_Posted this in another thread but nobody replied, any aussies have some advice for me?_________________

Do I need a fill?????

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Last October I had a slight unfill as I felt I was too tight and it was the best decision as I could lose weight and keep food down. All has been going well until the last couple of weeks I have started to feel slightly hungry and looking for snacks. I have booked another appointment but Im wondering if I was too tight last time will I be the same this time, I dont want to be so tight I rarely eat. Does the band change or loosen over time? my husband is telling me I shouldnt have anymore but my head thinks its time for a fill. What do you all think?

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I have heard that bands do naturally lose tiny amounts of fill over time and it does need to be topped up (evaporation etc). The best way to know if you need a fill is if you are getting hungrier than usual and eating more and only you can answer that and you have. Also, many people report finding themselves very comfortable at a fill level that has, in the past, left them very tight and uncomfortable. Its not as cut and dry as putting in or taking out the same amount and getting the same response (does that make sense?). Every day is different with our bodies and what is right one day may not be right the next. If you're feeling you need a fill then maybe you should. Whats the worst that can happen? You get a bit of an unfill? Keep in my that you're 5 kilos under your goal weight and you've got some room to play with there. Good luck and let us know how you go.

Hiya Nat,

We had a good chat with the Dr Fill today about this actually. He said that as you lose weight, your whole body is losing weight including your stomach. So your stomach is getting smaller so the band effectively is getting looser, which is why you may be at the optimal level for months and months and then start to creep into the "yellow zone" where you start to feel hungry and begin to graze and you'll need a small fill. My partner was starting to get here - he'd last had a fill last September so he gave him a .25ml fill today.

I decided not to get a fill. Although I'm not losing as much as I want to, I'm still finding it difficult to eat before 1pm ish so I don't want to make it harder than that!

Overall, 12 months banded he was really happy with our progress with both of us in the "success circle". Meaning we'd both lost more than 2/3rds of our excess weight which is what the band aims to do.

I would probably go and ask for a really small fill. Maybe 0.1 or 0.2cc. I only had a 0.25cc put in for my last fill because I was sure that too much would make me feel too tight, and that tiny amount seemed to do the trick. 0.1cc shouldn't tip you over into 'too tight' and may be just enough so that you're not feeling hungry between meals again.