7 replies to this topic

[Suzyk]

Okay so I'm almost 1 year post op and have 6.4ml in a 10ml band.

When I was first banded and allowed to eat normal food again (6 weeks post op) I was having stuck moments every week. Mainly on chicken and usually I just walked until the pain stopped about an hour later. During these moments I had 4ml in my band.

Then I got up to 6.4ml, had gallstones so they removed 4ml until I had my surgery. During my gall bladder removal my surgeon checked my band and said everything looked swell.

The problem now is I am on 6.4ml, barely chew ( a lot less than before) and never every get a stuck moment. I swallowed a 50cent sized steak almost whole accidentally and nothing happened. I can still eat a 12 inch subway.

I've spoken to my doctor about this (who was present for both surgery's) and she says that my band looked normal. She's reluctant to give me more fill because I'm apparently on the high side of the average.

I live off shakes/ vita wheats with tuna, most days so I don't think I've stretched my pouch (and that wouldn't prevent stuck moments) and if i had they would have seen it in my gall bladder surgery as I started feeling this way about two months before the surgery.

I am loosing weight atm, But thats from eating 800-1000cals per day and exercising 4 times a week for 3 hours and eventually I won't be able to keep that up. Also I found that I can easily put the weight back on if I eat 1600 cals (what i'm suppose to go to, to maintain weight) and do 2 one hour exercises for a week. it equates to a kilo gain per week.


Does anyone have any ideas? Or do they think it's just strange too?

Maybe this is what they mean, the band just doesn't work for some people??? But how could I not have restriction???

[Suzyk]

P.S. My surgeon said my band looked well, not swell. LOL

[Gato]

Forget about what you can and can't eat - how hungry are you feeling after eating a reasonably small amount for each meal?
If you can eat a small amount and then stop (self imposed) and then last until your next meal without feeling as though you're starving to death (as opposed to feeling full), then all is as it should be.
The band was never supposed to restrict what you can eat, just put a lid on hunger pains by pressing on the relevant nerves that go past your stomach.

I know you're an old hand, but does any of the info below apply?

Early on, most Lap-band patients do have a sense of "restriction"......
...particularly after the first fill. When we place the band on a patient the stomach above the band typically will hold one to two ounces (by volume, not by weight). The stomach has a lot of muscle fibers, and the wall of the stomach is fairly thick. When food is consumed, it arrives in the pouch, and meets some resistance, first against the newly adjusted band, and then against the stomach which does not stretch easily. People love this feeling! It is a sense of control over food -- a leash. But it is not permanent. It makes it difficult to eat more, because the top part of the stomach and the band will resist it. If you over eat you will feel uncomfortable.

This is the honeymoon phase, you feel full with less, no appetite, and if you try to eat more it doesn't work. They eat a small amount of food, they feel satisfied, and they are losing weight.

For patients who rely on this sensation, they will find it will take ever increasing volumes of food to obtain this sensation. The initial response is to have their band adjusted so that they can "feel full again." Against a tighter band, the upper stomach stretches a bit (and if they eat fast it stretches more)and they again have the sensation of "feeling full." This becomes a cycle, a tighter band, the stomach stretches more-- and then instead of going back to its original size, the stomach stretches more and more to where it takes more to fill it.

The person who continues to eat until they have this sensation, will find that it takes more and more food to obtain this feeling. Two things happen -- first the stomach stretches to where it accommodates more food, and to stretch it means you have to eat more. The second is that to "feel full" it takes the brain time to register this sensation -- this is not the sensation registered by the hypothalamus, but registered in the conscious cortex. So your stomach can be full, but your brain won't register it for a while, and if you keep eating you can overeat. As a result, the pouch dilates. Similar to a balloon, when you first start to blow up the balloon it takes a bit of force.

As you continue to fill the balloon, the wall of the balloon stretches (thins out), it is easier to blow it up -- the same is true with the upper pouch. Early on, before the pouch is stretched, it takes a little bit of food to cause it to stretch, but with chronic over-eating the pouch will accommodate more and more food. The stomach wall is thinner, it is easier to stretch, and to get that sensation it takes more food than at first. Often patients will complain that they "don't feel restriction," and wish to have the band made tighter.

There are two potential results to this: one is the patient will passively stretch the stomach and esophagus and not be eating a small amount of food. These patients simply do not lose the weight that the surgeon expects. The other is that the band will be forced down the stomach, the band will slip, which generally requires operative intervention to reposition it.

For those patients who are rigorous about the volume of food they eat, and do not let the stomach to tell them when to stop eating - they do very well. This is one of the keys of successful patients, only eat a certain portion of food - period. If the band is properly adjusted, the appetite will be dimmed for several hours. Once your brain realizes that a small amount of food keeps you satisfied, then your eyes will adjust to the amount you eat.

http://drsimpson.net...estriction.html

[TinaH]

Thanks Gato, I am 10 days banded and that makes a lot of sense...THANKYOU !!

[rockabette]

Im not yet banded but have been following the youtube blog of "LizLoverHerLapband" and she recently did a 5 day pouch test which from my understanding is going back to a very restrictive diet (I think liquids and mushies) to gain back restriction that way. Liz.... what an ispiration... she is now at goal weight!!

Anyways here is her videos and the link to the 5 day pouch test, not sure if it helps at all as I dont really know what I am talking about.

http://www.5daypouch...an/theplan.html

[kazbo]

one thing my surgeon said was that there isn't an 'average' patient. There are some who need more fill than others and everyone is different. I have 9.4 mls in, my friend has 11 mls in...we both have the same band with a capicity of around 13 mls. Others have 6 mls in.

Could be worth chatting with ur dr about getting some more fill and see how you go!

[Suzyk]

Thanks everyone.

I should mention that I do control my portion sizes to about 1 1/2 cups a time and I eat no more than 1100 calories per day.

But I know I will fall back into my bad habits so will see my doctor again in 4 weeks.

I'm really worried because while I'm loosing weight, it's so easy for me to gain again e.g. I gained 3 kilos in 5 days!!! It took two weeks to burn it off again. So a little frustrated cause when I'm at my goal weight, i'm still going to be just as strict to stay that size and if i'm being honest, I've been really unhappy the last 5 weeks with eating and exercising. I'm at the gym 4 days a week and I hate anything physical, i hate feeling the burn. I know i sound like a sook.

also i'm a 24hour shift worker, so getting to the gym is hard and time consuming and same with eating proper prepared meals. So thats why i really wish i had restriction so i knew to stop eating!

[buckets3eyedfish]

do you have Jetts gym where you are ? open 24/7