Hello,

Before anyone directs me to another thread link, I already know this has been done before. I have researched old threads and can navigate this site well. I would like the most recent information pertaining to this subject please. :help:

I was banded in June in Mexico and had the 10 cc VG band done by Dr. Joya. Great surgery, no complications.

My problem now is that the only weight loss I had was in the first 3 weeks after surgery, none since then and I am gaining that weight loss back at an alarming rate.

My after care doctor in my town is Dr. Helmuth Billy. He is a great, competent Dr. My only concern is that I don't think he has treated many patients with this larger band and he is very conservative with fills. He wants to make sure there are no slips or errosion by doing agressive fills. Wonderful.

Unfortunately, I have had no restriction since the first few weeks of being banded. My research on the board show that those with this band need A LOT more in their fills to reach the sweet spot. I want to take as much data as possible supporting this to my next appointment with him (on Thursday). I need to get a good fill this time. I am in a very deep depression because of my weight issues after spending thousands of dollars on this procedure. I need a jump start to get me going again and give me a shot in the arm. I don't think I'll be able to take a nother small fill and wait another few months to get to a point where I feel any restricion.

I hope you help and support me as this is tearing my psyche apart. Thanks to all of you for your help.:eek:

I am up to 10cc and still very little restriction!! I am starting to think there is a problem with the band or the position. My doc thinks everything is fine. I don't know what to do anymore

I've had a similar problem. My fill doctor is a nurse practitioner and she's also very conservative. My first fill was only 2 cc's. I then didn't see her for seven weeks. This was not on purpose. It was her busy schedule. In that seven weeks, I had no restriction whatsoever, was hungry all the time and was seriously questioning why I had the surgery. I gained three pounds and was very unhappy. When I saw her again, she said that "they" were learning more and more about the VG band and realize that they have to be more aggressive with the fills, so I got 3 cc's that visit and for the first time since the surgery in June I have a sense of some restriction. I'm now learing to eat a whole new way, even smaller bites and chewing, chewing, chewing. I will need more restriction because I can still eat way too much food in one sitting, but I'm learing what foods to avoid and I finally feel as though progress is being made. My only advise to others with the VG band is to insist on bigger fills, at least at the beginning. You can fine tune the fills after you reach some restriction.

I am up to 10cc and still very little restriction!! I am starting to think there is a problem with the band or the position. My doc thinks everything is fine. I don't know what to do anymore

At my last fill, it put me at 10.2 cc; and my restriction is 'minimal' right now. Doc told me that 'some people'...just don't get the full sensation. I'm hoping for another fill soon.

I don't know what my fillis currently- I've only had 2 and I am WAY TOO TIGHT. My last fill was June 5th- and I should have went back for an unfill by now. The problem is....I live 4 hrs from my doctor and am a self pay patient and didn't want to take the time or $$$, to be able to eat more. I've given up though- I'm going for an unfill tomorrow- just slight. I just want to be able to eat healthier. I live on ice cream and mashed potatoes- everything else COME UP!!! I'll keep you updated. My weight loss has been great needless to say!! I'm posting this to say being too tight is miserable- conservative is OK!!! Trust me.

See doctors who say things like that piss me off. I know 3 other people personally who were banded. Restriction has nothing to do with feeling full. It has to do with the ability to eat a certain amount. I had restriction for a week. I felt hungry but I couldn't eat. Its embarrassing to that so many people know that i had the surgery and I am losing weight so slow. I am just frustrated. I didn't go through the pain of surgery and the expense of paying for every fill out of pocket for no reason. If I knew it was going to be like this I wouldn't have bothered.

missbumbleebee - I too am a self pay and feel like my weight loss has been really slow. I have 5ccs in a 10cc band and feel restriction only in the morning till around noon. I have lost around 22 lbs and was banded on 8/1/07. I am going for another fill on 10/22 and hope for another 2 ccs so that I can get to my sweet spot and at least feel restriciton in the evenings. I get home from work and want to chew my arms off. Don't be embarrassed about your success. Ask yourself " Would I have lost the little I have lost without Mr. Bandy?"

I have had three fills now and this one at 4.5 has been really weird for me. Some days I feel I am getting too much in and other days I can hardly get a protein shake down. It has a mind of its own but my Dr. put in .5cc of the gel this time which is suppose to make it last longer. Your stomach adapts to the restriction after awhile that is why they can take out the same amount they put in but you don't feel it is there anymore. Everyone's stomach is different. I can't amagine having anything tighter right now when others have 7cc and still don't feel much restriction. If you use the floro you can see the powder liquid you drink go down and if it stays in your pouch and then slowly trickles down then you have the restriction your wanting. If you gulp at that point you will learn from the pain that it is now time to sip. It is all trial and error but it is all worth it. I was reading on another thread about not having any hunger. I feel tight restriction but I definitely still get hungry. Though now that I am almost at my year anniversary I have learned that hunger is not just your stomach but also you head and old habits.

bump

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Well I finally am filled up to 10cc in my 10cc band after almost 6 months of being banded. I was really starting to worry. Believe it or not I am just now finally understanding what restriction is. Iven at 9,5 not much but that extra .5 was what I needed. I guess my Dr was right, You got to take it up slow until you hit your spot. Scale finally starting to move again.

4RE4ME, you are giving me hope!

I have the 11 CC vanguard. I am so glad this thread came back up – I was looking for it a few days ago. I am at 7.5 CC and I am feeling some pretty good restriction but I think I need more. I have lost 23 lbs in 7 months.That is REALLY good for me (I lose very slow, and usually gain). I am thrilled with that. But I also realize I need better restriction and that most bandsters loose much faster than that.

My surgeon is very conservative. The band was completely unfilled initially. (Some surgeons fill it – to a degree – before they finish surgery.) My first fill (6 weeks later) was 2 CC. Since then I have gone up by 1 or 1.5 CC increments. I appreciate my surgeon’s reluctance to forge ahead recklessly for fear of complications. After all, I think it’s pretty safe to say that slower WL is better than super fast WL, and it is only wise to proceed slowly to avoid problems. I also acknowledge that I have not been super aggressive about getting fills and have been eating too many carbs (as well as protein shakes – they were completely nixed at my last appointment 6 days ago). There are some aspects of the diet that I have fudged on a bit. For example, I have probably eaten too many carbs. I often eat soup + crackers for dinner (bloated carbs fill you up!) while my family eats steak, hamburgers, etc. I was advised to knock that off and dig into the dense proteins. I guess I knew that before but meat is not my thing and I thought reduced calorie soups would be ok. Instead, I'm learning that the bandster dieticians are essentially pushing an Atkins-type diet. (When I was first banded, they were promoting the protein shakes and light meals; they told me the other day that they are changing their tune on that advice - skip the shakes and focus on protein, not calories.)

During my fill last Monday, I actually felt (physically) the band tightening for the first time. In previous fills, I watched it on the fluoro screen and saw barium going through very rapidly and without any trouble.

I have mixed feelings about this band. I once heard someone say it is used for people who carry most fat in the belly. I don’t – mine’s mainly on my hips and butt and thighs. But I think it is the only band my surgeon’s office uses these days. They like it bc it offers a lot of tinkering and MANY fewer complications, from what they’ve told me.

Hey Syrah,

Low fat, low carb, no alcohol but yet all good in moderation. It can drive you nuts. (which aren't bad either in moderation). If meat is not your thing how about fish? The way they are packing tuna lately allows you to stick it in you pocket and eat it anywhere. Seems like the only thing anyone can agree on is eat your protein.

I am so glad this thread came back up – I was looking for it a few days ago.

I have asked that this and the 4cc band thread similar be made into a sticky. Perhaps if others ask, it may become a sticky.

I also refer to the 4cc band OFTEN.

I bumped this thread recently because of a poster on another thread asking a question.

Valuable information in these threads.

Thanks for bumping this up, Paulax. I'm also losing very slowly (22 lbs in 6 months) and I'm up to 8cc's. I go back in 1.5 weeks and am going to ask for another fill. I still get hungry between meals, and I really expected this to be less of a struggle than it is.

The only good thing happening is that my exercise is improving and while my arthritis still can be painful, I now can see improvement in my mobility and strength. I have to keep reminding myself that I didn't get this way overnight and it will take a long time to reduce my weight and reverse years of bad habits. My husband also keeps reminding me that at least the scale has gone down in 6 months. If I hadn't had the surgery I could have easily gone up 22 lbs.

I have the VG band got it on oct 11 and I have first fill dec 1 have no restriction and when I called around to fill docs I got shock that any doc would put the VG band in someone with a low BMI 32 they said the VG is for really big people. My fear is it wont work thanks for you posts I guess with enough fill it does work just have to get there.

the size of your outside does not have much to do with the size of your insides.