I am at my fourth fill now and I think it's a bit too tight. I PB a lot. And I can't seem to eat anything without it feeling like it's going to come back up. It burns right when I'm eating, and I'm down to 1,100 calories a day. Drinking is no problem. coffee, diet cokes, etc., all fine. I am eating mostly soft stuff now.

BUT, I am losing weight, so I'm tempted to leave it as is and hope the band loosens up a bit over the next few weeks.

Do you think the band will eventually loosen up? The reason I went in for the fourth fill was because I was starting to be able to eat everything in great quantities and was getting quite hungry. That sure isn't the case now.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

getting just the right fill is hard i think. im always a bit too tight at first, but i dont think you should be puking and risk damage to the stomach, and we are supposed to eat solid foods. the fact that you are losing weight is great. personally i would wait and see if you relax a bit. but i would also call and ask the doctor what he thinks? how much weight have you lost? if you are drinking protein shakes and lots of fluids than you should be able to keep up your energy. be careful and dont go too long with it too tight. good luck. im not much help, my band has a mind of its own. somedays tighter than others. i think maybe stress makes me tight. oh well.

Sometimes it takes you about a week to understand how the fill really is. Try and wait a few days. Julie

I agree. Once I went in for a slight unfill after a week and then 3 weeks later needed another fill. I had a fill 2 weeks ago and I'm tight right now but it will relax.

coffee, diet cokes, etc., all fine.

I can't help with the fill question but does your dr. know you are drinking diet cokes???? My doc said that carbonated drinks are the one thing that can never cross our lips again. It goes through the stoma, sits in the stomach and fizzes and can actually cause the stomach or pouch to burst and/or the pouch to be damaged by slippage or erosion or expansion. BIG problem!

That's interesting. My doc (who is pretty casual about a lot of things) told me that diet cokes were fine.

fitz..no offense to your doctor, but i would stop drinking the soft drinks. 95 percent of banders say their dr. says no carbonation.

I agree, becareful that your band does not slip.

Hello out there, I got a fill in April the 10th actually. I found it to be very restrictive. I am on my second fill now, the first didnt' make that much difference. So this one really is, I have gotten pretty sick with it and very limited as to what I can eat. When I called the doctor he wasn't in, But they suggested that I do protein drinks and liquids for a few days to see if it calms down the stomach, and it did, and was fine for awhile now I am getting sick alot again, the bright side is I am losing weight again. I am trying to tolerate the fill and not go for an unfill. I have no problems with some stuff, I can eat mashed potatoes with ff gravy and a veggie with that, I can eat pea soup. the Habitant, that is good with me. I am hoping the the band does loosen up a bit on its own. It can be very frustrating . I sure don't look at food the way I used to. I am just thankful when there is something that I can actually get down and at that point it tastes sooooo good. Keep in touch and feel free to write, Donna aka Mammysm@aol.com

Mine too. He's been doing them in other countries since 1985 and has done over 7000 and said his wife has been banded since 1995 and drinks one a day and no problem. He said there is no way that carbonation is going to stretch your stoma. Your band in on the outside of it. He says drink on if you like them.

I am on my 2nd fill and feel exactly the same. I am tight, but I think I need it this tight to lose weight. I'm trying to figure out what I can and cannot eat, how much etc. I have gotten stuck quite a few times, but it's getting better now after 5 days, and I have lost 4 pounds (and had only lost 5 in the 3 weeks prior, and none before that). I think it's hard to get to that perfect place.

Gretchen

banded 2/23/07

I was in the same boat as you for about 14 months. I lost about 65lbs doing it that way. When you PB is it really easy? Like with me I just bent over and it would come out. So there was no risk of hurting my band.. or so I thought. Everyone on this site pretty much talked me into getting an unfill. I did and I now feel great. Its only been a week. I have not lost any weight this week, but I have lots of energy. I have mental clarity as well. I only consume 1400 calories a day and I do exercise. I'm going to see how it goes. What the hell I can always get more put back in. But I can't afford another band if I mess this one up. I'm 10 lbs till goal so I'm going to try eating right and exercise on the last leg of this trip. GOOD LUCK... You do what you think is right for you.