Fills

[elarkins]

An anybody with the band possibly tell me what it is like having a fill?? I have my first one in a week :S

 

[Miss hungry]

They are no problem. Just a pin prick and it's done. Then a drink after just to check everythings in order. I had my 5th fill today and was in and out in 5 mins!

 

[elarkins]

How do they know how much to put in?

 

[FuturePerfect]

At Heartlands they are done under Xray guidance.

You first of all swallow a mouthful of barium so they can see what sort of restriction there is currently.

Then they will add some saline, then another swallow to see what difference there is.

Once they are happy that the optimum is in there, you have to sit and drink 2 beakers of water to check there is no blockage, then you can go home.

Doesn't hurt a bit.

 

[slimbydecember]

For me my fills have consisted of laying down on a bed, the nurse feeling for my port.

Once she's found it she gets a needle which is very thin and quite long and fills the needle up to the required amount.

Then she sticks the needle in the port site which is a small prick (I've had more painful blood tests) and squirts in some liquid.

She gets me to sit up with the needle in my belly but it doesn't move as it's in the port and asks me to drink some water. If the water goes down OK she pulls the needle out, if not she pulls out a bit of liquid.

All in all takes about 5 minutes and doesn't hurt more than a small prick.

It really is nothing to get worried or worked up about x

 

[elarkins]

I'm just fascinated with it all lol xx

 

[AmyN]

I had my 1st fill today and it took around 5 mins. The nurse told me that she like to build up the fills gradually so I only had 2mls put in. I had to do a sit up she found my port popped the needle in and two secs later it was all over. Nothing major and certainly didn't hurt. Good luck

 

[elarkins]

Do u hav to go back on liquids/soft foods??

 

[JO28172]

I'm also in and out in 5 mins..for me it's all based around what you tell them, portions, getting hungry etc for them to decide how much. Yes after a fill I have a week where I do few days liquid/mushy before getting back to solids, as it does become swollen and tight x

 

[iheartny]

Fills don't hurt at all, much like everyone else has said. My provider likes me to do 3 days liquid followed by 3 days mushy, which is good as it always shifts a couple of lbs.
What I would say is for me 0.25 ml can make a heck of a difference in restriction, so dont go overboard or you might end up doing a 200 mile round trip like me to get a defill! Xx

 

[elarkins]

Oh no I wouldn't want to over fill!!! It's over an hours drive to the hospital plus I'd need more time off work! Not worth the risk plus they said I'm going to get a fill every four weeks

 

[fudgebunny]

Hia all, I have my first fill tomorrow. Am more nervous about this than I was about the actual band surgery itself!!

Such a baby I am and don't like needles at all.

Didn't realise fills were a regular thing? X

 

[miserable]

Yes they are, they what makes your band optimum. It really is nothing to worry about xxx

 

[Mazza]

It depends what you call regular really and each person is different.

Some people have no fills and lose all their weight, some have monthly ones - adjusting up and down as appropriate.

I 'think' I had 5 (could be 6 though) and Im almost 3 years out xx

 

[Karen_Ponte]

How did your fill go? Mine is on sat and I'm scared too - I'm another needle phobic!

Sent from my iPhone using WLSurgery

 

[flutterby1966]

I just had my 5th fill today - so am up to 10mls in a 14ml band - had it all removed and then refilled - just to check the band as ok and no leaks etc. Perfectly fine. a few seconds and a tiny prick and it was done. And I really dislike needles too. Most important to follow your providers rules afterwards, ie Liquids / Mushy / Solids so as not to damage your stomach / band ... You will be fine, I am sure x

 

[elarkins]

What does it feel like to have the band so tight?

 

[flutterby1966]

I dont feel the band tight at all to be honest. I am still on liquids so really too early to say how that extra 1/2 mil is going to affect me ... but no problem with liquids, yoghurt or soup yesterday. Likewise I never really feel the band too tight, because I use portion control / calorie counting to manage what I eat, rather than relying on the band to tell me when to stop. Generally, I know in my mind and from my diet tracker approximately what I should be eating - and stop when I have eaten that - then the band helps make me feel fuller for longer. I never really wanted to push the boundaries by having the band tell me when to actually stop and then potentially damage it or my stomach. I did say 'generally' earlier, because sometimes (eg with TOTM / stress / illness etc) the body/band reacts differently and I have had the odd time when I have PB'd. But not very often. So when people are chasing that sometimes elusive feeling of 'restriction' ... is that necessarily the best/right thing for our bodies

 

[The Chopster]

I agree with FB's statement exactly. When we haven't got much in our bands we are always chasing that elusive sweet spot but I find it easier to calorie count and the band just helps

I think we get too hung up on finding restriction but we have all been there.

 

[miserable]

Yeah but for someone like me who had the op in October and feel constantly hungry like on pre op diet but still eating all the right food it is heart breaking not to feel full or even satisfied. So if you aren't chasing that restriction what was the point of having the op in the first place? I can't rely on will power I don't have any otherwise I ll not be in this situation. So I have to Chase that feeling of restriction otherwise what have I got left? 6 k worth of debts??? I am on a diet and have been since august battling everyday not to fell off the wagon and until last week, the band was inactive... sorry if this offend but its my journey and how I feel. But I do believe in the band and I do believe it ll become my best friend, its just going to take much longer to get there than others that's all.