakfast and add a turkey sausage link. I just wasn't that hungry yesterday, so I took advantage of it. The beef jerky at 10am was to combat a lack of energy I've been feeling during exercise.

I'm also doing a rather intense boot camp that meets T,W& F.. so yesterday was an intense calorie burn.. 800. Needless to say, I'm tired and sore today.. but in a good way.

Just keep going back for your fills, don't depend on the band to provide "restriction", but rather let the band dim your appetite so that you can have better control. This is what works for me. Persistence, not perfection. I still eat tortilla chips when we go out, but I try not to keep them at home.

Hope this helps some.