I am around 9-10 weeks out and can eat around 60% of my old capacity. I can eat 12-16 ounces of food with Normal size bites and chewing. I can chug liquids without even thinking about it. I feel like my surgery was a failure. My doctor said "just cause you CAN eat 16 ounces doesn't mean you should"

well, no kidding but why did I go through all of this just for a slight reduction! I know surgery is a tool but there's no honeymoon period here! I watch everything I eat to keep at 1200 calories and it's a concerted effort. I do the elliptical for 45 minutes a day, 5 days a week. Results are so slow and I have been stalled for 4 or 5 weeks straight now. I am having NSVs but still can't help to feel depressed. My doc basically said that he doesn't want to over- restrict so I woud struggle to eat but I feel I have no boundaries, other than my own self imposed restrictions. I don't want to go through it again so I guess I just have to take the desire to loose and work hard...

I would be pissed! It sounds like your surgery was a waste of time! I'm so sorry. I would do some serious talking with that doctor

You can do it. Sorry to hear you are disheartened about all this' date=' just hang in there! What is the phyloric valve (excuse my spelling) that you mentioned??[/quote']

The Pyloric Valve function and how it pertains to your VSG.

The function of your Pyloric valve is the single most not talked about important part of understanding how and when you should eat and drink.

The Pyloric Valve is just that....It is a valve that is located at the bottom of your stomach/sleeve. This valve is in between your sleeve and the lower intestine. The basic definition of a valve is an apparatus that opens and closes.

When open this valve it is about the diameter of a dime. When closed it’s opening is closed down to the diameter of the head of a ballpoint pen.

Dense proteins and harder to digest foods will cause the Pyloric valve to close to hold the food in your stomach for pre-digestion...... stomach acids breaking down this “Rough” food.

That’s why we are told to eat dense proteins first.....To close the Pyloric Valve so food stays in your stomach/sleeve longer so we have a sense of satisfaction.

It takes about 30-60 minutes for the food to clear the Pyloric Valve...... Than it’s OK to drink.

That is also where the term slider food comes into play. A slider food does not close the Pyloric Valve and as the term is intended.....food slides right past an open Pyloric Valve.

There is a video that gets posted every so often that is supposed to explain food going past the Pyloric Valve. The guy uses a funnel and has apple sauce or something in it....and it shows the apple sauce dripping out the end of the funnel very slow. Than he pours water on top of the apple sauce to dilute it, illustrating drinking after eating.....and the diluted apple sauce runs through the funnel end faster. Than he concludes that this is how your pyloric valve works.

Well, it is a great video that only tells half the story.....remember it’s a valve...and he is only showing it in the open position....

So now the other half of the Pyloric Valve function..... You eat a dense protein like chicken that causes your Pyloric Valve to close. Say for example your sleeve has a 4oz. capacity.....and you eat 4oz. of chicken.....your sleeve is full and holding all 4 oz. of chicken for pre-digestion because your Pyloric Valve is closed.

So now try and drink something....where is it gonna go? Up.....Up until it hits another valve of sorts..... the Esophageal Sphincter (valve) and above that is a flapper valve. The function of these two valves is to hold food, bile and stomach acids in your stomach and not backing up into your air way. This is a very high pressure system. Thats why when you eat to much or drink after eating a hard to digest food and your Pyloric is closed.....It hurts cause you pressurized your intake track. Vomiting would be a natural pressure release.

So you can see how learning and understanding how the Pyloric Valve works is important as it pertains to eating and drinking with a Gastric Sleeve.

From frisco

I agree with another poster that you will find better support for your issues with a surgery forum for plication instead of the sleeve because most of us are unfamiliar with how that surgery works and issues around it. I'm sorry you are struggling. I hope Laura-Ven is on the right track and that capacity is larger at the beginning for this type of surgery, but winds up being the same down the road.

Lynda

I know your surgery is somewhat different then the sleeve, but what does the dr or nutritionist say about the number of calories you are getting daily? I know everyone is different but for only being 10wks out 1200 seems like a lot I'm almost 6 mos and still only at about 700-800.

What's your weight loss rate like? Hopefully some tweaking in your post op diet can help. Stay hopeful! It's a tough journey

No. This was my first big step with a wls. I had gastric plication which is different but in theory I should have more restriction. I chose plication because insurance covered all but 5,000 of it and no insurance clearing process (and my BMI wasn't high enough to qualify for any other wls)

I revised from band to banded gastric plication in 2011. 5 weeks ago I converted from banded plication to sleeve. In my sleeve doctor's opinion, my plication was not performed correctly, however, I did lose about 40ish pounds with it. I regained about 25 waiting to revise since my band was impossible to fill (cracked and flipped port). My plicated stomach was too large and after about 1 year I was able to eat roughly 60-70% of what I could eat prior to surgery. It didn't really help with my hunger issues either.

I wish I would've converted to sleeve in 2011 but I wasn't mentally ready at that time. I am very happy to have found an experienced sleeve surgeon and so far, I like my sleeve soooo much better than either my lapband or banded plication.

Good luck to you. I hope you can make it work!!

I know your surgery is somewhat different then the sleeve, but what does the dr or nutritionist say about the number of calories you are getting daily? I know everyone is different but for only being 10wks out 1200 seems like a lot I'm almost 6 mos and still only at about 700-800.

What's your weight loss rate like? Hopefully some tweaking in your post op diet can help. Stay hopeful! It's a tough journey

Both the nut and the doc thought my calorie intake is good. Plication does have a slower weight loss rate. I have lost 25 pounds post op but it's tapered off. Inches are coming off though so that's good. At 1000-1200, I am really restricting my intake to healthy options, primarily Protein, veggies and some low carb options like flax oat pita (50 calories). Don't think I could cut it much more unless I used Water to replace a meal and trick my stomach to be full.

I'm so sorry to hear what you are going through, Ive heard of the gastric plication but didn't read much into it. VST has the affiliate site http://www.sleeveplicationtalk.com/ you might have better luck at posting there.

I belong to that site but there's no activity on it alpt all. I posted nearly 2 weeks ago asking what others calorie intake is now and what it was before surgery and no responses. I ask here and got a dozen responses. I wish that other site had more activity but I do find useful and informative information on this site so I am more active here. It's still helpful to find support, eating tips, info like the valve (which I didn't know). So I work with where I can find data...

I revised from band to banded gastric plication in 2011. 5 weeks ago I converted from banded plication to sleeve. In my sleeve doctor's opinion, my plication was not performed correctly, however, I did lose about 40ish pounds with it. I regained about 25 waiting to revise since my band was impossible to fill (cracked and flipped port). My plicated stomach was too large and after about 1 year I was able to eat roughly 60-70% of what I could eat prior to surgery. It didn't really help with my hunger issues either.

I wish I would've converted to sleeve in 2011 but I wasn't mentally ready at that time. I am very happy to have found an experienced sleeve surgeon and so far, I like my sleeve soooo much better than either my lapband or banded plication.

Good luck to you. I hope you can make it work!!

I suppose down the road I could get the sleeve but I really don't want to go through that again. For me, the cost difference was huge since my insurance covered most of this procedure. I used a well known doctor here with over 20,000 surgeries and great reviews. Just think I didn't quite get the restriction I hoped for.

Ok I don't know why I thought you went from band to plication... It sounds though from what little I know that you will be able to take in more than the sleeve. Also I bet your stomach healed a lot faster than ours! Really at about the six month mark our stomachs relax a bit and we can get more in. I think it may have happened a lot sooner for you? This is all just me thinking out loud....

I think you might be right about that- it makes sense and it does heal faster. Guess my honeymoon period is over before it started

I have a problem with your dr saying just cus you can eat 16 oz doesn't mean you should! Well that's why we had weight loss surgery in the first place because we don't have self control. My surgery has forced me to have self control! I think your dr has done something wrong! If you can eat 16 oz after 10 weeks then what will you be able to eat at 6 months? A lot

I suppose down the road I could get the sleeve but I really don't want to go through that again. For me, the cost difference was huge since my insurance covered most of this procedure. I used a well known doctor here with over 20,000 surgeries and great reviews. Just think I didn't quite get the restriction I hoped for.

Yes I completely understand. My experience with the plication sounds very similar to yours. I hope that you are successful with the restriction you have and that you continue to have restriction. My restriction ended after about one year.

Good luck!