I'm a month post op and I haven't had a fill yet, but I feel I do have some restriction. Usually I just eat the recommended serving sizes the nutritionist gave me and then I'm just not hungry, but I'm not sure what "full" feels like. I figured this would be important to know since I'll be getting my first fill in a few weeks and I don't want any, er, unpleasant side effects

My new "full" is "not hungry".

Sometimes I push it past that and it just feels uncomfortable, bloated (think Thanksgiving but on much much much less food) and sometimes I get left shoulder pain if I've eaten too much. I hate all of those things, so I try really hard to listen when I realize I've eaten enough that I don't "need" to eat another bite even if I want to.

Full for me is either ( a ) hiccups or ( b ) the sensation that if I eat one more bite it won't fit. Not that I couldn't do it, but that it would feel like it's in my throat.

And sometimes, if I'm not careful, it can very literally take eating just one tiny bite to realise I over did it, I salivate horribly then vomit, and am scared straight for quite a while. It's a horrendous feeling.

You will get stuck at some point. You will vomit at some point. And you'll learn where your eating sweet spot is.

It's like telling a child the stove is hot, until they touch it (as a child or as an adult) they won't truly realise the reality of it.

Take it one meal and one day at a time.

(Edited to make spaces around the letters in parenthesis because it turned my b into a sunglasses face.)

I've been trying to measure my meals and then stop. Full should be "not hungry" like everyone is saying. But I noticed last week when I was just eating whatever till "full" that I had probably gone too far several times. I start to feel like the food is just hanging out in my throat and not moving. My chest hurts like I need to let a big burp but cannot. Or like heartburn. And I'll get some pain in my back and even sometimes where I imagine the band itself is on my left side. It's different than before the band. Before the band I would feel stuffed, tired, and like I needed to put on a baggy pair of pants or unbutton a button. With the band it's more like "omg i feel like i'm going to have a heart attack!" lol. Usually when I've gotten to this point it is because i'm eating too fast and/or too much. Which is wrong I know. That's why I went back to following the rules. 4oz slowly no drinking then stopping until the next meal. I might add I've dropped a few pounds since going back to doing this.

You will get stuck at some point. You will vomit at some point. And you'll learn where your eating sweet spot is.

I just wanted to add-- the truth of this depends on how filled you are. I have been at this for 7 months and I have never gotten stuck, nor have I vomited. I don't think this is true for everyone. I will say that I keep my band fairly loose (2.5 cc in a 10 cc band) because I want to avoid these things at all costs

For me, I had to learn what the second to last bite was - and unfortunately, this came from throwing up. I mean, if I take one bite, I no longer feel hungry so that can't possibly be my personal gauge. I just know, at this point, that if I take one more, I will not be a happy camper. Once you have fills, you do feel differently - you feel it start to back up and not clear the pouch as quickly.

For me, weighing and measuring is key. I put the appropriate amount of food on my plate and that is what I eat. When I am finished I no longer feel hungry but don't feel stuffed or sick either. There have been a few times when I couldn't eat all of the food I measured out and they way I know is that I get this feeling that if I eat another bite then I will get sick. I think eating slowly really helps you get more "in tune" with your body so you can recognize the signals...I never want to rely on throwing up as my signal to stop...if I get to that point then I am way past where I should be...

Pressure is the only way I can describe full. I stop at the first sign of pressure in that area (stoma) I think. I didn't take anatomy and hated biology when we went over that section so I am not sure if that's the right spot. I am at 7.3 cc's in a 10cc band and I have never PB, slimmed, or vomit from eating too much, taking big bites or ect. I don't want to either so I don't test my limits with food because It will be there later!

I googled stoma after I posted this and lets just say you can't listen to everybody!!!! It's the sternum! I am laughing to hard about this one! It's bedtime!

Full to me is a tight/pressurized feeling in your chest (sometimes your throat if you have eaten way too much). Yup it def feels different. That was so weird at first to recognized what full felt like now but now I'm so use to it I hardly remember what the old full feels like. =)

I know this will sound weird, but I actually start to feel pressure at top of my throat and behind my eyeballs when I know I've gotten to the full stage. The nutritionist looks at me strange when I tell her that, but that seems to be my trigger.

As everyone else says, full is no longer hungery. Now my cue that I better not take another bit is I will sigh in mid-bite. After that sigh, I best stop.