Norm Smith

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Hello!
Well today I've hit another milestone. Well, two of them, really.  It's my 42nd birthday today, AND I've now lost 85 pounds since my surgery on August 23rd of 2006.   During my three month follow-up with Dr. Anderson he said I was one of his star patients.  That felt really good to hear.

I keep in mind that this surgery is a tool.  I have to do my part.  Exercising regularly has been hard for me, but the protein and vitamins and not eating sweets hasn't been too tough. I am tired of the protein drinks.)  I have a new year's resolution to be better about my exersize.  I am surprised (even now) how much my life has changed.  I didn't realize how much energy I put into food, eating, cooking, grocery shopping, planning outings to eat, etc.  When that's gone, there is a void that yearns to be filled.  I'm still working on that part.  

Would I do it again?  You bet I would.  I am truly blessed.  I hope everyone had a very merry Christmas.

Norm

Here it is, November 29th, 2006 and I've lost 67 lbs!  The weight is coming off more slowly now but it does continue to come off. I went to Target with Sue to buy some Christmas decorations and I decided to buy a pair of jeans and some underwear(s) that fit.  I had ordered a Cabella's flannel shirt sized 1x that fits great!  I am now wearing 42 waist pants and XL sized underwear(s).  Is that just waaaaaay too much information?  You bettcha, sorry.  

I can now eat about 6 tablespoons at a meal now.  Thanksgiving was great and I was actually able to eat a little more as I cheated a bit and drank water to get a little more room in the ol' pouch.  Don't try this at home kids, I am a professional and I was monitored by everyone at the table as I ate my little bit of turkey and dressing and corn casserole and sweet potatoes and cranberry salad and on and on and on.  I did eat too much but I didn't get sick or have any dumping.  (I've still not had what I've read about as "dumping".  Lucky I am!)  The entire family was together and we had a wonderful time at my baby sister, Miriam's house.  Thanks for everyone's prayers and well wishes.  I really enjoy the email.  Everybody keep Margaret in your prayers as she (from what I've heard 2nd hand) is doing pretty doggone well.  I guess she's about a month or so post op now.  We're losers, baby!

Howdy faithful readers. I hope you're healthy and happy.

I weighed this afternoon before coming into work and I have now lost a total of 60lbs!   I'm halfway to my goal of losing 120lbs. I'm now at 275! This Wednesday will be exactly 10 weeks since my surgery and I am thrilled with my results.  I've got to buy some clothes that fit because everything I own is hanging off of me and I look awful in them.  I don't want to spend a lot of money on any clothes as I am still losing.  I guess it's Wal-mart clothes for me for awhile.  I tried to find something on the clothes exchange here on this site but it's mostly women's clothes and that just won't help me.   
 
I am blessed by your prayers and God's grace.  Thanks for checking in.  

Hello faithful readers!  I hope both of you are well.  It's that time, yes it's time for an update!

I am still learning what I can eat and what I can't and HOW to eat it.  I have got to learn to eat more slowly because I give the food right back when I eat too quickly.  Getting rid of the food isn't usually a big deal like getting sick was when I had a full sized stomach.  Getting sick now is more like when a baby spits up and about the same volume, too!  Gross I know but it is a part of my life now.    The attack of gout that I'd been dealing with finally abated.  No pain in my ankle at all and I'm thankful for that.  

I've actually gotten in the kitchen and cooked for Sue a couple of times and I fixed a huge pot of vegetable beef soup for my Wenesday night bible study group.  Getting in the kitchen and cooking again is STRANGE because I'm the type of cook that tastes, tastes, tastes!  That's changed and now I only taste when I think i've got it right and adjust as needed.  I've learned to get Sue to taste for me and I adjust seasonings per what she says.  (I'm cooking for her anyway!)  My life is beginning to have a sense of normalcy and I am very thankful for that.

Bad news:  I'm short staffed at work so I'm covering a few nights until i get some more help.  

Good news:  The scrubs that I hadn't worn in quite awhile are too big.  I did have a few XXl scub pants that fit a little better but are loose.  WOOHOO!!!

My friend Margaret is to have her WLS surgery soon.  Everyone please keep her in your prayers!  Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers.  I can't tell you how much prayer helps!

Norm

I've lost 53 pounds in just over 7 weeks!  I've been diagnosed with GOUT of all things.  Here's the story:  My left ankle had become sore.  Not terribly bad but a little sore.  I had a little fever on Saturday and rested for a few hours on Saturday afternoon and when I got up to go to the bathroom I couldn't put ANY weight on my foot.  Sue became alarmed and I was worried, too, as I couldn't figure out how I hurt my ankle.  By Sunday afternoon I 'd had some improvement. I decided to go see Dr. Johnson (My GP.) on Monday.  I saw him and the diagnosis was gout.  I have an old man's disease!!!  I'll tell you, this ankle of mine hurt!  It feels like broken glass between my bones and now that it's improved a bit, the pain has subsided for the most part.  Bad news is that sometimes when I take a step the sharp pain returns without warning!  Doc put me on colchicine and advised me that he was hesitant to Rx any steroids because of my recent surgery.  He said that I'd have some relief in a couple of days.  C'mon RELIEF!!!  He also explained that people with rapid weight loss can experience acute attacks and that I needed my uric acid level checked so some blood was drawn.  Don't know when those results will be in.   I shouldn't be complaining as I've done so well.  Thanks for all the good thoughts and prayers!

Hey ya'll! How's yer Mama and them?

Me: I'm the supervisor (RPSGT) in a sleep lab in SC, near Myrtle Beach. I'm 41 and divorced, but engaged to a wonderful woman, Sue. I love my church, St. Paul's Episcopal in Conway, SC. I like the Internet, I enjoy gardening (woohoo summertime tomatoes from my garden RAWCK!), Nascar (go Junior!), and I love living' on the Waccamaw River. I love to go off-shore fishing and I love my miniature dachshund, Casey, who thinks she's a golden retriever! I like working on my 79 jeep CJ-7 and I like to go 4-wheelin'. If you haven't caught on, I guess I'm just a big old redneck. More later, ya'll.

I'm approved and it's less than a week away. Scheduled for RNY on August 23rd, 2006. I am nervous but very excited. I've been following the high protein, low fat and low carb diet since i was two weeks pre-op and I went through some really tough carb withdrawal. I was mean as a bear (at no one, just in a baaaad mood) which is not like me at all! But thankfully that's passed and I'm back to my mostly not at all mean self and really getting geared up for surgery. Please keep me in your prayers and God's peace to you all.





Update August 24th, 2006

The counter says it all! I'm now a POST-OP! August 23rd, 2006 is a day that will live in infamy. (For me, anyway.) It's the day after surgery and besides a fever, I'm great. Yeah, I do have some discomfort but I have no regrets. My surgeon assures me that I'll go home on the 26th but I'm pushing for tomorrow. Thanks to all for the prayers. God's peace to you all.


Update 8/29/06

Hey Ya'll,
I couldn't be better! I had a rough couple o' days (fighting a fever and some tough pain) there in the hospital but by Friday I was ready to go home. Home it was on Saturday and wooooohooooo was I glad. I started my protein shakes and they're not that bad. I've had Popsicles, jello (everything sugar free) and some broth. I haven't had ANY nausea and NO vomiting whatsoever. I do have a little pain when liquid and my pills go through my new pouch but that's getting better, too. The overall pain is much improved and I'm taking less and less pain meds thankfully. One thing that I'm surprised about is how little energy I have. I was told to expect this but man it's a bit frustrating. Sue reminds me that it's only been a few days since I went under the knife so I guess I'm just impatient. Overall I cannot complain one bit as I think it's gone extremely well. I see Dr. Anderson on Sept. 5th. I'm well on my way in this exciting journey and I've already lost 23 lbs. as of this morning (August 29th).

I want to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for your prayers and well-wishes. I can't tell you how much that means to me. God's peace.

Love ya'll,

Norm

UPDATE 9/4/06

Hey ya'll,

We went to church on Sunday and came right home afterwords. I was whipped, and was glad to get in my lay-z-boy and rest a bit. I'm doing everything that I've been instructed to, even though some of the vitamins and stuff is pretty nasty tasting. I find I like the liquid B-12 better than the sub lingual that's supposed to dissolve under your tongue but doesn't. I'm through with my antibiotics and haven't had a fever in several days. I take half of a pain pill when I first get up in the morning but I don't usually take anymore pain meds during the day. I'm still weaker than I thought I'd be but still overall the whole deal has been much better than I ever hoped! Thanks for all your prayers. I believe without prayer that this would've been so much more difficult.
BTW, I've lost 36 pounds already!!!! I'm now 299!

God's peace, ya'll.
Norm

UPDATE 9/19/06

Hey everyone,
Sorry I haven't updated this blog more frequently. I'll try to do better! So, today is 4 weeks from the day of surgery and I am feeling better every day. My pain is very nominal, just an occasional "reminder" if I bend over too quickly or I have to go and try out 35 sofas in one afternoon. Sue wanted to go and buy a new sofa, which we did, and you just gotta try before you buy. Up and down and up and down but we found a great new sofa. It felt good to rest a little after that afternoon of sofa shopping. I feel better and I am learning what to eat and what not to. I am a snack-er (ya, rly!) and I've already found that I miss snacking at night which we all know is the worst time to eat. I tried some Kashi whole grain cereal (the puffed oats, rice and other whole grains style) and found that it sits well and I could eat about 1/2 cup without any problem. HA! The problem was is that the sugar content is too high as is the carb count! No dumping syndrome or anything but my weight loss has slowed. (I haven't had ANY dumping.) I have seen the error of my ways and have decided that kashi is not an option and I am going to get on the sugar free Popsicle and jello bandwagon again. As Sue reminds me, I'm learning and it's only been a month.

Speaking of learning, Barb S., Sue's fantastic sister, sent to me a few back issues and a subscription to "WLS Lifestyles" magazine. I have learned so much and have truly enjoyed reading them from cover to cover. IMHO it is a great magazine and I highly recommend it.

I continue to drink my protein drinks. They're not my favorite but they're not too bad. Chewing my vitamins morning and night and taking my calcium and B-12, too. Yum-Yum.

Food still tastes good! I have been eating vegetarian chili, Spam, peanut butter, chicken breast, chicken noodle soup, scrambled egg with low fat cheese and I really like the Hebrew National hot dogs. I can eat six small (baby small) bites. That means about 1/2 a hot dog, about 8 chili beans, 1 teaspoon smart balance peanut butter or about 2/3 of an egg. Each of these is a meal. You get the idea. How I think about food is slowly changing. Sue and I are amazed at the time I have now that I'm not in the kitchen cooking at least part of the weekend away and clean up now is a snap! I'll cook again one day I'm sure. As a result of my surgery Sue has dropped a few pounds, too, as my poor eating habits had been a terrible influence on her waistline. She's back to eating less and eating more healthily and it shows.
My weight is now 295 but I know I should've lost more. I'm not going to beat myself up about getting off track with the snacking. (Doggone that Kashi goodness!) The good news is that I've seen the error in snacking and made the change. We are all responsible for what we put in our mouths and responsible for our exercising, or lack of it, too. I was riding Sue's recumbent bike but I made excuses about being too tired to exercise but I'm back to increasing my distance by a half mile a day.
My energy level is increasing and I look forward to continuing this journey. I'm back to work and getting into a more "normal" routine. I'll do better at updating this blog o' mine. As always, my sincere thanks for your thoughts and prayers. God's peace!

Norm


UPDATE 09/26/06
Hey ya'll,
I'm doing GREAT! Still no nausea or dumping. Sue points out that I haven't eaten anything sugary, either, and I'm in no hurry to. It'd be fine with me if I never find out what dumping syndrome feels like. I have found out what it's like to be too full, and that's a BAAAAD feeling. I am learning how much my pouch can hold and it isn't much! I have lost to 291 and I see Dr. Anderson on Thursday the 28th of September. I'd say I'm about 80% of where I was energy-wise before the surgery. I'm happy with my results.

The following has nothing to do with my surgery but I thought I'd share the following:

Well, last week was uneventful until Wednesday, the 20th of September. Sue's son, Rusty, was working on an ATV (four wheeler) and burned his right arm pretty badly. Something about gasoline in the cylinder that shot out when the spark plug was removed and ignited in a fiery explosion. I was inside in the kitchen when i heard a "whump", like when you light a pile of brush with gasoline, ya know? I didn't think of a fire or anything as it just didn't register as a foreboding sound. About three minutes later Rusty came inside and told me that he had burned his arm. THAT was an understatement as he had skin hanging of of his palm and his arm was just blistered terribly. We immediately started running cool water on his arm and I got a cooler, put ice in it and water and threw a clean towel in the ice water and then wrapped his arm in it. As a former EMT, I can tell you that this burn looked severe and he needed to go to the emergency room ASAP but Rusty hates doctors. The burn went from his last three fingers on his right hand all the way to mid bicep on the lower 2/3's of his right arm. In other words, everything was burned except his thumb, forefinger, and a 2 to 4 inch strip the length of his forearm. The good news is that he realized he was hurt and agreed to go to the ER. I called Sue, who was still at the hospital finishing up her workday and let her know to meet us in the ER. We took the ice water with us and Rusty continued to wash down his arm during the 10 minute ride to Conway Medical Center's ER. Sue met us there and thankfully Rusty was taken back pretty quickly and was given more ice baths on his arm and given LOTS of good pain meds which kept the pain bearable, but just barely. We were told that Rusty would have to go to Augusta, GA to the burn center at Doctor's Hospital in the morning. So we all loaded up on Thursday morning and arrived in Augusta later that day. We met with the surgeon and the nurses and let me say that the burn center was very good. I can't say much for the rest of the hospital but what Rusty really needed was a good burn center and that's what we found there. He had surgery on his right arm on Friday and was released to come home on Saturday morning with instructions to return in ten days. He has, as the doctors described, deep second degree burns. The wound was debrided (scraped and scraped) in surgery while Rusty was under general anesthesia and was covered in porcine (pig) skin. He has been in pretty severe pain and has been holding up pretty well. Every day he gets a little better and now the fight is against infection. We are using a LOT of antibacterial hand wash around him. We were told by his surgeon that if we can keep any infection at bay that Rusty should recover well. Infection could take his burns from 2nd degree to third, and that would mean skin grafts and we'd all like to avoid that if possible. I'll keep ya'll updated on Rusty's progress. Please keep him and Sue in your prayers. Thanks for everything. God's Peace!
Norm

Update 9/28/06

Hello everyone!
I'm feeling good today and I am looking forward to seeing my surgeon, Dr. Anderson today for my second follow up. I'm losing about 3/4 of a pound a day or so. I find I get on the scales far too often. I've bought some tuna packets, flavored with lemon pepper, mesquite grilled, etc. They all have at least 12 grams of protein and most have 0 grams of sugar, carbs or fat. It is a bit of a challenge to find variety for meals but I'm looking at it as an adventure. Onward and downward goes the weight loss! I really like being a LOSER! You know, I've read so many other people's blogs about the struggle to get the insurance approval, the long wait until surgery, the nausea, dumping, the surgical complications and all that can go wrong and I realize just how blessed by GOD that I am. It is wonderful to be a child of God.

BTW: I failed to mention that Sue's son, Rusty, is 22 years old. He's doing well, although he does get a little frustrated at times and is looking forward to his next appointment in Augusta on Monday the 2nd. No signs of infection yet (YAY!) and we all continue to be diligent with the germicidal hand cleaner.
Thanks again for the prayers and good thoughts. God's peace to you all.
Norm

Update 10/02/06
It's Monday after our "Faith Alive" weekend at St. Paul's here in Conway. What a fantastic weekend. If your church or any church near you is hosting a "Faith Alive" weekend I would highly encourage you to attend all you can. This was my first and I cannot put into words what the weekend meant to me. I was the committee chair for visitation for this past weekend but because my surgery was scheduled during the planning stages I wasn't very useful. Thankfully, the team of committee chairs pulled together and the weekend was an astounding success. I can tell you that our faith is certainly alive at St. Paul's. I love my church.

I have found that some foods do "sit" better than others. I don't like the way tuna sits. I don't like the way hamburger sits. I do like beans, chicken, nuts, and I did well with a small bite of beef jerky that I chewed and chewed and chewed and chewed and chewed and then I chewed some more. But, it set well and for that I'm thankful. I have got to learn to chewchewchewchewchewchewchewchewchew and (wait for it...) chew some more. I'm still not quite ready to say I'm 100% yet, but I can say that I'm getting better everyday. Thanks for all of your prayers. They mean so much. One thing that stands out for me from my weekend is that we are all better together. Isolationism is not conducive for most human beings. The worst punishment we can give a prisoner is solitary confinement. Being obese can put us in our own solitary confinement. I urge you to find the church that will embrace you no matter the size of your body. We ARE better, together!

Sue and her son Rusty made the trip to Augusta this morning. I will update ya'll with the results from his appointment today (Monday, Oct.2, 2006) as soon as I hear from them.

Update 10/03/06
Good Morning. Rusty and Sue got back in about 9:00 or so last night with good news. The surgeon took one look at his arm and said, "We've definitely got to graft those areas. This is your second f/u visit, right?" "No!" yelled Sue and Rusty simultaneously. So, the good news is that the surgeon gave Rusty another week to see if the rest of his arm will heal a little more and we hope grafting won't be necessary.

I was asked by a dear friend who is scheduled for surgery on Nov. 6th if I had any regrets. To my regrets, or lack thereof: If I told you that this has been easy I would be lying to you. But as of this morning I saw the scales at 288 and I WOULD do this again. Being fat sucks. There's just not a way to sugar coat it, not for someone who's been there, done that, and cried the tears. I'm still fat, but I'm 43 pounds NOT as fat.

I'm not perfect. Exercise is still an issue, or rather the lack of it. I'm going to do it this time though. I eat too many carbs right now. (Solid proteins like tuna and beef just don't sit well.) I don't like the vitamins I chew every morning and night. I'm tired of the protein drinks. I miss eating! But all of this, and more, is worth the payoff: feeling better, being more healthy, and seeing my pants hang off of me (ha!). No, it's not easy, but yes it's worth it. Sue, my beloved, saw my frustration with one of the above issues the other day and said tearfully that she wished that I hadn't had the surgery because I seemed to be unhappy with all the things I'm experiencing now that are kind of tough. I told her that I didn't want to hear that, that there was no turning back and if I could, I wouldn't turn back anyway. The emotional side of this journey is not to be taken lightly. But it's a JOURNEY! We're getting somewhere!

Do I miss being stuffed with a huge 5,000 calorie, fat laden, artery clogging massive meal of country style steak, mashed potatoes, gravy, biscuits, butter and cherry pie with vanilla ice cream for dessert? I thought I would, but I truly don't. OK, maybe a little tiny bit. But not at all like I thought I would. I see people eating large amounts (probably much less than I used to eat!) and I'm amazed that they can eat so much. Don't they know what they're doing to themselves? Oh, how far I've come! It's normal to be nervous about having such a life changing event occur. It's more difficult because it's voluntary. I told Sue just before my surgery that if something happened and I died, that I'd win either way. Sure, I don't want to die. I want to be here with Sue and my family. But if I did die, don't worry for I would be in heaven with Jesus and I wouldn't be fat there anymore, either. So I'd win either way. For those of you contemplating this surgery, know that with God's help, anything is possible and to someone, you're a blessing. Thanks again for your thoughts and above all your prayers. Keep 'em coming!

Norm

Update 10/10/06
Not much to report thankfully, as no news is good news. I'm still learning what will and what won't sit in the ol' pouch. It's fun getting the compliments and I've got to buy some new pants soon. I wear dress clothes to work and I can keep my shirt tucked in better and I blouse the shirt in the back so the shirts are ok for another week I hope. My ties are too long, too. The pants! My belts are waaay to big and you can only bunch up your pants so much before it looks like you're wearing a sack with a string tied in the middle. (These are all GOOD problems to have! It means I'm still losing!!!)

Anyway, no new problems to report. Rusty continues to improve and has decided to postpone today's appointment in Augusta. Not clear as to why but the arm does look a lot better. Thanks for your prayers. More later, ya'll. Who wants to go fishin'?

Norm

A weight tracker! COOL I say: