I have to ask - What's the point?

Pianoman · 11-18-2005, 10:39 AM

I'm going for my first fill on Monday. (I've been banded for three months - it's a slow process with my doctor).

I've just read about someone else in my position, who quite legitimately asked what to expect from their first fill. Most people replied "You don't get much restriction after your first fill", or "Don't get your hopes up", or "It took a couple of fills to find the sweet spot". One even replied with "I still have to rely on dieting".

So what was the point? I'm starting to look like a bit of an arse with friends/family...

Can I expect to become pleasantly full a lot quicker after my first fill?

The fill will be done with the aid of an x-ray/barium meal - Will that help?

Sorry to sound cynical - at this stage I'd love to hear some positive news about the first fill.

Thanks!

piercedqt78 · 11-18-2005, 10:41 AM

I was actually filled too tight on my first fill. I went back a week later and had some removed and I have been dropping pounds and inches each and every week. I had a very positive first fill, hope you do too. ~Mandy

Pianoman · 11-18-2005, 10:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by piercedqt78

I was actually filled too tight on my first fill. I went back a week later and had some removed and I have been dropping pounds and inches each and every week. I had a very positive first fill, hope you do too. ~Mandy

Thanks for the positive note, Mandy - that does make me feel a bit more optimistic!

**Alexandra** · 11-18-2005, 11:00 AM

The point of the first fill is to make the SECOND fill more effective. :)

IMO, it makes great sense to let restriction happen slowly, over a fill or two. Think about how difficult it would be to wake up the day after your first fill and suddenly be able to only eat a ver few bites at one sitting. Better to let your mind get used to the idea of lessened intake over several weeks or months. Why make it so hard on yourself?

lovecats85 · 11-18-2005, 11:18 AM

I think they do it conservatively b/c each person is different. I got my 1st fill yesterday and I am SO tight - I may even have to get some unfill if the pain doesn't subside soon. I can hardly drink 1/2 glass of water. I would be dying if they had put anymore in v. some people who got the same fill as me and had no restriction and had to get another fill. Everyone is different and b/c the fills cause swelling, they fill a bit at a time until they hit the sweet spot which could be .5 or 3.5 ya know!

mousecrazy · 11-18-2005, 11:29 AM

Another advantage of the fill process is to have a little restriction, learn to work with that, then a little more, learn to work with that, etc. My 2nd fill is doing very well, but if had been like this, right off the bat when my head wasn't banded yet, I would screw it up.
Patience, friend.
Cindy

Road Queen · 11-18-2005, 11:36 AM

I agree with Cindy - by having a little more restriction each time, you learn to live with the band and reduce your chances of pb's. My first fill I didn't feel restriction but I did have reduced hunger and couldn't eat some foods. That helped me adjust for the 2nd fill when I did have restriciton and further limits on foods.

Now I have some days that I can eat something (rice) and others I can't but I can tell what stage my body is in and react accordingly.

Use this time to get to know your body. Keep patience. Celeste

banded_for_life · 11-18-2005, 12:01 PM

Even though I am relying on diet right now more than restriction of my band, my band is a reminder everyday that I have to make the right food choices. It helps keep on track. I put my family through a lot in order to have this procedure done and I am determined that I am successful and I know my band will help in that arena. I also knew going in based on everything that I read my restriction may not be there at first. I am ok with that and will eventually be able to more depend on my band than a diet. However, I am still the one that has to make the decision of what goes in my mouth(well for the most part I hope)...good or bad. Hope this helps. :-) It is worth it for our future health.

vinesqueen · 11-18-2005, 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pianoman

So what was the point? I'm starting to look like a bit of an arse with friends/family...

what was the point? Point of what, getting the surgery or getting this specific surgery, or getting fills in general?

Only you can answer why you did this. I have my reasons, Kathy's reasons were diffent from mine, and Jenna's reasons were different from either one of ours.

How in the world can you be looking like an arse with your friends and family if you are doing this exactly as it is supposed to progress? Maybe they have set their expectations to hight for you, maybe you had you expectation too high, but how does that make you looke like a jerk or an arse?

One of the many wonderful things about the band is that it is personal. PERSONAL the fill level right for one person doesn't give enough restriction to another, while that same fill will have someone foaming at the mouth restricted to the point of causing pain and possibly harm.

No one fill level is right for anyone else.

I think the reason that you haven't gotten satifactory answers to your questions is that people cannot answer. Perhaps their language skills are not sufficient, perhaps simply trying to explain how something feels to someone else is daunting. I cannot adaquately tell you how it feels to be perfectly restricted. Maybe I don't know, maybe I do but cannot find the words. I've had asthma my entire adult life, but I don't believe I could explain adequately explain or describe what it feels like to have an asthma attack.

I do think that your suspicion that you feel pleasantly full sooner is a good description.

11-18-2005, 12:09 PM

Don't be discouraged. I had my surgery on Aug 24 and did not get my first fill until Oct 12th. Before the fill I did not have that much restriction and got concerned about wasting my money. The fill made a HUGE difference. I immediately know if I've taken in too much... it hurts like the dickens! Its like a heart attack sensation in my chest.

My biggest thing right now is the slow weight loss. I've only lost 36 pounds and seem to only take off 1-2 pounds every couple of weeks. But, the good news is that it is coming off and I feel really good. Energy up and attitude great. Knees don't hurt as much and going up and down stairs is much easier. Hang in there!

11-18-2005, 12:15 PM

The problem is everyone is different with regard to their first fill.....fills in general actually. Some patients get the band and they lose alot of their weight before ever having that first fill. Others it takes only one small fill, then others it takes up to 5 or more. It all depends on the person.
With me, I went for a while without a fill, lost weight. When I began being able to eat a little more, the weight loss stalled so I had a small fill. That worked for a while, lost some weight, stalled had another fill. I've lost 80 pounds now, with 30 to go...and I've had many fills...but all of my fills have been no more than .4cc's at one given time. Others get a first time fill of 1cc in a 4cc band and do great, others get it and it's too much and need a slight unfill. Being your being done under fluro, it'll be much easier for them to tell how much to give so you may in fact get this first fill and feel restriction immediately. You may well notice that you can eat much less......just know that if that doesn't happen, if you'll change your food choices and exercise you can still drop alot of weight until you do reach proper restriction....and when you do get good restriction it will last only for a time. Once you lose more weight you'll notice you've lost restriction and you'll need another one. I need a fill about every 12 pounds or so......
Good luck
Kay

the best me · 11-18-2005, 02:13 PM

My first fill was 2cc and I had a .4cc unfill within the week. Too tight!! A few months later, got that .4cc back. So I'm back at 2cc and it's just right!!! This time.

Quit feeling like an arse. I'm a slow loser. I am 50 pounds down from where I was 2 years ago, and 30 of that has been lost since banding in April. It's MY weight loss journey. People forget too easily how much I have lost. I remember 240. I still double take when I see 192 on the scale. They get used to seeing me at this current weight and wonder when I'll lose more. I'll lose it when I lose it. Leave me alone, be happy for me or keep your mouth shut. Humph.

Here's another thing I posted about dieting on another thread...

Reality Check #1 Successful bandsters diet. All of them. It takes different names and has it's own mentality in each of us, but we are all dieting. You are doing Adkins, someone else is counting calories, others count nothing and eat less, whatever the name, whatever the mindset it takes on, we all diet. The band makes it possible to follow the diet.

That's my take on it. If someone disagrees, fine. It's still my opinion and still my weight loss journey and if eating less and exercising more isn't dieting I don't know what is.

Now, go get that fill! (slap on the butt...) LOL

Parvathi · 11-18-2005, 04:15 PM

Andy hunny, how long did it take you to put on the extra kilos? I'd hazard to guess quite a while (if you're anything like me). They're not going to come off over night, but once you reach a good restriction level, they're gonna fall off.

I'm lucky, in that my doctor is very understanding and lenient with regards to fills. He realizes that without the proper restriction, the band isn't going to work for me. So I had my first fill at 5 weeks. Then he let me come back once a week until we hit that sweet spot. Now we still have appointments every two weeks, just to keep up with progress.

Talk to your doctor, tell him/her how you feel. See if you can get your appointments closer together - its really been a lifesaver for me. I love my doctor and I couldn't do it without the sheer understanding he provides.

But you've also got to be patient. I'm not a patient person so that sucks lol ..but you'll get there. May not be as quick as bypass patients, but quick enough for it to be healthy. Fingers crossed for your first fill :)

LilAngel · 11-18-2005, 04:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mousecrazy

My 2nd fill is doing very well, but if had been like this, right off the bat when my head wasn't banded yet, I would screw it up.

Do they have head bands? ;) Seriously, I loved that phrase. I simply must get my head banded too!! I am deifntely going to use that one.

Jachut · 11-18-2005, 04:39 PM

I think you need to let your head catch up too - I havent been banded yet but no matter how much I read here, I cant stop expecting that I will come out of that operation and never feel hungry again, my weight will come off steadily, I wont have any plateaus and there will be no problems.

It obviously doesnt happen like that. There's no race, you're doing just fine and what your family and friends "expect" isnt really the point. Its your journey, not theirs.