Hi everyone,

I had my 10cc band in May. After the surgery I was doing really well and lost 21lbs. I was so happy and thought that maybe by next May I would be well on my way to my goal weight. However, 4 months down the road and I've still only lost 21lbs!!! I have had 2 fills and feel no restriction at all. If I was at goal it would be great to finally know that I can maintain my weight - but I'm not and I have at least another 70lbs to go!!!!

I asked my doctor last time if he could maybe give me a 2cc fill this time, but he said no-one had ever asked for that before and he was not prepared to do that in case I had problems. Having read some of the other threads I understand it can take up to 7cc's to feel some restriction. Based on this info, it could potentially take me up until Feb 08 before I feel restriction!! I am so frustrated and disheartened that I have started the Weight Watchers Diet. I know that the lap band is not meant to be an instant solution, but I didn't expect to be stuck at this weight for so long. I can eat everything (although certain foods like rice and bread do stick - but I eat them anyway!!) I was hoping the lap band would make me not think about food - but now I'm back on the WW diet, all I do is plan meals and contantly think of food. Please help :help: has anyone else out there got the same problem.

I was thinking of joining, too. I haven't been banded that long (9/5) but since then I've only lost 12 pounds and holding. I'm not eating poorly, and I'm exercising daily.

From other posts that I've read, people drop 20 pounds here, another 10 there, etc...and I'm afraid that I won't lose anymore. I'm worried I won't feel restriction, since I'm not really feeling it now. I get full quicker and I'm sure a buffett would be out of the question!

But, WW is healthy and the reason it never worked for me before was because I was never full enough. I was always hungry. So, those thoughts have been rolling in my head. I even bought a frozen WW dessert box for when I really need something, and it went down easily enough.

Plus, you get the support for weight loss, and that's always been a plus for me.

Let me know if you decide to join. Like I said, I'm still debating. The drawback is the weekly fee!

Hi everyone,

I had my 10cc band in May. After the surgery I was doing really well and lost 21lbs. I was so happy and thought that maybe by next May I would be well on my way to my goal weight. However, 4 months down the road and I've still only lost 21lbs!!! I have had 2 fills and feel no restriction at all. If I was at goal it would be great to finally know that I can maintain my weight - but I'm not and I have at least another 70lbs to go!!!!

I asked my doctor last time if he could maybe give me a 2cc fill this time, but he said no-one had ever asked for that before and he was not prepared to do that in case I had problems. Having read some of the other threads I understand it can take up to 7cc's to feel some restriction. Based on this info, it could potentially take me up until Feb 08 before I feel restriction!! I am so frustrated and disheartened that I have started the Weight Watchers Diet. I know that the lap band is not meant to be an instant solution, but I didn't expect to be stuck at this weight for so long. I can eat everything (although certain foods like rice and bread do stick - but I eat them anyway!!) I was hoping the lap band would make me not think about food - but now I'm back on the WW diet, all I do is plan meals and contantly think of food. Please help :help: has anyone else out there got the same problem.

The reason for my doctor requiring a psych eval; is to be sure that I didn't think that 'the lap band would make me not think about food'. The band does not have a brain, and it can not work without your 100% dedication to it. Of COURSE you're going to still think about food. But in a much different way.

Trust me, I've been in your shoes with the big band. I had to wait 3 months before my first fill; which was 7cc! Still little if any restriction. It wasn't until 4 weeks ago; at my 3rd fill that I finally have GOOD restriction with 10.2 cc in my band. And even with THAT - the weight doesn't just 'fall off' because I'm eating WAY less. Try harder not to put a time limit on yourself. Just be grateful that you're going DOWN; not UP!

I'm not paying to attend a weekly class. I'm using my old literature and point counting cards to do it. I can't afford to go to a weekly weigh in - so am trying to have the discipline on my own.

I'm in the same boat and I feel like I'm sinking!! I was banded on June 19th, have had 3 fills which put me at 1.2 cc's in my band. And I seem to be able to eat ANYTHING! I had hoped to be out of the 200's by Christmas but that is NOT gonna happen at this rate. Maybe Christmas of 2008, but no, not this year. I go back for Fill #4 on Oct. 11th & I just wish he would fill that sucker up. I want to get this ball rolling. I don't understand why some doctors are so much more aggresive with their fills & mine appears to be so Stingy.

I have the same problem as I've always had.... if I don't take the time to plan my meals etc, I will end up eating in restaurants and making not so great choices ..albeit, smaller portions. But now my body just won't give up the fat... I'm down approx 41 lbs since being banded in Feb/07 but I have been up and down these last 7 lbs for so long that I have to do something about it. I HAVE to get these last 55 lbs off! Sooo, I'm back on Jenny Craig.

I know what you mean though... before I went back on Jenny Craig, I tried to do it myself, I mean, I have the band, this should be easy..right? Not so much! I now know what they were saying when I was looking into the band... "this is a tool and you have to really work at it". The first weight seemed like it fell off.. but now I'm struggling.. up 7lbs(depressed) / down 7 lbs (delighted) and the circle continues! I've realized I need structure..without really thinking about it...hence, Jenny Craig!

Soooo, I am back on Jenny Craig... the portions are small, the food is tasty... I don't really have to think about it... and the best part is I don't have to cook (hate cooking). I'm running every morning with hubby, eating Jenny Craig and wearing my Body Bugg... its all working for me.

I'd say you do what you have to do... probably getting another fill would help greatly... but why not join WW... you've got nothing to loose...except what you want to loose....excess weight!

Good Luck to you.....

Suzie Q

Every fill from my doc, I was begging him to just FILL IT UP! We butted heads on it.

He was doing .5cc at a time, and I felt nothing.

This 4th time, he said he was putting a whole cc in there, since I kept complaining. They couldn't get it in.

So long story short, they do contrast, realized my port was flipped backwards, and all this time he couldn't believe I didn't feel restriction, I didn't believe he was putting that much in there.. it was never going in there to begin with!!

So they revised it Friday and he said he filled it while I was under.. and I feel it! FINALLY.. I was in bandster hell from April-last week.

Every fill from my doc, I was begging him to just FILL IT UP! We butted heads on it.

He was doing .5cc at a time, and I felt nothing.

This 4th time, he said he was putting a whole cc in there, since I kept complaining. They couldn't get it in.

So long story short, they do contrast, realized my port was flipped backwards, and all this time he couldn't believe I didn't feel restriction, I didn't believe he was putting that much in there.. it was never going in there to begin with!!

So they revised it Friday and he said he filled it while I was under.. and I feel it! FINALLY.. I was in bandster hell from April-last week.

Wow......that sucks! Too bad your doc didn't listern to you a long time ago! Congrats on the 50 lbs!

I am so glad to hear that I am not alone. I had my surgery on August 4th. got my first fill 4 weeks after that (no restriction) and got my second fill today. I have a 5cc band and have filled 2.1cc so far. I can eat and not feel full/ restricted/ I also have thought of going back on Jenny. But the point was to change my habits and not just go on a diet. Anyhoo, I have only lost 20 lbs and have 48 to go...SUCKY! I feel that if I do not get the restriction soon I may freak out! :-)

The very 1st thing you gotta do is make good food choices with or without restriction. That is #1 and #2 is you gotta exercise.

This band is NOT the magic cure to your food issues - it banded your tummy not your brain... Only you control what goes into your mouth not the band. The band does not take away hunger and it doesn't take away you thinking about food (imho) - it is a tool to control protions - someone mentioned that they didn't have much restriction but did get stuck on bread and rice but still ate it - what is that all about.

IMHO there is nothing out there that is going to take away your hunger

The reason we are all FAT right now is cuz we ate alot of food (high fat - high sugar and didn't exercise) That is the plain and simple fact.

My tyical dinner pre banding would be 3 tacos w/beans (made w/lard) then a hour later 2 more tacos & Beans with tons of cheese and then 1 more taco before bed and then during the middle of the night brownies - Cookies - ice cream and all i did was sit on my butt- now typical dinner 4 oz fish - 1/2 cup brown rice - 1 - to 1 1/2 cup veggies - 2 sf pudding and sf fudgecicle - or sf angel food cake w/dannon yogurt - am i still hungry - sometime even though my tummy is full - ya i could eat more but i don't

I think WW is the most well rounded weight loss program out there - it's not a diet - it a program to teach you how to eat health. You get veggies Protein carbs etc it is a life time program as you learn what a portion is - Jenny Craig is good to but that gets expensive - You have to plan what you are going to eat you have to shop you gotta weigh thing to know what a correct portion size is. will you have to do this for the rest of your life - hopefully not once you learn what a true portion size is - we fat people have a whole different defenition of portion size - "I use to say - who came up with a pint of ice cream being 4 servings - hell that's only one serving"

You gotta work at this - the band isn't going to do it for you - for lunch today - i had 1 cup chili and side salad - know what i wanted - I wanted a sandwich cuz I was HUNGRY - but I figured that I could have a salad & chili for about 1/4 calories of what a sandwich would be - I wanted the dressing on my salad - but didn't put it on - just dipped my fork into it a couple of times - I was still hungry after i ate the whole salad and whole cup of chili - I could have eaten more (they had great looking cookies)- but in order to lose weight I couldn't - i am hungry right now and it 3:30 - so I am drinking my Water - We are going to be hungry for a while - we are use to eating alot of food but we just don't realize that we were/are eating hugh amounts...

Got to the thread "At or near Goal" ask those people how they got there - did the band do it or did they do it. I bet most will answer that they made wise food choices and exercised and ya they had some help from the band but that they did most of the work not the band.

I don't mean to be mean or offend here - just giving you tough band love and the operative word is love - I just think that too many people think the band is going to do all the work and that they don't have to do any... you are told only to expect 1 -2 lbs a week - if you want more - exercise more... If i lose only 1 lbs a week i am happy - but i am working at this lot harder than the band is.. i make wise food choices 1000 to 1200 calories a day which i log and I walk 10- 13 miles a week. The band is only a piece of plastic it can't make your food choices or do the exercise for you...

Good Luck - I wish you strenght to make the wise food choices and exercise.

Jammy,

I am so sorry to here about your struggles. Some doctors seem to be so reluctant to be aggressive with fills, while other doctors and centers are more open to it. Have you thought about trying to go elsewhere for your fills? It would suck to have gone through everything you did to have the surgery, and still have to wait nearly a year to get the full effect of it.

From what I've read on this site, some docs will give up to 4 ccs at the very first fill, and then let you come in for adjustments as soon as a week afterwards if you don't feel restrictive enough.

The fill center I was planning to go to also will only put .5cc in at a time. I am in the process of looking for someone else! With a 10cc band, .5cc a month just isn't gonna cut it!

Hello,

I am in bandster hell as well. My insurance requires a 90 day wait until my first fill...so I've basically had no restriction for quite a while...

However, I am forcing myself to eat the bandsters diet. 3-4ounces of Protein, and then a little veg or starch...Not too much. I eat only three times a day and drink one Protein shake a day. PERIOD! I drink a ton of Water to help curb the hunger...and I drink a large unsweetened iced tea from MCDonalds a few times a week. It's my treat to myself.

This is not fun, but at least I am still losing weight. Not as quickly or easily as I thought I would...but I think come October 11th, all will change.

Does your dr. charge you for the fills or are the included? If you are paying, would you think about going to a fill center instead of the dr??

All my best...I just don't know if WW will help you because you should be doing a bandsters diet..and WW's diet is different.

:rose:

Rain

Hello,

All my best...I just don't know if WW will help you because you should be doing a bandsters diet..and WW's diet is different.

Rain

Rain

What is different about the bandsters diet and WW - I didn't know there was a bandsters diet. My Doc & Nutritionist said that these were my guildlines- #1 Protein 60 grms daily, low fat, low sugar, 3 meals plus 2 healthy Snacks - Vitamins, calicum. I am allowed to pick and choose what i eat - I am not limited as to what i eat - just that it's healthly and in size with correct portions - 1/4 cup ice cream (sf) instead of the whole pint made with real sugar & cream.

In our lives we allow for a margin of error – which we should also do when trying to eat healthy – if you are eating 1000-1200 calories a day – allow for some of those calories to be used for a little bit of something you really want (chocolate - have a healthy choice fudgecicle - it's s/f & 80 calories)- you need wiggle room in your diet to make it work (I save my morning and afternoon snacks for night time which is my worst time) – the all or nothing practices has to be thrown our of your mind.

You can learn to reprogram your mind to strip away the guilt that comes with dieting. You have to realize that it’s not that the first slice of cake that will doom your diet – it’s the second or third or whole thing that leads to weight gain.

You have to listen to your body & respond smartly to your cravings and emotions but over time you will learn how to eat right and mange your craving and that’s when you’ll train your brain to stop obsessing about eating right and punishing yourself – If you stop overthinking you’ll stop over eating..

I am in the pre-op testing stage. After reading this thread, I'm really confused.

After banding I know that we will still be having head hunger and all the head issues.

But when you talk about eating one cup of chile, a salad etc. and then still being hungry, why is everyone saying that "they have a couple bites of food", and are then full? Or, "all you'll be able to eat is about 3/4 cup of food". I don't get it.

I am hoping that being banded, I will feel "full" after eating a very limited quantity of food. That's not what I'm hearing....isn't that the purpose of the band?

Marieze

Your GOAL is to be hungry with 1/4-1/2c of food (everyone has their own thoughts on that).

But after banding--- and before you are resticted well.. that's not going to happen.

It's bandster hell.. while you're waiting to be filled to the restriction of choice, it's like you don't even have the band (for me anyway).

So you get filled up. Eventually you get filled to the point of good restriction, and when you eat little portions of food you get full.

do you mean "full" with 1/4 to 1/2 cup of food?

Marieze