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Well here it is folks I finally got 'round to making a new video.....Hope you like it!

4 months post op
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Ok so I thought the whole thing about upping my protein intake seems like a lot of snake oil but it actually is working!!  Color me SOOOO surprised!  Im taking in over 100 grams a day now and Im finding much less hair in the drain at the end of my shower.  Im glad it is working or at least appears to be.  I saw myself nearly bald when I joined the Navy years ago.  Some people can really pull off that look......I am not numbered among them!  I have thick hair for a reason.....God saw me without it and thought Oh Holy Crap!!, cover that head up! Yikes  Had shrimp, squid, chicken, beef, and Frog today!  Yummy proteins one and all!

Hair Loss......Yes the dreaded hair loss I have heard so much about seems to be coming about in my case.  (A little bit)  I have tons of hair folks and losing it has been of little concern to me in the past.  I went to have the surgery done and they all told me that losing some hair might be a side effect.  If you dont get your protein requirement in everyday then your body reacts by letting go of some of the protein it has ie: hair.  I still have tons but over the last few days I have noticed the amount collecting around the drain to be increasing dramatically.  I have spoke to a number of post-op people and they have all assured me that I can slow or even stop this by upping my protein intake.  Even the ones that stated they lost ALOT of hair said that eventually it stops and then the hair grows back.  So Im not worried in the slightest!!

Ok!..... well,....... so....... I didnt get the updated video done as of yet Im going to try to do it today.  The reason I have been away for awhile is that we have been moving.  It has been a long damned time since we moved the last time and I'm reminded now of how much I hated it!!  We have been in the same place for 16 years.  You really accumulate alot of crap in 16 years and it has taken over a month to sort through it all.  The folks down at the Salvation Army/Goodwill store are loving us at the moment.  Or possibly hating us Im not really sure to be honest!  Things are slowly returning to a state of normal abnormalness so hopefully I will have time to do some more (and better) blogging.

Half-assed update.....Im down to 290 the weight loss has slowed to a crawl but still steadily moving down.  It's actually a good thing it has slowed I think it's a healthier pace now that Im out of the "big time danger" zone.  Before I was scary obese now Im more like pleasantly chubby round the edges!  Naked in the mirror Im closely resembling a balloon two weeks after you bought it and now its half deflated and lying on the floor in the corner of your room.....remember?
I feel fantastic now however, havent had any troubles of any kind in quite awhile.  Maybe Im finally out of the woods.....Knocking on them as I leave the forest! lol

More to follow.......

I thought I had posted this video in this blog allready but apparently I was mistaken.  I must admit it was fun to look back and see how far I have come.  I will later today make another video in the same place with the same camera placement to get a real comparison!  I'll post it in this same entry.


presurgical introduction
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Well, the weight loss continues but at a slightly slower pace.  Hopefully this is because I have been working out a bit and building back some muscle mass.  Im ok with the slower pace of the loss.  I feel it's probably a healthier situation.  I have dropped 80 pounds in 9 weeks +- and although I am thrilled with that loss I won't lie to ya it has made me a little nervous as well.  I am starting to get that "deflated balloon " look in the mirror.  Makes me look forward to getting dressed.  Cant help but wonder how bad that particular aspect is going to get.  Wondering how much a circumferential body lift will cost me lol.  The last few days my stomach seems to be a little off.  Not so much that its causing me any troubles but I have noticed a difference.  I think it may be Im not eating enough protien, so Im going back on the protein shakes before I get the shakes.  It's a fine line we walk between too much and not enough.  I hope Im getting the balancing act down.  Just trying to listen to my body and stay on top of things.  More to follow...

Well my recovery has progressed to the point that it is time for me to rejoin the working class.  Yep time for me to turn in my comfy bed and TV remote and head down to row with the rest of the slaves!  I am glad to be getting back to work for the most part.  Part of me wishes I could stay home but I havent figured out how to do that and make a living at the same time.....sooooo.......  I owe, I owe so it's off to work I go......

Feeling much better now that Ive been home for a few days.  You know its funny you would think with what I do for a living that I would love hanging out in hospitals.  The truth is a little left of that however.  I have had enough of me being in the hospital as a patient!! 

When I was in they had me hooked up to IV's pumping fluids into me plus I had the swelling I was dealing with.  Long story short I regained about 9 pounds.  As of this morning I am back to my "precomplication" weight.  I weighed in at 330.  Now lets get back to the business of carving this weight off!!

Ill be hitting the treadmill again today, Im really looking forward to it.  Im going to start slowly and try to get my strength back.  Im more determined than ever to get to my goal and am very excited about the future!!

It is my mission as I see it to reveal the good and the less than great aspects of GBS to help those who are trying to decide on whether or not to proceed.  Keeping that in mind here is a funny new little wrinkle....

Three days ago I was waiting for my wife and daughter to come out of the strip mall.  I was thinking I could eat something.  I went to the grocery store in the same strip mall and picked out a 6 pack of deviled eggs and a few slices of "CoJack" cheese.  Before you pass out the answer is NO I didnt plan to nor did I eat all of this....Im not that dumb!!  I had two halves of the egg and a slice of cheese and my girls ate the rest.  I really didnt feel that great after but didnt make much of it.  Went home and layed down. 

Three hours later I got sick, REALLY SICK!  Yes I threw up!!  Afterward I took a little mylanta hoping that would help with the sour stomach feeling I had.  It didnt!!,  5 minutes later I threw that up.  I began to throw up about every 15-30 minutes.  I kept it quiet and my girls unaware of what was happening went off to sleep.  Finally about 10pm I couldnt take it anymore and I called the Dr.  He said that given I was 5 weeks post op he wanted me to be seen in the ER for the hospital I had my RNY done in.  (19 miles away!)  And to make a long story short I am the ONLY one who is available to make the drive.  I slipped out quietly so as not to wake up my girls who would have worried all night (not doing anyone any good) and I got in the car and headed out.  I made it to the hospital but had to stop 3 times on the way down to deposit a semi-dry heave on the ground.

Arriving in the hospital they checked me in and asked me to have a seat in the waiting room.  I feel like hell at this point but I know how to move this along.  I asked for a bucket and was welcomed back to the ER after about my 3rd heave and my fellow patients 4th complaint!   They got me on some fluids and gave me some medicine for the nausea which only barely worked and some medicine for the pain which did work pretty well.  I was told I was going to be admitted for tests and observation. and I promptly recieved a Cat Scan which showed my reminant stomach was SWOLLEN.  Dr was scrathing his head as to why it wasnt draining into the small bowell like it's supposed to.  The following morning very early I had an ultrasound comfirming the swelling was continuing.  The Dr thought it might be an internal hernia causing the blockage and he wanted to operate laproscopically to see what he could see.  I agreed and about an hour later I was drifting off into a deep coma like sleep.  I woke up about an hour later near as I could tell feeling 10,000% better immediately.  The Doctor came out and said that a loop of small bowell had wormed its way out through the defect in the mesentary that they bring the small bowell up though to attach to the new stomach pouch.  (I think thats how it went my apologies if my memory is faulty.....morphine is a HELL of a drug!)  Anyway it was pinched off and was blocking the draining of my leftover stomach as well as my new stomach.  They pulled it back out and closed up the defect double strong to be sure this wouldnt happen again.  I was discharged from the hospital several hours later and am now sitting at home feeling only a little sore but worlds better than I was when I drove myself downtown!

Now here is the really good part......my Surgeon is a participant in the BLISS program and this complication of my GBS is covered and I have been assured I shouldnt see a bill for any part of it.  This is a major consideration in deciding who you want to have do your surgery.  A "Bliss" surgeon might cost a bit more upfront but could save you a bundle on the back end!!  Something to consider....

So for those keeping score thats 3 major surgeries in 6 weeks!!....thats gotta be some kind of a record!! 

I Love My Doctors!!  Price & Sorenson!!  Thanks Guys!

I know when I break the 300 barrier Im gonna cry like a big gurl!!