slimbutrfly Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 I was just wondering why people have to get little fills at a time? I know common sense says, because your body needs to adjust, but Ive clearly been following a lot of your guys stats, and notice that it isnt untill the 4th or 5th fill until you feel some restriction...I know everyone is different, but I think its a pain in the butt. I want 1 big one when I go for my first!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephC2009 Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 AMEN SISTER! I feel the same way. I am getting my first fill in Feb and am hoping I get some restriction from it. I figure I am flying into San Diego and going to the OCC I want to make as few trips as possible. I hope we get some good reasoning on this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PAMMIE Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 ALL IN GOOD TIME WHEN YOU GO IN FOR YOUR FIRST FILL, TELL YOUR DR YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT RESTRICTION FEELS LIKE AND HAVE THEM FILL YA UP FOR A FEW MINUTES. WHEN YOU'LL UNDERSTAND WHY SLOW AND EASY IS THE WAY TO GO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slimbutrfly Posted January 8, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 so you can ask them to fill you up as if it is your 4th? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaGreen Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 ooo, the pain agony and HORROR of being too tight! Yep, ask your dr to over fill you just to see what it feels like Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slimbutrfly Posted January 8, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 SOis it like that for everyone...Is the 1st couple fills tight at first, then open up a litlle bit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaGreen Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 each person is different. Some of us had to have unfills because we were so tight. You have to relearn to eat after each fill. What you could eat after your first fill you might not be able to eat after the second. As Dr Ortiz told me, "The lapband, she is a fickle little beotch." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MargieK Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 SOis it like that for everyone...Is the 1st couple fills tight at first, then open up a litlle bit? From the research I've done, and my own personal experience, getting a fill is more an art than a science. Everyone is different, and you just don't know how a fill will be for you until up to 2 weeks later. If you get overfilled, you run the risk of stretching out your pouch and basically setting yourself back at least a month or two, or maybe even needing surgery to replace the band. It's weird how restriction can come and go. I had all these dreams about losing weight quickly, but then I just got some patience along the way and realized this is a long term solution for me and it's ok if I get started a little slowly. I had restriction after my 2nd fill, and I could have had more put in my band then, but I really didn't want to run the risk of being too tight. I think you have to decide if you want to be aggressive on the fills, and be willing to spend the time and money for an unfill if you need it. Or spend the time and money on smaller fills along the way. It makes no logical sense that I would feel less restriction after my 3rd fill - for two weeks and then suddenly I got tighter. But that's what happened. I'm just glad we budgeted for 3 fills, it made it easier for me to do what felt right and not risk being overfilled. I would recommend making sure you are not bloated before a fill. I made sure I scheduled the fills at the leanest TOM for me, and I cut back on salt and carbs for a few days too. It can be really frustrating when you want to get the hell out of bandster hell, but I think it's good to think about what is best for the long term. Margie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaniceBlack Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 I was just wondering why people have to get little fills at a time? I know common sense says, because your body needs to adjust, but Ive clearly been following a lot of your guys stats, and notice that it isnt untill the 4th or 5th fill until you feel some restriction...I know everyone is different, but I think its a pain in the butt. I want 1 big one when I go for my first!! Hi, I wondered the same thing ! I had my first fill on Tuesday and asked Dr. So about that same question. He is at OCC and said that most of them are not going back to OCC or not having fills with an X-ray fluoroscope. He said that the most that I should need is three fills. I start back on solid foods tomorrow. Janice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PAMMIE Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 ooo, the pain agony and HORROR of being too tight! Yep, ask your dr to over fill you just to see what it feels like *pams laughing at donna lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshleyMarie Posted January 8, 2010 Report Share Posted January 8, 2010 We are all so different. I have always had restriction. I have had 2 fills and one partial unfill and only have 1.8 cc's in my band. I haven't had a fill for 6 months and had a partial unfill 4 months ago and I am no where near needing another one. You will just have to take it one day at a time and listen to your body. It will tell you one thing one day and another the next. I am not even sure that after 10 months I have even adjusted. I experience new things every day. Good luck to you sweetie . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kristi Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 slimbutrfly, On my last fill, my doc tried to put me to 4cc's from 3.5cc's, and I was there for a very short time. As I was sitting in the waiting room after the fill, the water I was sipping on wasn't going down and suddenly I was puking out all the water. It was pretty gross and painful. Do not recommend at all. Had to go to 3.75cc's. It would be nice to have the big fill right away, but it could really mess you up. Donna, so funny... Hugs, Kristi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyNext30Years Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 As we lose weight, we also lose actual fat around our stomach which is another reason why we can't just have one big fill in the beginning. I've seen this somewhere on the forum and it makes sense that as we lose the fat cushion around the band, we'll need more fills. I hope I was able to make sense! Mandy P.S. I can't wait until my band!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smiley Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 Restriction is nice, but it is possible to lose weight without it. I think for me, by not having the restriction it made me more conscious of what I was eating and how much. By doing it this way I learned a lot more than I would have if I had had restriction from the beginning and totally relied on the band as opposed to using it as a tool in my weight loss journey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PAMMIE Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 Restriction is nice, but it is possible to lose weight without it. I think for me, by not having the restriction it made me more conscious of what I was eating and how much. By doing it this way I learned a lot more than I would have if I had had restriction from the beginning and totally relied on the band as opposed to using it as a tool in my weight loss journey. A REALLY GOOD POINT SMILEY I'VE NEVER KEPT MY BAND THAT TIGHT, LIKE YOU SAID, USING IT AS A TOOL IS THE WAY TO GO. 1 I DO LIKE TO EAT 2 I THINK IT'S HEALTHIER 3 LEARNING AS YOU GO IS REALLY IMPORTANT FOR LONG TERM SUCCESS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladyhart77 Posted January 9, 2010 Report Share Posted January 9, 2010 Hey guys! i just had my first fill on Thursday. Let me see if my experience can help you a little. I was very excited because I went through Christmas in bandhell!!! I am just thankful that I didnt gain! I have the 10cc band and the doctor told me that she tried to get the sweet spot in two or three fills, so I was hopeful that she would get me at good restriction the first time. She started out by putting 4cc's in the band. She then told me to take three good chugs of my water. OMG! That was too much! It hurt really bad and took over a minute to get down.. just water!! You do not want to be overfilled!!! So she backed it off .4 and that was too little so we ended up settling at 3.8cc. I think that is a pretty good first fill.. the restriction seems to be good so far! My doctor was actually trained at the OCC so that might make a difference too.. not sure. I agree though... if you wanna see why big fills are not the norm... just ask them to overfill you for a minute and drink some water! Whoa.. that will give you the understanding you need!!! ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slimbutrfly Posted January 10, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2010 But if you were to fill up that tight, dont you eventually start to open up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
louisem Posted January 10, 2010 Report Share Posted January 10, 2010 One thing to remember with your fill level is that the band can be very sensitive to stress and other environmental factors and everyone reacts differently to the band. If you are like me and prone to inflammation this can mean that a fill level that is perfectly fine for weeks becomes painful over night. I think I am a bit of an extreme case though because I have a prior history if IBS and other inflammatory problems. One thing that everyone seems to agree on is that you get more accurate results from fills under fluoroscope but that still isn't a guarantee since so many things can irritate your band. I have yet to have a fill under fluoro but I have an amazing fill local fill Dr. which has made frequent fills/unfills easier to deal with. I think with the band, what you always have to remember is that everyone is different and you need to do what works best for you to stay healthy. Using other peoples experiences as a guideline is great but you have to realize that your experience may be completely different. Thank goodness for these boards though to help us sort through everything. Louise Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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