I was banded 9/12/07. I have had 4 fills. Not sure of current fill volume but I think it's around 7. I continue to find ways to circumvent the band. When I eat and feel discomfort I just wait until it passes and continue eating. I am eating many of the things they said I wouldn't be able to eat (soft bread, tortillas, etc.). I initially lost about 14 lbs. It was easy at first because I was afraid of food. The more I discovered I could eat the harder & harder it was to eat healthy, small meals. I kept getting more fills but was still able to eat excessively. I have now gained back almost 7 lbs and I am extremely disappointed and feel misled. I was told the band was pretty much foolproof and that you have to lose wait because you can't eat much. NOT TRUE FOR ME. Is there something I need to do or am doing wrong. I'm going to my doctor but the earliest I could get in was the end of January. I am so scared that I am going to gain all my weight back & then some. I am an emotional eater.

ANY ADIVCE??:think

stop using money as an excuse - if you get a fill you will save so much more money on food!!! stop making excuses.

Hi spudgirl

I understand how this post was a bit blunt and could be taken as offensive,but Im sure they meant well. There is truth to what they have written to

tho :tongue_smilie:

I am assuming you were self pay for your band hence paying for fills? I pay for my fills too, £250 in UK,and it is a bit costly,but by choosing the band you commited yourself to the possibility may take one fill or several to get a decent restriction,and thus a financial commitment. I could eat almost as much as I could before being banded until after my 3rd fill.

Good luck with the banding,Im sure it will get easier.

I understand what this feels like. It's been 18 months since my surgery and I only lost 25lbs. I've been on and off 7 Ibs.

It's true I was not expecting this to be a miracle cure for me, but I did think it would help more than this.

I find i'm able to eat certain foods on somedays and somedays not. It's easy to circumvent the band so to speak, but then again my fills have been a little bit of a disappointment.

One time I got less on a fill and some removed from a past fill. In other words the MD's office realized this happen and had me come back in. Luckily, I wrote down my cc's and keep track of it.

I to this day do not drink sodas, and wait one hour after eating to drink.

Sometimes I wish I had it removed and other times I feel blessed I did it. It's easy for others to say hang in there, but really this does not help. Yes, I realize that I have an eating disorders and that's not a surprize to me as this was a reason for gaining the weight and taking the route of surgery.

If anyone has advice on how to stay full longer, I would appreciate it. Especially after lunch or dinner. Breakfast I'm good at. Also any suggestions for those things that go down easy like sweets. Thanks for any sincere feedback.

I don't understand how people can say things when everyone is different. Yes, it must be difficult to not be able to afford the band fills and i've been there, as I lost my job right when I had the surgery. Really hard! I had to pay for the bandfills out of pocket.

One thing I've been doing and has helped me personally is fiber. It's helped me not gained so much weight back and it's natural. Of course it's always best to speak with your health provider to be sure that it's safe for you.

Either way, yes there will be some responses that are blunt, but there will be others out there that care and understand.

Good luck to you and I hope that everything works out for you as it can be stressful especially in this economy. Take Care, Shalya.

This sounds like a classic Leak problem.

I understand the responsibility issue, but if the band is working properly it should be too much work to defeat it, apart from sweets etc.

Before beating yourself up too much I would make sure there is no leak in port, connections, or the band itself.

This sounds like a classic Leak problem.

I understand the responsibility issue, but if the band is working properly it should be too much work to defeat it, apart from sweets etc.

Before beating yourself up too much I would make sure there is no leak in port, connections, or the band itself.

It does not sound like a leak at all to me. She has restriction (probably not enough), if she overeats (and admits that she does) she does not lose. She admits to eating around the band... No signs of a leak thus far.

The bigger bands take a LOT more fills to get to restriction or a sweet spot. I've seen people posting that they are getting fills monthly and at 8 months they still have no restriction.

If I was to get another band, and in my case I would not, I would only get the smaller bands for this very reason.

As for it being difficult to defeat the band that is not true at all. You can very easily eat around any surgery type.

Edited July 7, 200917 yr by WASaBubbleButt

I was told the band was pretty much foolproof and that you have to lose wait because you can't eat much.

Not sure what I can add that hasn't already been said. The quote above is completely untrue. If someone really told you that, they are either incompetent or lying.

There is no such thing as a zero effort weight loss solution. People can and do gain weight with the lapband, RNY, gastric sleeve, you name it.

It's a cliche, but these are all simply tools to help you lose weight. You will NOT lose weight without trying. You have to want to lose it and put the effort in. The band requires a good fill to be really useful. Too little and you eat too much, too full and you end up cheating on "easy" foods which typically are fattening. At some point, you WILL have to become more active. I don't know anyone who has hit their target weight, regardless of system, who did it without becoming more physically active. As you lose weight, you will get more energy which will make it easier and even enjoyable to be active, so hang in there.

But at the end of the day, YOU lose or gain wait. Not the band, surgery, meal plan or nutritionist. Only YOU can control your destiny.

So get on with it. I know you can.