Fills, frustration, and failure

[hopeendures 0]

Do you know that if your fill is too tight, it creates a great chance for failure? I had my first fill in August. It was tight. I can barely get Soup in sometimes. At first I lost weight this way. But eventually, the drive to eat caused me to find ways around it.

I have fallen into some very bad habits. Things that I can still eat are all very bad for me. chips, ice cream, cream Soups, chocolate! I have not lost weight in 4 months. I cannot eat veggies, or meat of any kind. eggs, and cheese are difficult. bread is impossible. I find myself feeling like I don;t know how to eat anymore!

I decided to go get some saline removed, only to learn that my port had flipped over, and I need a surgery to fix it. The surgery costs almost $5K! So I cannot do that now.

So, the point is, be patient, keep following the rules, and wait for the sweet spot to be achieved. If you get it so tight that you cannot eat the things you need, you will likely eat things you shouldn't.

I don't regret my decision to be banded. But I would advise others to not be too frantic for a tight band.

[armywife4life 0]

Keep your head up girl!!

[lanashegog 0]

Thank you so much for the advice. I am scheduled to have my first fill April 8 and I am kind of nervous about it. I know for a fact that I do not want a tight fill. I am losing weight even though I haven't been filled because my eating habits were horrible and I am going to the gym. So, thank you. I will find my sweet spot and stick to it! The horror stories about a tight fill are scary.

[PATCHELTON 0]

I am sorry to hear about your problems with your port. You would think that complications like that would be covered under your surgery. I can't believe they want $5K to fix it! My first fill was too tight, too. I was okay in the office drinking Water, but by that evening even the water made me feel like I had indigestion. I met the doctor the next day at the hospital when he was finished surgery and he unfilled me about half to 2/3. I was okay up to a point, but two weeks later in his office I said I could get mushies and liquids down okay but anything with more substance was giving me trouble, so he took a little more out. I was good after that for about four months, and then I was ready for another fill. This time he was more conservative (first time was 3ccs) and he gave me about 1.5cc and I was fine after that. I have enough restriction that denser foods remind me I have a band, but I can eat a little more than a cup of food depending on the food. I still eat too fast, and once in a while will get stuck and slime, but mostly I am in a good place and I am at goal weight, so unless I start gaining and can't keep it under control, I am at my "sweet spot" I believe. I hope they are able to fix your port so you can eat. Continuing they way you are doing now will only end in failure to lose, and you could get nutritional deficiencies to boot. Good luck.

[olie1964 0]

Im pretty new to this i was banded on 12-31-08. I had my first fill Feb 25th i already had 1.5ccs in my band and she tried putting in a total of 2 ccs i did the barium swallow and so she ended up putting in 1.75ccs. Which doesnt seem like very much but i know that everyone is different. I can eat oatmeal in the morning with no problem but when it comes time for lunch i can only get a few bites down and it starts hurting in my shoulders and i have to walk around to make it go down. My shoulder usually hurts every time i eat except for in the morning. Im scheduled for another fill on Wednesday the 25th and i really don't know if I should or not. Any advice i could get would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Olene

[suepro 39]

Im pretty new to this i was banded on 12-31-08. I had my first fill Feb 25th i already had 1.5ccs in my band and she tried putting in a total of 2 ccs i did the barium swallow and so she ended up putting in 1.75ccs. Which doesnt seem like very much but i know that everyone is different. I can eat oatmeal in the morning with no problem but when it comes time for lunch i can only get a few bites down and it starts hurting in my shoulders and i have to walk around to make it go down. My shoulder usually hurts every time i eat except for in the morning. Im scheduled for another fill on Wednesday the 25th and i really don't know if I should or not. Any advice i could get would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Olene

If you can't eat anything apart from oatmeal, then you don't need another fill right now. If anything you might already be a little tight.

[suepro 39]

Do you know that if your fill is too tight, it creates a great chance for failure? I had my first fill in August. It was tight. I can barely get Soup in sometimes. At first I lost weight this way. But eventually, the drive to eat caused me to find ways around it.

I have fallen into some very bad habits. Things that I can still eat are all very bad for me. chips, ice cream, cream Soups, chocolate! I have not lost weight in 4 months. I cannot eat veggies, or meat of any kind. eggs, and cheese are difficult. bread is impossible. I find myself feeling like I don;t know how to eat anymore!

I decided to go get some saline removed, only to learn that my port had flipped over, and I need a surgery to fix it. The surgery costs almost $5K! So I cannot do that now.

So, the point is, be patient, keep following the rules, and wait for the sweet spot to be achieved. If you get it so tight that you cannot eat the things you need, you will likely eat things you shouldn't.

I don't regret my decision to be banded. But I would advise others to not be too frantic for a tight band.

How awful that its going to cost you so much to get your port fixed, just in order to get a small unfill. I was overfilled on my second fill and I couldn't keep anything solid down apart from crackers so i had some taken out and felt so much better and weight loss started again.

I hope you can get things sorted soon.

[MaureenJohnson 0]

Hang in there! I admire your ability to stay positive. Have you tried consulting a nutritionist? It could help you with choices. Good luck.

[MaureenJohnson 0]

What did your doctor say?

[JuneAct2 0]

I can eat oatmeal in the morning with no problem but when it comes time for lunch i can only get a few bites down and it starts hurting in my shoulders and i have to walk around to make it go down. My shoulder usually hurts every time i eat except for in the morning. Im scheduled for another fill on Wednesday the 25th and i really don't know if I should or not. Any advice i could get would be greatly appreciated.

Olene

Olene,

I'm not sure I'd get another fill right away. Do you know how many calories you are getting? You need to make sure you're getting enough. It doesn't sound like you're raiding the frig, so another fill right now might make you too tight.

Also, make sure you're taking tiny bites. Cut your food into pieces the size of a nickel, and chew it until it's the size of a dime. Then wait between bites to make sure each bite has gone down before taking another. This has been the hardest part for me. But, when I slow down and do it right, I don't have the shoulder pains you're talking about.

Hope this helps!

[hopeendures 0]

I appreciate all the replies. I've been very frustrated. Most meals out involve one or two, (or three or four if I am particularly stubborn that day) trips to the restroom to dump the upper esophagus. Mostly, nothing that isn't purely liquid will go down.

And there are so many high calorie liquid things to consume, and I am often very hungry, even sitting in a restaurant, with a meal in front of me. My stomach is growling, and I cannot eat (or drink) after the first bite.

But...on the bright side, I have monitored my nutrients, and take Protein shots, (42 grams a day minimum) and other supplements in liquid form. They taste nasty. But that's not the problem. The problem is, I find myself prowling often, and drinking chocolate milk, eating chips, crackers, and candy. I make a lot of Soups. If I find that I can eat on a given day, I drink something with it, to keep it going as long as possible. I know ALL of that is defeating the purpose of the band, but I do it anyway.

I have lost down to where I am only 40 lbs from my goal. (62 lbs in all), but most of it was before my first fill, or immediately after.

So, all of this, (this whole thread), wasn't about gaining sympathy. But to hopefully help those who are new to the band to realize that tighter doesn't mean faster weightloss. I was so pushy about having it tight, that my fill doctor did it....now I can't undo it. (without surgery)

[lisaKA 0]

hi all. This is my 1st attempt at finding help. I am 1 yr post op and have not had any success. I haave anly lsot 15 lbs. and that was almost immediate. i am intimidated by my doctor, she makes me feel worse. Can anybody help with some sound advice. i can't waste another day.

[Cleo's Mom 257]

hopeendures: The way I read your problems - this is a medical emergency and I would contact the hospital executives regarding getting this repaired at no cost to you. Don't take the $5000 to mean it is in granite. Of course they are going to tell you that. Many hospitals have patient advocates. If the hospital won't give you any recourse, then contact your state consumer protection agency. If they are no help, contact an attorney who handles defective products or medical malpractice. Sometimes you can meet them the first time for free. Contact your county bar association to find out. My point is - take control of this situation and don't continue to live like this. Keep a journal of all that has happened to you since this all started and get copies of all your medical tests, including operative report, and the CD's of any upper GI's. Then become proactive. Good luck.

[Jacks2009 0]

I appreciate all the replies. I've been very frustrated. Most meals out involve one or two, (or three or four if I am particularly stubborn that day) trips to the restroom to dump the upper esophagus. Mostly, nothing that isn't purely liquid will go down.

And there are so many high calorie liquid things to consume, and I am often very hungry, even sitting in a restaurant, with a meal in front of me. My stomach is growling, and I cannot eat (or drink) after the first bite.

But...on the bright side, I have monitored my nutrients, and take Protein shots, (42 grams a day minimum) and other supplements in liquid form. They taste nasty. But that's not the problem. The problem is, I find myself prowling often, and drinking chocolate milk, eating chips, crackers, and candy. I make a lot of Soups. If I find that I can eat on a given day, I drink something with it, to keep it going as long as possible. I know ALL of that is defeating the purpose of the band, but I do it anyway.

I have lost down to where I am only 40 lbs from my goal. (62 lbs in all), but most of it was before my first fill, or immediately after.

So, all of this, (this whole thread), wasn't about gaining sympathy. But to hopefully help those who are new to the band to realize that tighter doesn't mean faster weightloss. I was so pushy about having it tight, that my fill doctor did it....now I can't undo it. (without surgery)

What caused the band to flip? Did you have any symptoms? Maybe it was not from the fill but because of the band flip that you could no longer eat? Can you advise of any symptoms you had.

[hopeendures 0]

What caused the band to flip? Did you have any symptoms? Maybe it was not from the fill but because of the band flip that you could no longer eat? Can you advise of any symptoms you had.

I'm not certain what caused it. I am a horse enthusiast, and I did have an incident on a young horse where I was jarred pretty hard, and actually hit my port site on the saddle horn. I suspect that is what caused the stitching to come undone. I had my first fill after that, and was not flipped at that time, but if the stitching were loose, a few more weeks of active lifestyle probably would do the trick.

I had no symptoms. The first I knew was when I went to get an unfill.

The flipped port should not affect my ability to eat. It's really unrelated to the stomach, except that the twist may put another fraction of a cc of saline into my band.