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I am now officially out 4 months. I am so excited to say I met my goal for 2008. I have officially lost 50 pounds!!!! I am so excited about this. It was kinda hard during the holidays and I made a few wrong food choices, but did not gain. Since my fill I have lost a total of 9 pounds...WOOHOO Anyway I just wanted to share and post a few new pictures. I still do not see a huge difference, but have to say that I have gone from a size 22/24 to a size 16. I am still in shock over that.
I had my first fill on Thursday December 4th. I was really nervous, but also excited. I had to go to the radiology department at the hospital. They did it using a fluro machine, basically an xray to see the band. I laid on the table and the doctor prepped my belly and sprayed a local anesthetic. He pushed into my belly trying to find the port and stuck the needle in. He thought he was in the right place but was not. They used the fluro machine to re stick me two more times before getting the needle in the port. It hurt a little but it was not terrible by any means. He withdrew some saline that was in there 2.5 cc's and then returned that plus more. Then they had me stand up and drink. I could feel it just sitting in my chest. He took a little out, and I drank again. Still could feel it in my chest. He took a tiny bit more out and it went through just fine. He added 2 cc's so I have a grand total of 4.5 cc's in my band. I do not feel terribly restricted like I was hoping, but I know that it can take awhile before you get a good restriction. In the mean time I will keep plugging along!!! Thanks for letting me share this journey with you. Keep checking back I will be adding more around Christmas time!! I am hoping to be out of the 200's by then!!
Well I am sorry that it has taken me this long to update. Better late than never. Things have been going really well. I am exercising like crazy and loving it. I feel really good. I had my appointment with the Doctor. He was very proud of me, and said I exceeding his expectations of the band. I lost a total of 39 pounds since surgery!!! I am very proud of myself. I still can not see a huge difference, at least not what I thought I would see after loosing this much. I am still very happy with the decision I made. Ok I am going to close this with my comparison pictures. These are shots from the beginning and three months. Enjoy!
Well ladies and gentlemen, I am officially two months post op. I do not have much to blog about except that I can not eat salami! I guess that is probably a good thing. It is too tough for me, and it hurt very bad. That is the only food that I have found so far that does not go down. Anyway I promised pictures so here they are. Please note that these are for weight loss progress not a beauty pageant. I am in my workout clothes, so I know that they are not the best, but I promised I would post!
Ok you know how I said I would share the good, bad and the ugly about this procedure, I am going to keep my promise with this post. I really did not want to come here and share with anyone how tough it has been the last two weeks. I knew from the beginning that the weight loss would slow and I would have some stalls, but I never knew that I would take it as hard as I have the last few weeks. I have not lost a pound or even any more inches in two weeks. I have upped my exercise and still nothing. It is really difficult when you are following the band rules to a T and you see no improvement. Now do not get me wrong I am ecstatic that I have lost what I have lost, but I am back into the all or none thinking, which I know I can work through. I am logging everything I am eating an exercises I am doing. It all looks great, so I am just hanging in there by the hair from my chiny chin chin (literally) to see what happens, and to get a fill. If you do not know what a fill is, let me explain. A fill is basically saline solution that is injected into your band through a port. A fill does exactly what it sounds like, it fills the balloon in the band to make it tighter around my stomach, which in return will make me fuller quicker and with less food. It will also make you feel more satisfied with your food for longer periods of time. That is how you are able to loose the weight is through the fills and unfills, basically trial and error! Shew that feels so good to get it out there. Glad I can vent to my family and friends.
Well I am officially six weeks out and I have to say things are still going strong. The weight loss has slowed down big time, but I an loosing inches now. As of today I have lost a total of 27 pounds. I knew when I added more foods I would not loose as quickly, and I see it now. I am still exercising, and making the right food choices. I am ready for my first fill though, because I am starting to get more and more hungry. Today I started logging my food journal on MYDAILYPLATE. It really is a neat website that you can enter your foods, and get your totals. I think that it will really help me keep track of what is going in and what is going out. Thanks so much to all of you who have offered your support. It is greatly appreciated. I know that this is a life long change and I am happy that I have changed my life in such a positive way! Keep checking back. I am hoping to post some pictures at 2 months out....If I do not chicken out before then!
Well I am excited to say that I am still going strong! I have now lost a total 24 pounds since surgery!! I am eating more and more everyday, and I actually get to start the next phase of my diet next week. I have been trying to walk at least once a day. I went back to teaching preschool, and also started helping Gretchen's classroom on Thursday's. I have been super busy, but I am also staying super full which I love. I really am eating very well, not having too many cravings. I do have some head huger issues, but as long as I do not act upon them I will be OK. My port incision is almost healed, so that makes me happy. I can see a huge difference in my attitude. I am so lucky to have a insurance company that will pay to have this procedure done!! I can not wait for each and every new morning to wake up and start my days. I will be updating my blog so be sure to check back often. When I get brave enough I will start posting my monthly pictures and measurements!!
I went to see my surgeon today and was a nervous wreck. My steri strips were still on and I just knew he would be taking them off. Even though my port incision and belly button incision were not completely healed! He came in and we spoke for a few minutes and he said it looked like I was doing good. He then proceeded to look at my incisions, and just started ripping the steri strips off. I said oh you kinda scared me, and he laughed and he said he does it that way so that I do not get worked up about it! Well I guess that is pretty smart. My port incision was oozing some so he covered it and said to take it off the next day. Yuk, I was still praying that the staph infection my in laws had would not get to me. He said everything looked great and he would see me at the end of November to talk about a fill. He kept telling me he did his part and that the ball was now in my court, that I have to follow the bandsters guidelines or I will not succeed. Just wait till he sees me next time!!
Let me start by saying I have lost 18 pounds!! WOO HOO I also get to start phase 2 of my diet where I can add cheese, eggs, cottage cheese, pureed meats and beans. I have been waiting for this day to come. I have been planning how i was going to eat my first egg. Well when I woke up today I was a little nervous but I survived! I was thinking man I am going to devour that one little scrambled egg, and I am still going to be hungry...NOT When I started eating it was pure heaven, well after eating half of it I was so full and felt like my belly was going to explode. I was so shocked and thought that it was crazy. Man it was nice, but at the same time I was a little sad that I could not eat the whole egg. I saved it for lunch...HAHA I never really thought I would feel that full from any food before having a fill. So I am very excited.
I know I have lost alot so far but I also keep reminding myself that it will slow down and my weight will only come off 1-2 pounds per week as long as I am following the rules. I am now feeling better about my decision of getting the lap band!
As the days pass things seem to be getting better. I can walk a little faster and do a little more without feeling so worn out. Today when the girls got home from school we went to see Wall-E with the in laws, then they went to eat pizza...Now that was pure torture, but I made it through it! When I got home I drank my protein shake and things were all better!!! My in laws will leave tomorrow so I am praying that Scott will step up to the plate to help out around here.
On day three Scott had to take my in laws to a clinic because they had bumps that got infected. Well it turned out to be staph infection so they went back a few times before actually heading back to Texas. It turned out that Mrs. Smejkal had to be admitted to the hospital once she got home. She had surgery to remove all the dead tissue. I felt so bad for her, but at the same time I had five incisions that I was praying would not come in contact with the infection.
Anyway physically I was feeling good, I was not really hungry, besides head hunger. The TV commercials for all the foods I could not have for awhile were killing me. Then I started thinking maybe I had done the wrong thing, why did I let myself get to the point of needing surgery....Blah Blah! Basically they said it is normal to regret something big like this...It was called buyers remorse. It felt alot like after having a baby, just really emotional. I was still sip sip sipping and walk walk walking. I did not have any gas pain that alot of people complained about. My incisions really did not hurt terribly bad, and I felt relatively normal besides walking like a turtle!
It is finally here! I was excited but still very nervous and worked up. When I was called back, blood was taken and temp. Then I went to a room and started undressing to find out my lovely friend decided to visit (I had to stop taking the pill because of possible blood clots) I was so embarrassed but the surgeon said it was normal. I was doing ok the whole time until they mentioned that my surgeon liked to have two IV lines going just in case. Anyone who knows me knows that I have such a hard time having my blood drawn or IV's put in. They usually fish for a vein and it hurts so bad. So I got all worked up and she had a harder time getting in. I was crying so much that it gave me a headache! They were very sweet and kept reassuring me, even Scott was being very sweet about it! I asked several times if it was too late to back out, and of course Scott kept saying yes! Then the anesthesiologist came in to give me some meds. He saw how nervous I was so he hooked me up. I had four yes I said four anti nausea meds, and a patch behind my ear put on. Then before I knew it they were wheeling me down to the OR. I gave my last kiss to Scott, and reminded him that I loved him and the kids. When I got to the OR I had to change tables and they started strapping my arms down and all that fun stuff. Then someone asked what surgery I was having and what doctor, and I told them, then she said ok I am going to put the oxygen mask on and give you something to put you out. That was the last thing I remember. I woke up being wheeled to recovery and them asking if I wanted pain meds, I kept saying NO, I am just a little sore! They observed me for about an hour and wheeled me to another room. Where Scott was waiting for me. He informed me that when he spoke to my surgeon after surgery that he said I had a fatty liver (well duh) I guess Scott thought this was funny because this is all I heard about for days! I was in there for about two more hours and then released. I came home and was greeted by my AWESOME kids smiles and hugs! I went straight to bed and slept a few hours. Then started my sipping (1oz of clear fluid per hour no more) and walking through the house. The first few days after surgery this was all I did! I really felt pretty good.
Well the day before my surgery was nerve wracking, but I made it through. I had my protein shake in the morning and then I got to eat whatever I wanted for lunch! I was excited because I had been on only protein shakes and salads. So I opted for a cheeseburger and fries and a vanilla diet coke. It was pretty yummy! After twelve I could only have clear liquids until midnight. At five I had to drink the nasty bowel cleansing stuff. I literally took one big gulp! I had to clean my body with an antibacterial soap at eight. After that I was all good. The afternoon went by fairly quickly and I was ready for bed early! The surgeon called and asked that I be at the hospital earlier so I was excited!
I just got off the phone with my MIL and she and my FIL will be driving down here to stay with us for a week, too help with the kids. I am thankful for any help that I can get! I mean my kids still have to eat and be bathed, Right? They will be arriving on Saturday prior to surgery and staying until the next weekend. Things seem to be going pretty smoothly at this point, and I pray that they continue to go this way. I get more nervous as the days past mostly just about having surgery (I would be nervous about any kind).
Also I took my pre op pictures, but I will not be sharing them here until I have a least one month out and lost some....Sorry you will just have to wait to see my beautiful figure....HAHA Well that is all for now, keep checking back. Keep praying for me and my family.......
Once again I was a ball of nerves today!! I had my pre op appointment with the surgeon. I had officially lost three pounds on the pre op diet, that has been killing me. I was very excited about seeing a loss. I signed some last paperwork saying that this was a voluntary surgery and I could die.....Blunt to say the least. As I was signing my life away I was thinking in the back of my mind, I am going to back out. So far the surgery date is still scheduled! I spoke with the DR, and he was very kind, he said that being nervous is very normal. He went over the instructions for surgery, and asked if I had any questions. He gave me my scripts (which does not include an anti nausea medicine) to be filled prior to surgery. Graydon was with me again today, and he was just sitting in a chair and when it was quit in the room he said Momma I love you, the DR smiled and said that he made his day!!! My sweet baby boy......Keeping praying for me and my family!!
Today was a little stressful, I had a full plate and I felt like I was getting no support from my husband. I had to go pre register at the hospital, and have a few tests done. I was a nervous wreck so needless to say my blood pressure was extremely high. I had an EKG and some blood drawn. Was told where to go the morning of surgery, and what to do prior to coming in. Graydon got to go with me today and he was a very good boy. I was proud of him. I thought about just cancelling the whole surgery, but decided it was so worth it. I talked to a few friends today and they reassured me about having the surgery. Y'all are the greatest friends I could have every asked for. Thanks for being there for me! I can not believe I have approx two weeks left! Pray for me.....
I am ecstatic to say that I have a date!!! I will be going into surgery on Monday August 25Th!!! I really can not believe it happened so quickly. I am happy but at the same time it is starting to hit that it really is going to happen. It was basically like a dream before. I will be doing a before shot real soon. I start my pre op diet in the morning. I will be drinking two protein shakes a day and a salad with meat at night. That is it until surgery. Please say a little prayer for my family and I!! I know that I am going to be a real grouch for awhile since I will not be eating..... Also please pray that surgery goes well...I think that will be the scariest part. Keep checking back for an update!!!
Well I had my nutrition appointment today. I was kinda nervous about it, but also excited because I knew it was my last appointment. She was extremely nice and very informative. She had a handout (50 pages) that she put together and we went over. It was all about what I should eat after surgery, and fills, and what not. She answered all my questions and said that if I needed anything to call her or email! She seemed very genuine. I felt very comfortable with my decision after meeting with her. She did inform me that my surgeon does not do any fills until 12 weeks out, and that I will be starving basically until I get one......That seems like so long, but at the same time I feel good about it because he wants to make sure that your stomach has fully recovered from surgery.
I took all the info that I had to the surgeon's office and she said I should hear something from my insurance by next week. I can not believe that it might really happen within the next month. Now the flutters in my stomach are setting in, but at the same time I am super excited to have the opportunity to change my life!!
As I have said a few times before this is the one appointment I was most nervous about. Let me give you a little history so that you can understand why. We are a military family on Active duty, this means we move alot, which in return means I see alot of different doctors. Well I got my first referral to see a bariatric surgeon while I was still living in South Carolina, but we ended up moving soon after that. I started all over when we moved here in Feb. When I saw my PCM for the first time and asked for another referral, she was less than pleased with this. I have never seen her again, and this will not be who I am seeing today. I will be seeing another doctor in our clinic. So needless to say this lady does not know anything about me and I will be asking her for a letter of medical necessity. Do you see where I am going with this? If I were her I probably would not write it just because I would not know anything about me. So back to the appointment, while I was waiting my turn to be seen I was getting kinda sick to my tummy because I was worried about being told no. It turned out to be all for nothing, she came in and was extremely nice about everything. She said she would be more than happy to review my medical records and write a letter on behalf of all the army clinics that I have been seen in for the last five years. I let out a huge sigh of relief. I felt the hardest part of this process was actually the easiest! Now I am just waiting for her to call so that I can pick it up and take it to my surgeons office. Another appointment completed and only my nutrition class left!! I am so excited!!!
So I was finally seen on today for my psychiatrist evaluation. I was really nervous and once I was checked in my nerves were kinda calmed because the receptionist said he was going to be having the surgery also! I felt some relief that I was in the right place. Anyway after I was called back with the student psychiatrist she talked to me for an hour and a half. She was just asking questions, and seemed kinda bored. BTW I was told this appointment would only take thirty minutes, so at this point I was ready to leave. As I was about to say that I needed to reschedule, the psychiatrist came in! Yippe I was relieved, he was very nice and seemed very pleased with all the information I knew about the surgery. To make a long story short he said that he would OK me for the surgery. He gave me a copy of his letter and wished me luck! I left the office with the biggest grin on my face. Another appointment done and only two more to go.
Now my biggest concern lays with getting my PCM (primary care manager) to write a letter of necessity. We shall see what Friday brings!
