Hello all,

I just made my first deposit, to have my Lap-Band in Dubai in Jan. I was wondering if anyone can tell me, how much fill do they put in right after surgery, or if any at all? How much fill does the band hold approx? Are the fills painful, or just uncomfortable? :bandit

I am nervous, but I know Dr Christiaan De Bruyne is one of the best in Europe. his track record is amazing.

I am sure we all have those "hunger pains" but how are they after surgery? Does this procedure just make you unable to eat large portions, or does it actually make you feel full with less?

Thanks all!

Hello, Nu2. Congratulations on getting the band. Dubai, Holy Smokes, do you live there or are you just going there for surgery?

As for your questions:

- as far as I know, fills aren't usually received until after the stomach has had time to heal, it's often around 6 weeks.

- the amount of fill a band can hold depends on the size of band you receive.

- I don't find the fills painful at all and the discomfort is very minor.

- I didn't feel any actual hunger pains at all and didn't feel like eating at all until well after a week after surgery. However, I resisted and stayed on my liquids and mushies because I didn't want anything to interfere with the healing. I find that the band works both ways for me, I feel full with much less food and I am unable to eat a huge quantity. However I have to qualify that, I am in need of a fill at the moment and I can certainly eat much more than I could last month. I'm still looking for that "sweet spot".

These are just my experiences. The best thing to do is read this whole site. You have a few weeks until surgery so that's lots of time to read and ask more specific questions. There are many different band experiences out there.

All the best.