Needing help...

I need some help and know that others have gone through this so I'm gonna ask...

I had my surgery back in Aug 2010 and have lost 26lbs not...not as much as I was hoping for but will take anything that comes off.

I had a fill back in November and was too tight and suffered for 1 month with throwing up and getting stuck at every meal and resorted to liquids and sliders to survive...Needless to say I didnt lose anything but couldn't live with the vomiting so I had n unfill in December and felt better.

I still have issues with getting stuck and throwing up if I dont eat slow and chew well (I even bought baby spoons and forks) but notice that I am not losing consistantly. I will lose 1-2lbs a week then gain it back the next week I cant break through the 250 mark.

I also notice that I get hungry every 2-3 hours..

So the question I have is "Should I get a fill?" I mean I still get stuck and throw up but am not losing weight...

Please help me with your opinions Thanks   ZEN

Hmm. That's a tough one. You definitely don't want to be too tight.   I think the hungry ever 2-3 hours is pretty normal, actually, though.

Are you working out, by any chance? That is the best way I have found to really make a difference.

Be really careful about not keeping your band too tight would be my advice. It sounds like you're already tight since you get stuck and throw up right now. Have you talked to your doctor about it?
Best of luck to you. I hope you can find a solution.

It all comes down to calories in versus calories burned.  Please don't get a fill if you are still getting stuck and vomiting.  That could cause damage and worse case scenario, you could lose your band doing that repeatedly. 

Journal your food.  Exercise.  Exercise. Drink 64 oz of water.  Get your required protein in.  Are you able to eat dense protein?  It takes work to lose weight.  Getting a fill and getting too tight isn't the answer.

I agree with Rita.  Track what you are eating first. Or you could be one of us that are sensitive to carbs and have to limit them to lose weight.  Good luck.

From my experience two things have to happen after fills.  You have to learn to chew better, you have to change some of the foods you are eating but you have to learn to do this without resorting to foods that aren't good for you.

Once those lessons are learned and you are hungry every 2-3 hours and you have stopped losing weight it is time for another fill.  This new fill then requires that you learn a little bit more (usually about eating even less food) and you are off again for a while.

So...it sounds like first you need to get a grip on the lesson.  how much are you eating?  how well are you chewing?  What are you eating?

My band requires-1/2 cup of food.  lean but moist proteins (fish is usually the best but can also eat beef cooked tender in sauce or turkey burger, cheese, beans or tofu).    I can have a few bites of cooked vegetables and a few bites of a carbohydrate such as rice or potato or a dry-ish bread.

That is it for my meal.   Now I did not get to this point over night..i gradually lost foods and serving sizes to this with each fill.  Bottom line my advice is listen really carefully to your body.  When you get stuck is is painful?  if so then it is really a tuck episode and you need to avoid that food or try chewing it better next time.  If it is a pb then you ate too much.  Next time eat less by stopping sooner and trying to get a feel for messages from your pouch that it is time to stop.

I found that my longest plateaus were really about getting my head around the listening to my body thing.  If you ar3 willing to make the changes you can take the next step forward (kind of a like a big game of life board :))

Good luck!!!

Tina

Thanks guys for all the replies... I get stuck when I eat something I know I shouldnt like rice, chicken, beef, pork, doughy breads so I know I'm not getting stuck because I'm too tight.

I know I need to change my eating habbits and stay away from the above listed foods it's just so hard when your culture brought you up eating things like rice all the time (especially sushi I LOVE sushi).

I wanted to do the 5 day pouch test diet this week and see if I really need a fill and I think I'm gonna do that..

I can eat a large amount of food way more then 1 cup that's why I'm leaning towards getting a fill...

Are you saying you can't eat chicken, beef and pork?  What are you able to eat for dense protein?  Are your portions eraser sized?  Are you adding a little moisture to your meat?  I use a BBQ sauce or fresh salsa etc to help with the meat. 

Just because you can eat more than a cup of food, doesn't mean you should.  I weigh out my 3oz of meat at lunch and dinner.  I might be able to eat more, but I don't.  I don't want to stretch out my pouch.  In 19 months I have only been stuck 4x's and I have never PB'd.  You have to be careful with your band.

If you can't eat meat, I don't think a fill is the best idea.

Do you journal what you eat? Everyone burns calories at a differnet rate. I know that will not lose if I eat more than 900 calories a day (if I exercise more I can eat a little more). To find out where your body burns calories journal your food and if you don't lose for a week drop your calorie count by 100 calories for the next week. When you lose then you know that you found where your body burns calories. Best of luck.

Wow Zen, I feel like I could have written what you did.  I have been contemplating getting a fill as well but still slime or PB often.  I am also hungry after 2-3 hours.  I feel like there is a really steep learning curve once you first get restriction and it has taken me a good 11/2 months to come to this realization. This weekend I focused on trying to chew my food around 25 times before swallowing.  I know this sounds crazy but it really seemed to cut down on my PB/sliming episodes (and forced me to eat slower).  The results...Saturday I did great but did PB on Outback Steak (I chewed well and ate slowly).  I did eat a couple of mushrooms with it and they may be too fiborous. I will give steak one more try before I cut it out of my life.  Yesterday I had a PB/slime free day!!!  I think I am going to wait to get a fill until I have mastered my eating te*****ues.  I am afraid of being too tight.

Never get an additional fill when you have not mastered the fill level you are currently at.  Each fill takes some time learning and most importantly working with.  Learn what you can eat that will fill you every couple of hours.  And are you truly hungry?  Take the time to know your hunger.  Pause, write down what you are feeling - if you need to.

Good luck!