Well, I'm posting this just to let you know why one would get an unfill. I've been 'sitting on the fence' for quite some time and have finally decided to get a bit of an unfill.

• I can't eat much meat unless it's drenched in sauce or mayonnaise, and then only very little. As a result, I feel sure I'm not getting enough Protein
  
• 90% of the food I eat is "mushy"
  
• I'm not eating nearly enough fish, fresh veggies and fruit
  
• I'm eating WAY too much in the way of chips and crackers
  
• I'm starting to feel some reflux symptoms at night, but not too badly...just want to nip that in the bud!
  
• I have had a few esophageal spasms...not pleasant at all
  
• The list of healthy foods I cannot eat is WAY too long; I miss chicken and eggs and salads
  
• It takes me 45 minutes to get in a cup of food
  
• Milkshakes are a little too yummy to rely on for sustenance
  
• I'm growing weary of fighting with my band at every meal :thumbup:
  

SO... we shall see. I'm hoping to feel better soon. :crying: That would be nice.

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It sounds like you have done a complete study of your body and you are making a great decision for you.....

Let us know how it goes!

I cant wait to start cooking again...

Hi Terri, a slight unfill of .2 or .3 might be the trick for you. Solid protein is the most important so if you have problems getting that down then you are too tight. Good luck to you.

Thanks ya'll. Yeah, that's what i was thinking too.... about 0.2 should do it.

If it weren't for LBT, these symptoms might just slip by me, y'know? So I'm grateful to have this invaluable resource of all those hundreds that have gone before me and left their mark here. I don't want to lose my band.....that would be my worst nightmare. No need in being too tight and risk all kinds of bad stuff!!

I agree, a small unfill may do the trick. I know it is really hard to get to the point where you have to make a decision to go back for an unfill.

I had a problem my last fill (second) where I was pb'ing almost every meal for over a week. I had almost no restriction with my first fill. I made a decision to go back and get a slight unfill and so scheduled an appointment.

While waiting for the appointment over a weekend, I decided to go on liquids to let my stomach relax for a little bit. By the time I reintroduced mushy and later solid foods, I was OK again. I don't PB now but I had to learn to chew more carefully. I also learned that I needed to give myself time to readjust to certain types of foods (like salad and chicken which are a cornerstone of my diet).

I hope you feel better soon.

I agree, a small unfill may do the trick. I know it is really hard to get to the point where you have to make a decision to go back for an unfill.

I had a problem my last fill (second) where I was pb'ing almost every meal for over a week. I had almost no restriction with my first fill. I made a decision to go back and get a slight unfill and so scheduled an appointment.

While waiting for the appointment over a weekend, I decided to go on liquids to let my stomach relax for a little bit. By the time I reintroduced mushy and later solid foods, I was OK again. I don't PB now but I had to learn to chew more carefully. I also learned that I needed to give myself time to readjust to certain types of foods (like salad and chicken which are a cornerstone of my diet).

I hope you feel better soon.

Yeah, it takes a little experience with fills to learn that you should really baby your tummy for the first couple of weeks and then pass judgement on whether or not it's working.

That's why i've been so 'on the fence' ... but finally realized I have been babying it all the time!

Thanks for ya'll's (yes, that's a word!) input and support!

TerriDoodle, I just had my third fill this past Saturday, and think I may be to tight. How long have you been on the fence? I want to give the band time to "settle down", but I also don't want to wait to long.

Jama - I always wait a full two weeks before deciding if a recent fill is too much. Mine just take that long....and keep getting tighter and tighter, then start to settle down again. In that meantime, i stick with liquids and mushies as much as possible.

I have been 'on the fence' with this fill since February.

Actually, I didn't go in for an unfill yesterday as scheduled because of other commitments and, wouldn't you know it, my band has settled down (again!), I'm eating solid food (properly!), and have lost a pound!

Round and round we go.....

Good luck TerriDoodle. :sad: It sounds like it may be working out for you without the unfill.

I'm trying to decide if I need to go in for an unfill as well. I only had the fill 6 days ago though, so I'm giving it a little time to settle. I only had .2cc put in and for the first few days I was eating normally but not quite as much and things were going great. Then a couple of days ago, I started having problems with PBing and yesterday I PB'd even yogurt and had trouble getting liquids down.

I started today on liquids to give it time to settle. I'll go back to mushies in a couple of days then after a few more days try some solids again and see how I do.

It's funny because mornings and nights have been bad for me, but lunch time I'm able to eat solids without too much of a problem. It's so frustrating.

My last fill before this one was 3 months ago and the hunger level had increased as well as the amount of food I was eating. Then a few days before getting my fill last week, I started feeling tight all of a sudden but chalked it up to TOM or stress. Now I'm thinking I should have put off getting the fill.

My insurance is refusing to pay for fills so I'm paying out of pocket and really don't want to go in for an unfill if I don't have to.

I am so glad I looked at this today. I've been struggling with the exact same symptoms for the past several weeks. I have an appointment on June 2nd to see my doctor and have been debating whether I needed him to loosen my band. I guess I'm afraid I'll be able to eat too much again and won't continue to loose. On the flip side, the chips and crackers with dip are going down too good which is causing me not to loose as quickly either. I seem to be stuck at 75 pounds lost and haven't been seeing the 1-2 pounds a week any more. My band is really tight in the morning/afternoon, but it seems to be ok in the evening... not good, by then, I want to eat to much to make up for the entire day that I've just had liquids....

So.... getting an unfill is what everyone recommends ??????

Yup! I Had To Do It Too!! And I Feel So Much Better Now. Everything You Described Is What I Felt Too. I Feel Good And Still Have A Good Restriction!

Since my last fill 4/2 I'm HAVING the same problem, well was. I was too restricted and was thinking about an unfil. Then I started loosening up the past few days, eating over 1500 calories a day. Now I think I need a fill, I'm getting used to eating morsels on my fork but today I was able to eat a deli tuna on a bagel for lunch and ate the whole thing. This is scary. It's so hard to get to the exact spot but I think the longer you wait after a full the better you can decide what to do.

Ain't no way on God's green earth I'd be able to eat a whole tuna on a bagel. I can only eat 1/2 scoop of tuna salad and about 6 crackers. Yep, sounds like you need another fill....but(!) be prepared for some modification to your eating behavior!! You're getting close!

I have been going through the same thing. I had the fill 2 weeks ago. The first week seemed fine but the second week has been awful. I can't even drink much. I am not getting enough protein. I have pbing whenever I eat soup or even my protein drink. I am scheduled for an unfill this Saturday and am looking forward to being able to eat any kind of solid at all. I hope I am doing the right thing. I want to continue to lose but don't want to be miserable.

When you get tightly restricted (if that's what you choose) it can be like a delicate ballet keeping the band and stoma happy & healthy!

If I want to stay tight, I have to eat soooooo very slowly. I'm not kidding when I say it takes me 45 minutes to eat. And I chew the dickens out of every bite when I'm eating 'solid' food.

Hmmmmm. Eat Slowly. Chew chew chew. Where have I heard that before???

Hi Terri..

I'm so glad you have this thread on here. I'm in DIRE straits here with my band. It is wayyyy too tight!! The first week or so it seemed perfect, just about tight enough and hen I don;t know what happened but first Breakfast became a problem, and I'm only talkin smoothies or oatmeal here.. but they were becoming impossible, so Breakfast urned into Teas & coffee or slimfast drinks.

That, I could handle, Then lunch became a problem, and all I was having was Soups or some light seafood..I managed on just soups and was ok as i was usually having Pasta & sauce or something light for dinner. But when lunch became liquid and then dinner became soup I started to wonder what the hell is happening here?

I haven't eaten Bread or Meat/chicken since my last fill, and now as you pointed out terri, I am not able for fish veg even Water hurts now... Sometimes my own saliva causes me to be very worried...

thank God My symptoms are matching the descriptions on this thread as I know now that it's just tightness I'm dealing with. I thought I was ruptured or something seeing as this tightness was progressive!!

I have an unfill scheduled now for the 3rd June, which is a long weekend away from now and I just hope to God I can at least get by on fluids until then..and please please let this unfill be just enough to hit my sweet spot and not open me enough to hinder my efforts.

to end on a high note.. my much longed for and awaited Goldendoodle Pup "TED" will be arriving to me on June 9th..I can't wait!!! My walking companion & new friend...Ah!!!!:biggrin::w00t: