Fill issues: Fickle band

[Morsaille]

Turns out, that everyone is right. Experience makes you (me) a better cheater.

Food choice is everything!

I had been planning on getting another fill before the end of the year since lumping the fills into the cost of surgery will make for one NICE tax return.

I may not be getting a fill. I have been careful to avoid "soft" foods, but have been basing my diet on "safe" foods: Salads, fruits, nuts, fish, and legumes.

My restriction isn't all that restrictive and I can eat breads with little difficulty. My weight loss is slow at best, I haven't had any significant weight loss for almost 2 months.

Today I cooked chicken. It is staying put and I was only able to eat 1/4 cup. Do we think this is a fluke, or real progress?

a tentative.. Woo Hoo?

So I am taking opinions here. My indicators suggest I should consider a fill, but I now have two foods - chicken and walnuts - that provide some saiety. Should I schedule or skip it?

[Jachut]

Siiiiigh, I dunno. Its exactly where I"m at. Last night I could barely eat my dinner (chicken casserole and rice). But other nights it goes down easily. Some foods stick and fill me up a lot and I can eat only tiny amounts but its a FAR vaster, wider range of foods that go down easily for me.

I'm leaning towards another fill, I was 83.8 this morning so in the last day or two I've lost a few hundred grams but virtually nothing for the entire month of October. I can eat way too much in the daytime and if I nibble, I can eat ALL day long.

But I have to be honest and say a lot of it is just food choice. I'm really bad lately at choosing foods that go down well and just nibbling all day. I have considered joining Weight Watchers just to get this last 10kg off. But then I think, I have this band, I should have another fill.

[Jill]

I'd get the fill.

That's what I'm doing next week when I get home from Philly. I haven't lost more than 2 pounds in 2 months and I'm depressed at the scale, so it's time obviously. It's funny, every time I schedule a fill like I did yesterday, suddenly, I get a bit of restriction lol. It's like the band saying "no momma no, we'll be good, we promise!"

[PhotoNut]

Wow, the SAME thing has been happening to me! Everytime I get fed up with myself and declare that I'm going to go in for a fill, that crazy band tightens up and I decide to wait. Then, right as rain, the darn thing opens up again and I'm eating wayyy too much! How frustrating.

So.. here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to get another fill. I'm calling in right now to see if they can slip me in this afternoon. If I find that it's too much, I can always have it taken out. But I'm tired of playing this game with my band, and I'm tired of eating too much, and I'm REALLY tired of seeing 214 on that darn scale! I may have to eat like a bandster again, but darn it.. its time! :)

[PhotoNut]

Got my appointment for 3:15.. conveniently scheduled for AFTER lunch with Linda V! Ha!

[Telly]

My fill from Sept 15th/16th has loosened up a little but not much. There are some things that will go down some days but for other days, there's no way. The band is extremely fickle.

[Morsaille]

Thanks ladies for the moral support. I had forgotten how soft it felt to land here when the going gets tough.

Jachut - Your sympathetic sigh meant tons to me and I know that I could make better choices for myself, thanks. I think I may do the fill.

Jill - I get the anxiety fill too. As soon as I start paying close attention to see if I should call the doc, the darn thing clamps down into a place that feels kind of sweet.

P'Nut - Inspirational as always, I will call tomorrow. Thanks for the shoulder.

Telly - I'd forgotten the control the band can have until reading your post. The little booger has been a passive piece of jewelery for two months now. Time to put it to work.

[PhotoNut]

The little booger has been a passive piece of jewelery for two months now. Time to put it to work.
Amen! The most expensive piece of jewelry I've ever owned or will own!

I got my fill and man can I feel it! As soon as I sat up I told him I could feel it clamp down on me. He seemed concerned but I was able to down that cup of water with no problem. I had 1.2cc at my last fill, but when he drew it out there was a "bit less". He put me up to 1.5, my highest amount to date. My jewelry has just become my guard dog! Woof!!

It's time to say bye-bye to twoterville!! :cool:

Keep me posted, Morsaille. And thank you for starting this thread. It helped me decide to get serious and get another fill. *hugs*

[Diva]

I noticed I could eat more and that I was getting hungrier sooner in between meals.
So...I got my 3rd fill today. Now I am up to 2.25 in a 4 cc band. Apparently last time he didn't give me the full 1 cc as I had asked for. He goes slow.
But you all are right. The minute I made the appt. I got stuck that night. The night before I made the appt I had eaten an entire veal chop and veggies and some potatoes.
I had water in the office and now I am sipping my "cream" of spinach soup (recipe in the mushie recipe thread btw). I believe its working.

[barbara465]

I'm going on Monday for another fill. I can eat way too much and now worried that something is wrong. I did get a golf ball earlier in the week, but I was eating too fast. So if there is restriction there its not enough. I have to go slow on the fills as I don't tolerate them very well, but this isn't working. Hopefully next week I will have the right restriction and can start losing again.

Thanks for this thread. It helps to read others experiences.

[503-250]

I used to complain about how I had no restriction, some here might even remember me wishing for foaming, sliming and PBs, well...I've been cured. I no longer wish to have any of these things.

After my last fill I was really pissed, I didn't feel restricted, and I was supposed to have 9cc in a 10cc band, what else can they do, make me swallow a ball to cap the top of the hole from the inside?


Well, let me tell you I complained and let them know how pissed I was, then I scheduled a floro...the day before the floro I was eating some crazy flakey fish the wife made...I got about...half way through a small filet and had this strange sensation. Not a golf ball, but...I don't know...an odd sensation. So I stopped eating (first good sign looking back, the brain knew what to do even if I didn't), and I started hearing this odd gurgling sound
followed by a second weird sensation. Almost like a burp that won't come out. I waited patiently and decided to not eat anymore. The next day I figured I would mention it to the doc.

Floro went well (except for the two glasses of chalk I had to drink) and they informed me I had excellent restriction. I mentioned the previous nights meal experience and they said I had most likely eaten a little too fast, or not chewed something enough and caused a minor blockage. It passed, I felt better and I went on with my day. Since then I have felt that feeling two more times, I now realize that feeling is one small mouthful of food beyond what I should eat. Fickle indeed...fickle fickle fickle...man for some reason I really want a pickle now.