hi there,

my cousin's lap band is about 8 weeks old.

it's a 4 cc that is 2.5 cc's full, and her restriction is iffy to non-existent! for instance, this weekend, she was able to eat two hot dogs, with bun, in one sitting!

she's still working on her eating habits (she's 23); but i think she doesn't quite have faith in the band yet either. and with it being more than 1/2 full, i can't blame her!

she's going in for a visit next week, and they will ask to check for leaks and an overly large stomach pouch. other than these problems, can you think of anything else to check for?

also, who has experience with iffy to little restriction with a band that is more than 1/2 full? can you share your experiences? how much more did it take to get you to proper restriction?

thanks.

Restriction varies from patient to patient.

Repeat after me (I have to remind myself, too):

It is NOT an exact science.

One size does NOT fit all !!!

One patient's 1.0 cc may be SO TIGHT to them and yet another may have 2.75cc's and not feel a thing.

Also many patients with smaller start weights, smaller internal organs, and sizes may need more restriction.

When I was heavier, 1.5 - 2.0 cc's was tolerable restriction.

Now that I've finally lost weight and am getting closer to goal, I need at least 2.8 just for a bit of restriction and my sweet spot used to be approx 2.9.

So the bottom line is, we all just have to find out what restriction is right for them. Your cousin may honestly need more than she has. If she can eat two hotdogs then she is obviously not well-restricted. But what is the right level for her, may not be right for you. (If her doctor has given her 2.5 in a 4cc band after 8 weeks, maybe the doc suspected she would need substantially more 'fill' to see some progress).

Good Luck, hope it goes well for her.

Does she have it done under floro?

thanks new sho. i was wondering if more than half filled is not as big as it sounds.

iwanttobethin1, they do it under sonogram. i guess that would detect a leak too?

my counsin has about 150 pounds to lose.

thanks.

Tell her just to hang in there. I have a 5cc band and it took 4.8cc to reach the right restriction. this is my second band, the first one I could not tolerate more than 2cc. So each person and each band differs.

I know it is hard for her tell her we will say a little prayer for her. I see that you are on this chat support line are you over weight or here for support. either or we are glad to have you

Mine's the same, I had a fill yesterday so I"m up to 2.5 in a 4cc band and STILL no real restriction in the way that other people describe, I can still eat bread for crying out loud. I cant eat fast and I eat about half what I used to be able to get through, but I still have to work at the head hunger, which after eight months of practicing is way easier than it used to be. I can still go out and eat a "big" meal for a bandster.

I've decided to work with it, take what I can from the band and work on the rest. I love to run so that helps. It is possible to still lose steadily without maximum restriction for a lot of people and it is easier than it was with no band. I actually enjoy and appreciate the ability to have a little "break" from banded life, to enjoy a restaurant meal or a party etc. I just do it in controlled amounts, I eat what I should, healthy fresh food in appropriate quantities most of the time and if I get hungry, I ignore it until meal time.

Whilst my band doesnt physically stop me eating a reasonable quantity or eating six times a day, it has provided enough behaviour modification for me and I've had good enough results that I just am now motivated to put in the work and do what I know I should. It still took a band for me to reach that stage. I believe a large part of my success is I took up running and am now focussed a lot more on running performance than on weight loss for weight loss' sake.

So my advice would be to soldier on, give it your best effort and hope that somewhere along the line in a schedule of regular fills, restriction will come. Obviously it takes longer for some than for others.

I'm 2.5 in a 4 and have restriction in terms of getting full faster, but still don't feel that there's some mechanical device that keeps me from overeating. I.e. noneo f my PBs have been from eating too much.

I'm fairly sure that the tighter we get, the less fill it takes to feel a major difference. So if you're at 3 in a 4, you'll probably feel .10cc like you feel 2cc if you're empty. :eek:

Just remember, it may just take .1 or .2cc to put you at the "OH BABY, I AM restricted!"

Shawn

I didn't feel a thing until I went to 2.8, a small amount makes a big difference!

when i was first banded i was filled to 3.4 before i had any restriction.

the BOTTOM line is you keep getting fills (and following rules) till you have the desired amount of restriction. my dr made me wait 2-3 weeks between fills.

it may take several more fills! the last fill i had (tuesday) i got .1 fill and i went from eating three eggs for Breakfast or one of those jumbo 1 inch thick porkchops to yogurt for breakfast and 4 oz meat with small side of veggies and that was from .1 cc.

I have 3cc in a 10cc band and I had restriction for about 2 weeks, now I'm back to what I was before the fill, I need another fill and who know's where I will end up when I finally get restriction, some people need their bands completly full before they ever get any good restriction. Like shoe said its not an exact science. Good Luck!

Same here....I just had a fill not too long ago and I feel like I can eat and eat and eat!!! I get the damn muchies from hell!! Like nothing fills me up and then there are days where WHOA! :eek: There it is!!! I get restriction. I think part of my problem is food choices. I try to stay safe eating foods that are soft instead of foods that have substance like chicken, fish and veggies. But I have been adding more foods that have a little bulk like boiled eggs and bacon for breakfast instead of oatmeal or grits. I noticed I stayed full longer when I had that. Hope your cousin gets everything straightened out!

thanks everyone for sharing! i will relay all of this to my cousin.

it does seem like she eats less within a certain time frame (even if it is still at the same meal time), but the band isn't helping her to feel full enough or to stop her from eating too often.

wanttobethin1,

do i have a band? no. am i overweight? depends on the day. ha!

seriously though, i have about 6 - 8 pounds to lose to make it to my goal weight range. however, the Never Too Thin Society (NTTS) would probably bump that up to 12 - 15 pounds. still even at goal weight, i am a "meaty" person with muscular thighs and a higher than expected weight that makes me feel always not quite there. i'm slowly releasing that though.