I had my band fitted 20 March this year. Have had 3 fills up to now the last one being a big one on 7th July - for the first few days I could hardly swallow my own spit. I lost 5/6 more lbs after this last fill. Thought I had hit my sweet spot but now the restriction is not there and I can eat bread, pasta anything and have gained a couple of lbs back. I am going for another fill this coming weekend. Unfortunately it isn't consistant and some days I can eat anything but the next day eating the same thing I am PBing like crazy.!!!!!!!!!!!

What I want to know is this. Is this what happens all the time. The band is tight for a few days after your fill and then eventually slackens [or the swelling after a fill subsides] I imagined that eventually you would have the band filled until you have perfect restriction [the sweet spot] and that it would stay like that and you would be losing around 2lbs a week.

Any answers would be really appreciated

When the fat around the stomach disappears you tend to need another fill. That is quite common. Even if you drop 6 lbs the band knows it.

For me, the sweet spot has been elusive.......lol..

But I am doing great loosing so I guess I shouldn't complain. I have had 9 fills/unfills total and that makes me almost at goal now. I think that the sweet spot is different for each person, but I am ta 3.75 now and can say I never found it. lol...or may be I did and I missed it??

Ah that seems to be the answer. Didn't think about losing the fat around the stomach as you lose weight.

Actually this week the band seems to be working for me. I have pulled back the weight I have gained over the last few weeks. I had the flu, throat and eye infections about three weeks ago and my diet really did go haywire. I have been really good eating food which I know will make my band work. I have also realised that I seem to get a sign when I should stop eating. It's not a full feeling as I don't seem to get that - I don't ever feel hungry either !!!! so I eat because it is meal time or I fancy something not through hunger. So figures I don't recognise full either. Anyway I seem to everytime I eat get the hiccups which I now am taking as my band saying 'stop eating' Have been doing this since the weekend and I have lot the 4 lbs I regained.

So think I am going to cancel my appointment for a fill this weekend [i would hate to have a fill and then have to go back for a defill - I have a three hour trip to the clinic!] and will see how it goes for a couple of weeks. I really must stop with the protein shakes as they obviously slip down far too easily although I do love them.

I had my band fitted 20 March this year. Have had 3 fills up to now the last one being a big one on 7th July - for the first few days I could hardly swallow my own spit. I lost 5/6 more lbs after this last fill. Thought I had hit my sweet spot but now the restriction is not there and I can eat bread, Pasta anything and have gained a couple of lbs back. I am going for another fill this coming weekend. Unfortunately it isn't consistant and some days I can eat anything but the next day eating the same thing I am PBing like crazy.!!!!!!!!!!!

What I want to know is this. Is this what happens all the time. The band is tight for a few days after your fill and then eventually slackens [or the swelling after a fill subsides] I imagined that eventually you would have the band filled until you have perfect restriction [the sweet spot] and that it would stay like that and you would be losing around 2lbs a week.

Any answers would be really appreciated

This may help you in understanding the restrictive mechanism of a Lap-Band.

The INAMED protocol for Lap-Band fills calls for a six-week delay after surgery, prior to any fills. The purpose for the six-week delay is for the patient’s stomach to heal from the surgery, as well as allowing time for the Lap-Band to “Seat” or “Nestle” into the fat pad between the stomach wall and the interior wall of the Lap-Band. Prior to receiving an EFFECTIVE fill, it is VERY uncommon to have any restriction from a Lap-Band. Some patients will NOT lose weight, or may even GAIN weight until they have received an effective fill in their Lap-Band. Normal weight loss with a properly restricted Lap-Band is between 1 and 2 pounds per week.

The normal cycle of fills, restriction and weight loss is as follows:

1. The patient's Lap-Band constricts when the patient receives a fill. Swelling for a few days after receiving a fill is very common. Many doctors require a patient to go on a liquid diet for a day or two after receiving a fill. A fill may have a “Delayed Action” of up to two weeks. A “Delayed-Action” means that the fill may not become effective for up to two weeks after the fill. That is why the INAMED protocol states that fills should not be performed on patients who will not have access to medical care for at least two weeks after a fill.

2. The patient's stomach capacity is lessened as a result of the restriction caused by the Lap-Band.

3. The patient loses weight because they cannot eat as much food.

4. The residual fat-pad between the inside of the Lap-Band and the outside of the patient's stomach reduces in size because of the overall weight loss in the patient.

5. The reduction of the residual fat-pad causes the Lap-Band to become loose again.

6. At that point, the patient needs another fill, because the Lap-Band is loose, and the patient has a loss of restriction, which allows the patient to eat larger amounts of food.

7. The patient receives another fill and the process starts all over again.

Most Lap-Band patients receive several fills to adjust the Lap-Band as their weight loss progresses, and there is less and less residual fat-pad between the inside of the Lap-Band and the exterior of the stomach wall. Once a patient has lost all of their residual fat-pad, fills become less common. As the Lap-Band patient progresses in their weight loss, the effect of very tiny fills (Less than .2ccs) becomes greater and greater. It is not uncommon for a late-stage Lap-Band patient to experience a significant difference in restriction with as little as .05cc of fill.