Hi fellow banders,

Well it's been 16 days now and I feel as though I'm wanting to eat more than when I first was banded errr! Has any one gone threw this? I know my band is so new and I haven't had a fill or anything.......but I want to feel that full feeling like I did in the first week after surgery....:rolleyes

I feel your pain. I lost 10lb almost right away and after 3-4 weeks no more restriction. Right now I've gained back 5.5 lbs and can eat anything I want and a LOT more than before. Thank goodness I'm getting my 1st fill this weekend.

I'm with y'all...I was banded three weeks ago, and I've been able to eat way more than I should be. I lost 19 pounds initially, but have gained a few back since the swelling went away. I get my first fill in exactly one week! So excited to start losing again!

Hi Liz and Arria,

I'm happy the both of you don't have to much longer before your first fill, I have my appt (fill ) on Nov 8th yipeee! Do you ladies know how much saline you will get for the first fill? I heard my Doctor has started something new when doing his fills, I heard he fills the port with as much as a person can stand then tests the persons restriction by having the person drink water If everything goes down ok then he'll leave that much saline in the band , if the person feels to restricted he will take some of the saline out. I heard he started doing this after alot of his patient were getting discourged because of such a small amout of weight being lost by his patients. SOUNDS GOOD TO ME!!!!! Keep me informed on the outcome of your first fill.

Kelli :cool:

I am nearly a month post-op but can totally identify with those of you who are hungry. I am starving all of the time, I lost 13 pound in the first week and 9,5 at my three week visit. Since then I have gained back 2 pounds and always feel the need to eat. I have to wait another two weeks until I can get my first fill. I am hoping against all hope that I will feel restricted again like I did in the beginning. I was never hungry and ate because I know I needed to. Now I find myself literally watching the clock until I can eat again. I haven't given in to the urge to snack yet but I sure do want to have a little something in between meals. I'm assuming that this is a normal part of the process and it's a comfort to know that I'm not alone!

I am glad to hear you all are having the same problems I have encountered. I will get my first fill on Nov. 12th. I am eating anywhere from 900 to 1200 calories a day. I feel like I could eat more and some times want to eat more but I don't because I do not want to do anything that would jeopardize my band. I lost 13 pounds the first two weeks. Unfortunately, it has slowed way down.

I am hungry too. I was terrible this week. I drank wine, eat everything that "I" considered mushie (chicken, ranch dressing, eggs an cheese, tortillas with cheese etc....)

I am blessed not to have had any complications, except for TERRIBLe gas my first couple of weeks post-op.

What should I do??? Help?

I am commiserating with y'all. I'm 3 weeks out, do have a bit of restriction, and am craving salty Snacks. I'm doing pretty good staying away from them, but I'm hungry, still a bit tired and trying to "enjoy being in the band."

Darragha :eek:

I can agree with all of you. I had my first fill (9/11) and I have no restriction and stay hungry ALL the time and if I don't stop myself I WILL eat all day. I try to eat healthy, but even eating healthy all day is still not good. Darragha, I crave meats or anything salty. I take my vitamins, Biotin (for hair/nails) and I am going to start taking calicum tablets. I will have my 2nd fill 9/23 and I hope that will help a little. I have heard of some bandsters feeling a good bit of restriction on the 2nd fill. Hope I can. LOL

I am also 3 weeks post op, but I am not physically hungry, just "head" hungry! I don't even think about eating until my internal clock says it's mealtime. I have not made the best choices, and I do not know if I have gained back any weight (20 pounds lost since pre op diet and after surgery) I am too scared to get on the scale. I thought I was the only one who could eat more than just mushy stuff. I mean I am eating meat, bread, rice...everything that they said we shouldn't. I am getting more than just satisfied at mealtime. Stuffed. I am so afraid that I am going to stretch my pouch. My first fill isn't until Nov 7th and I can't wait.

I thought I was alone feeling hungry. At least it's been awhile for you guys. It's only been 1 wk & 2 days for me. I'm supposed to be on liquids only and I didn't just eat mushies, I ate solids today with no problems. Now it's like I'm pushing the envelope to see how much I can eat. Do you think I've ruined my new stomach? Or my band? I don't see my dr. until the 15th of Nov and I'm assuming I'll get my first fill then and I'm really scared I blew it.

I feel your hunger I have been banded only 9 days and I am hungier now that i was the week i was banded. How are you managing your hunger?

Up until today I was doing exactly what I was supposed to do. 40 gr of protein, 64 oz fluid. I was having 1 prepackaged protein drink in the morning, lots of water, sugar free popsicles, jello, broth, cream soups, protein shake in the afternoon made with protein powder and milk. My hunger was kept at bay until 2 days ago. Then I ate 2 slices of cheese. Today I ate anything I could and just had several bites of ice cream. Now I'm very worried I've ruined everything inside of me because I have no sensation of fullness at all.

well, we all have one thing in common. we are hungrier now that the initial swelling is gone. i also ate ice cream...a whole pint...freaked out and have decided that i am really only going to eat mushies. if i keep trying other stuff i know i will sabotage myself. i originally lost 15 pounds since surgery and have gained back 4. my dr said not to worry though becasue when you start eating the real food( including mushies) you naturally gain some weight. i am trying to keep up the exercise but i manage about 1/2 hour 3-4 times a week. my cravings are all over the place. i do get my first fill on oct 31 but it feels like forever and now i worry that the fill won't do the trick. brother is this ever tough however, it sure helps having others experiencing the same thing. at least i know i am not completely crazy!

I am 2 1/2 weeks post op and I am feeling the same things. A lot of it is head hunger for me. I've gone so long without really eating that I just WANT to eat and I NEED to eat. I'm hoping I haven't stretched my pouch too. It's just been the last 2 days that I have been eating more than I should be. I have to try to get this under control. I had heartburn today for the first time since before I started my pre op diet and I know it's from eating too much. I can't wait to start getting my fills and hope that will help and that I can get better control of myself.

I just had the lap band put in on wednesday 10.10.07 so this is all very new to me. I am glad that I have found this site so that I can learn from everyone on here and share my own experiences. I am sticking to Water, clear Soup and a little jelly or yoghurt at the moment and think that I am still feeling emotional hunger rather than physical hunger so I am finding lots of ways to distract myself from wanting to eat.