Calling all A11s!!

[chicholicious 0]

Congradulations on your first fill in. I wasn't as lucky, I have also my first fill in today, They only gave me 2cc. She said is do to my complaint about food getting stuck. But then i told her.. But I'm always so hungry between meals!! She says that im eating too fast and need to eat slow and they will add more to my next fill in:(

[ms.lady 3]

Today has started off not so good..................First I start my morning by stepping on the scale and it reflected a weight gain of 3lbs since yesterday morning. I was devastated!!! From there everything started going downhill. I went in for my first fill (after the surgeon made me wait what seems like a year) and he only gives me a 2cc fill. When I first went in I told the nurse and surgeon that I hungry ALL the time. After he did the fill and told me how much he put in, he must have noticed my expression because he went to explain that he normally only give 1 1/2 cc on the first fill, but since I was hungry all the time he gave me a little more...........WOW thanks doc (sarcasm)!!!! And that if that does not do it and/or I am still hungry to come back for a fill in a month. Seems my "bandster hell" shall continue. I pray that I will be more optimistic tomorrow.

[ncgg-5 2]

chicholicious and ms lady,

I am so sorry for your bad experiences. Some Dr's seem to be more aggressive than others with fills but eventually you will get out of Bander Hell. The good news is that I read that sometimes it takes a week or so for the fill to actually take effect. That's why they don't do them more often. I had my first one last week and last night I felt some restriction for the first time. In a perfect world that person giving the advice and doing fills would have been in our shoes and gone thru pre-op, post op, surgery & Bander Hell in order to deal with us. There might be a lot more compassion and understanding. Stay with the program and keep on keeping on, it will pay off. Don't weigh everyday, once a week is enough. Women's weight can fluctuate as much as 5 lbs up or down in one day my Dr told me. I do understand because and it's so discouraging to work so hard and then the stupid scale tells you another story. I've been the same weight for a week now and I'm walking, drinking and counting calories & Protein. You know if you stay on the program it's goona pay off in the long runl. These few months are just a little blip in our weight loss journey. We'll be laughing at this next year.

Blessings,

GG

[ms.lady 3]

Thanks GG.......I always look forward to your posts and/or replies!!

[kristenaz 0]

How many grams of Protein is everyone eating daily? Just curious.

[kristenaz 0]

By the way, my fill yesterday really did the trick! Very little food kept me satisfied all day. I am so happy. For those of you discouraged, remember everyone is different. Once the band is adjusted properly you will see results. Good luck friends!

[AFwife03 0]

Hello all!!

It's been sooo long since I posted anything!!

I'm 8 weeks post op and have lost 41 pounds so far!! And went down 2 dress sizes!

Had my first fill (3 cc's) on Sept 7th. Next fill is scheduled for Dec 14th. (I have to fly to Anchorage, AK for each appt..so they are spaced out)

I've been exercising pretty much everyday. I'm seriously happy!!

I hope everyone is doing well out there!!

KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!!

[BaileyRose 13]

Hey Kristen!

I try to eat between 60-100 grams of Protein a day. Most of the time I'm around 80-90. I'm a carb eater for sure so I have to make an effort to only eat something if it has protein in it and to make sure I eat my protein first during my meal.

Glad to hear your fill is working for you!

How many grams of protein is everyone eating daily? Just curious.

[ncgg-5 2]

Hello all!!

It's been sooo long since I posted anything!!

I'm 8 weeks post op and have lost 41 pounds so far!! And went down 2 dress sizes!

Had my first fill (3 cc's) on Sept 7th. Next fill is scheduled for Dec 14th. (I have to fly to Anchorage, AK for each appt..so they are spaced out)

I've been exercising pretty much everyday. I'm seriously happy!!

I hope everyone is doing well out there!!

KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!!

41 lbs is just amazing! Congratulations! So happy for you.

Bessings,

GG

[ncgg-5 2]

I found this on anther thread and if you have not read it you need to now. We all are newbies starting out with fills and some of us are loosing more weight than others but don't be discouraged. I am saying this to myself too. I finally lost another 1/2 lb after 9 days and I am walking, drinking and counting with less than 1100 calories a day. Hang in there everyone.

This may help you in understanding the restrictive mechanism of a Lap-Band.

The ALLERGAN protocol for Lap-Band fills calls for a six-week delay after surgery, prior to any fills. The purpose for the six-week delay is for the patient’s stomach to heal from the surgery, as well as allowing time for the Lap-Band to “Seat” or “Nestle” into the fat pad between the stomach wall and the interior wall of the Lap-Band.

Prior to receiving an EFFECTIVE fill, it is VERY uncommon to have any restriction from a Lap-Band. Some patients will NOT lose weight, or may even GAIN weight until they have received an effective fill in their Lap-Band.

Normal weight loss with a properly restricted Lap-Band is between 1 and 2 pounds per week.

The normal cycle of fills, restriction and weight loss is as follows:

1. The patient's Lap-Band constricts when the patient receives a fill. Swelling for a few days after receiving a fill is very common. Many doctors require a patient to go on a liquid diet for a day or two after receiving a fill. A fill may have a “Delayed Action” of up to 4 weeks. A “Delayed-Action” means that the fill may not become effective for up to 4 weeks after the fill. That is why the ALLERGAN protocol states that fills should not be performed on patients who will not have access to medical care for at least two weeks after a fill.

2. The patient's stomach capacity is lessened as a result of the restriction caused by the Lap-Band.

3. The patient loses weight because they cannot eat as much food.

4. The residual fat-pad between the inside of the Lap-Band and the outside of the patient's stomach reduces in size because of the overall weight loss in the patient.

5. The reduction of the residual fat-pad causes the Lap-Band to become loose again.

6. At that point, the patient needs another fill, because the Lap-Band is loose, and the patient has a loss of restriction, which allows the patient to eat larger amounts of food.

7. The patient receives another fill and the process starts all over again.

Most Lap-Band patients receive several fills to adjust the Lap-Band as their weight loss progresses, and there is less and less residual fat-pad between the inside of the Lap-Band and the exterior of the stomach wall. Once a patient has lost all of their residual fat-pad, fills become less common. As the Lap-Band patient progresses in their weight loss, the effect of very tiny fills (Less than .2ccs) becomes greater and greater.

It is not uncommon for a late-stage Lap-Band patient to experience a significant difference in restriction with as little as .05cc of fill.

Blessings,

GG

[New Scott 0]

I had my first fill on Monday. It was done under Fluoro Xray and he ended up putting in almost 4CC. Up until that point I was experiencing little or no restriction. I could basically eat anything, the only thing that was limited was the volume. Since the fill I definetly feel the difference and am no longer hungry all the time feeling like I am white knuckling it through the day to keep from eating more than I should. I have had some great success so far, I hit the 60lb mark on Tuesday and it felt great to be below 350lbs for the first time in 10 years..

[ncgg-5 2]

I had my first fill on Monday. It was done under Fluoro Xray and he ended up putting in almost 4CC. Up until that point I was experiencing little or no restriction. I could basically eat anything, the only thing that was limited was the volume. Since the fill I definetly feel the difference and am no longer hungry all the time feeling like I am white knuckling it through the day to keep from eating more than I should. I have had some great success so far, I hit the 60lb mark on Tuesday and it felt great to be below 350lbs for the first time in 10 years..

That is totally amazing! Congratulations. I bet you can really tell the difference in the way you feel and move now. Plus you've got to be needing new clothes. LOL Keep up the good work and so glad your fill is working and the band is doing its job.

Blessings,

GG

[janojan 0]

Hi, i am 53 yrs old , my surgery was Aug 24,2011, started out at 255 dropped to 238 but not have lost anymore in the last 2 1/2 weeks. today was my first fill i now have 3 1/2 cc in there.

[ncgg-5 2]

Hi, i am 53 yrs old , my surgery was Aug 24,2011, started out at 255 dropped to 238 but not have lost anymore in the last 2 1/2 weeks. today was my first fill i now have 3 1/2 cc in there.

Welcome janojan! You had your surgery the day before mine. You are a little ahead of me in weight loss too. How does the fill feel? Do you have any restriction?

Hopefully it will help and that and will do its job. It's a real bummer to go 2 1/2 weeks without any weight loss. I've only lost 1/2 lb in 10 days so I know where you are coming from too. Glad to have you on the board and keep us informed to your progress.

Blessings,

GG

[cakegirl 12]

I didn't lose any weight for over 2 weeks and then suddenly right before my fill, 1kg fell off - don't know how that happened!

I had my first fill yesterday. My doctor didn't use any numbing stuff, and the needle felt like a tiny pinprick - not as bad as getting an IV at all! He put in 2cc, and I felt restriction immediately. I felt totally stuffed full - it was 10 o'clock in the morning, and all I could stomach for the rest of the day was a coffee, a small bowl of miso Soup, and a berocca! I had an Optifast shake for Breakfast today so I don't faint or something! One weird thing - as soon as I had the fill, I got a headache that lasted until I went to bed that night, and I started yawning and yawned for hous. Has that happened to anyone else?

I'm starting to feel like I can get back into exercise. I started gardening with my daughter a few weeks ago, and overdid it a bit, and my port was really achy. I had to stop everything for a while. That seems to have settled down now. I'm having a go on my exercise bike each day now. But my fitness is shocking - I can barely go 2 minutes on the thing! Oh well, I guess that will come back in time...