Hungry or not?

[zoeiyla 6]

Ok so i was banded in nov and had my first fill in jan 3cc, is it just me or does it feel like i habe to diet, is this the whole point? I can still eat as much as i did b4 i feel like its a constant battle i have a fill on friday also do you think its because i need more fills? Once your at green zone is it easier? I need some advise please.

[Bandista 7,466]

The band is a process and every one is different. I am some one who needed several fills to get to the green zone. In retrospect that was a good thing because I really had to learn how to be more mindful and SLOW down. So for me the incremental stages were valuable. As for hunger, I had to learn that, too, as it had been so long since I had really felt hungry. At the first sensation of anything, I'd put food in my mouth. So that was a learning process as well. And now I welcome hunger and see it as a positive thing. Good luck to you -- you're on your way. The links in my signature below really helped me understand how the band works and how to work the band.

[B-52 7,113]

My first fill, 4 weeks after surgery was 4cc's....next fill was 4 weeks after that...in between I GAINED weight.

It was as though I did not even have the band.

2nd fill was 2cc's...things evened out, lost a little, but not much..it was still a lot of will power...

3rd fill 4 weeks after that, 12 weeks from surgery...was a charm! As a matter of fact I had a hard time coping with the restriction. But my Dr. asked me to hang in there, slow down, apply the rules now more than ever because this is where they make sense, and to stop and think about what and how I am eating....

I had a lot of stuck episodes...at least one a day, sometimes more...but because of all that I finally came around and changed my behavior, (forced to) and now it is all second nature...don't even need to think about it.

I'm glad he did...that was over 3-1/2 years ago....not a fill since, and holding steady at my body's (not mine) optimal weight.

Diet is nothing but a 4 letter word.

Edited February 11, 2015 by B-52

[zoeiyla 6]

Thank your for your advise, like you said its about changeing within your self but finding it really hard atm, is a stuck episode when youv eaten to much and u get cramp in ur stomach? I had this several times hopefully the fills start giving me restriction soon fingers crossed

[lisacaron 5,075]

@@zoeiyla I have the feeling that what you are thinking of in terms of "restriction" is that when your band is tight enough you are not going to want to or be able to over eat or eat bad food. I could be wrong, but just know that this is not how the band works

Wen we talk about the band being in the green zone or having restriction, this means that you are at the point where you are satisfied with a smaller volume of food at any given meal. This does not mean that you can't over eat, or that you will no longer crave things like chocolate and sugar, though a band that is set at it's optimal fill level or green zone can help to diminish these feelings by keeping you feeling satisfied on that smaller amount of food helping you to make a good choice of food.

That said you have to be the one who chooses to eat good wholesome foods in the correct amounts. You can easily over eat the band and the sensation that it's giving you to tell you that you have had enough. When you are a WLS patient often our eyes are much bigger then our tummy but in the case of the band if you allow yourself to push it you can eat more then you require.

A stuck episode usually happens because of several things, either you took too big of a bite, ate too quickly, or perhaps you didn't quite chew it up as fine as you thought you had. It can also happen if you being to stack food, taking one bite after another before the first bite has cleared the band through the stoma into the larger stomach. This can cause a bit of a dilation above the band and is very uncomfortable.

The feeling, can go from one of heart burn to chest pain to shortness or painful breathing if it's pressing against the diaphragm. Drinking and eating with food can cause this stacking situation as well but in a way where the Fluid will push its way under the bolus of food and often cause it to come back up and out.

Sometimes if something is stuck even mildly you will get the slimes and this is gross...sorry. The mucus will build up as it tries to push the food through the stoma and you will feel the need to bring it back up.

So...all this said, the band takes time and a bit of work to find the optimal fill level for you and we are all different. Some need 5cc some need 3 and some of us need 7 etc.

Good eating mechanics along with mindful eating will help you in the long run. You don't want to be too tight, where fluids and your own saliva can't go down but you want to have enough restriction so that you are satisfied with a small amount of food at a sitting and not hungry again for at least 4 hours. Then I would say you are in the green zone and at optimal restriction.

Sometimes you may not feel hungry at all, and you will be surprised by how little we really need to eat and be healthy. i know I am every day!!

[zoeiyla 6]

Yes your right i guess i thought my band would stop me from eating lol, just need to get somewhere with the band doesnt feel like i have one atm i have a fill in the morning so maybe that will do the trick my head is still in my old ways and wants choclate choclate choclate which i need to change i no but its so hard i just want to feel something so it doesnt feel as if im dieting i could have done that without all the expenive of a band time and pain also, whole reason i had a band was because i cant diet!!

[Angelant76 8]

This was a great discussion topic! Glad I got to read all the feedback. I am 3 weeks post and my swelling has gone down hence my hunger has returned. I am trying to manage and not gain the weight I lost since cleanse. I find myself being able to last the 4 hours in between but can clearly eat more than a cup worth. I have an appointment on the 20th this month. Thinking I need a fill personally. However the head hunger is what I'm beating now.

[kathy5677 0]

I actually have the new I-Band=lap band + 1 stitch in stomach. After my first fill I was still hungry all the time. Met someone who had the band 3+ years ago and she mentioned her Dr gave her Phentermine to help with the hunger, and she went to a new dr who was more aggressive with fills. I asked when I went in for my 2nd fill and was told I needed to be patient and no I could not have any appetite suppression medicines. I'm still hungry all the time, and feel discouraged that I only lost 3 lbs on the last visit. It's embarrassing at work to have others hear my stomach growl-but that's what's happening. I've been using Protein shakes (30gr of protein) for breakfast-2.5 oz tuna and 2 oz of avocado for lunch and then by mid afternoon-its growling again! I don't want to start snacking and put weight on.

Will the next fill make it so I am not hungry all the time? Should I see another dr to see if I need something more aggressive?

[cccv4 85]

I know how ya feel, sista! I am still in the process and am at 6 cc, and I can still eat anything I want without restriction. My restriction comes in when I see that I cannot consume what I used to be able to consume. This has been humbling, and has SLOWED ME DOWWWWNNN! It has mentally taught me that I need to work with my band, not against it. It has slowed me down by me being more cautious about what I want to consume, and realize that this is a journey. Hang in there!

[funky_monkey800 245]

As for me, I feel most of my hunger is in my head.....if I am bored, or everyone else is eating, for some reason I feel like I should be too....weird right?

Everyone is different.. I just had a fill to 4cc on Monday and it doesn't feel any different. But I will give it a few weeks before I decide if I need something else...my doc did say where I have had 3 fills some people with the band the same length as me have had up to 10. So I think there is a lot of fine tuning involved.

I would definitely get in with your doc and let them know how hungry you are, how much you can eat, and how long you can go in between meals. Keep us posted!