I have been banded for 2 mos now and have had to 2 fills (2cc total/4ccband and I can still eat everything. I have had a few things feel like they get stuck (didn't chew enough), but I don't feel full. What is going on? Am I close to restriction if I have had a few things get stuck? It has been two weeks since my last fill, how long should I wait? I am so frustrated. I have lost only 10 pounds and that is including pre-op. Please someone give me hope that this will work. What does it feel like to be at the right restriction? Do you PB when your pouch is full? I know these are probably stupid questions, but I feel like a failure:cry.

You'll not like what I have to say...

But examine what you are eating, what's going on in your head...you might be having head hunger. If stuff is getting stuck you've got restriction.

If you've only lost 10 pounds in 2 months, which isn't bad, but some do better, examine how many calories you are eating and how many you are burning. Eat fewer calories and burn more.

I know I sound flippant, and that's not my point but you've got to work with the band, it will not do all the work on its own.

Good luck.

I have been banded for 2 mos now and have had to 2 fills (2cc total/4ccband and I can still eat everything. I have had a few things feel like they get stuck (didn't chew enough), but I don't feel full. What is going on? Am I close to restriction if I have had a few things get stuck? It has been two weeks since my last fill, how long should I wait? I am so frustrated. I have lost only 10 pounds and that is including pre-op. Please someone give me hope that this will work. What does it feel like to be at the right restriction? Do you PB when your pouch is full? I know these are probably stupid questions, but I feel like a failure:cry.

One big lesson for people like us is that we are not looking for a "full" feeling. Fat people eat to be stuffed full to the brim. Thin people eat until they are no longer hungry. See the difference? That's the biggest issue I see in your post.

With the band and with some time the obsession with food comes to an end. You just don't care if you are T-Day full or not. You actually prefer not to be that full. Being full while banded is painful, uncomfortable, and you risk barfing and slipping. So it's critical that you realize you aren't looking for full you are looking for satisfied. You are not satisfying head hunger but stomach hunger instead.

Also, feeling full feels different banded vs. unbanded. Sometimes I try to remember what feeling full felt like before the band and I no longer remember, hard as I may try. That takes a bit of getting used to as well.

You need to be tracking every single bite of food, Water, and drink that goes into your mouth. Use Calorie Counter, Diet Tracking, Food Journal, Nutrition Facts at The Daily Plate or FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal. Whichever you prefer. I like thedailyplate the best. It's user friendly. I only use it to track weight and calories burned but I use a spreadsheet for food types, serving size, calories, and Protein. This takes me MAYBE five minutes daily. I've done it since the day of surgery.

When you have to track your food you see where your calories are going. How many calories does your doc permit? And how many are you consuming? Are you eating 3 meals daily? What about Snacks? Are you eating solid protein first? Then veggies? Then IF you have room a SMALL amount of carbs? Are you grazing? Eating at night? Is head hunger getting to you? How much are you exercising?

I keep calories at 600 daily, I cut out all white carbs. I don't eat in the evenings because at that point it's only head hunger or I"m just plain bored.

Keep in mind, when it comes to food issues there are lots of physiological and emotional reasons for over eating. But not exercising is sheer lazy behavior. There is NO excuse for not exercising. Some folks can't run, that's okay. Walk. Some folks are too large to get up and walk so they can do chair exercises. No excuse for not exercising. I hate it, personally I hate running but I do it anyway because it works and it's necessary. I keep telling myself that I love running but the truth is, I hate it. But I have to admit I don't hate it nearly as much as I used to. It's like cleaning the kitchen. Few really enjoy doing it, you do it because you have to. Same holds true with exercise.

Also, maybe you aren't at your sweet spot yet. What date was your last fill? Do you feel any restriction compared to unbanded?

One big lesson for people like us is that we are not looking for a "full" feeling. Fat people eat to be stuffed full to the brim. Thin people eat until they are no longer hungry. See the difference? That's the biggest issue I see in your post.

With the band and with some time the obsession with food comes to an end. You just don't care if you are T-Day full or not. You actually prefer not to be that full. Being full while banded is painful, uncomfortable, and you risk barfing and slipping. So it's critical that you realize you aren't looking for full you are looking for satisfied. You are not satisfying head hunger but stomach hunger instead.

Also, feeling full feels different banded vs. unbanded. Sometimes I try to remember what feeling full felt like before the band and I no longer remember, hard as I may try. That takes a bit of getting used to as well.

You need to be tracking every single bite of food, Water, and drink that goes into your mouth. Use Calorie Counter, Diet Tracking, Food Journal, Nutrition Facts at The Daily Plate or FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal. Whichever you prefer. I like thedailyplate the best. It's user friendly. I only use it to track weight and calories burned but I use a spreadsheet for food types, serving size, calories, and Protein. This takes me MAYBE five minutes daily. I've done it since the day of surgery.

When you have to track your food you see where your calories are going. How many calories does your doc permit? And how many are you consuming? Are you eating 3 meals daily? What about Snacks? Are you eating solid protein first? Then veggies? Then IF you have room a SMALL amount of carbs? Are you grazing? Eating at night? Is head hunger getting to you? How much are you exercising?

I keep calories at 600 daily, I cut out all white carbs. I don't eat in the evenings because at that point it's only head hunger or I"m just plain bored.

Keep in mind, when it comes to food issues there are lots of physiological and emotional reasons for over eating. But not exercising is sheer lazy behavior. There is NO excuse for not exercising. Some folks can't run, that's okay. Walk. Some folks are too large to get up and walk so they can do chair exercises. No excuse for not exercising. I hate it, personally I hate running but I do it anyway because it works and it's necessary. I keep telling myself that I love running but the truth is, I hate it. But I have to admit I don't hate it nearly as much as I used to. It's like cleaning the kitchen. Few really enjoy doing it, you do it because you have to. Same holds true with exercise.

Also, maybe you aren't at your sweet spot yet. What date was your last fill? Do you feel any restriction compared to unbanded?

Great post, thank you so much... Rick

One big lesson for people like us is that we are not looking for a "full" feeling. Fat people eat to be stuffed full to the brim. Thin people eat until they are no longer hungry. See the difference? That's the biggest issue I see in your post.

With the band and with some time the obsession with food comes to an end. You just don't care if you are T-Day full or not. You actually prefer not to be that full. Being full while banded is painful, uncomfortable, and you risk barfing and slipping. So it's critical that you realize you aren't looking for full you are looking for satisfied. You are not satisfying head hunger but stomach hunger instead.

Also, feeling full feels different banded vs. unbanded. Sometimes I try to remember what feeling full felt like before the band and I no longer remember, hard as I may try. That takes a bit of getting used to as well.

You need to be tracking every single bite of food, Water, and drink that goes into your mouth. Use Calorie Counter, Diet Tracking, Food Journal, Nutrition Facts at The Daily Plate or FitDay - Free Weight Loss and Diet Journal. Whichever you prefer. I like thedailyplate the best. It's user friendly. I only use it to track weight and calories burned but I use a spreadsheet for food types, serving size, calories, and Protein. This takes me MAYBE five minutes daily. I've done it since the day of surgery.

When you have to track your food you see where your calories are going. How many calories does your doc permit? And how many are you consuming? Are you eating 3 meals daily? What about Snacks? Are you eating solid protein first? Then veggies? Then IF you have room a SMALL amount of carbs? Are you grazing? Eating at night? Is head hunger getting to you? How much are you exercising?

I keep calories at 600 daily, I cut out all white carbs. I don't eat in the evenings because at that point it's only head hunger or I"m just plain bored.

Keep in mind, when it comes to food issues there are lots of physiological and emotional reasons for over eating. But not exercising is sheer lazy behavior. There is NO excuse for not exercising. Some folks can't run, that's okay. Walk. Some folks are too large to get up and walk so they can do chair exercises. No excuse for not exercising. I hate it, personally I hate running but I do it anyway because it works and it's necessary. I keep telling myself that I love running but the truth is, I hate it. But I have to admit I don't hate it nearly as much as I used to. It's like cleaning the kitchen. Few really enjoy doing it, you do it because you have to. Same holds true with exercise.

Also, maybe you aren't at your sweet spot yet. What date was your last fill? Do you feel any restriction compared to unbanded?

What a FANTASTIC post!

I just LOVE this part:

"One big lesson for people like us is that we are not looking for a "full" feeling. Fat people eat to be stuffed full to the brim. Thin people eat until they are no longer hungry. See the difference?"

May I please use it in future posts?

What a FANTASTIC post!

I just LOVE this part:

"One big lesson for people like us is that we are not looking for a "full" feeling. Fat people eat to be stuffed full to the brim. Thin people eat until they are no longer hungry. See the difference?"

May I please use it in future posts?

Of course, Wendell. I use your stuff ALL the time! You are the person I learned a lot of my info from.

Thank you for your advice, and I appreciate you even taking the time to write. I guess I was hoping that the band would help me not eat as much. I am a volume eater. If I am feeling hungry, I try drinking more water, but then I worry that I'm not suppose to do that either. I don't know the trick yet. How is the band suppose to help if I have to be on a strict diet? I failed those diets. I need help with portion control. I got my band in Mexico and have a local surgeon giving me fills. I have had 2 fills/ 1cc each, and my last fill was over 2 weeks ago. He really doesn't talk to me much, he just says come back when I need to. I would like to go back to Mexico, but haven't had the time. As for exercise, my only exercise right know is my work. I am a nurse, and in graduate school. I work 3- 12hr shifts and then work 2 8's. Any extra time I am going to class and writing papers. I am exhausted. I guess it was a bad time to get the band, but I was hoping it would help me out more. I am not trying to sound like whoa is me, I'm just frustrated and I appreciate any advice since I have no one really to talk to about here.

Thank you again. I will try tracking what I'm eating better. I really do want to lose weight, because when I graduate next year, I don't want to walk across the stage FAT!!!! That's my goal

Thank you for your advice, and I appreciate you even taking the time to write. I guess I was hoping that the band would help me not eat as much. I am a volume eater. If I am feeling hungry, I try drinking more Water, but then I worry that I'm not suppose to do that either. I don't know the trick yet. How is the band suppose to help if I have to be on a strict diet? I failed those diets. I need help with portion control. I got my band in Mexico and have a local surgeon giving me fills. I have had 2 fills/ 1cc each, and my last fill was over 2 weeks ago. He really doesn't talk to me much, he just says come back when I need to. I would like to go back to Mexico, but haven't had the time. As for exercise, my only exercise right know is my work. I am a nurse, and in graduate school. I work 3- 12hr shifts and then work 2 8's. Any extra time I am going to class and writing papers. I am exhausted. I guess it was a bad time to get the band, but I was hoping it would help me out more. I am not trying to sound like whoa is me, I'm just frustrated and I appreciate any advice since I have no one really to talk to about here.

Thank you again. I will try tracking what I'm eating better. I really do want to lose weight, because when I graduate next year, I don't want to walk across the stage FAT!!!! That's my goal

The band will help you to eat less but you need the right restriction. Are you getting fills under fluoro? Who is your surgeon? How far are you from him?

Many times fill docs don't go by restriction they go by cc's. Instead of filling you properly they keep you coming back for more fill fees. Not all of them but some of them.

Just eat your solid Protein first then veggies. That will keep you full longer. Drink all the water you want before you eat. Drink a lot.

The diet isn't as strict as you think when you have restriction. When you eat solid protein you don't really have room for the crap foods and it makes head hunger much more easy to deal with.

You can do this, you just need good restriction.

I know you are ready to feel restriction but a friend of mind that was band in June didn't get restriction until her 4th fill.

She is on her way to great weight loss now. Some people don't respond to the first couple of fills for some reason but please be patient. It's worth the wait and so are you.

I wish you much sucess on your journey.

Thank you for your advice, and I appreciate you even taking the time to write. I guess I was hoping that the band would help me not eat as much. I am a volume eater. If I am feeling hungry, I try drinking more Water, but then I worry that I'm not suppose to do that either. I don't know the trick yet. How is the band suppose to help if I have to be on a strict diet? I failed those diets. I need help with portion control. I got my band in Mexico and have a local surgeon giving me fills. I have had 2 fills/ 1cc each, and my last fill was over 2 weeks ago. He really doesn't talk to me much, he just says come back when I need to. I would like to go back to Mexico, but haven't had the time. As for exercise, my only exercise right know is my work. I am a nurse, and in graduate school. I work 3- 12hr shifts and then work 2 8's. Any extra time I am going to class and writing papers. I am exhausted. I guess it was a bad time to get the band, but I was hoping it would help me out more. I am not trying to sound like whoa is me, I'm just frustrated and I appreciate any advice since I have no one really to talk to about here.

Thank you again. I will try tracking what I'm eating better. I really do want to lose weight, because when I graduate next year, I don't want to walk across the stage FAT!!!! That's my goal

Like WASA said, it's ALL about EFFECTIVE RESTRICTION.