snuglbuny

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Ok, well in two days it will be one year from my surgery and I can't believe how far I have come. I am down 108 pounds. I have accomplished a lot. I am a size large in a top, size 12-14 in  bottom. I am exercising three times a week with spinning class although I got off track for two months but have gotten back on track last week. My weight loss has slowed a lot. I can also say that I have fallen off the wagon when it comes to getting my protein in and watching what I eat. When the shake company that I used changed their taste (making it worse), I have yet to find another protein shake that I like. Therefore I have not been taking my shake in the morning. I have been eating a very small bowl of protein cereal or 1/4 of a bagel. I have added carbs into my diet and a little bit of candy as well. I have told myself that this week is going to change again. I am still trying out other shakes in hopes of finding another one that I like. I am cutting out the candy and going to cut out on the carbs. and I will try my hardest to keep up with the exercise even though life tries to get in the way.

But, I have to say YOU have come a long way baby. I would not have traded the surgery for anything. I am looking forward to having my arms and lower abdomen done at the beginning of next year. I still have about 15 pounds to loose to get to my PCP's goal. I have reached my goal as well as my surgeon's goal.

Keep trying, don't give up, you can do it.

Yes! I did it. I am 6 months post op and I am down 90 pounds. I am down below 200. Don't remember when I weighed that. Maybe sometime in my 8th grade or freshman year. Don' know. I am in a size 14 pants and L to XL shirt depending on the maker. I can now go into just about any store and wear their clothes....ambercrombie, express, victoria secret...you name it. So many clothes...so little money. But, I also am still losing and don't want to spend a bunch just yet. Anyway, I have started to eat a bit more. Seems that lunch is the best time for me to eat. Breakfast I have a shake and dinner just doesn't sit right with me. I have added a little bit of carbs back to my diet but not many.  And I do allow myself small bits of chocolate every once in a blue moon.  I haven't had any problems with the surgery...thank goodness. Well..except low blood pressure. I never had elevated pressure to begin with. So now it is really low for which I do have symptoms of dizziness when I get out of bed or get up from a chair. My PCP tried me on some meds to elevate my pressure but they only gave me migraines. So for now I eat a handful of salted pretzels every day and a little salt in the evening. I am working on getting compression hose to help. We will see. If that is the worst of it, then I will not complain.
Well, in my book I have another 18 pounds to lose. And according to my doctor he would be happy with another 8. But, of course the BMI chart wants another 40 off of me. But, I think 18 is a good half way point.

Well, I am down to 204. I am so close to that 199 that I can taste it. I am reaching and trying to grab for it but it seems so far away. I have to admit that I have not stuck all the time to my needed foods. I have eaten some chocolate and some chips. I can't tolerate much. I keep beating myself up about it. But, if I think about it. eating three M&Ms once a week is really not that much. But, it does satisfy my craving.

On the other side of things, my bp is still low and I am having dizzy spells. My PCP tried to put me on meds and they only brought on my migraines. So I had to stop that after one day. So on to trying compression stockings. THen my knee has decided to pop out of joint so I will be seeing an othopedic surgeon in a couple of weeks. I need my knees to continue to do my spin classes.

Anyway....keep trying

Iam finally down to 220. I thought I would never get away from the 233 mark. I have increased my protein intake and still doing the spinning classes three times a week. I am still in a size 16 but with some brands they are getting a little big around the waist and especially in the thighs. I just haven't figured out what the difference is between some stores 16 and 16W. Must be a more generous cut. Maybe I will post this question on the boards. Other than that things are going well.

I met with Dr Singh today for a checkup and lab work check. So far my weight loss is doing well. He seems happy. I, of course, would like more to come off. As for my labs.....well most were good, one not so good. My cholesterol is down from 205 to 128. However, my Vit D is very low and I need to start taking extra Vit D. So he gave me a prescription for Vit D in excess amount to be taken over the next six months. I guess it would have been worse. But, the bad news on my part is that I haven't been taking my calcium. So Dr singh gave me permission to use Viactive chews with the Vit D suppl. I am hapy with that. So I can get back on track.
One thing that I have been doing well is getting in exercise. I have been doing spinning classes three times a week. I am wanting to get in one more day of good aerobic exercise, so I am trying to find the time.

I am finally down to a size 16/18 from a 24. So I have been a lot happier. Now if this weight doesn't keep plateauing.

Anyway, still trying my hardest.

Well, it has been a month. The weight is sllllllowly coming off. I am at a stand still right now. But, as I read, it is normal about now. Although I have fallen off the wagon a bit but getting back on. I had stopped doing my food diary, my vitamins, and my protein shakes. The last few days have been much better.

On the better news of things I have joined a spin class and have gone to five classes and I am getting better with each one. So it looks like I will be joining the gym as a member since I have been on a guest pass for the last week. I have also been doing Wii Fit as well. So I have been trying in the fitness area.

Oh, the other good thing is I am in a size 18 now. It seems that I have cleared out a big bunch of clothes in the last month and a half. What a wonderful feeling. But, it can be hard on the budget. So I have been doing walmart, Talbots outlet center, and the like. Just enough to get me by. It is also nice when other people are saying to you that "you are just wasting away to nothing". What a good feeling.

Unfortunately, I just can't see it. I mean I can see that I am wearing smaller clothes and that I move better and I am exercising easier than I ever have. But, when I look in the mirror, I just see my hips and front lower abdomen and flappy arms. I keep saying to myself that I am much smaller and that those too will decrease more in size. I am afraid that I will always have hips. But, what woman doesn't.

As for my eating. I have been able to eat more....especially at lunch time. I have also been able to drink my water without stomach pain. Is this a good thing or a bad thing. That is the question. I read about it all the time on the boards. Does this mean that my stomach is stretching? I have also noticed that I have not dumped but once. Which has allowed me to try a little more different food. But, when that happens I don't eat but a single bite. I have tried rice and a spoonful of pasta with no problems but am afaid to push it. I still have stayed away from breads. I am still staying below 10grams of sugar in my foods. So that may help. My carbs...I may need to watch a bit more.

I see the doc in about 2 weeks. So...and I had my blood drawn...so we will see.
 

Ok the big wow moment....thurday was my 9 year anniversary and I weighed for the first time what I did 9 years ago on my wedding day.

1. I now weigh less than my husband. First time in a few years.
2. I am seven pounds from where is was when I got married nine years ago.
3. I can take a 30 minute walk and not be out of breath.
4. I rode a bike for the first time in a few years
5. My oldest son is starting to notice mommy is losing weight and has complimented me. 
6. I went through my closet yesterday and have a big pile of clothes that are "too big" for me.
7. My husband has complimented me several times and is my biggest cheering section.

I am very greatful that I have not had any complications. That I have not dumped. That I continue to do well.

Things I need to work on....
1. I have fallen down on the job on not taking my calcium suppl. I just can't get them down.
2. I am still trying to get down the needed fluid amount.
3. Doing well with protein. But, some days I am lacking. Still trying. 

Well, three weeks out and down 25 pounds. I like many other newbies have been watching that scale and it is driving me nuts. But, I know that I am not getting in my fluids. I am not sure how to work it better. I always start off with a shake to start my protein. Then go for my fluids. I just keep trying

Well, one week until I go back to work. I took off one month which has been a godsend. I have been able to heal and relax and prepare. I am actually going back for one month and then leaving to go to another job. I turned in my resignation last week. It was very hard. But, it was something that I had to do and it just happened to be at the time of my surgery. With that I got a new car. A hybrid. Because I will have a little bit longer commute. So,

new life....new job....new car...hopefully a turn for the better. For me and for my family.

Ok, I had surgery on May 5th. One week ago. I can say that the pain afterwards is much worse than giving birth-in my opinion. It was soooo hard to get out of bed those first two days. But, once the catheter was taken out I had no choice. The bathroom called every two hours. Even at night. The terrible thing is that I had an ON-Q pump which helps to numb the incision sites by small catheters that are placed under the skin and attached to a bag. Well, come the third day and I am ready to go home I notice that the bag is not emptying and is just as full as when they placed it. No wonder I was in pain. The thing that really upsets me is that none of the residents or med students even checked the pump to see if it was working properly. So, I went home with it-because it is my responsibility to remove it the next day. Well, I received no paperwork on how to remove it. And on thursday still no decrease in the ball of medicine. So being a nurse pracititioner I slowly pulled the catheters out from under my skin and yep they were clogged by blood. So I will be mentioning this to the doctor when I see him next. 

As for the nursing care. It was touchy. Half the time the nursing techs didn't know that I had a JP drain and so it went unchecked and emptied. They never responded to my iv pump alarms going off. I always had to call for them to shut them off. They didn't get me out of bed the first evening after surgery like they were supposed to. And they didn't help me until the next late morning to get out of bed. They seemed to be on time for those damn heparin shots that my doctor gives three times a day while in the hospital. Boy, those suckers hurt. 

I do have to say when my IV blew at 3:30 in the morning they called the IV team and she came within two minutes and placed a small IV in my upper arm-much better placement than what the anesthesiologist did(in my left wrist)-not so good. 

I can say that my liquid meals and my one soft diet was actually good. What ever I could get down. I was so frightened to eat or drink anything. I was afraid I was going to bust open. 

I would also like to say that the two head floor nurses-one at night and the other day- were very good to me. They helped ease my anxiety (since I had been taken off those meds) and they helped to get my butt out of bed when the gas pains hit on the third day. 

As for the residents/surgical doctor team-well, their bedside mannor has a lot to be desired. Unfortunately, my main doctor did not come in to talk with me during my stay. I did see him in the hall while I was walking and told him I was ok. And he left it at that. As for those others....bedside mannor is everything. And to the one resident that took out my JP drain-she had NO heart at all! She seemed like she didn't want to put up with me. She didn't explain the procedure. She just told me to lay down, she pulled out this scalpel, cut my stitches (OUCH-no warning), and told me to take deep breath and she PULLED.......... Granted it was not terribly painful...but it didn't feel good either. I hope and pray that I don't need one again-but if I have plastics I will- but if I do please knock me out or show some kindness. OH, on top of that it took her four hours to get to my bedside to pull it out so that I could go home. She was paged at noon and she didn't come until 4:30pm. Not happy. 

Anyway, went home and went straight upstairs to my room. I had clean sheets on my bed, a nice big chair to sit in, a tv and dvd player, and all my vitamins ready to go. First order of business-bathroom. It is hard to be a woman and wipe. Thank god that I didn't get my period in the hospital. I slept ok that night. Nothing like pain meds. 

The other thing I am greatful for I had no nausea.

Next day-oh those gas pains-so I walked around my little upstairs hall and sat down in the chair and got up again. And even better after I pulled out those good for nothing tubes I GOT A SHOWER!. Granted it took both my mother and mother in law to help me but I felt so much better. 

Since that day I have been improving little by little. Doing well on puree/protein shakes/SF jello/pudding, broth, etc. 

The only problem now that I has gotten worse is this pain in my left upper side. Granted the doctor put 7 holes in me and one for the drain. And where the pain is, is above one of the lower holes but it feels like something is ripping or pulling. And today, it got so much worse. But, it may be for me pushing the limits with being out for some hours shopping and walking the dog. Even my pain meds haven't helped. It only happens when I am standing/walking. Otherwise I am fine. No other problems with my body. Granted I finally had a BM yesterday for the first time in a week. So my thoughts before bed....to take a good night sleep. If it is still as bad tomorrow-call the doctor. Most likely, it is just pulled muscle or pain from the stomach(larger portion). And don't push myself so much. 

Thank god I have three weeks left off from work.