I had my first fill last Monday- 1.5cc.- 9 weeks post op, under fluoro. Just like most other people I was anxious to get a fill as I was concerned that I had so little restriction. I must say, tho, that i never really "pushed" it- I ate small quantities, chewed well, etc and lost weight. I did not experience trouble with any type of food such as meat or bread- so not being restricted was more related to the kind of food rather than the quantity.

Okay, so I get the fill and stay on liquids for 2 days, no problem other than feeling super hungry! The first real food I ate- stew- got stuck! OMG what an awful experience! It hurt ! I thought I had chewed okay , bite may have been a little big, but I just chewed and chewed forever. Subsequently it seems I am having a problem with all textured food, especially meat.

Could I please get some opinions on this. How small should a typical bite be? How much is normal to eat at one meal- a tablespoonful? A half a cup? More, Less? Is my band maybe too tight or are my expectations unrealistic? Is it reasonable to choose to have the band slightly less restrictve and be satisfied with a slower weight loss? Is this even a possibility?

I feel a little silly being already 9 weeks out from surgery and asking these questions, but I am stunned at the difference before fill and after- I have to relearn and rethink everything! I had become so focused on what I have been reading from others on how hard it is to reach the sweet spot that I had assumed my first fill would be insignificant.

The band is SOOOO subjective, SOOOOO patient-specific that you'll likely end up with sufficient DIFFERENT answers that you'l be more confused that when you started. That said...

Possibility #1--People react differently to band adjustments. It may just be that two days post adjustment you were still somewhat swollen and hypersensitive. AND THEN, by irritating your already irrtated self two days post-adjustment, you caused the "overreaction" to continue. Does that make sense? Maybe if you had waited four days, you'd be better off now. Kinda like re-stubbing your stubbed toe.

AND/OR

Possibility #2--You, like many of us, have to "relearn" what your band wants after each adjustment. Some people need baby spoons. Some need to count chews. I think I'd avoid going for quantities to aim for and just count the Protein you DO get in.

This is where it gets tricky. If, after some time and healing, you find that you are "eating around the band" (soft stuff) because all the healthy protein stuff gets stuck, it may be that you're too tight, and need some saline removed. Keep an eye out for that behavior, because several things are going on when that happens. You get dependent on all the wrong foods, and at the same time, your esophagus might be gettintg irritated and your weight loss may even stall. But that's the "bad news." Right now, I'd just assume Possibility #1 above and start eating healthy stuff and avoid the concept (even though Inamed and many doctors recommend it) of measuring and counting and other diet-related ideas.

Good luck!

Sue

Thanks for your reply Sue. Makes sense. I can see how easy it would be to avoid discomfort by eating around the band- I can also see how unsafe and unsatisfying that would be.

I had healthy choice ham and pea Soup for dinner this evening- such a relief not to worry that something is going to get stuck- and to feel nice and full afterwards! I actually chewed the soup!! just in case!!

Sue is right.

And what you think was good chewing with your previous restriction might be nothing compared to how much you really are going to have to chew!

If you think about it logically split pea soup is pretty thick. If you're getting that down, then you're fine. It just means you are going to have to superchew things to the consistancy of puree.

I think it's around this time that I began to realize how disgusting a lot of processed and junk food really tasted!

Chewing is SO unconscious, it's perhaps the hardest behavior to relearn. To this *day* if I let myself get to hungry I cannot control not chewing well enough and I end up throwing it up. It's such a biological function.

Your band sounds perfect to me .

when I had my last fill mt 4th that is it took 3-5 days before I was able to eat a good meal. I think maybe some swelling. I was on liquids 2 days and then when I tried like any bread noway. so I was very careful and finally I have some relief as I can carefully eat better. Still no bread. I actually ate a RIBEYE yesterday. Slowly and washed it down. I know thats bad but it had been so very long since steak. Give it a little while and see what happens.

I am just curious why you had a fill if you were losing weight? You've lost 34 pounds in less then 2 months and that is wonderful!!! I'm almost 6 months out and am finally at 40 pounds. I know everyone and their doctor are different but I'm just surprised you got the fill since you were definitely losing without it. One of my guy friends in my support group has lost 125 pounds in less then a year with no fill at all. (Don't ya just hate men!! LOL)

Hi Chris,

I would like to answer that question although it was not addressed to me. I have had 4 fills total.

Fill one did nothing for me, but I was losing weight. Fill two really helped me with the portion control, but I was still eating quite a bit. I was losing two pounds a week average. Fill three was in early november. I was starting to get hungry at night especially and although I was losing weight at 2 lbs a week, I was having a harder and harder time to stop when I was supposed to. THree weeks ago, I had fill four. I was still losing 2 lbs a week, but I was struggling with the night time munchies and my quantities were still a lot bigger than most bandsters. This most recent fill has changed everything for me. Instead of losing 8 lbs over the course of a month, I have lost 10 lbs because my portion size is down to 4 oz a meal. We are in the business of losing weight and the guideline of getting a fill when you are no longer losing is just a guideline. When I told my doc at my last fill how much I had eaten the night before, he was in shock and agreed to give me the fill despite his initial impression not to do it because of how much weight I had been losing. I hope that gives you a different perspective!

Babs in TX

334/241/180

-93 lbs

6/23/03

8 month bandiversary today! Yeah!!

Babs,

Thanks for the post. Obviously you are a successful bander so you know what you are talking about. I am still trying to figure out what a good fill is. I'm at 2.2 right now and I can't really eat anything in the morning. One morning I couldn't drink my protein drink Lunch is a little better. But sometimes when I'm eating all of a sudden I realize I ate one bite too much and I have to PB. Since the restriction seems to change minute by minute I don't know if I should get another fill. When I eat dinner, the first few bites seem to get stuck and then if I walk around a little and then eat some more, I can continue eating. Please explain what my meals should be like if you can take the time. Thanks.