murphy10
The Wait is Almost Over
Jul 16, 2010
July 16, 2010
Well, I'm back again adding to my blog. I have passed all the tests, appointments and meetings that they've thrown at me and I 'm ready to go. At first everything went according to their schedule. ie blood work, ultrasound, ECG and meeting with Dietician/Nurse and Internist. At that point she ordered an echocardiogram and sent me off to the sleep clinic. Now the sleep clinic delayed everything because after my first sleep there they called me back because I had many stoppages in breathing so they had me sleep with the CPAP machine. The doctor told me I had severe sleep apnea so off I went to try out the little machine. I took it for a month trying various masks until I was comfortable with a nasal one and then bought the machine. It does make a difference. I am not nearly as sleepy during the day and my husband gets a good nights sleep to boot. Back to the hospital again for more instruction classes and an endoscopy and colonoscopy. They then ordered a barium swallow to check up my upper end. Everything must have been OK because I went in for my pre-op and the only thing they mentioned was to bring my CPAP machine to the hospital when I have my surgery. Having a CPAP machine means you must spend your first night in a 'step down' room. All this means is that you get closer monitoring due to your breathing history. So, now I'm all geared up for July 28 surgery. I started the dreaded OPTIFAST on Monday the 13 and found it not to be too bad although it does give my guts the gurgles. I had a countdown on the calendar for the 14 days I needed to take it when a MIRACLE happened. Krista from the clinic called and asked if I could possibly come in for my surgery a week earlier than planned. Well, it took me about 1 second to say yes. I figured I'd make it work somehow. The best part is only one week on Optifast....YIPEE!.
Everything seems to be a go, so I just waiting now for Wednesday morning.
0 comments
Well, I'm back again adding to my blog. I have passed all the tests, appointments and meetings that they've thrown at me and I 'm ready to go. At first everything went according to their schedule. ie blood work, ultrasound, ECG and meeting with Dietician/Nurse and Internist. At that point she ordered an echocardiogram and sent me off to the sleep clinic. Now the sleep clinic delayed everything because after my first sleep there they called me back because I had many stoppages in breathing so they had me sleep with the CPAP machine. The doctor told me I had severe sleep apnea so off I went to try out the little machine. I took it for a month trying various masks until I was comfortable with a nasal one and then bought the machine. It does make a difference. I am not nearly as sleepy during the day and my husband gets a good nights sleep to boot. Back to the hospital again for more instruction classes and an endoscopy and colonoscopy. They then ordered a barium swallow to check up my upper end. Everything must have been OK because I went in for my pre-op and the only thing they mentioned was to bring my CPAP machine to the hospital when I have my surgery. Having a CPAP machine means you must spend your first night in a 'step down' room. All this means is that you get closer monitoring due to your breathing history. So, now I'm all geared up for July 28 surgery. I started the dreaded OPTIFAST on Monday the 13 and found it not to be too bad although it does give my guts the gurgles. I had a countdown on the calendar for the 14 days I needed to take it when a MIRACLE happened. Krista from the clinic called and asked if I could possibly come in for my surgery a week earlier than planned. Well, it took me about 1 second to say yes. I figured I'd make it work somehow. The best part is only one week on Optifast....YIPEE!.
Everything seems to be a go, so I just waiting now for Wednesday morning.
My Journey into Good Health
Mar 23, 2010
Well, I've never written a blog before but I thought this might be a good way to keep me on target and to express my thoughts about the whole process. Let me first introduce myself. I am a 63 year old retired school teacher. I didn't start being overweight until after I got married. I was a very active teen and ate well balanced meals provided by my Mom. Snacks and sweets were not often found in our house as we had a large family and so the grocery dollar was spent on necessities.
After getting married at age 20 (weighing 140 lbs.) I revelled in the freedom I had to go and come with my husband and I enjoyed setting up and organizing our apartment. I even enjoyed grocery shopping because now I could embellish the list with a few extras and I did. My husband was a happy accomplice. Slowly my weight crept upwards and when I became pregnant with our first child at age 23 I weighed 170 lbs. My doctor thought I was too heavy and told me to try to stick to 1500 calories a day, eating most of them in proteins and fruits and veggies. Although today a doctor would not issue this regimen, I followed it and after delivering a healthy 9 lb. baby boy, my weight was 150 lbs. Probably one of the few pregnant women who weighed less after she delivered than before she got pregnant. Shortly after coming home I started having severe pains and was diagnosed with gall stones. It was November and surgery was set for February, 4 months of agony unless I followed the diet set forth by the nutritionist. By February, I was back down to 140 lbs. Whew, a new start on life!
Unfortunately, my old habits kicked in and combined with finding less time to take care of myself I began to gain weight once more. Two years later when I got pregnant again, I was back up to 170 lbs and after delivering another 9 lb. bundle my weight stayed at post pregnancy levels of about 190. Drats, what is a girl to do. I eventually lost about 20 pounds but had to fight hard for every ounce and tried doing it in so many different ways with little success. When I delivered my 3rd child I was over 200 lbs and no amount of effort seemed to work to bring it down again. I was 30 years old with 3 young children and excess weight that I didn't want but couldn't lose.
And so my life proceeded and over the next 15 years I slowly packed on the pounds settling around 240 for quite awhile as I was busy teaching, housekeeping, raising 3 kids, coaching and volunteering for just about every activity my kids were involved with. I think without this busy life I would have ballooned much quicker than I did. Around 50 I found it very difficult to keep my weight even in the 240's and it pushed it's way up into the 250's and 260's. I was not a happy camper and Weight Watchers have gotten rich with the money I have spent to register, and reregister over the years. The most I ever lost was 40 lbs and hitting a plateau worked a mental trick on me. The sad part was that even with losing 40 lbs. nobody noticed or mentioned anything positive which was depressing but also showed me how much I really had to lose.
The past few years I have been struggling to keep my weight from continually rising, I thought as you aged your appetite decreased but so far that hasn't happened to me and the bad part is that I like all the foods that are not good for me.
To make matters worse the health problems that arise due to obesity have hit me hard and I think have caused me to be depressed although for those that know me they wouldn't think that but they can't see inside my thoughts. I have osteo-arthritis in my hands, knees and painfully in the bones on the tops of my feet. So any lengthy walking causes them to become inflamed and means that I am limited in my mobility and in the fun involved in being active. I can't bicycle anymore because of my painful knees so any activity I may have enjoyed has been curtailed. I do like to swim but that isn't a daily possibility for me. The other area that I have arthritis is in my lower back and that has caused many problems with getting around and being active. Sciatica is one of the offshoots of this condition and it is one of the most painful conditions I've ever experienced. As far as I know I don't have diabetes yet but that could be in the offing as two of my brothers have been diagnosed with type 2 recently and my weight has driven my blood pressure up as well. The very sad part of this is that even though these conditions have gradually accumulated they have restricted my participation with my children and grandchildren over the years. I have not been able to toboggan, skate, ski etc etc. My size has also limited me going on rides and fitting into spaces with the kids and even sitting on the floor playing with my grandbabies. Enough is enough!
In November my son called to tell me that his doctor was referring him to the GB Surgeon. He is only 39, has serious sleep apnea, and high blood pressure. His weight has ballooned over the past 5 years to 330 lbs. and now as well as these conditions he cannot participate in many activities to help control it. Even though he was nervous about it I was happy for him as I knew it could change his life in a very positive way. My daughter, who has struggled with her weight over most of her life immediately called her doctor and asked to be referred to her local GB clinic. Her main problems with her weight have been for a large part the social aspect of being an overweight teen and woman. She has been shunned by her teen peers and passed over for jobs and I know it was weight related. She is a very determined young woman and has her surgery date next week, March 31. It will make a huge difference in her life and now she will be able to avoid some of the problems that I had and be able to enjoy all the fun stuff with her children.
OK, while writing this I just got a call from the Bariatric Clinic and I have my orientation meeting on April 12. Here we go!!!
0 comments
After getting married at age 20 (weighing 140 lbs.) I revelled in the freedom I had to go and come with my husband and I enjoyed setting up and organizing our apartment. I even enjoyed grocery shopping because now I could embellish the list with a few extras and I did. My husband was a happy accomplice. Slowly my weight crept upwards and when I became pregnant with our first child at age 23 I weighed 170 lbs. My doctor thought I was too heavy and told me to try to stick to 1500 calories a day, eating most of them in proteins and fruits and veggies. Although today a doctor would not issue this regimen, I followed it and after delivering a healthy 9 lb. baby boy, my weight was 150 lbs. Probably one of the few pregnant women who weighed less after she delivered than before she got pregnant. Shortly after coming home I started having severe pains and was diagnosed with gall stones. It was November and surgery was set for February, 4 months of agony unless I followed the diet set forth by the nutritionist. By February, I was back down to 140 lbs. Whew, a new start on life!
Unfortunately, my old habits kicked in and combined with finding less time to take care of myself I began to gain weight once more. Two years later when I got pregnant again, I was back up to 170 lbs and after delivering another 9 lb. bundle my weight stayed at post pregnancy levels of about 190. Drats, what is a girl to do. I eventually lost about 20 pounds but had to fight hard for every ounce and tried doing it in so many different ways with little success. When I delivered my 3rd child I was over 200 lbs and no amount of effort seemed to work to bring it down again. I was 30 years old with 3 young children and excess weight that I didn't want but couldn't lose.
And so my life proceeded and over the next 15 years I slowly packed on the pounds settling around 240 for quite awhile as I was busy teaching, housekeeping, raising 3 kids, coaching and volunteering for just about every activity my kids were involved with. I think without this busy life I would have ballooned much quicker than I did. Around 50 I found it very difficult to keep my weight even in the 240's and it pushed it's way up into the 250's and 260's. I was not a happy camper and Weight Watchers have gotten rich with the money I have spent to register, and reregister over the years. The most I ever lost was 40 lbs and hitting a plateau worked a mental trick on me. The sad part was that even with losing 40 lbs. nobody noticed or mentioned anything positive which was depressing but also showed me how much I really had to lose.
The past few years I have been struggling to keep my weight from continually rising, I thought as you aged your appetite decreased but so far that hasn't happened to me and the bad part is that I like all the foods that are not good for me.
To make matters worse the health problems that arise due to obesity have hit me hard and I think have caused me to be depressed although for those that know me they wouldn't think that but they can't see inside my thoughts. I have osteo-arthritis in my hands, knees and painfully in the bones on the tops of my feet. So any lengthy walking causes them to become inflamed and means that I am limited in my mobility and in the fun involved in being active. I can't bicycle anymore because of my painful knees so any activity I may have enjoyed has been curtailed. I do like to swim but that isn't a daily possibility for me. The other area that I have arthritis is in my lower back and that has caused many problems with getting around and being active. Sciatica is one of the offshoots of this condition and it is one of the most painful conditions I've ever experienced. As far as I know I don't have diabetes yet but that could be in the offing as two of my brothers have been diagnosed with type 2 recently and my weight has driven my blood pressure up as well. The very sad part of this is that even though these conditions have gradually accumulated they have restricted my participation with my children and grandchildren over the years. I have not been able to toboggan, skate, ski etc etc. My size has also limited me going on rides and fitting into spaces with the kids and even sitting on the floor playing with my grandbabies. Enough is enough!
In November my son called to tell me that his doctor was referring him to the GB Surgeon. He is only 39, has serious sleep apnea, and high blood pressure. His weight has ballooned over the past 5 years to 330 lbs. and now as well as these conditions he cannot participate in many activities to help control it. Even though he was nervous about it I was happy for him as I knew it could change his life in a very positive way. My daughter, who has struggled with her weight over most of her life immediately called her doctor and asked to be referred to her local GB clinic. Her main problems with her weight have been for a large part the social aspect of being an overweight teen and woman. She has been shunned by her teen peers and passed over for jobs and I know it was weight related. She is a very determined young woman and has her surgery date next week, March 31. It will make a huge difference in her life and now she will be able to avoid some of the problems that I had and be able to enjoy all the fun stuff with her children.
OK, while writing this I just got a call from the Bariatric Clinic and I have my orientation meeting on April 12. Here we go!!!
