Hello all. I am 10 days post-op and the past few days I have noticed that I am not feeling much restriction. In the first few days I could feel food passing through my band, but lately I do not have that sensation. What I want to know is, is this normal. I have not had any nausa, vomiting, or reflux; its almost as if the band isn't there at all. I dont know if I am over reacting or if I should be concerned.

It's normal. The swelling in your stomach went down. Just follow your post op diet. Once you start getting fills it will be back.

Your swelling seems to have gone down quickly. You are not over reacting, but this is normal. Restriction for some can be immediately, or after a few fills. You also have not really eaten solid foods as of yet, maybe a few but not consistently. Still practice eating properly, the right amount, the right size bite, chewing to paste and eating slowly so you will feel full faster. Much of this is mental, more than physically right now.

I was banded Feb. 15th, so I am still a newbie as well. I mistakenly feel no restriction, then don't chew properly and then OUCH......the sliming begins and that last bite comes up. This has happened twice, the last one bringing me to full attention of what I have to do, and how important it is to play by the rules of the band.

It's totally normal. The restriction you felt for the first week was due to the swelling caused by the surgeon messing with your stomach and the band being placed around it. Internal organs are fussy. Because they're internal, they are not designed to be touched by anything or anyone, so when that happens during surgery, they react by swelling up (in indignation!). That made the band feel tight, but as the stomach heals, the swelling goes down and the band loosens. That's why it was designed to be adjustable.

The majority of people don't feel restriction just from having the band placed, not once they've started healing. Most people need fills. I think the ones who do feel restricted from just surgery either a) also had plication of the stomach (where the stomach and folded over and stitched together to make a smaller cavity, or are just lucky devils. Most of us enter bandster hell within the first 2-6 weeks after surgery. That's when we have the band, our bodies have healed, our appetites have returned, but we don't feel any restriction. At that point, all you can do is diet and look forward to starting your fills. Until you get enough fill to get you into the green zone, you just kinda have to grin and bear it and keep telling yourself that once the band really kicks in, this will make a huge difference in the rest of your life.

Good luck!

Oh, thank you so much for putting my mind at ease! I think I have recovered rather quickly. I am trying really hard to count my calories and eat small portions. Since all of this has happened I am starting to realize what my realtionship with food really was so I am still struggling with cravings. Im still eating soft foods an trying my best to CHEW CHEW CHEW. I haven't had any sliming or throwing up so far and I hope that I can avoid such issues.

Totally normal. I was on a 4 week liquid only diet and thought I was gunna starve. I added mashed potatoes myself at 3 weeks (big mistake, should've followed the rules). My first real meal? A Burger King cheeseburger. Probably could've eaten 2 of em actually. Felt just as I had pre band. For 4 mths and until my 3rd fill, I ate just as I had pre band. I could eat a large Quiznos sandwich and a bowl of broccoli cheese Soup without a problem. Obviously, I lost no weight during this time. Wish I could go back and follow the rules....

Fast forward to 3 1/2 yrs: At my 3rd fill (4 mths post op), I FINALLY got restriction! To this day, I can eat maybe 6 bites of a small Quiznos sandwich and maybe 1/2 of a cup of soup. Now, I don't have as much restriciton as I one had, so my weightloss is stalled, but I still know that my band is there preventing me from eating as I had pre band.

Totally normal to not feel restriciton at this point. Patience is the key with the lapband!

Good luck!

Marci

Thank you moregirl, that is EXACTLY where I am. I'm feeling great and ready to get the ball rolling. Then one day I realized "hey, I don't feel full WTF!" lol. I'm trying my best to keep eating small portions and count my calories to be sure that I'm not over eating. I get my first fill April 9 and it can't come soon enough.

Thank you guys for the resposes I feel soooooooo much better!

Marfar7, I know how you feel. I'm fighting the urge to go to Taco Casa (my favorite place) and drown myself in tacos and nachos. So far I have been fighting my craving and trying to stick pretty close to the diet that they have me at my post op appt. I was allowed to eat soft foods such as over cooked pasta, spam, vienna sausages, and soft eggs. So far I'm doing pretty good, but today I'm struggling (I'm a bored eater). I plan on not eating out for at lease another 6 months.

What your feeling is normal but just remember just because you think you can eat more then directed does not mean that you should. Follow your doctor's guidelines. It will only get better from here.

Cravings are also totally normal. It's called head hunger. A big part of the learning curve with the band is to learn to recognize when your body is hungry and when it's just your mind telling you that you're hungry (the filthy liar! ). The key to success is to only eat when it's body hunger. I know it sucks big time at the beginning, but a lot of us find that the longer we go eating healthy and wholesome foods, the less intense the cravings are.

But you can also look forward to eating all your favorite old foods once you're back on solids; you just have to eat small, band-friendly portions and count the calories. I use My Fitness Pal for that, since it also keeps track of Protein, which is your most important food, especially while you heal.

Stay strong. You're doing great!

Thank you Hely88, I plan on it. I think I was beginning to get a little too comfortable because I wasn't feeling any restriction ( I started to sample foods I wasn't given permission to have). I'm going to try really hard to stick to the guidelines that I was given and hopefully I will keep losing weight before my first fill. Thank you for your advice.

I was banded 12/17 and got my 3rd fill this week and FINALLY feel restricted.

Slow and steady is the safe way to go. Although it can get very frustrating when we want to see results. You will! Good luck.

Thank you Banjo

my dr. said no restriction when put in just tube filled. When everything is healed 4-6 wks out tben fill but start eating n chewing right from the beginning even tbough i dont feel restriction to get ur mindset on track. i think i do feel fuller sooner now anyway.

I didn't have any restriction either until after 4 or so fills, and because I thought the band "wasn't working" I didn't get the last two fills until a year later! Don't take the road I did. When you are scheduled for a fill, do it but remember it's a gradual thing and don't expect you will be feeling restriction immediately. Some people have that but I definitely didn't.