I have an appointment for tuesday, I am 4 weeks (8/15)post op. I am losing weight (of course not as fast as I would like) and feel restriction at 1 cup of food(eating very healthy). I am never hungry and feel the best I have ever felt. My band was regular size and no fill what so ever. Do you think it could be possible I may never need a fill? Or at least not for 2 more weeks? Right now i am in a good way. I think I'll put it off until after my trip I will be at 6 1/2 weeks at that time.

I got a fill of 1.5 cc 6 weeks after surgery. I declined my last fill. I would say if you are losin 1-3 lbs a week and your not hungry 4-6 hrs between meals then I saydon't get it. My NP told me to come back when I hit a plateau.

Hi, you have the right idea. You should manage your own fills and make them work with your life (your trip) and not the other way around.

BTW: I do recommend not getting a fill before a journey because you just might have an issue (excessive swelling, over fill etc) and be too far away from your provider for help..

Also, once you get a fill (at least for me) I can count on getting real tight for at least 2 weeks and needing to be on Soups and mushies for the first several days (normal requirment) if not more. Not to mention that in that adjustment period you are more likely to experience food getting stuck and PBs (Producive Burps) and all the other trial and error things we banders go through when we adjust to a tightened band. (Don't worry you will be any expert about it all soon).

And if your journey happens to be a vacation. Even more reason to wait. Vacations are still about eating and drinking exotic things with exotic flavors with people you love. Live it up, then go get your fill. Having to eat mushies on vacation would not kill anyone but vacation is about relaxing and letting go -- not worring about food choices any more than you have to............

All being said, I recommend you talk to you health care provider about your fill shedule.. They are the ones that know you best and can tell if you are still a little swollen from surgery and thus tight enough, or if your ongoing weight loss makes a fill unnecessary at this point, or if you need to get started on your fill schedule or whatever. There are so many variables: Many surgeons will not fill you till you STOP losing weight-- because it is so important to learn better eating behaviors now, rather that later. And still other surgeons are anxious to get you to your sweet spot, so they keep you on a steady fill schedule.

I am 7 months out from my surgery -- recently I called and talked to the Barietric nurse in charge and told her that I am still losing weight albeit slowly but I did not want a fill just yet. Instead what did she think of the idea that I wanted to take up to another month and work on behavior modification. (I have had an overfilled band, and now know that I prefer it as loose as it can be while still providing me with moderate restriction and letting me set some limits and goals). She was all for it, she said that thats what the lap band is supposed to teach me and that I should be learning it as I go becasue if I reach my magic number and think I will learn it then -- well I missed the opportinity to learn along the way and would stuggle to learn it later..

Well, thats a long answer to a short question, but I did not know this stuff when I was new, and others took the time to help me --- so now I am reciprocating.

Good luck. (BTW - my counter is wrong - i've lost 60 lbs since Jan 15, 2011 PTL !) .

Sounds like you have the right idea to me. Im 6 weeks out and although I have good restriction(1-1 1/2 cup per meal every 4-5 hours) I'm losing weight very slowly. I think I'll get a fill when I can(was suppose to be on the 22nd but that will have to be pushed back because of a port infection and my tube popping out of my incision) but after my first fill, I think I'll be in my green zone for a while.

Good for you! Consider yourself blessed! Most people have no restriction for quite some time. Also, enjoy your vacation!

Hi: I am in the same situation as you. Banded 7/25/11 and went to doctor 9/10. He asked if I wanted a fill. I told him I am pleased with the way I feel. I'm losing slowly but steadily. That is good enough for me. No fill this time.....but will consider it in a month. Also going on a trip to Vegas with husband and friends in early October and the doctor said the band usually gets tighter with the airplane flight. Keep that in mind. It should adjust once you land. Just want to enjoy my trip and satisfied with how I feel right now so I decided to wait for a fill. Hope I made the right choice. CAT

If you're losing weight and not hungry, there is no reason to get a fill. I only have a fill of 0.75 ml at almost 9 months out. My doc wanted to give me a fill at my last check up because I told him I plateued for 3 weeks and had only lost 4 lb in 6 weeks. I declined it, because I had started losing again and I wanted to try something different which was eat more calories (which I did not tell him). Do you know what though, it's working.