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What to expect in the first year after banding
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I found this post on another thread and thought you might find it interesting:
Be prepared this is a long one. I found this post on Wlsinfo.org and thought that you guys might benefit from the words of wisdom contained within. This is a girl called Delly from Manchester, she was banded last April.... I hope that it brings some comfort to those who are feeling frustrated and the certain knowledge that fills will provide them with the restriction and therefore results that we expect and crave.......
It saddens me to read of so many bandsters feeling despondent in the early months of being banded, even brandishing themselves failures!
When I was conducting my research it became apparent to me very quickly that there appeared to be a pattern with bandsters, I admit not everyone fit the pattern but it appeared like a very strong trend to me.
For most a pre-op diet is recommended and consequently most enjoy some weight loss, then in the 7-10 days following surgery another good weight loss is usually enjoyed as restriction is felt due to stomach swelling after the op. Some 3lbs some as high as 16lbs – all depending I suspect on our starting weight and pre-band eating habits. Most people seem to get their appetite back by 2 weeks post op so and weight loss consequently either seems to grind to a halt or even we regain some of the weight we lost. Yes there are the very disciplined/lucky or maybe the higher starting BMI’s who continue to lose after 2 weeks but they appear in the minority to me?
So in most cases we have 4 more weeks to wait for our first fill (some NHS patients have 10 more weeks to wait) Its all very well for the dieticians to give us a post op diet to follow but lets be honest here whilst it’s a fantastic plan of course to eat as healthily as possible lets not forget that its continuous diets that got us fat in the first place. I have been on a diet for over 20 years and I don’t know about anyone else but I just got FATTER!
I read of members joining WW or SW and if that works for them that’s fabulous but for me I have done WW etc more than 20 times and if it worked for me, if I could be a success on a diet then I wouldn’t have ever considered WLS! Long term success with a band stems from reduced quantity and satiety training not doing another diet!
So we have to get through these 4-10 weeks whilst waiting for our first fill without feeling like a failure –that’s not easy I know because I'm currently going through it, yes I'm eating a lot less than I ever ate pre-op but obviously not enough to continue losing as I'm still at the same weight I was 1 week post-op. I'm not disappointed though as this is EXACTLY what I expected and it’s what everyone should EXPECT! If your expectations are realistic then you won’t be frustrated when things don’t go according to some weight loss plan you have hatched that had you in a size 10 by Christmas! LOL
At last the day comes for our first fill we have been waiting for it like Christmas morning but again we must be patient as the very large majority of bandsters don’t feel adequate restriction after their first fill. We mustn’t feel despondent we must accept and fully grasp the concept that most bandsters don’t reach their “sweet spot” until their 3rd, 4th or 5th fill. If you’re having private fills this gets you to approximately 4 or 5 months post-op, if you’re having NHS fills this could be as much as 12 months post-op.
Then of course you have to allow time to lose the weight, lets just say this could take another 12-18 months so before you know it your goal weight is 2 years away. This seems like an inordinate amount of time to wait but the statistics show that 18 months - 2 years is the average time to goal so there is little point expecting to reach goal before then and if we do then whoopee dooo darrr that’s a great bonus but if we are average or a little longer than average that’s whooooppeee doo darrr too because I bet it sure took a lot longer than 2 years to gain all that excess weight in the first place so what’s the rush?
It’s not a race with a band it’s more of a marathon but we will all reach the finish line, happier, healthier and most importantly lighter!!!