Has anyone been banded and lost weight without ever having to get a fill?

I have never spoken to anyone who had the band, then chose not to use it. My surgeon told me in my pre-op consultation that he had a patient who never received a fill and lost about 130 pounds. Maybe it was the commitment the surgery represented, maybe just knowing it was there was enough. This is a-typical though. Bands are made to be filled. An empty band is an idle band. Use your tool!

Hi!

I was banded 6/14/05 to date I've lost 106 pounds with no fill. This is NOT typical. For me, it's because for the first time EVER I feel full. When I eat enough, I get a pain in my left shoulder and if keep eating it gets very painful. My Dr. thinks I got lucky and my sweet spot happens to be no fill. So It's rare but it can happen

Good Luck

-Nora

A friend's wife was Banded and never needed a fill. She was a lower BMI person and felt a lot of restriction even with no fill. She's the only person I know of that happening to.

I spent probably $3500 on fills my first two years (including air fare, when required.)

Thank you for the reply. I guess I am just SCARED of what to expect with a fill. The word restriction keeps coming up and I don't want to feel bad all the time and keep spending money to have it put in and then taken out. I am 8 hours away from my doctor also. I guess I am just "chicken"....Thank you for the support........

Fills are no big deal. I had one that went badly and to tell the truth, it wasn't THAT bad... My fluoro fill didn't use lidocaine and it really didn't hurt much at all, easy. Number two was a blind fill with lidocaine. He stabbed me for nearly 35 minutes until we found the port. I stressed, but didn't feel the needle.

They are expensive. I am busy saving for number three. Maybe that'll work for me, not much restriction yet.

I wish I was like Nora.

Forgot to add: Once you've had a fill you will be planning your next. Nerves are the worst part. I love my fills because they make it work. Who wants a $10K tumor?

hi there i was just reading all the post here and i thought that everyone that has had the operation had to get a fill. So does it mean you dont have to?, im not trying to get out of it i have had my band only for 1 1/2 weeks and feel alot of restriction already and hearing that some people have never had fills surprised me!! who decides, you or your doctor? i am quite happy to have the fill im not fussed.anyways hope to read other peoples views, by the way if theres anyone from australia here ,how much do they cost? i see my doc for the first time since the op in bout 2 weeks!

take care !!!

You don't HAVE to have a fill. Just having the band on is a restriction in itself. When you do go, if you do, don't worry. My Dr. uses Ultrasound to see the port, marks it, and then sprays on lidocaine to numb the area. It is no big deal- really! I only have 1.1 cc's and it really does make a difference.

I had a fill Friday but my surgeon really debated over whether or not one would be needed. He eventually gave me 1cc and I have to call back in about 2 weeks and tell them how I'm doing, and depending on how that goes he'll possibly have me in for an unfill and let me continue going on w/o fill.

It's not so much that the band has to be filled to work, or be un-idle, it's that the band size my surgeon chose for me gives me restriction even when empty.

What size band are you? Why do people get different size bands?

Why do people get unfilled? Since I am a self pay, I certainly don't want to pay to have it filled and then unfilled and travel 8 hours each time.

Does the doctor decide or do you decide. Thanks for the help.

There are quite a few different band sizes. Some doctors prefer one size over another, but for larger patients, they sometimes have to use the larger band in order to get it around the stomach. So a lot depends on your size going in.

Most doctors are conservative about fills. They'd rather fill a little & have you wait & see how it goes then fill a lot & have you get an unfill. You decide if you want the fill... and if you want an unfill. There are folks that have decided both ways on the board... keep reading & you'll find them. :Banane04: Maybe do a search on "fills" or "unfill".

Most of the time the need for an unfill occurs when you're getting close to the "perfect" restriction. At that point, even .1 over is too much, so you might have to get a touch out. But they often will know that before you even leave the doc's office. I had 1.5 put in, then he took out .3 before I left (I couldn't get Water down easily enough for him).

It really is individual, though. You have to decide if you're losing between 1-2 pounds a week, if you're having to fight "real" hunger all the time (versus "head" hunger) & if you're willing to pay for the fill.

For us, the program we chose has a nutritionist visit every 2 weeks & doctor visits every month, so it's easy to skip a fill if we want to... we can catch it the next month. And the nutritionist helps us determine if we really need a fill.

Good luck!

Thank you for that information. It helped alot......

Included in my price was surgery, nutritionist to answer my questions, etc. for a year, all my follow-up appts. for a year, and as many fills as I need in a year. I don't have to worry about the price for awhile.

I go for my 1st fill on May 1 and I AM READY. They didn't put any saline in during surgery and now that the swelling has gone down, I am HUNGRY. Any ideas how to fight this until MAY 1????

My surgeon said that yes, a small percentage of people never need a fill. Just the band alone is restrictive enough for them. He said the average among his patients is 3.1 fills until the sweet spot. He said he has done as many as 12 fills -- it's just different for everyone.

My surgeon won't do a fill if you are losing anything at all. He only does them once a month. Therefore it will be July until I can possibly get a fill because he won't do one at the 6 week post op, I am on vacation during the June fill date.:phanvan