Finally...Under 300!

It happened faster than I though it would. I hopped on the scale this morning and displayed before me was a number I thought was hogwash. So I stepped off, reset the scale and got back on. Holy moley...299 lbs.!! Happy is an understatement! It has been about 12 years since I have been under the 300 mark. I am still pinching myself to make sure I am not dreaming.

This was, in my mind, the first goal I wanted to reach. At 395 lbs. it seemed an impossible goal then. But I did it! This is much more than a number. Physically the freedom of movement that everyone takes for granted has been restored for me. Putting on socks and shoes is no longer a dread as there is no need for me to dislocate a joint to reach my feet. I've gone down 2 sizes in clothes, and it feels great. I feel good on my feet and have more energy to make it though the workday and I'm no longer totally exhausted at the end of the day. I'm a happy girl. :)

3 weeks post-op!

Early this morning I had my phase 3 nutrition class. The last month has been nothing but liquid and it was getting hard to take another sip.  I finally made it to soft foods. For now I don't want anything to do with soup, I'm sick of jello, and I could never stand the protein shakes. My new food list is filled with protein rich items that will make the protein game easier. But they must be soft, and low in carbs and sugar. String cheese mozzarella is one of my favorite snacks and it's on the list, along with other soft cheeses. Refried beans, great northern beans (yes, I can make chili~!), I can have some soft vegetables mixed (sparingly) but, it is important that I eat the protein items first. Fish, canned and frozen, canned chicken meat, canned tuna, thin sliced deli meat, and eggs. Before the smorgasbord begins, I have to try each food individually and test it for tolerance first. My project for this week is to build to 3 meals a day and 1 snack, eating every 4 hours with fluids in between. And figure out how to fit it into my workday. I want to go back to the shop next Monday, believe it or not I miss work. Most of all I miss my co-workers.

Also today, after the nutrition class, I was introduced to the exercise coach. We were all given a tour of the Heart Center exercise machines. I may start going there anytime my schedule allows and I have my membership to the gym for the year. Up to now I've only been able to walk and when the weather gets bad I'm stuck in the house, so this will be nice.

Officially, I have lost 15 lbs. since the surgery. I weighed myself this morning and I lost another 5 lbs. The real excitement for me will be when I'm finally under the 300 lb. mark. I haven't been under 300 in over 10 years, bring it on...

Post-op

I have to say that the hospital stay was overall a good experience, the staff was wonderful. But, I was glad to be out of there and when I got out I went to my brother's house to stay until I could take care of myself. Over the years I have become a very independant person, so calling on someone to help me along physically was uncompforable and felt really wierd. I had a visiting nurse as well, she was a great help mainly to help me stay on the positive side about my restrictions for eating and what I could do physically. It was a rough week and I won't go into detail about it, it wasn't all peaches and cream. I enjoyed the walks that I took both by myself and with my brother and sister-in-law. I had locked myself in the house for so long I forgot about how nice it is to take a walk early in the morning. Dispite the chill in the air, the birds were churping and that made it nice. And then ,of course, learning of my brother's general take on his surroundings was fun. He and his wife walk almost every day and they have nicknames for the neighbors was hilarious. My stomach muscles got a work out.

Ovderall, staying with my brother and his wife was a comforting experience but meal time was torchure. The smells of goulash and being stuck slurping on strained mushroom soup is depressing as hell. There was no way that I could escape it, and hey, they got to eat too.

By Sunday the only thing that was keeping me from going home was the fact that I couldn't reach my feet to put my socks on without straining a mucsle. I told them I wanted to go home and I needed an idea to help me find a way to get my socks on by myself. I was aware of sock-putter- oners that you could buy in catalogs that I had recieved, but, I didn't have time to wait for one in the mail. On Monday night I showed my brother a picture of on of these contraptions and he went into his garage and brought a thing he made to clean the gutters on his house. We stretched my sock onto the thing, I set it on the floor and slid my foot into the sock and it went on all the way...so now I have the "Sock-O-Matic" and I'm going home! *Laughter* I went home on Tuesday night. I had intentions of sleeping in my bed but my stomach muscles weren't quite up to it. I slept in my old recliner, but I was home.



Well, I have been through surgery on February 13th. I am now a week and a half post-op. While I was in the hospital, immediately after the surgery, I was on what is known as 'phase 1' diet. Which is basically ice chips, popsicles, and jello. And 5 days after my surgery I graduated to "phase 2"diet, which is protein shakes, cream soup (strained), jello, pudding, popsicles, skim milk, and lots of water. I look forward to "phase 3", I'll be able to have pureed foods, maybe even some cottage cheese and refried beans. That will make the "protein game" much easier. I still require 60 grams of protein a day, this will promote healing of my little stomach or "pouch". It's not been easy, it's not like I'm not in the mood to eat anything, it's just that what is on the menu is blah and uninteresting. At this point I am mainly eating because I have to. But, I know there are better days ahead and that's what keeps me going.

Bowel Prep and Surgery

On Sunday afternoon I will begin my bowel prep with MiraLax and  sugar free Gatorade. It should be a good time...

Monday morning I will arrive at the hospital and prepare for the following procedure:

(The video below will explain what Roux-en Y Gastric Bypass is, and is similar to what I am to go though after the operation. Some of it is rather graphic and shows the real procedure, so if you are squeamish perhaps you may pass on seeing it.)  My procedure will be done Lathroscopically.






I am confident that all will go well and after 2 to 3 days in the hospital I will go home. My brother and his wife will care for me until I am sure I can take care of myself. I will update you on my progress as soon as I can.

Life Is Just Swill...



don't care for this one, the vanilla is bearable









On Monday I started the liquid protein diet prescribed by the doctor. I was feeling good that morning, upbeat and ready to start the day. By afternoon I felt like crap and my guts were noisy as hell.  I have to say before I ever tasted this I had no idea how awful it was. By Tuesday I was irratable and I felt like I was going to hurl all day.  Now, the dietitian had all kinds of recipes and ideas for incorporating this "swill" to the diet of liquid food. I say to anyone else considering weight loss surgery I strongly suggest do NOT add it to your soup, or snacks. Because if you do there will be no pleasure in eating anything, the soup becomes your only pleasure of the day and you will go into a deep depression if it tases anything like protein! LOL!. I prefer hold my nose and knock back 25 g. in the morning, and another at noon. The remaining 10 g. comes easily with the soup and yogurt I eat. There is no sense in ruining good food. The most tolerable sources of protein among the choices I made was the Ensure high protein shake, vanilla tastes the best for me. It comes in a four pack of 14 oz. bottles and is a little pricey but it has a better taste than the Pure Protein in powder form in chocolate, which was super yuk.




Not super yummy, but it is tolerable

I tolerate the Pure Protein powder in the morning before a cup of yogurt and lots of water! Suck it down fast so I can clean my palette with the water, then try to enjoy my yogurt with some caffeine free coffee. It's getting easier day by day. I have to remind myself that it's just a temporary phase to the process leading up to and after the surgery...it's only temporary. The upside to my visit to the hospital today for the final blood work and EKG was that I lost another 3lbs. I can dig it!

  

Pre-op Liquid Fast

   I am about 2 weeks away from my gastric bypass. On Monday I will start the liquid fast diet that I will be on until a day before I go into the hospital. On the day before, I am to drink clear liquids only. At about 3pm I will start drinking a bowel prep to clean me out (should be loads of fun). And I was told that when I start drinking it, I am to stay were I'm going to be for the rest of the night because it works quickly.

     The Liquid Fast diet is that of liquid protein shakes, cream soups,broth, skim milk, and  lots of water (flavored with Crystal Light if I want). I aim for 60 grams of protein daily, with at least 64 oz. of fluids + my multivitamins. I also get snacks such as jello, Popsicles, and pudding (all sugar free). I was also given a print out of recipes from the dietition. I was happy to hear that I am allowed to have mushroom soup,unstrained, which I like very much.

   I made changes to my diet that was suggested to me in November by the staff dietition and I am doing well. It wasn't easy giving up Diet Coke and sugar, but I did it! It's something I've been meaning to do anyway, so now is a good time to start and that will make things easier on me after the operation. I've managed to lose 25 lbs. since then and the doctor was very happy about that...so am I. I now fit into jeans a size smaller that I haven't been able to wear since 2006 and also a blouse that I bought earlier last year. It's just the beginning~!






My New Beginning

Me at 5 yrs. old

Over the years there have been many attempts on my part to gain control of my weight.  When I was very young it wasn't about being fat at that point, I suffered very little physically...the pain came from the rejection from my peers. Recess time at school was often a lonely experience, nobody wanted to be seen playing with the 'fat girl'. One episode stands out in my mind,1st grade, recess had just began and everyone was standing outside the doors anticipating who to play with. A group of my classmates where gathering for a game of some kind and I was informed that I was not to be included in the group because I was too fat. It's at that moment that I realize that someone would hate me because of how I looked, and was confusing to me that it would be a good reason to exclude me...it hurt a lot. Over the years I became used to playing alone most of the time.


Me age 7, and my nephew Lonnie

  My mother put me on my first diet when I was 7, I don't remember how much I lost but I do recall the satisfaction with my accomplishment and about how good I felt physically...however, it didn't last. And when I was in high school a guy I in my class lost a bunch of weight at Weight Watchers, he was well over 300lbs. when he started. He suggested I try it and I started going with him and his folks to the meetings. I lost about 35lbs. and it was the most I had been able to lose at that point. But, my friend reached his goal weight and became a lifetime member and wasn't required to attend weekly meetings anymore...I lost my diet buddy. Also, because my father was on a fixed income and couldn't handle the weekly fee so I dropped out intent on keeping with the program and well, you know, I gained it all back plus more.  After school I didn't think about my weight much, and it wasn't a pressing issue with with me.



My family and I (right) 1982

 But by 1984 I had ballooned to 280 lbs. and I was still not phased. Almost hid my head in the sand about it and became offended when my father would air his concern about my health at this weight. So my mother and I began going to 'TOPS' together. It was good, I would lose some weight  now and then and after the meeting we would go to the local steak house and pig out. By 1990 my parents had both passed away and I was on my own. I worked as a hotel maid and it was at that point that I started experiencing pain in my joints and the fatigue associated with my size. In December of 1992 I weighed 319 lbs., although I didn't have the income to afford a formal weight loss program, I pulled out the old Weight Watchers book from my high school days and began following it on my own. By November of 1993 I had lost 107 lbs.. I did aerobic exercise 3 times a week and walked and rode my bike several miles in the week and I felt great. I was down to 214 lbs. and was sure I could keep going. No doctor will ever tell you that rapid weight loss could lead to gall bladder disease, and that's what happened as result of my efforts. Fatty foods such as red meat, cheeses, ice cream, etc. would double me over in pain. I didn't eat these kinds of foods for 2 years knowing what they would do to me. After starting the job I have now in 94' I was fortunate to have health insurance again and I got it removed. I was able to eat the fatty foods again and began a rapid weight gain again, all the way well into the 300's again. Since then I have started over and over trying to duplicate the success of my big weight loss but I have not been able to come close before I loose control again and the pounds start coming back. In February of this year I was at 395 lbs. and life was unbareable. So I began Weight Watchers again (5th try maybe?) and the loss was painfully slow, and many weeks I would loose and gain the same 3 lbs. over and over and I realized that this was a waste of time and money. The only thing that I have not tried was bariatric surgery which in my mind was a last resort. It's not a hasty fix for my situation, this is something that has been looked into with a lot of concideration. I didn't want it to end this way, but the evidence points to the fact that I will never have a chance for a healthy weight again. Of all those who have tried to lose weight by dieting, 98% will gain it back...unfortunately I am one of them.

Me 370 lbs.

Yesterday I have been given my date for surgery which is something that makes me very happy. So for the new year ahead, 2012 will be a new beginning for me. A new chance to regain an active life, pain free. Happy New Year everyone!!!!