Dori D
Where to start ... I am 45 years old, married 18 years, with two children (ages 13 and 15). I have been battling my weight since about age 16. That's about the age that my mother stopped having total control of what I ate. (And she obviously was better at it than I was!) My weight battles were small ones through my late 20s - battling 30 pounds or less. But I kept trying to fight the good fight with every diet that came along and running and aerobics. After I got married I had this concept that I was now a "wife" and I had to cook real meals - not just throw a Lean Cuisine and a can of vegetables on the table. Then I had more like 60 or 70 pounds to battle. After 2 kids, it was 100 pounds. And after 15 years of putting 2 kids, a husband, and a job before taking care of myself, it became 150+ pounds. I started looking at WLS in late 2000, but I had found this site and the names/stories on Memorial page scared me. When I saw that most people were eating a high protein, low carb diet I decided to try Atkins (this was about 2 years BEFORE the whole Atkins craze). It was moderately successful - I lost 60 pounds then broke my ankle. 3 ankle surgeries and 3 years later I was at my highest weight ever. I started pursuing WLS seriously in the fall of 2004, with my first consult with Dr. Wetter (my bariatric surgeon) in Dec 2004. His office seems very methodical with specific steps to get you approved and ready for surgery. Like most surgeons, he wanted a weight loss before the next appointment, and if it was good enough, he said he would schedule me in February. I had lost 10 pounds (even over Christmas!) but then my appointment was cancelled. I was so disappointed, I just let myself go back to my old habits. I kept putting off rescheduling my appointment until I got back to losing weight, but that wasn't working and I finally scheduled an appointment anyway. I saw Dr. Wetter at the end of May, with my head hung in embarrassment that I was now at a new all-time high weight. Since then I have lost 17 pounds pre-op and am scheduled for Sept. 7th. Dr. Wetter's office doesn't even submit the paperwork for insurance approval until about a month before -I need to call and make sure this happened!
My last few weeks before surgery will be spent walking (my ankle is finally holding up for some slow-paced walking) and making sure I have everything I need for when I come home from the hospital.
I am tired of not living my life - I am tired of trying to fade into the background. I am really looking forward to life on the losing side.
9/9/05
Surgery (9/7) was uneventful. The doctor said that things went well and that the weight I had lost pre-op (23 pounds) made his job a lot easier. The nurses at El Camino hospital were great - as they have been during my other hospital experiences. I was up and walking around a few hours after leaving the recovery room. I was worried about not having any fluids until the next day, but that wasn't really a problem. My doctor took the drain out early this morning and I was home by 9am! It is hard to follow the drinking regimen needed to get in enough protein and liquids, but I'm working on it. I haven't weighed because I've read so many people's profiles that talked how disappointing it was - so I am going to wait a while!
9/19/05
I started back to work today and had my first post-op appointment. Work was hard to manage, but I will deal with it. Weight was down 10 pounds. Surgeon said everything was healing nicely. He said I could start on pureed foods. I don't see him again until Halloween.
9/26/05
Down 4 pounds. I am living mostly on protein shakes, cottage cheese and refried beans.
10/03/05
I can start soft foods. Can't wait to have a bite of hamburger! (Doc counts meat that crumbles as soft food) Also added cheese sticks last week.
10/27/05
Things are starting to settle into place. I am able to eat a variety of foods - chicken, ground beef, pork. I continue to eat a lot of cottage cheese - you get a lot of protein for the calories! Breakfast is usually a protein shake or two string cheeses. Lunch is usually 1/2 cup cottage cheese. Dinner is a small amount of meat with an even smaller amount of vegetables (cooked). I try to record my food on fitday.com. This tells me whether I need more protein for the day. If so, I usually go for another string cheese or a 1/2 cup of cottage cheese. I am having a hard time getting all my vitamins every day - but I am working on it. Water is also hard while working - get too caught up in what I am doing and don't remember to keep drinking. I do need to get serious about exercising. I think I am feeling well enough to start although I seem more tired than I was pre-surgery. Doctor's appointment is on Monday. I am down 26 lbs since surgery, but only 16 pounds in the 6 weeks since last appointment. I am worried he will be less than thrilled with my results. I have been compliant with all the food requirements, just not as strenuous with the exercise as he would like.
Most of my clothes can work for a wide weight range, but I definitely have some pants that need to go in the Do Not Wear pile - they are about to fall off! But no one has made mention of the weight loss outside of my husband. (He knows how to stay on my good side!) But I always figure they didn't mention it when it was going on (of which I am thankful!), so it is perfectly reasonable to not mention it when it is coming off ...
3/6/06
It's hard to believe that it's been so long since I updated. Life is always so busy with my kids! As of today I have lost 70.5 lbs since the surgery and 93.5 lbs since I started this journey. I am really in quite a routine, and my surgery and pouch are not always the top things on my brain. I am in size 18W jeans and I have lost almost 1/3 of my body. Things I am doing right: Vitamins and Protein. Things I need to work on: Water and Exercise. A lot of people are starting to notice the weight loss and that reaps lots of questions. If the questions come from a person that is asking out of idle curiosity, I tell them my dietary changes: I'm eating less and it is mostly protein with some good carbs. If the person is sincerely interested (i.e. struggles with their own weight), I let them know I had surgery.
Recent WOW moments:
Someone told me I had skinny ankles (I hadn't even looked at my ankles!)
I have been many places where I am no longer the biggest person in the room - and my heart breaks for the person who is ...
My daughter had a function at church and I actually wore a skirt and (low) heels - not my "uniform" of black pants and a solid color top
4/21/06
Spring break for my kids included an airplane trip and 3 days at Disneyland. There was room to spare in the airplane seat and it was the first trip to Disneyland since my kids were born that I didn't have any worries about fitting in the rides. It was a very "freeing" experience.
5/22/06
When I saw my surgeon 1 year and 1 day ago, I was at my highest weight. I didn't start down the pre-op losing path until one month later. In exactly 11 months, I have lost 117 pounds (23 pre-op, 94 post-op). I am getting a lot of comments from friends and co-workers. They want to talk about how great I look and yet, I don't. I feel like the compliments are not deserved because I still have 40-50 lbs to lose. No one would have complimented me at this weight 15 years ago. So, I don't feel like I deserve any compliments now.
Recent WOW moments:
- I bought a size 14 (regular store size!) skirt and a size 16 dress! (Of course, I think that a size 14 today is bigger than a size 14 the last time I was in a 14!)
- I think I have shopped at Avenue and Lane Bryant for the last time - the clothes are too big. They don't even have bras to fit me!
- I cleaned out my closet and removed all the clothes that I will never wear again.
- I pulled out some clothes from storage that I haven't worn in probably 14 years (shorts and tops - not clothes that can can be easily "dated")
- One of my daughter's friends looked at me like she was seeing me for the first time and said "I never realized how much Mandy looks like you!" (It's hard to tell what you really look like buried beneath all that fat)
- I can now run up the 52 stairs from by computer lab to my office - a year ago I couldn't hardly make it up the first 26!
7/15/06 Had a great trip to Minneapolis to watch my son play volleyball. All of the skinny moms complained about the heat and I hardly noticed it. We had to walk everywhere - miles each day. A year ago I would have been miserable and really put a damper on my family's enjoyment. I had a great time, lots of energy, and was able to go/do anything that the rest of the group was up for. Diet-wise it was a little bit of a challenge, but I stuck with my usual breakfast (slim fast low carb breakfast bar) and ate protein-based salads for my other meals. Then it was on to Illinois to spend a week with my parents. It was a lot of fun and they are very happy that I have my life back!
Weight Loss Stats
From Highest Since Surgery
7/08/05 - 8 lbs
8/29/05 -23 lbs
SURGERY
9/19/05 -33 lbs -10 lbs
9/26/05 -37 lbs -14 lbs
10/03/05 -42 lbs -19 lbs
10/10/05 -43 lbs -20 lbs
10/17/05 -47 lbs -24 lbs
10/24/05 -49 lbs -26 lbs
10/31/05 -50 lbs -27 lbs
11/7/05 -55 lbs -32 lbs
11/14/05 -57 lbs -34 lbs
11/21/05 -59 lbs -36 lbs
11/28/05 -62 lbs -39 lbs
12/5/05 -64.5 lbs -41.5 lbs
12/12/05 -67.5 lbs -44.5 lbs
12/19/05 -69.5 lbs -46.5 lbs
12/26/05 -72.5 lbs -49.5 lbs
1/2/06 -74 lbs -51 lbs
1/9/06 -76.5 lbs -53.5 lbs
1/16/06 -79.5 lbs -56.5 lbs
1/23/06 -81 lbs -58 lbs
1/30/06 -81 lbs -58 lbs
2/6/06 -85.5 lbs -62.5 lbs
2/13/06 -88 lbs -65 lbs
2/20/06 -90.5 lbs -67.5 lbs
2/27/06 -92.5 lbs -69.5 lbs
3/6/06 -93.5 lbs -70.5 lbs
3/13/06 -95.5 lbs -72.5 lbs
3/20/06 -96 lbs -73 lbs
3/27/06 -99 lbs -76 lbs
4/3/06 -102 lbs -79 lbs
4/10/06 -104.5 lbs -81.5 lbs
4/24/06 -107.5 lbs -84.5 lbs
5/1/06 -110 lbs -87 lbs
5/8/06 -111.5 lbs -88.5 lbs
5/15/06 -113.5 lbs -90.5 lbs
5/22/06 -117 lbs -94 lbs
5/29/06 -118 lbs -95 lbs
6/5/06 -119.5 lbs -96.5 lbs
6/12/06 -121.5 lbs -98.5 lbs
6/19/06 -123lbs -100 lbs
6/26/06 -125 lbs -102 lbs
7/3/06 -125.5 lbs -102.5 lbs
7/10/06 -127.5 lbs -104.5 lbs
7/17/06 -128.5 lbs -105.5 lbs
7/24/06 -132 lbs -109 lbs
7/31/06 -134 lbs -111 lbs
8/7/06 -136 lbs -113lbs
8/14/06 -138.5 lbs -115.5 lbs
9/11/06 -143.5 lbs -120.5 lbs
10/9/06 -146 lbs -123 lbs
11/6/06 -149 lbs -126 lbs
12/4/06 -153 lbs -130 lbs
1/8/07 -155.5 lbs -132.5 lbs
2/5/07 -163 lbs -140 lbs
3/5/07 -165.5 lbs -142.5 lbs
4/3/07 -166.5 lbs -143.5 lbs
