Re: First fill question

[Guest guest]

,You got it! That is the exact feeling I have tried to describe to other new bandsters. You will no long have that full feeling you used to have. It is just kind of like, no more will fit. It is a weird kind of done feeling, not stuffed anymore. You have the exact feeling you should have. Watch while you are eating for signals like, your nose starts to run, that is a "stop" signal. Or you get pain in your shoulder. Or you hiccup. Those are all subtle and some not so subtle signs of your body is saying "done". I haven't been able to eat breakfast since I got the band, I think that is pretty typical so you may want to watch how that goes for you. I could NEVER eat eggs in the AM, that seems to be a touchy food for many

bandsters. If I try to eat too early in the am, I take one bite - just like you - and it hurts, it won't go down and I struggle for a couple of hours to feel good again. My mind still has not stopped telling me I'm still hungry, that I can't possibly survive on this little amt of food. HA Ok, it might not be as bad as it was in the beginning but I still get those thoughts!! You are doing great and looking forward to hearing more about your journey! Cyrena First fill

questionOk, I'm back with more questions. ;o) Work and just life has been

hectic lately so I've not had time to post much but I've tried to

keep up with reading this board.

I have a fill question.

I went to Mexicali last weekend for my first fill. Yea!!! ) I had

it done on Saturday, the 19th. I have a VG (10cc) band and got a

whopping 3.4cc fill. I really didn't feel much difference really but

it's hard to tell when you're doing liquids. Slap me, but I started

eating solid foods yesterday, a day early. No real reason other than

that I felt like I could do it. Everything I've had has pretty much

been fairly soft so it wasn't too far from being mushies.

Anyway. Yesterday morning I had about a half cup of oatmeal for

breakfast with about a quarter cup of mixed fresh fruit. Mid-morning

I was hungry so I ate 10-12 macadamia nuts. For lunch, I had about a

half cup of turkey salad (that'd been food-processored) and about a

third cup fresh fruit. Dinner last night was half a turkey enchilada

made with more mushed up turkey and low-carb flatbread, about 2 Tbsp

fresh salsa of tomatoes, onion, cucumber and avocado. The one back

thing I ate was a stuffed jalapeno pepper. The pepper and stuffing

wasn't bad really (turkey and cheese). However, it was wrapped in a

bready biscuit-type dough. It was baked, not fried. The whole thing

was not quite fist-sized. I ate about 3/4 of it.

Ok, so I ate all this yesterday and felt fine. No stuffed feeling,

no hurting, nothing that would make me think I'd eaten too much.

This morning tho', I can't say the same thing. I wasn't hungry when

I got up but that's not unusual for me. Breakfast was a quarter of a

low-carb pita stuffed with leftover enchilada filling and toasted in

a skillet and topped with salsa, and scrambled eggs--probably equiv.

to 1 1/2 eggs.

Thing is, I ate one *small* bite of the pita and two small bites of

the egg and knew I couldn't do it. It all felt like it was just

sitting like a lump in my stomach, so I quit.

I've mentioned that I do taste tests. Well, I had one this morning.

The samples were canned spinach, pinto beans and kidney beans. I

think I ate 8 pinto beans, 6 kidney beans and about 2 Tbsp spinach

and I'm feeling just like I did after trying to eat this morning.

It doesn't hurt at all and I don't feel full really, more like when

you eat something that doesn't quite sit right and it's just an

uncomfortable feeling.

Ok, after all this, my question is....has my fill finally kicked in?

I so don't know how to read my body signals. ( Honestly, if this

is what it's like, I'm good with that. My mind says I should be

eating something, that I must be hungry by now but my stomach is

telling me it's ok and not to push it. I'd finally decided last

night that I probably needed more fill already but now I'm not so

sure.

Hep me, hep me!! ;o)

in AR

[Guest guest]

,

I got my first fill almost 8 weeks after surgery. I too could eat as much as before I had the band placed. I have the J & J 10cc band and got 5cc in. I had a very hard time the first month post fill as I had to really learn to eat a different way. I could not feel the full feeling. I was used to the stuffed feeling I always felt. I struggled for the first month and had a lot of problems and did not lose a lot of weight. I finally started to slow down listen to my body, eat slowly, and cut out the carbs and I starting really losing weight. I found the hardest part of this journey is the first month post fill as you just don't know the feelings. My advice is just eat slow, chew chew chew and stop before you think you are full. I, like most of us love the taste of food and always want to eat more but have to talk to myself to say I don't need more. So much of this journey is all in our head and learning to think a differnt way. I am almost 5 months out and 50 pounds gone forever. I am two pounds away from my goal and I am determined to lose those plus 8 more. I love my band and would not change anything. Best of luck and keep posting.

DOB 11/30/07

202/152/150

>> Ok, I'm back with more questions. ;o) Work and just life has been > hectic lately so I've not had time to post much but I've tried to > keep up with reading this board.> > I have a fill question.> > I went to Mexicali last weekend for my first fill. Yea!!! ) I had > it done on Saturday, the 19th. I have a VG (10cc) band and got a > whopping 3.4cc fill. I really didn't feel much difference really but > it's hard to tell when you're doing liquids. Slap me, but I started > eating solid foods yesterday, a day early. No real reason other than > that I felt like I could do it. Everything I've had has pretty much > been fairly soft so it wasn't too far from being mushies.> > Anyway. Yesterday morning I had about a half cup of oatmeal for > breakfast with about a quarter cup of mixed fresh fruit. Mid-morning > I was hungry so I ate 10-12 macadamia nuts. For lunch, I had about a > half cup of turkey salad (that'd been food-processored) and about a > third cup fresh fruit. Dinner last night was half a turkey enchilada > made with more mushed up turkey and low-carb flatbread, about 2 Tbsp > fresh salsa of tomatoes, onion, cucumber and avocado. The one back > thing I ate was a stuffed jalapeno pepper. The pepper and stuffing > wasn't bad really (turkey and cheese). However, it was wrapped in a > bready biscuit-type dough. It was baked, not fried. The whole thing > was not quite fist-sized. I ate about 3/4 of it.> > Ok, so I ate all this yesterday and felt fine. No stuffed feeling, > no hurting, nothing that would make me think I'd eaten too much. > This morning tho', I can't say the same thing. I wasn't hungry when > I got up but that's not unusual for me. Breakfast was a quarter of a > low-carb pita stuffed with leftover enchilada filling and toasted in > a skillet and topped with salsa, and scrambled eggs--probably equiv. > to 1 1/2 eggs.> > Thing is, I ate one *small* bite of the pita and two small bites of > the egg and knew I couldn't do it. It all felt like it was just > sitting like a lump in my stomach, so I quit.> > I've mentioned that I do taste tests. Well, I had one this morning. > The samples were canned spinach, pinto beans and kidney beans. I > think I ate 8 pinto beans, 6 kidney beans and about 2 Tbsp spinach > and I'm feeling just like I did after trying to eat this morning.> > It doesn't hurt at all and I don't feel full really, more like when > you eat something that doesn't quite sit right and it's just an > uncomfortable feeling.> > Ok, after all this, my question is....has my fill finally kicked in? > I so don't know how to read my body signals. ( Honestly, if this > is what it's like, I'm good with that. My mind says I should be > eating something, that I must be hungry by now but my stomach is > telling me it's ok and not to push it. I'd finally decided last > night that I probably needed more fill already but now I'm not so > sure.> > Hep me, hep me!! ;o)> > in AR>

[Guest guest]

Sorry I forgot to post my name.

Diane

Gig Harbor, WA

[Guest guest]

Well, I'll be darned. This silly band thing really *does* work! )

So now all I have to do is figure out how to tell my head it's ok not

to eat. I didn't eat that much for lunch but I still wasn't hungry

for dinner. I went ahead and had about a 1/3 cup of cream of chicken

soup and half a protein drink but I'd'a been ok without anything.

It's really hard to let go of a life time of habit that says " it's

been 5 hours since you ate. You must now eat again. " ;o)

Actually, this is kinda cool. ;o)

>

> ,

> You got it! That is the exact feeling I have tried to describe to

other new bandsters. You will no long have that full feeling you used

to have. It is just kind of like, no more will fit. It is a

weird kind of done feeling, not stuffed anymore. You have the exact

feeling you should have. Watch while you are eating for signals

like, your nose starts to run, that is a " stop " signal. Or you get

pain in your shoulder. Or you hiccup. Those are all subtle and some

not so subtle signs of your body is saying " done " . I haven't been

able to eat breakfast since I got the band, I think that is pretty

typical so you may want to watch how that goes for you. I could

NEVER eat eggs in the AM, that seems to be a touchy food for many

bandsters. If I try to eat too early in the am, I take one bite -

just like you - and it hurts, it won't go down and I struggle for a

couple of hours to feel good again. My mind still has not stopped

telling me I'm still

> hungry, that I can't possibly survive on this little amt of food.

HA Ok, it might not be as bad as it was in the beginning but I still

get those thoughts!! You are doing great and looking forward to

hearing more about your journey!

>

> Cyrena

[Guest guest]

Man, are you right! ) My eating habit has been to eat slowly but

for a long period of time. I could go through a bag of chips and a

24 oz carton of cottage cheese at one 'meal' but that 'meal' would

last two hours or more. By the time I was done, I'd be almost

miserably stuffed. I'm kinda still doing that but on a greatly

reduced scale. I'm taking small bites, chewing like a cow and still

taking a long time to finish.

My biggest problem is that I can't find any signals yet. They may be

there but if they are, I'm not recognizing them. I don't burp or

hiccup or get a runny nose or any of the other things folks have

mentioned. After I eat a little, I have to kinda stop and mentally

feel out my body and try to decide if I still need more food or not.

My head always tells me that what I've eaten isn't enough. (

Hopefully that'll change soon.

>

>

> ,

>

> I got my first fill almost 8 weeks after surgery. I too could eat

as

> much as before I had the band placed. I have the J & J 10cc band

and

> got 5cc in. I had a very hard time the first month post fill as I

had

> to really learn to eat a different way. I could not feel the full

> feeling. I was used to the stuffed feeling I always felt. I

struggled

> for the first month and had a lot of problems and did not lose a

lot of

> weight. I finally started to slow down listen to my body, eat

slowly,

> and cut out the carbs and I starting really losing weight. I found

the

> hardest part of this journey is the first month post fill as you

just

> don't know the feelings. My advice is just eat slow, chew chew

chew and

> stop before you think you are full. I, like most of us love the

taste

> of food and always want to eat more but have to talk to myself to

say I

> don't need more. So much of this journey is all in our head and

> learning to think a differnt way. I am almost 5 months out and 50

> pounds gone forever. I am two pounds away from my goal and I am

> determined to lose those plus 8 more. I love my band and would not

> change anything. Best of luck and keep posting.

>

> DOB 11/30/07

>

> 202/152/150

>

>

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 4/25/2008 12:40:50 PM Pacific Daylight Time, eelie@... writes:

I'd finally decided last night that I probably needed more fill already but now I'm not so sure.

Hey ,

I have the VG band too.

I had a similar size first fill and recently had my 2nd. The 2nd fill is totally different than the first - it was when the lightbulbs went off for me.

By the time I got the 2nd (over a month later), I could eat anything I wanted - the first just didn't do much with my VG band at all. I went over to lapbandtalk.com and read the VG thread as I was pretty worried about it - but after reading lots of posts, the VG band seems to take a bit longer to reach the sweet spot. Thankfully, Dr. Aceves and Dr. Campos really treat each person individually and will put more fill in that VG band if you need it.

This go round, I have experienced all the things that Cyrena described (runny nose, hiccups, etc.). Its ...ummm... interesting at times, but I'm learning really fast to eat slowly and listen to the band!! LOL!

Good luck to ya

Trish Need a new ride? Check out the largest site for U.S. used car listings at AOL Autos.

[Guest guest]

,

I haven't had my surgery yet, but I have a friend that's having similiar problem. She has started setting her watch, when the timer goes off, she's through eating.

Then she sets it again and when the timer goes off she can begin drinking again. It seems to be working better for her since she did this.

I appreciate everyone posting their ups and downs, questions, and answers. I want to be ready when it's my turn... JUNE 5th!!!!

Burson

Pampered Chef

Independent Consultant

http://www.pamperedchef.biz/carrieb

Re: First fill question

Man, are you right! ) My eating habit has been to eat slowly but for a long period of time. I could go through a bag of chips and a 24 oz carton of cottage cheese at one 'meal' but that 'meal' would last two hours or more. By the time I was done, I'd be almost miserably stuffed. I'm kinda still doing that but on a greatly reduced scale. I'm taking small bites, chewing like a cow and still taking a long time to finish.My biggest problem is that I can't find any signals yet. They may be there but if they are, I'm not recognizing them. I don't burp or hiccup or get a runny nose or any of the other things folks have mentioned. After I eat a little, I have to kinda stop and mentally feel out my body and try to decide if I still need more food or not. My head always tells me that what I've eaten isn't enough. ( Hopefully that'll change soon.>> > ,> > I got my first fill almost 8 weeks after surgery. I too could eat as> much as before I had the band placed. I have the J & J 10cc band and> got 5cc in. I had a very hard time the first month post fill as I had> to really learn to eat a different way. I could not feel the full> feeling. I was used to the stuffed feeling I always felt. I struggled> for the first month and had a lot of problems and did not lose a lot of> weight. I finally started to slow down listen to my body, eat slowly,> and cut out the carbs and I starting really losing weight. I found the> hardest part of this journey is the first month

post fill as you just> don't know the feelings. My advice is just eat slow, chew chew chew and> stop before you think you are full. I, like most of us love the taste> of food and always want to eat more but have to talk to myself to say I> don't need more. So much of this journey is all in our head and> learning to think a differnt way. I am almost 5 months out and 50> pounds gone forever. I am two pounds away from my goal and I am> determined to lose those plus 8 more. I love my band and would not> change anything. Best of luck and keep posting.> > DOB 11/30/07> > 202/152/150> >

[Guest guest]

Man, am I glad you posted your experience! ;o) I've already made an

appointment for a second fill which will fall right at six weeks

after this first one. I've been wondering if I'm doing the right

thing, trying to anticipate, thinking I can always cancel it if need

be... Today really solidified my feeling on that tho' because I ate

an unseemly amount for breakfast/brunch this morning. Admittedly, it

was way less than I would have pre-band but still frighteningly more

than I thought I'd be able to now. I'm pretty sure I'm going to be

ready for a fill by the end of May, if not sooner! ;o)

>

> Hey ,

>

> I have the VG band too.

>

> I had a similar size first fill and recently had my 2nd. The 2nd

fill is

> totally different than the first - it was when the lightbulbs went

off for me.

>

> By the time I got the 2nd (over a month later), I could eat

anything I

> wanted - the first just didn't do much with my VG band at all. I

went over to

> lapbandtalk.com and read the VG thread as I was pretty worried

about it - but

> after reading lots of posts, the VG band seems to take a bit longer

to reach the

> sweet spot. Thankfully, Dr. Aceves and Dr. Campos really treat

each person

> individually and will put more fill in that VG band if you need

it.

>

> This go round, I have experienced all the things that Cyrena

described

> (runny nose, hiccups, etc.). Its ...ummm... interesting at times,

but I'm

> learning really fast to eat slowly and listen to the band!! LOL!

>

> Good luck to ya

> Trish

>

>

>

> **************Need a new ride? Check out the largest site for U.S.

used car

> listings at AOL Autos.

> (http://autos.aol.com/used?NCID=aolcmp00300000002851)

>

[Guest guest]

Yup that was me, and honestly, I should have gone back sooner. So I think your plan is a good one.

At this point, I'm hoping this will get me thru summer (cuz I just don't relish the thought of sitting in line at the border for an hour in 110+ degrees for over an hour). Heck, I'll MAKE it last thru summer (grin).

Keep in touch - I love reading your upbeat posts

Trish

In a message dated 4/28/2008 2:29:23 PM Pacific Daylight Time, eelie@... writes:

Admittedly, it was way less than I would have pre-band but still frighteningly more than I thought I'd be able to now. I'm pretty sure I'm going to be ready for a fill by the end of May, if not sooner! ;o)

Need a new ride? Check out the largest site for U.S. used car listings at AOL Autos.