Hi. I have a 10cc band and will get my first fill on 6/30/09. Who lost weight with the first fill and how much did you lose before needing a 2nd fill? I lost 11 pounds the first 3 weeks post op. I was scheduled for a fill on 6/16/09, but had to reschedule because I was flying out on my vacation. I am now on vacation and can eat anything. I am not over doing it, but I no longer get full after a few bites. Last night I was able to eat most of my hamburger. Nothing is getting stuck at this point. I do not have a scale available, but I think I am gaining weight. I just hope that I can lose more after I get my first fill. Please tell me I can. I really need to be encouraged right now. I pray that this will be the last vacation where I am FAT. I look like I am 7 months pregnant.:blushing:

I didn't, but we're all different. My doc believes in slow fills (not aggressive!) and I didn't finally get restriction until March of this year (banded 8/08) . Long story short I needed an unfill and finally 5/7 hit the sweet spot. THAT is when I started losing. Until then, no.

HOWEVER....if you want, you CAN diet and lose. Some are in a hurry or for whatever reason don't want to wait for restriction. That is perfectly ok...for them! I learned diets=food obsession for me, and I wanted freedom from thinking about food all the time. So I didn't "diet". I just let it happen for me.

That's the beauty of the band, though. We all get to use it the best way for us.

I didn't, but we're all different. My doc believes in slow fills (not aggressive!) and I didn't finally get restriction until March of this year (banded 8/08) . Long story short I needed an unfill and finally 5/7 hit the sweet spot. THAT is when I started losing. Until then, no.

HOWEVER....if you want, you CAN diet and lose. Some are in a hurry or for whatever reason don't want to wait for restriction. That is perfectly ok...for them! I learned diets=food obsession for me, and I wanted freedom from thinking about food all the time. So I didn't "diet". I just let it happen for me.

That's the beauty of the band, though. We all get to use it the best way for us.

Thanks for the advice. We are doing a lot of walking while on vacation. When I return home next week I will fire up the treadmill and the Wii Fit. I will also make sure I eat according to my doctor's plan. I hope to lose with the 1st fill. I will be on Clear liquids for 3 days and then soft foods for 3 days before going back to normal foods. I told several people at work that I had the surgery. I'm afraid that when I return and I haven't lost I will be thought of as a failure and a fool. I am a self pay and my co workers know that as well. So many people tried to convince me that the surgery was not a good idea. I have until mid August before I go back to work and hopefully prove them wrong. I just want a noticeable amount to be lost. I am not going for model thin.

I hear you! I was in nursing school and told everyone...they were all very nice and supportive but it became increasingly odd to NOT lose! :blushing: I just trusted in the process and the band, though (and my last semester I frankly couldn't have cared less. Stress was my name, trying to get through it was my game. If anyone had time to wonder if I'd lost, they weren't going to pass! LOL) But I totally get your point. I really did think about dieting but it really freaks me out. Lots of people are very successful however dieting while they wait for that restriction.

The band really works so if dieting just fails you, don't think you've failed. Get your fills as soon as your doc will provide them (I could schedule mine every 4 weeks but he just did not believe in putting too much in each time, although i could have agitated for more and probably gotten it. But I trusted him and here I am restricted and able to eat ANY food. Any. I just don't eat too much of it, which is what he said "we" were aiming for!)

Anyway good luck, hang in there. It's a wonderful tool, you did the right thing for yourself!

I just had my first fill on monday june 19 so it has been 8 days from my last fill and i have lost 6lbs already so i couldn't be happier because i have read so many posts about bandster hell and how it takes people several fills to start really losing i have great restriction but i also have a good bit in my band my doc put 4.25 at surgery and then 1.5 at the first fill so i already have a total of 5.75cc. Don't worry you will get there this isn't a race you will get to the finish line.

I just had my first fill on monday june 19 so it has been 8 days from my last fill and i have lost 6lbs already so i couldn't be happier because i have read so many posts about bandster hell and how it takes people several fills to start really losing i have great restriction but i also have a good bit in my band my doc put 4.25 at surgery and then 1.5 at the first fill so i already have a total of 5.75cc. Don't worry you will get there this isn't a race you will get to the finish line.

Thanks Reneek. I just needed to hear from someone who has gone through the process to encourage me. I am feeling much better today. 6lbs lost in 8 days is a great loss. That is awesome and the fact that you are eating what you want makes this journey easier. Have you had any PB, stuck food or sliming incidents?

No i havn't PB or sliming i did have some pain i take to big of a bites without chewing really well. I have got to learn to chew better.

I had my first fill of 3 cc and lost 12 pounds in 6 weeks. Was thrilled! Went in for my second fill - my doc usually does 2 ccs at the second fill, but I was doing fairly well and had a son's wedding coming up so asked for just 0.5 cc.

That was three weeks ago - I maintained the first week following my second fill (the week of the wedding), lost 1 pound the next week, and gained 1-1/2 pounds this week (eating 1200 cal a day). I'm going in for another fill next week and will ask for the other 1.5 cc he was willing to give me. I'm hungry every 3 hours and while I'm not overdoing on calories and am doing some exercise, I think I definitely need more restriction. (Also dealing with some bloating issues right now so I'm not stressing out over the scale being up). What restriction I did feel has slipped away.

Am ready to feel that content feeling for a longer period of time again - it makes it so much easier to make healthy food choices when you aren't starving!!

RestlessMonkey is right ... it will depend somewhat on how much your doctor gives in that fill. My doctor was very aggressive on the first fill. I had .6cc left in the band after he tested it in the operating room. They gave me 4ccs on the first fill ... and had to remove 1cc because it was TOO tight. At 3.6cc, I started losing consistently. Subsequent fills have been every 4 weeks. I am now at 6ccs and while I have an appointment scheduled for next month, I really don't think I'm going to need a fill. I think I'm "there"!!!

I think it depends on each person and how much they have to lose as well as how much they are exercising, etc.

After my first fill, I lost 10 lbs in a month. I did not exercise during that time due to some physical issues.

Be very careful not to get a "stereotypical" idea of where you should be. Even though there probably is an average, we are all different in so many ways that it is hard to compare any two people.

Thank you to everyone that contributed to this thread. I am going for my first fill on June 30th and am really looking forward to that "full" filling again. All of the post-surgical swelling is gone and even though I lost an incredible 19lbs since surgery on May 18th I seem to be stuck there. I am hoping for a jump start after the fill. Good luck to all and I will look forward to reading more posts to this thread.

I lost about 30lb before my first fill and by the time I had the first fill at 12 weeks or so, I was down to a reliable 1 to 2 lb loss per week, which continued pretty much for 18 months. After that, I lost very very slowly but dropped another 20lb or so over a year.

I found I had no elusive 'sweet spot' to get to, each fill was just right for me to continue losing steadily. And I didnt eat less and less and less with each fill, they pretty much just made up for the increased restriction I needed becuase I'd lost fat around my stomach.

I didn't lose any the first time I got a fill. I stayed the same. But a week later I got another 5.5 cc and I have been dropping between 5 and 7 pounds a week.

I didn't lose any the first time I got a fill. I stayed the same. But a week later I got another 5.5 cc and I have been dropping between 5 and 7 pounds a week.

Hi Sugga. You've only had 2 fills so far? When was the second fill? When were you banded? Your weight loss is impressive.

Yep only 2. I got the first one 06/01/2009 and the second 06/09/2009 I was banded 04/16/2009 then had complications. So, I had another surgery 04/24/2009. They are quickly trying to find my sweet spot since I had problems. But I am fine now and feel great.

Yep only 2. I got the first one 06/01/2009 and the second 06/09/2009 I was banded 04/16/2009 then had complications. So, I had another surgery 04/24/2009. They are quickly trying to find my sweet spot since I had problems. But I am fine now and feel great.

OK Sugga. I might be a little slow here. Did you lose 18-21 pounds since 6/9/09?