3rd fill tomorrow.

so  do  you  think  i  will  have  resriction  then?  because  i  don't  now.  i  think  i  gained  2  pounds  these  2  weeks.  i  eat  and  eat  and  eat  and  i  don't  get  full  or  satisfied.  i  drink  alot  of  water.  i  still  have'nt  had  a  soda  (  i  was  a  soda  freak )  since  6/4/07  i  love  my  water  now.  so  how  many  more  fills  do  i  need?  and  how  many  fills  did  it  take  for  you  to  have  resriction?  Debbie

I hope you get restriction tomorrow.  I have had 2 fills and I still don't have good restriction.  I can also eat and eat and I don't feel full or satisfied.  I have actually started gaining weight again.  Maybe 3 will be the magic number for you.

I go for my 2nd fill on Thursday and I am really hoping that makes a difference. I have some restriction, but not enough to impact my weight. I can still eat 4/5 of what I used to eat. I lost 2 lbs right after my fill but I have been stuck at the same weight +/- 2 oz for the past three weeks. I have never stayed so consistently on a number. I am ready to cut off a limb to see the scale go down. I admit that I was on vacation and I didn't gain, but for the past week I have been working out and watching calories and still no change. It is frustrating and disheartening, but I have to believe we will begin losing soon. Best of luck!!!!!! ~Maggie

Fills are a funny thing. There are so many factors. The size band you have, how big the fill is, and how thick your stomach tissue is. Your time of the month, how hydrated you are.... blah blah blah. I can't actually remember if it was my 3rd or 4th fill (bad bandster, bad! :), but I'm definitely at good restriction now. I've been here on the same fill for a few months! It's really a great thing, and you'll get it here soon too! Think of all the things you've done to get here, and you're most likely just a fill or two away! Then you can work on head hunger! Yay...  Just realize this surgery is totally useless without proper restriction (I know, duh). It's so important to get there, and I'm always confused when doctors aren't aggressive with fills (after healing of course). My fills came slowly because I was hung up with some family emergency and had to be out of the state, so I'm a few months behind. Once I was back home we got right on track and I have been plugging right along. I swear I don't even feel like I'm trying very hard. I'm conscious of it, and I make some better choices, but I'm not the model band patient by any stretch of the imagination and I'm consistently loosing 1-2lbs a week. I know it would go way faster if I was 'good' but I'm slacking right now and as long as I'm loosing I'm fine for now. I go through spurts of what I consider being 'good' and 'bad.' :) You'll be so stoked when you get restriction! Don't beat yourself up when you're hungry!!! You had this surgery because you are too hungry too often, so do the best you can with your 'diet' and get your butt in there for your fills. Be really open with your doctor when you don't have restriction and call him/her up after your fill (like a week or 2 later) if you don't have restriction and get in there earlier than your scheduled appt. Drinking lots of water really does help btw. I think it has something to do with the stomach tissue being 'plumper' because it's hydrated, so it makes the opening smaller. Cutting the sugar and refined carbs helps make you not feel so hungry too, as does eating lots of protein and fiber. Getting out and moving honestly helps too. Water, fiber and protein, and move until you get there.... and don't forget to be patient with yourself! It is hard! I know! I also know that if I could do it (over 50 BMI and down at least 90lbs), so can you! :) Good luck to you!

Thanks  you  all are  awsome.  well  i  only  got  another  1/2  cc  of  fill  still  not  much .  i  think  i  will  be  calling  my  doc  back  in  another  week  or  so.    Debbie.

The typical range to get to initial proper restriction is 3-5 fills. The VG band with its larger capacity, thus more "wiggle" room for fine tuning, often takes more adjustments to get right initially. However, that being said, fills are only part of the equation. You need to work on getting into the habit of putting proper portions on your plate. It's better, prior to proper restriction, to eat small meals more frequently than to continue overportioning meals. The band isn't there to force you to stop mid-way through a pre-op sized meal...it's there to help you feel full (full = not physically hungry anymore) on a bandster-sized (proper dietary portions, not micro-portions) meal and then not get physically hungry again for 3-4 hours. You can't tell if you're properly restricted unless you're eating proper portions so you can judge hunger/satiety based on those portion sizes and how soon hunger returns after the meal. Folks who force their bands to force them to stop often end up with complications such enlarged pouches/esophagal dilation. Nancy