hawkeye_kate

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So, I am 7 1/2 months out now!  Time is flying!  I am 76 lbs down since surgery and 99 lbs down from my heaviest.  I think that is wonderful but I have been stalled at this weight for a entire month!  I feel like my sleeve isn't working anymore and I won't get to my goal weight :(  I also feel like I am eating to much.  I eat about 6-7 oz at my meals.  Still trying to eat my protein first but I always have room for the rest.  I read on here and other sites that people out as far as me or longer can barely eat 4 oz...  I hope I didn't stretch out my sleeve to much already.  Sounds like something I would do!  Just feeling defeated at this point.  I emailed my nutritionist hoping she will have some tips for me to get out of this funk! 

I have to say that I am a little nervous about Thanksgiving tomorrow.  This will be the first one since my surgery.  I know that I have made it through Fourth of July without a hitch, which surprised me but I think this will be more difficult.  I was still on liquids over the 4th and didn't feel the urge to try to eat anything.  Now I am almost 5 months out and can eat real food...  I have a game plan in my head but I just hope that I don't stray. 

I plan on taking my own small plate and my food scale.  I am sure that the family will tease me (all in fun and not to hurt my feelings) but I know they all understand what I am doing here.  I have come so far already in these few months that I don't want to mess anything up.  Eyeballing food portions only gets me into trouble and I tend to over eat.  I haven't made myself sick or anything, just felt it for a few hours after.  I am sure that this entire holiday will be a struggle.  I just have to say focused and strong and I will get through it!!  Wish me luck!! 

So, just a little update on my progress.  Started going to the gym (not as frequent as I need to be but its a start).  I actually am surprised how comfortable I feel there now.  I don't feel like I am a side show trying to get some cardio in.  I am in fact just an average looking person working out.  That has NEVER been the case!  I am doing about 45-60 mins on an eliptical machine and get about 3-4 miles in that time.  I wish that I could run and get times like that, but that is a goal I have that I know I will accomplish at some point.  It weird that I am jealous of people who run...I hope to be one of those people someday!!

Here are my stats.

HW-316, SW-293, CW-227, GW-170

Almost down 100lbs!  Also getting very close to Onederland!!  This has been a sureal journey!  I never thought in a million years I would be this size (or smaller)!  I  My Sleeve!!

~~Kate~~

Wow!  I can't believe I am 4 months out from surgery already!  Time has flown by!  I thought that when I started this journey that Blogging would be my outlet.  I would be able to come here are type out all my struggles and wins or just vent.  But it turns out that life has got the best of me and I haven't thought much about this blog at all!!  I am making a promise to myself to do better with this...even if no one else reads it!!

So, 16 weeks out...where am I now?  Well, I started my journey at 316 lbs.  That was over a year ago when I had my very first visit to the Center for Weight Management @ Genesis Health System (in Iowa).  I had the sleeve done on June 30, 2014.  My weight when I got home from the hospital was 293 lbs.  Today I am at 236 lbs!  That make my loss 80 lbs since my heaviest and 57 lbs since surgery.  This still just blows my mind.  I can't even remember the last time I weighed under 250 lbs.  I have been feeling absolutely wonderful as well.  I haven't had any problems (which I feel blessed).  I still struggle getting my Protein and Liquids in but I think this is a struggle for us all!  I just take things one day at a time. Exercise is still very minimal but I plan to join the YMCA very soon.  I hope that once my butt get to the gym it will get nice an comfy there :)  I want to make that a regular part of my schedule. 

I have noticed that I am better with how the weight is coming off now.  I was getting upset when I would stall out for a week or even just a few days.  But now I know that my body is adjusting to the new size and sometimes it takes it a little time to do this.  As long as it comes off eventually I am okay with the time it is taking.  Slow and steady wins the race, right?? 

Well, I want to keep this short and sweet.  Just wanted to get back into this and start tracking my journey a little more.  I will post some current pictures soon-you can let me know if you notice a difference!!  :)

~~Kate~~

5 weeks post op and I am feeling pretty good!  Overall no pain and I have been eating almost back to normal.  This week I am on the last week of the Post Op diet so my instructions say I can add raw fruits and veggies and also lean meat (that isn't shredded or ground).  About week 3 I did go through the dreaded first stall...I was pretty devastated as I didn't know that this was possible so early in my journey.  But after reading a lot of entries on here I realized that it is actually pretty common.  It only lasted a few days but after being used to the scale move down everyday since I got home from the hospital when it didn't I was heartbroken!  I actually had a small breakdown because all I kept thinking was that I just turned my life upside down for only 18lbs (the amount I was down at that time).  I now know that stalls happen, and to not freak out...your body needs time to adjust to your new weight, I just need to relax!  Everything is working as it should. 

This past week we had our County Fair.  Normally this would have been a week of tons of fried or unhealthy foods and tons of drinking!  This year it was completely different and I actually didn't miss the old way of doing it.  Well, maybe I did miss eating a corndog (as that is the only time of year I ever eat one!).  I was actually able to find options there that were not that bad for me and still made me feel like I was eating fair food.  I know that I didn't get my fluids in like I should have and towards the end of the week I was feeling the effects.  I was pretty nauseous all day Saturday and most of the day on Sunday.  When I got home yesterday early evening I tried to rehydrate the best I could and feel okay today.  I am looking forward to getting my schedule back to normal this week.  I feel like it was a little out of control with the fair. 

2 Weeks ago today I had my surgery.  It has been quite an experience for sure!  It is hard to believe that it has already been 2 weeks.  It seemed to take forever to get the surgery complete and now that it is done time is flying by. 

My first week with clear liquids we great.  I felt great and all the liquids were going down fine.  I was even off of my pain meds by that Saturday after surgery.  It made me very hopeful and happy for the decision I made.  The next week was a different story.  I actually started questioning if I made the right choice, even though I knew there was no going back.  I had graduated to full liquids on July 7th.  This included adding milk to my diet.  That did not go good with my stomach.  I was pretty sick the first two days on this new diet.  Because I was so nauseous I wasn't drinking all my fluids, didn't get my protein in, and wasn't taking my vitamins.  I feel like I may be a little dehydrated.  My calves feel like they may cramp up at any moment.  But by this past Saturday I was feeling better and started to drink a little more.  I talked to the dietitian and she told me that I should try soy milk.  For now, I think I will just leave milk out all together, especially in the protein. 

Last night I started on soft foods.  I am to eat 1/4 cup of the listed food that they gave me for each meal.  Going into this week I was worried that 1/4 cup of food wouldn't be enough and I would be starving.  I was drinking 1/2 cup of full liquids so reducing the serving size made me nervous.  Let me tell you this is not the issue!  It took me 1 1/2 hours to eat 1/4 cup of food!!  That is CRAZY to me!!  I definitely feel full! 

I go back to work today.  I am hoping that getting me back on my normal schedule will allow me to get in all my protein and liquids.  While I was off I really wasn't on any schedule.  I would wake up at different times everyday and not always be home when I needed to eat.  I hope today goes well... I wonder if people will notice that I have lost any weight?  Not a lot of my co-workers know what I was off for...

Wish me Luck!!

Only 5 days out of surgery and I had to resist temptation on a grand scale! Yesterday my sister hosted a 4th of July party at her house. I knew there was going to be lots of people there which equaled lots of eating and drinking. Early in the party it was all just my immediate family, all of which knew what I have went thru. Most saying they felt bad for eating around me. At that point it actually didn't bother me. I was just happy to be out of my house and socializing! But as the night went on it became more difficult to fight the urge to eat. If course I didn't follow this urge but it was so hard! There was food everywhere!! Protein shakes and flavored water do not take the place of brats, buffalo chicken dip, and homemade ice cream. Even though I wasn't physically hungry that head hunger was a bitch to fight! 

But as I wake up today I am proud of myself for getting thru yesterday. It showed me that I do have the will power I never thought I had, or at least paid attention to before! 

As of Monday I can say that I have been officially Sleeved!  My new life has just begun!  It feels amazing! 

I had my surgery on Monday June 30th @ 7:15 AM.  I arrived at the hospital at 5:30 that morning.  My nerves had started to kick in.  I checked in and waited to get my Vitals.  My worries about losing weight were soon eased as the scale read 291.5.  I was down 11.5 lbs from the last doctors appointment that I had.  Once they got me back to my room and changed me into my gown time went super fast.  They briefed me on what was going to happen.  Went over my health history and medication.  Then got my IV started.  Which did take the nurse two tries but it wasn't too bad.  She ended up finding a vein in my Left wrist.  Not the most ideal but it was in.  The anesthesiologist stopped in and then my surgeon.  They injected my "happy juice" as they called it and wheeled me to OR @ 7:11 AM.  The last thing I remember is them having me move to the OR table, having me stretch out my arms, and an oxygen mask going on my face.  I open my eyes next in recovery! 

I was in recovery for about an hour.  The only troubles I had there was my face being super itchy from the anesthesia.  They got me to my inpatient room where my mom and sister were waiting and I stayed inhouse until Wednesday.  I was actually surprised how good I felt and am still feeling.  After surgery I was having the most pain on my upper left side of my abdomen.  I was confused because it wasn't near my incision but it was very sore.  They doctor visited me that that night and explained to me that is where my liver is located and he had to put a retractor on liver to hold it out of the way.  He said that soreness is very common.  It made total sense to me...just wished someone would have told me about it before surgery!  I am pretty impressed on how nice my incisions actually look.  The 3 small along the top have no bruising and very minimal redness.  The 2 larger incisions near my belly button have some bruising but aren't sore at all.  The one on the right has the most b/c that is the incision that he removed my stomach.  It is a little puffy but looks a lot better then I expected. 

On Tuesday I had my upper GI done to check for leaks.  Drinking the barium was unpleasant...not gonna lie about that!  It was the first liquid I had had since Sunday night and it wasn't good!  I had to wait for the doctor to read the results and clear me to start my liquid diet.  My nurse came in with a glass of water and said that everything looked good from my test and a tray should be coming!  She gave me the water with a little ice and told me to take a sip.  I did and instantly had pain...oh no!  something is wrong!!  (at least that is what I thought).  My stomach felt like it was cramping...all I could think was "I made the wrong choice, I shouldn't have done this".  The nurse stayed with me while the cramp past and said that she was going to get me a new water without ice.  She said sometimes cold bothers the sleeve.  Not sure why she started with ice if she new this info but I didn't hold it against her!    She brought the new water and my tray of broth, tea and Jell-O came in.  I was a little scared after the water incident but I tried the broth.  Warm liquids go down much nicer for me.  I was able to drink about 4 oz in about 3 hours.  I thought I would never eat that little.  Jell-O didn't go down that great so I stuck to the broth and tea,  When my dinner tray came that night I was confident in my stomach and it was smooth sailing.  I can still feel every drink that I take but there isn't any pain.  I had also really stopped using my Morphine button by mid day Tuesday.  I was feeling good and didn't think I needed it.  But my blood pressure was telling a different tale and the nurse encouraged me to start hitting my button.  So I was compliant and it helped bring my blood pressure down to the normal range. 

Wednesday the Surgeon visited me in the morning.  He said that I was doing great.  I needed to get more fluids in so I can be taken off the IV. He said that he would call around lunch time to check on my progress and if everything was good I would get discharged.  I made sure I sip sip sipped all morning.  The nurse took me off my IV and gave me liquid pain meds.  I signed my discharge papers around 3 PM that day. 

Now I am home...I feel really good.  Trying to stay hydrated and get all my 64oz of liquids in per day.  A lot harder then I thought I might add!  You are definitely sipping all day long!  Excited to start seeing some results and welcoming this new adventure!!

Wow...it is getting so close to surgery day!  I am more excited then anything. Everyone keeps asking if I am nervous but I can honestly say that I am not!  I think the excitement is masking the nerves right now but I know I will be feeling them on Sunday but for now I am cool as a cucumber!  

Since I last posted I have been keeping up with the pre-op diet.  It has been going okay I guess.  The office said that on this diet I should loose a bunch of weight but I haven't really had that experience yet.  The second week of the diet I really struggled.  I think it was because I was stressing over gaining any weight.  The last appointment that I had I did gain about 3 lbs. and the nurse wasn't happy with me.  She said if I gain anymore weight when they weigh me on day of surgery that they will not do the surgery.  I think that stress caused me to not lose any weight.  But finally I started to drop a little. At that doctors appointment I weighed 303lbs (yes, I went back to the 300's) but today I weighed 295.5.  That is a 7.5lb loss.  I don't know if that is good enough but it is the best I can do short of starving myself.  I have considered just doing liquids tomorrow and Sunday but we will see how I am progressing and go from there.

The physical therapist gave me an exercise "prescription".  Unfortunately, the weather here has been less then favorable to go outside and walk 5 days a week like she wanted.  I have been able to do a couple nights last this week. I download "Map my Walk" on my iPhone and I love it.  It tracks my distance, route, and time for every workout.  Definitely something I will use for a long time!  

Other then that I am just trying to get last minute things done before Monday.  Packing my bags, getting food prepared for when I get home, etc.  I hope this weekend flies by!! (I can't believe I am saying that!)

I had my last set of appointments at the Center for Weight Management on Monday.  Met with the nurse to go over last details on the surgery and my hospital stay.  Met with the pharmacist to get vitamins, pill crushers, and a list of meds that I can and can't take after surgery.  And finally the Physical Therapist.  She gave me a exercise "prescription" to start now and to continue after surgery.  Also confirmed that my surgery will be on June 30th!  So it is actually official now!! Yikes!! 

I started the walking Wednesday.  15mins 5x's a week.  Doesn't sound like that much but when you haven't worked out in a long time it is!  Plus it was probably the hottest day we have had so far this year.  Today was much nicer. 

I am a little frustrated with this pre op diet.  Following it closely and NOT cheating but am not dropping much weight.  My diet isn't a liquid only.  I get to eat up until day of surgery.  Just trying not to get discouraged. 

Well, I am not totally bummed but there was a slight set back.  I met with my surgeon today.  We went over what to expect with surgery and any questions I had.  But I got the news that we have to push the surgery back one week.  :(  My surgeon has to be in court that day.  Don't worry...its not for him!  He just needs to testify I guess.  They really worked hard with his schedule and was able to get me in the next Monday.  I know that it is only one week but I felt like I was so close and now I am not.  So it looks like I am doing this pre-op diet for 3 weeks instead of 2!

But I did get some good news there.  I weighed in under 300lbs!  I haven't seen the 200's in a long time!  That feels great!  Make me very hopeful for the future!