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Linda yep, we are right up the street at nw 18th x marshall. Thanks for the compliments I really do blush when I read the nice words.. it's been a long time

thanks you michelle

I've been banded a little over 6 months now. I have posted this before and I will say it again, I really feel like it's taken me 6 months to *kinda* get the hang of the band. It's a daily surprise to find what worked yesterday doesn't work today. I thank God, and care credit financing, every single day for my band. I am 25lbs from my goal. My goal is 190lbs. I might lose more but to be honest I really like being a curvy girl. (please note curvy not fat) I like my hips and I like my hour glass shape. I am currently a size 16 and find that even they are big in the waist but can't go down because of hips/azz. When I reach my goal weight and size.. I'm thinking a size 12 I will start buying clothes that fit my hips/booty/thighs and have them tailored to the rest of me. This forum is such a godsend for me. I lurk and read several times a day.. commenting here and there.. getting pissy from time to time and wiping my eyes. I have a special fondness for Ramona and Evette since we were banded on the same day and met at the OCC. I love hearing everyone's ups/downs and allll arounds! I have tried for a week now to get my blasted photo's to post but can't get it.. and good lord I thought I was computer savy!! so here are the links.. maybe someone can fix it for me. Before 276 lbs http://i473.photobucket.com/albums/rr94/ml...eforepic005.jpg After (in progress) 215lbs * i'm in the middle* http://i473.photobucket.com/albums/rr94/ml...4424182_573.jpg just me http://i473.photobucket.com/albums/rr94/ml...dayparty055.jpg

I love that idea... of course hor-de-vors for us bandsters now means we can order 1 appetizer between 10 of us, each it 1 thing and call it good! hahahah! funny but true! looking forward to seeing you ladies. I invited a friend of mine who was banded in May.. we talk daily but she's not on this forum. She is VERY excited about the get together. Our BF are like.. uh... whenever Mindy & Melissa get together & go out dancing there is TROUBLE! ha! We go waaaaay back.

WOW! HUGE difference.... especially in your face and really just your overall body.. it looks like you are losing it all over! Keep up the GREAT work! wowowowowwowo

Denise You look great! I love that you have the same shirt on. Your stomache shrunk sooo much! good greif woman! Fabulous! Hugs

Denis you look GREAT! What a difference you can see in your pictures! Keep up the great work!

I swear I am losing my mind / going crazy trying to figure out how to post b/4 and after pics! ugh... I read mamamichelles instructions under the technical tab and i read this one and I just can't get it... help!!

We will all be sending good thoughts your way DanaBell! See you on the other side.

You look great!!! > Keep up the great work and keep us posted!

OMG!! TRS... you have lost 113lbs!! <' /> Congrats!!!!!!!!!

The Holiday Inn is a good option. I 2nd Stormy's opinion of the "unicorn" .. LOL... uh... NO! although I could use some extra cash in my pocket since my clothes are getting soooo big on me! hahahah. I'm guessing we will have lunch around 1 then meet up later & go to The refectory. I can pick up whomever from wherever and get them to the club. If I drink I will either cab it home or better yet I can make my BF bring us and pick us up. I'll get back to you on that one.. LOL.. but at the very least I can get you TO the place. I can fit 4 (besides me) in my car and if you're all staying close by I can make multiple trips. Looking forward to it! Now I'm thinking.. WHAT AM I GOING TO WEAR?!?!?!

Good golly miss molly! The girls are coming out!! LOL Ok... sooo If you are looking for a place to dance that's keeping with the "dive" part... there is a place on SE 122nd called The refectory. It's not classy and there is always some hoochieness goin on. The DJ is crackin and plays mostly top 40 dancing music... hip/hop.. top 40 etc... the dance floor is pretty big, there are multiple bars and always interesting people to talk to. Good mix of people young and old (like me) I usually hit this place 2x a year to get my fix. If you want to go downtown it is mostly "young" bars/clubs..... baracuda, mcfaddens, etc.... definitely catering to the younger crowd. If you've heard of a place to go out in PDX i've probably been there so be sure to ask! LOL

Trudy Hang in there, I swear it WILL get better. I am a little over 6 mos banded and I swear it takes that long to finally get restriction and figure out the workings of being banded. I am cut and pasting a post from a couple days ago where it was asked "how many cc's in your band".... please note that I only lost 14lbs between being banded 3/24 and my 2nd fill 6/6.. almost 11 weeks! I was like WTF?!?!? LOL it seemed like EVERYONE was losing but me! It wasn't until I got my 3rd fill and wrapped my head around portion control, making the right choices that I FINALLY started dropping some weight. I Swear it will happen. Decision weight 290 banded 3/24/08 276 1st fill 5/12/08 @ OCC 1.8cc weight 262 14lbs lost between surgery & 1st fill 2nd fill 6/6/08 local/no fluro 2.5cc weight 262 0 pounds lost between 1st & 2nd fill 3rd fill 8/4/08 local/no fluro 2.9cc weight 251 11lbs lost between 2nd & 3rd fill 25lbs since being banded Current weight 9/30/08 217lbs weight loss since 3rd fill = 34lbs for a total of 59lbs since being banded. TOTAL weight loss including pre-op 73lbs. It was not until my 3rd fill that I finally started dropping some weight. There were times I would read the forum and it seemed like everyone in the world was losing faster than me.. I, daily, had to remind myself that I did NOT get fat overnight so there is NO WAY I was gonna get thinner overnight. (sigh) slow and steady... slow and steady.. it's not a race. Eventually I will get to the finish line

Nov 8 would work for me. I work until 1pm on Saturdays in the Pearl so it would prob take about 30min to get out clackamas way.

I've never heard of the OCC calling to check and make sure people are feeling "ok" after a noramal surgery... did you have the assumption when you went down there?? while I think it would be nice I definitely do not think it's a requirement and given the # of surgeries done daily I'm guessing that would require another full time employee. (shrugs) NOt saying it's a bad idea it's just I wouldn't want to pay a higher price to have my surgery just to have someone call me a few days later to make sure i'm ok.

Julie I'm sooo glad you got some relief! I'm equally disappointed with the non response from the OCC.. it seems so unlike them. How much did the fill center in salem charge? I am ALWAYS interested in having other options near my house. I never posted about my 3rd fill/overfill experience because I felt stupid about it.. but when I got my 3rd fill (locally) I begged for an aggressive fill!! I ended up with 3.1 cc's and was still able to swallow water... after I got home and that evening I was chocking on my own spit! It was awful! I coulnd't keep water down.. nothing! it was awful! my fill dr was going out of town and after trying to "suffer through" for 3 days I ended up having a nurse friend of mine give me a liter of liquid through and IV because I was so dehydrated. I went back and had an unfill and ended up with my current 2.9cc's. I absolutely know how uncomfortable and awful you felt. I am SOOOO glad you got an unfill and are feeling better. I think it's great she had to you go eat/hydrate and come back to fill back up. great customer service. Keep us posted. hugs!! > >

Decision weight 290 banded 3/24/08 276 1st fill 5/12/08 @ OCC 1.8cc weight 262 14lbs lost between surgery & 1st fill 2nd fill 6/6/08 local/no fluro 2.5cc weight 262 0 pounds lost between 1st & 2nd fill 3rd fill 8/4/08 local/no fluro 2.9cc weight 251 11lbs lost between 2nd & 3rd fill 25lbs since being banded Current weight 9/30/08 217lbs weight loss since 3rd fill = 34lbs for a total of 59lbs since being banded. TOTAL weight loss including pre-op 73lbs. It was not until my 3rd fill that I finally started dropping some weight. There were times I would read the forum and it seemed like everyone in the world was losing faster than me.. I, daily, had to remind myself that I did NOT get fat overnight so there is NO WAY I was gonna get thinner overnight. (sigh) slow and steady... slow and steady.. it's not a race. Eventually I will get to the finish line

I spend WAAAAY less of food since being banded. Even my morning starbucks went from a venti to a tall and in the last couple months I only stop a couple times a week. I've just lost the "desire" for that morning fix. Literally a can of refried beans and 2 oz of cheese can be 4 meals for me. Seriously. one chicken thigh is a meal. A can of clam chowder soup is 2 meals. I will eat a tomato from the garden sliced with a little grated parmesan on top and that's a snack. When I indulge and buy a 99cent bag of puffy cheetos it lasts 2 days. For the first 4 months I bought protein shakes and they added to my food costs but over the last 2 mos I have really weaned myself off of them but keep them on hand for when I'm about to start my period and my band tightens up, which for me means I can't get much down. If I didn't live with a man I'm guessing my weekly grocery bill would be around $25. Now when I buy food I buy great quality/tasting cheese, organic veggies and stuff that I really savor when I eat it. I hope this helps I have come to the conclusion that the first 6 mos of the band is entirely a learning experience AFTER 6 mos is when you really settle into the new and improved you. That's just my experience. Good luck, keep us posted.

cfuture88 first off, congrats on your 41lb weight loss!! =D> Way to go!! That's 41lbs you will NEVER see again! Please do NOT feel like you are not one of the "home girls" I think Sunday's are a little slow on the board as a lot of people catch up, read, post/respond when they are at work. I totally understand your feeling of not being in the "in" crowd but please know that is not the case. I swear! I have been banded a little over 6 months. I still struggle with what is the "right" amount of food to eat? There are times I can eat 2 teaspoons of something and get a lump and then there are times I can eat 2 cups and feel fine. It is not the same for everyone and while their are guidelines each person has a different reaction and we cannot all be lumped into one. Try shaking up your body/system. Don't eat the same things or the same amount everyday. Somedays I can only get down 600 calories, then maybe the next day I consume 1,500 calories. If I have to many days when I don't eat enough my weight loss stalls, when I eat more then I drop more weight. Believe I KNOW there are days you just cannot get enough down but do what you can. When I am stressed out I tighten up and can't get anything down. Add some whole grains for carbs... I love to eat refried beans with melted cheese on top.. about 1/4 cup at a time.. it fills me up, high in fiber and good carbs. don't deprive yourself, if you want a piece of chocolate buy a bite size piece and enjoy it. if you want a milkshake get a childsize and enjoy... exercise.. you gotta do it. Walk.. don't run, don't jog, but get out and walk. start slow but walk. You have lost a lot of weight in a short time! Remember that the weight did not appear overnight and it will not disappear overnight. You are doing great! You might have a month or more when the scale doesn't move. That's how weight loss is. Just know that now you have the band and you will not go back to your old lifestyle of overeating and giving up. You will stick to the plan, change your eating around to confuse your body, start walking and the weight WILL start coming off. please keep us posted, we are all here for you. xoxox

Keep us posted Julie, have a great time and enjoy the weather.

I 2nd the "don't weigh everyday" comment... it can get discouraging when 1 day you are down 3 pounds and the next day you are up 5. You ARE doing a great job!!

I brought way to much my first trip also.... Other than Phazyme and maybe chicken broth and whatever toiletries you need just bring 2 outfits and pj's.. pack lite! You will do great !!

YOu look FABULOUS KIM!!

The place in Olympia WASHINGTON - Shelton & Olympia/ Dr. Neal & Dr. Ogle/ Pacific Bariatric Surgery, PLLC 866-426-4142 or 360-426-4142 Fills for non-patients is $350 $150 for facility. Always done under fluoroscopy. 200 Lilly Road, NE, Suite C-2, Olympia, WA when I checked into going there it's either $270 or $370 for a fill with fluro... by the time you factor in gas, travel time and cost of the fill you could almost go to Tijuana