MARTI B.
LITTLE BY LITTLE,
STEP BY STEP,
DAY BY DAY,
DREAM BY DREAM-
YOU’LL GET THERE
I KNOW YOU WILL.
3/24/04: Been approved for my surgery. Having a hard time talking to the nurses at the office but other than that the process is going great.
4/4/04: Went to Six Flags today for a company picnic. It was fun except when i couldn't fit on the rides. My husband doesn't know how i can sit there and not feel embarrassed with myself not being able to fit on the rides. But what he doesn't know if that it does hurt me but i don't let it show. I would rather someone look at me and make fun of me then the next person down the way. I can't wait until my surgery. 29 days and counting.
4/9/04: This morning I was looking at myself in the mirror. I thought to myself that i couldn't wait until surgery. My concerns are that i won't wake up. I don't have the concerns of not being able to control my eating habits. I have an appointment on April 20th for my pre-op. I am excited about that. This month has gone by so fast for me. In a week i will be traveling to Kansas and after that my appointment and then in 2 weeks my surgery. It is just crazy and i have all this stuff that i wish to accomplish before my surgery. 24 days and counting.
4/18/04: I did go to Kansas for the weekend. My family is still not very supportive of the situation. I did bring all my paperwork i have been collecting and tried to show them but they just ignored me. I guess i can't help someone understand that doesn't want to understand. Oh well, at least i am knowledgeable about the situation.
Right now i am excited but am getting scared also. I hope everything will go well and i will defenitaley be praying for my doctor. 15 days and counting.
4/25/04: 8 days and counting. I am very scared but still anxious. I will be working on getting my bag packed and getting the house cleaned for the smooth transition back into my home. My family is still not very supportive of me but that is okay. My mother is wanting to know if i want her down here? As far as i know she'll not be coming down which is fine. I don't think i want company in my house at this time. Will post more later.
4/28/04: 5 days and counting. Very nervous now. I have gone through the process of thinking i was going to die during surgery, then i was going to wake up and die, and now it is that i can see them doing the surgery on me. I am very scared right now but anxious in the same respect. I will continue to pray for my Doctor and me to do great and have a speedy recovery. Will post more later!
5/1/2004: 3 days and still counting!!! I am so excited to have my surgery on Monday. It has been 7 month journey with reseaching and finding out what i need to expect on the day of surgery. In my earlier post's i would go from seeing myself die, to seeing myself wake up and die to seeing my doctor do the surgery on me. For a few days now I am excited to go to my first visit with my doctor to see how much i have lost. That makes me want this really bad.
I am cleaning today, to make sure that everything is done by Monday. I want Sunday to rest and relax and get my bag packed.
It's been along journey and I can't wait to see the otherside!!
5/5/04: 3-days post op! I came home today. I was feeling preety good. Just tired. When i got home i slept in the chair. I did have a "ball and chain" when i got home. That sucked! I can't walk that far before getting real tired. Hopefully that will
5/8/04: 6-days post op! Well i just got home from the hospital. Went to the hospital on 5-6-04 for chills, diarera, and a temperture of 99.5 since 4p.m. I called Connie with Dr. Wilson's office and asked her what I needed to do. She called Dr. Scarbourgh because Wilson was out of town. He told me to get to the emergency room now and tell them to get you in. Connie said chills are not a normal thing with this sugery. Well i went to ER and told them that Dr. Scarbourgh was to be calling and getting me admitted. Sure enough instead of waiting 5 hours to be admitted i was there for 1.5 hours. They hooked an IV up to me and was the doctors were coming in checking on me. I had a Cat-Scan ran to see if i had a leak and that came back normal. I had blood test run and my white blood count was high (1600). So they wouldn't let me go home. The time was around 3:30a.m. I told them that if they are going to keep me because my blood count then they mise well get me admitted and open up a bed in ER. They told me no, that Dr. Scarbourgh wanted to see me and I asked how long and they told me about 3 1/2 hours. Okay I will wait but this is ridiculous. I told the interns Doctors that my white blood count may be up because of a tooth infection that I had felt that i had since Monday.(day of surgery) So they come in here and check but just laughed at me. Boy did that piss me off here. My husband was half asleep but when he realized what they had just done he blew a gasket. He told me to get my clothes on and we were leaving. We waiting until 7:30a.m. and then i walked out to the nurse's station and asked them for discharge papers. She told me that she would call and see if she could a Doctor down here to see me. Knowing that Dr. Scarbough would be in surgery at the time, I knew he wouldn't come down here to see us. They said that Dr. Walker would be down to see us. Who the hell is that? I have never met the man/women and never heard of him either. We waited for 15 minutes and again i walked out and asked for discharge papers again. I found the nurse around 8:00a.m. and she had me sign some paperwork. I put on there leaving free will/been in ER for 12 hours. So we walked out and went home. At 9:30a.m. Connie was calling trying to find me. I answered my phone and she wanted to know how i felt and she apoligize for what happened in the ER. She said I was suppose to be in my room within 3 hours. Doctor Wilson wanted me admitted but wanted me to go through the ER so i could get my test done immediately. I told her everything that went on and that what really was the breaking point for me was when i told them about my tooth and they laughed at me. I told her that if someone would have relayed some messages such as Dr. Wilson wanted me to be admitted or something that would have been another story but there was no information going around. She told me that she had contacted ER and was down there looking for me and couldn't find me and asked them why they had let me go? Why they didn't get me into a room immediately. Their reason behind this was that they were short staff. Connie says that is no excuse. She is capable of getting up there herself and if she can't walk her husband could have pushed her up there. I went back to the hopital on 7th and was admitted for observation. I felt as if i had walked in to a "crazy" place. Immediately when i got on the 5th floor i had 4 doctors asking where i was at. When i walked up there they told me that they were waiting on me. I went to my room and there were two of them on both sides of me. I was like okay when am i going to be locked them in this position. Dr. Scarbough was very nice and said that he wanted to keep me for observation. Okay that is fine. I must have made a big impression on the Doctors because the one that had made fun of me had walked in about 30-45 minutes later asking me if I was going to be here tomorrow morning. He asks, "You are not going to walk out on us again, are you"? I told him no, why would I. I mean goodness gracious if i was going to walk out on you i wouldn't have come back.
5-11-04: 9-days post op! I went to my Doctors appointment today. I couldn't wait until they weighed me in. I had lost 16 pounds according to their calculations and 19 according to mine. On Friday the 30th of June I had weighed in at 306 at work and the last time i weighed at the Doctors office i weighed 303. Of course i had to call everyone i knew and let them know. Will post more later.
5/18/04: 16-days post op! It has been a hectic start of the week. I am still very tired and sore. I can't do things that i thought i would be doing at 2 weeks out. I figured i would be going back to work and bouncing off the walls. NOT! If i walk long distances i get tired very easy. If i stand up i get tired very easy. I am having a hard time with my food situation. For instance, I made boiled eggs and took a tuna package and made into deviled eggs. I ate half an egg and i still wasn't satisfied, so i went in and had the other half and 5-6 minutes later, I ended up sick as a dog. I really got upset because i didn't understand why my body is not telling me when to stop eating. I have heard others comment on, oh you will know when you need to stop eating. Well obvisously I am not learning because i end up sick as a dog. I had carnation instant breakfast yesterday morning and thought because it was liquid, that it wasn't going to hurt me to drink it like water. WRONG!!! Come to find out it expands in your belly. Of course i ended up praying to the porcelin god. I am blessed to have someone that lives here go through it before me. I talked to her and she told me that you will learn and just watch your body signs. You know when you are satisfied and take a bite of food (half a spoon full) and if that doesn't satisfy you then take the other half. Then wait 5-6 minutes because that is how long it takes for the food to get from your mouth to your stomach. So i will try that today. My doctor and nutristionist want me to get in 40-60 grams of protein a day and there is no way in H*** I am going to be able to do that. Shoot i can only take one to two bites and unless i eat 24 hours a day that is not going to work. Talking to my friend about this, she said that you need to worry about being hydrated throughout the day. You will get your protein in with in around 3 months. Now is the time to heal and take you vitamins, and calcium supplement. So i will follow her words of advice and go from there.
On another note, I have lost a total of 26.2 pounds. Now i am down to 279.2. I am so excited!!
5/22/04: This week has gotten better day by day. I still get tired very easy but getting my food in is a lot better then before. I am drinking the Atkins Shake for some protein and that has been real good for me. Breakstones Cottage cheese is working for me also. I did decide to go out and get some Gerber Graduates Baby food and that has help out a lot. I guess because the food is so soft and very small that it is very easy to chew. I get on the scale everyday, after i eat and after i drink. I knew this was going to happen. My grandmother kept on telling me to get a scale and I told her that i didn't want one because i knew what i would do and sure enough that is what i am doing. Getting on there every 30 minutes to see if i have lost anything. My husband didn't realize i would be like that and now we are going to take it to my SIL's house so i can get on it maybe once a week.
I now weigh 275.4. Will post more later!!
6/1/04: I just got back from Kansas for Memorial Day weekend. I took some yogurt on the plane with me and that helped while everyone else was the getting the peanuts. I did take my own water bag with water. I have to say that it doesn't leave my side. I had a piece of HB on Sunday and did okay on that. I could only take 2 bites and i was full. I am learing day by day. I found out that if i listen to my body for the littliest things i can tell when i am full. My signs are hiccuping, or getting immediately sick after eating one bite too many. I weighed myself today and i am down to 273. That is 33 pounds off and 123 more to go.
6/9/04: I went to the doctor yesterday. The check up was fine except he told me that i was a little tight and that i might have to go back in and have a scope and they would put a balloon in there and expand it. He told me that the complications with this are that you can expand it too much. He told me that usually it corrects itself within 4-8 weeks after surgery and i am going on my 7 week. He wants me to watch what I eat and keep a journal of how i am eating and see if it corrects itself. I am just hoping that nothing else happens while he is gone next week.
I now weigh 270. I have a 120 more to go.
6/25/04: Everything is going great except for my food intake. I cannot tolerate real foods yet. If i try them i get them stuck and have to throw up. I am basically living on SF popsicles, cottage cheese, cheese, and protein shakes.
My current weight is 261. 111 more to go until goal.
7/6/04: Haven't posted in a while. We went to Kansas 4th of July. We brought our two cousins (Vena and Robbie) with us. Vena has never been out of the state of Texas. When we crossed over into Oklahoma and Kansas, you could see a huge smile on her face. It was really cool seeing that.
My father-in law and Brother in-law (Carl) smoked meat on the grill. Everyone said it was good but i was still unsure to try it since i still get sick a lot. I made potato salad and that is what i ate.
I found out that cottage cheese is preventing my weight loss. The reason i say this is because I am living on that right now and when i went to Kansas Memorial Day Weekend, I didn't have it and came back and had lost weight. Then i had it before i went to Kansas for 4th of July and while i was up there i didn't have it. I came back and had a good weight loss. I am taking that off my daily menu. I have now tried eating lunchmeat with cheese and that is working really well. I can eat about two bites and i am stuff to no end.
I am going in for surgery on Thursday the 8th of July to dialate my pouch. I am thinking now since i came back from Kansas I won't have to have it done. I am not having as hard of a time eating as i was. I have not puke but maybe three times since i came back. So that is a major plus.
I am now weighing 255.4
7/21/04: I have been at work for a week now and 3 days. The first few days i felt fine but by the third day i started to drag. Friday i went home sick. Everytime i stood up, i felt like i was going to throw up and was very dizzy. It actually has been a smooth transition for me. I know what i am going to eat and when to eat it. I am not having a problem getting my water in nor my protein. I am getting about 80 grams of protein in a day. (protein shakes, cheese sticks, protein cereal) As this process goes on, it is easier for me to only want protein and that is it.
I went to Doctor yesterday. I told him that i am having pains in my stomach after i get done eating. He was feeling around and i was actually having a pain while i was there. He told me it is possible my ulcer that i had before my surgery. He also told me that it sounds like it is my gall bladder acting up too. He said just to keep a watch on it and i will see him in a month.
My weight is 245.
7/28/04: Went to the ER yesterday afternoon. I was having pains in my vaginal area and then it moved to my lower back. I have never had pains like this before. They did a test and found that i had blood in my urine. They ran a cat-scan on me and told me that they didn't see anything but it is possible that i was having kidney stones. They sent me home yesterday and last night i was still in discomfort from it.
I am at 242.
8/7/04: I am doing better. Very little pain anymore. I think i am kind of plateauing. I am not really upset at all. The only time i get upset is when the scale goes up a few more pounds then what I wish upon.
I am currently at 240.
8/16/04: Wow i can't believe it. I am down to 235. That is a total of 71 pounds. I would have never thought that it would go down this fast. I love being on track with my meals and it is easiest at work then at home. I drink a shake for breakfast, have a protein bar for snack, and pig skins for lunch, and then either some peanut butter or another shake for snack and then something for supper.
My husband and I went to the movies on Saturday and i almost started to cry. I could fit in the chair comfortably and could even cross my legs. I LOVE THIS!!
8/30/04: Well today i have been a little upset with myself. For one thing, I can feel my ribs really well and that is upsetting me. I guess that is because my body now feels like it is out of porportion. I don't know it is wierd. Everyone at work is telling me that is a good thing but it is kind of wierd and then i start feeling anerexic.
I worked all weekend for the balluner festival, out in the heat and didn't get tired being out there. I drank a lot of water which i find that i enjoy more if i am out in the heat then being in a air conditioned office.
I am now down to 230. 76 pounds lossed.
9/22/04: Haven't posted in a while. These past two weeks have been hard for me. I lost my grandmother on the 13th of September to a blood clot in her lungs. We went to Kansas on the 14th and stayed and visited with my family. My family is taking it as best as they can.
On a good note, everyone could tell i had lost a lot of weight. They were oohing and awhing. It was really nice to actually have people see a big difference. Especially after a lot of them seeing me just a few months ago around the 4th of July.
My eating habits are getting better as time goes by. I am enjoying cooking again for me and my husband. I still don't eat bread nor do i eat tortilla shells. I still just eat on a saucer plate that way it doesn't look like so much. I think what i am doing is paying off because i am down to 220. That is 86 pounds lost and loving it. I have also made exercise a daily routine for me. I just love going to the gym. It is a good stress relief and great exercise. I swim 5 miles every other day and the days i don't swim i go work out for around 45-1 1/2 hours a day. I have so much more energy than ever.
10/4/04: Well on a good note, i am down to 217. That is 89 pounds gone forever. I am doing really good as far as my weight is concerned but i have turned to food as a comfort and i can't do that anymore. I need to get something in my hand and continue to do it until i go to bed.
I came home today with a sharp shooting pain across my stomach and in my pelvic region. That pain had me doubled over. I felt better after i took along nap.
Had a good experience the other day. I had put some underwear that i don't wear anymore because they are too big on, and holy crap, they were huge. You could tell i lost about 4 inches in my legs alone. I showed my husband and he was pointing things out on my body. He says you just got a little to go on the insides of your thighs, your stomach, and everything else looks really good. He is my number one supporter.
10/13/04: Now i weigh 212.4. This is an amazing experience. I had dropped quite a bit this weekend and trying to figure what i did to do that. I'm sure but it kind of freaked me out. As long as i am healthy then i guess i am fine with this. On the 9th of October I went and redecated my life to Christ. That was an amazing feeling and I could not stop crying. I have been wanting to do it for a while and figured that since everytime i pray in church i get very emotional that it was a sign from god to me.
Since i weigh now 212.4. That is 94 pounds lost forever. I am six pounds from the century mark and haven't hit a plateau. Hopefully i don't jinx it.
11/1/04: On Saturday i went to Astroworld for the third time this year. It was fun and i had a blast. I can't wait to do it again. I can fit on the rides and actually some of the rides are too big for me now. This is an amazing tool and i love it. I don't get tired walking at all and i could this all day long as before i would be exhausted.
I am now down to 204. That is a total of 102 pounds gone forever. I love this and can't wait to the lose the other 69 pounds.
11/12/04: I now weight 202. I am enjoying this more everyday. I have so much energy that all i need is about 2 hours of sleep and i will get up and stay up the rest of the day. It is crazy. On a good note, I found out that i drive one of my co-workers crazy. He is 65 years old and just can't believe how much energy I have. It is wonderful.
12/3/04: I now weigh 196. Thanksgiving was a little hard. Wishing i could eat a lot more than what i could have ate. I did have some pumpkin pie. I bought the pre-made ones from Walmart, individually wrapped. I could eat about 3 bites and then i was sick from it. Other than that i am doing very well. I have been off my protein shakes for a while now, and i think i will be going on them again. There is no problem except that i am not getting enough protein in with what i am eating.
Everyone keeps on telling me that i am looking good, and that i don't need to lose anymore weight. Yeah i may be looking good and feeling good but i want to lose more weight. I would like to be down to 135 by the time i an finished. We will see...how i feel, what i look like.
12/24/04: Hi from Las Vegas. Well, we are in Las Vegas at the moment. I love it here!! It was so cool being able to fit in the seats on the plane. I was just in heaven. Of course I didn't even tighten my belt either. I just enjoyed it being lose on me actually knowing that i could tighten it if i wanted to.
12/27/04: Well Christmas was okay up here. Didn't really notice that it was Christmas Day. We walked around, gambled and stayed in our a room for the most part. My husband ended up with the flu so he stayed in the room for the night and i went out. It was so much fun and i wasn't even tired what so ever.
12/31/04: Well me made it back early this morning. Good thing we showed up at the airport early. Security was so bad in Las Vegas that they had military guys carring M-16's and walking around. It took us 2 hours and 30 minutes to get through baggage and security check point. Oh it was horrible.
Got home and weighed myself and now i weigh 184. This is so neat. I don't remember weighing this for a while now. I love this and this is the best thing that has happened to me in a while.
7 month review is...
Went from a size 26 pants to a size 16. Bra size went from a 44DD to a 40C. Underware from a 13-8.
Major changes and I am looking for more to come.
2/9/05-Well it has been along time since i updated this. When we came back from VEGAS, we moved immediately. The apartment that we were living in had rodents. The land lord wouldn't come out fix the problem and it started smelling really bad so we left. Of course my land lord was upset on how we did it but in the end we are a lot happier for the choice that we have made.
These two months have been rough on me. I don't know why i am going back to food but i need to learn that i don't need it. I am doing another challenge today and getting myself on track. I will get there, my mind is just playing tricks with me. Gosh is this hard.
Positive note-I went to the MONSTER TRUCKS on Saturday with my husband and two cousins. (VENA & ROBBIE) That was a blast to say the least. I was up in the stands hooting and harling. I don't think i would have done that before my surgery because of be self-consious. It was so much fun and now i am a big fan to no end. Can't wait until next time.
4/3/05: Well long time no post. I have been so busy trying to get a job with SWA that i haven't been eating right nor have I been working out. Got my letter that i had not been chose on Friday the 1st of April. Imagine that...April Fools Day. I was so upset. I had worked my butt off and not to get approved just sucked to say the least. Oh well maybe next time and maybe it wasn't my time to get the job.
My eating habits had gone down hill. I loved the solid sugar eggs for easter. Those are so good that I would eat them and make me sick and eat them again. Now i am back on track with working out and starting on eating correctly again. Will get through this no matter what it takes.
4/10/05: I went to astroworld for my company picnic. I rode on all the rides and enjoyed it very much unlike last year. What was cool was that on one of the rides, I thought i had the part that goes over your head tight against my belly, well they came by and made it tighter. I told my husband that i never would have thought they would have done that to me. Before i was trying to squeeze into those seats and now they are trying to hold me. It is a great feeling.
4/18/05: Well i started working out last week, eating right and exercising and low and behold, I dropped another 5 pounds. It is so cool and i feel so much better. I have become a banana eater all the way. I love them so much. I have found that tuna and grapes are great too. Good source of protein. I have gone where i don't want any greasy food what so ever. It just makes me sick thinking about it.
My stats as of 4/18/05
5/3/05
Happy Anniversary to me. I have lost a total of 131 pounds. I am so happy. However, on the 1st of May I was at the circus and jumped down from the bleachers. My stomach felt like it had rose up and split on me from top to bottom. I was in so mcuh pain and couldn't eat anything. I have been going to the doctor and having tests run to see if i hurt anything.
5/20/05-Everything was fine with my pouch. I didn't hurt it jumping off but found out i have gallstones. The doctor wants to remove it on 27th of May. Thank you, know maybe i can get rid of this pain that i am having.
6/20/05- Happy Anniversary to my husband and I. We have been married for 7 years. My husband is the greatest and has been a big supporter to me through this all.
On May 27th I had my gallbladder out. I woke up in a lot of pain and luckily my doctor was there when i was waking up. He ordered pain medication right away. My husband didn't get to see me for almost 4 hours after surgery. He was in a panicked state not knowing anything. The doctor came out right after surgery and told him that he could go back in 45 minutes to see me and no one came and got him. I finally went home at 2:30.
To me, having my gall bladder out was way worse then having gastric bypass.
07/15/05- Haven't posted in a while but i am down to 170. That is a total of 136 pounds gone. I feel good but having some pain underneath my right rib. Still can't figure out what is causing it. Will post more next time.
5/3/06-long since posted last but not much has changed...
Just thought I would share that this is my 2 year WLS Anniversary/Birthday. This has been an awesome ride for me. I am down 146 pounds. Went from a size 26-28 to a size 12-14. I know that this is a little more info than needed but am sad to say that I went from a 44DD to a 38C floppy dumbo ears or mushrooms as I would call them. Kind of sad but kind of wanted to lose some of my chest.
Now is the time for me to focus on my upcoming surgery on May 24th. I am real excited but scared at the same time. The doctors office called yesterday to schedule my pre-op appointment and she told me that I needed to call this number to get a binder and told me what style and size. She says a size six binder. Oh man, am I really going to fit into that thing…Does she really no how big I am? I can't wait but am not looking forward to the pain that I am going to have.
Okay now let me tell you again how much my weight has held me down. I don't know if I have told you this story before but about 8 months ago I was walking my husky and saw a bunny rabbit. I was saying out loud what a pretty bunny and then ended up falling to the ground and being pulled. That hurt my ego a bit so I just laid there to make sure that no one was looking and then got up and brushed myself off. Then just on Monday, I let the wiener dog off the lease in the field and my husky decided that he was going to dive bomb him. So knowing what he was doing, I thought I was getting my footing correct to hold me when he jerked me but he made a turn before he hit the wiener dog and I fell right on my left shoulder and dragged again. Of course my ego is hurt again because this time I know there are people outside watching. I lay there for a bit and the wiener dog comes up to me and my husky decided he is going to do it again. I got up and of course I kind of chuckled because I was just imagining myself falling and being dragged but my ego is hurt again. This has really bothered me and my husband just thinks it is funny. Yeah in a way it is funny but it physically hurts me to be pulled and dragged around. He finally realized that last night. So now back to the chocker with the prongs sticking out so it will slow his butt down again. I know now that I will definitely not be able to walk him while I am at home recuperating for a while.
Okay sorry it was so long but kind of bragging I guess for my two year and excited for my surgery.
5/28/06: Bored so bored can i say so. I had my plastic surgery on May 24th, 2006. I weighed that morning at 167.6. This morning i weighed 164.4 Dr. Wainwright was my surgeon and he took off 4-6 pounds of skin and very little fat. That was very cool. I felt okay after i woke up but as time went on i am in a little more pain on my right side incision. It burns but other than that i am doing okay. I am very bored and getting where i can't stand sleeping in the chair and want to sit up straight but that hurts in time. Okay well i will update more later.
6-4-06: So i am doing better now...just getting nauseous a little more. I had my drains removed on 6-1-06 along with my stitches from my belly button scar. The drains being removed allowed me stand up right a little bit better. I had falling on 5-31-06 trying to be superwoman and put my pants on with one leg. I ended up catching my drain tubes and trying to keep them from falling out and landed on my stomach. A little bit of pain and swollen from it and my drain did come out a bit.
Okay well some people are asking questions about the surgery so i thought i would update with some very good questions and my answers...
1. Is the compression binder the same for this surgery as it was for the bypass surgery only a smaller size?
----Mine binder goes from knee caps to up over my rib cage---
2. What type of clothes do I need to get to wear immediately post op and do I need to wear any special clothing while carrying the body drains?
----I just wear my sweats or running pants---
3. Besides the amount of skin loss--do you find that your body will lose more just from the shock of surgery which in turn will it jump start the weight loss again?
---lets just say that when i went in to the hospital i weighed 167.6, when i came home i was at 163.4. I have dropped down to 162.0 and my surgery was on May 24th.
4. How long before you can drive again?
---my doctor just cleared me to drive this week---
5. Do we go through the hair loss procedure again due to annesthesia?
---I have really lossed any hair---
6. How long does it take before you are able to walk without being hunched over?
---I am still walking a little hunch over, I think once the drains come out you will feel better---
7. Is it more comfortable to sleep on the couch or bed?
---I have found that i am more comfortable sleeping in the recliner and then having hubby help me up trying not to use my stomach muscles. Sleeping in the bed hurts me because i feel like i am stretching myself out.---
8. Will I lose my C-section scar?
---more than likely yes---
9. Do you get a new belly button or keep the one God gave us?
---my belly button they just cut around and moved it to the correct place on a stomach. I was talking to my doctor about it and telling him it hurt and if he moved it to a different location and he told me that when we have all the excess skin our belly button has been pulled down and he just put it in the correct position---
10. Would the surgery pain compare to that of a C-Section?
---I don't know as i have never had a c-section but was told it was 10x as bad GBS or a C-section. Shoot i was ready to run a marathon in two days but over did it and made myself exhausted.---
11. How long is the average TT procedure?
---Mine took 5 hours---
12. We going on our family vacation to Busch Gardens, VA on August 19th. Will I be able to go on the rides? If so, this will be the first time I will be going on ANY ride since losing 115 lbs.
---you might be able to go on the rides. I would just play it by ear. My doctor told me that the earliest i could go back to work is 6 weeks and that is warehouse postion where i push and pull alot of material up to 50 lbs.---
13. Any regrets?
---no regrets. I took pictures of my old stomach and my new stomach. I had yet to look at my new stomach until Thrusday. Prior to surgery i was having a hard time seperating from my old stomach. It had been there for so long that it was like losing a part of me. My husband was making fun of me in the hospital saying not to cry because i was telling him to say bye bye to my stomach. I only looked at if once prior to my surgery and that was taking a shower that morning, other than that i couldn't look at it or i would get emotional. I know silly but that is the way i felt.
7-17-06-Been a while...I am still sore and swelling quite a bit. Have some pain that i don't know what it is. Still hard to get my garment on and off without my husband. Shower hurts and taking off my garment for extended times hurts too. Sometimes i feel fat when i swell up which upsets my husband to no end...but that is the way i feel. I am feeling pretty good, just tired, sore and can't stand up for that long without feeling like crap.
My current weight is 161.
7-28-06- My current weight is 160. Only 10 pounds to my original goal. That is cool! I had my plastic surgery 2 months ago. Still sore but getting better everyday. I have pain in my incisions but the doctor thinks that is normal. I still swell after only a few hours. Makes me mad but that is what you get with this surgery. I wear my garment most of the time but will take it off more and more. I notice that if i leave it off more than 6 hours, than the next two days i swell up.
Ever since my GBS, i have wanted to volunteer at the YMCA to be a coach. I figure that if i volunteer, than i will be active running up and down the court. Well i called them today and I start in September. Very cool! I am really excited about it.
10/13/06- My current weight is 152. 2 pounds from original goal. I am feeling great since my Plastic Surgery all except my Restless Leg Syndrome and pain from trying to sleep on my stomach. Not much going on here. Life is good and we are hoping my husbands job goes through where we will be moving. It will be a good move and will get us closer to family.
Today I went shopping at a consignment store and retail store. Found some pants on clearance and had to go try them on, well they were hip huggers and a size 11 which were a bit too big also but they fit perfect. They looked good and felt great. Then I went to the consignment store and found a shirt to go with them. The shirt fits perfect. I am so excited about this consignment store because they do lay a way and i have yet to by me some clothes that fit. This is really neat and I am so excited. I told my husband that i will be going out buying a bunch of clothes. He jokes and says now you are going to trade me in on a younger model. I say no, I have already have him trained. lol
1/3/07-Well it has been one wild ride to say the least. It's been a 2 years and 8 months to the day i had surgery. Would I do it again...YOU BET! I currently working on maintaining and get back to a normal routine after the holidays. I have 8 pounds that i want to lose to get to my second goal. My first goal was 150 but i am not satisfied with that one for some reason. My goal is 144 and that will be it. I compromised with my husband. I told him before i had my surgery that i didn't want to look like some aneroxic but i wanted to look healthy. Everyone has said that i look good now and that i need to stop but i am not ready to. I wanted to get down to 135 but after thinking about that i would be too small for my frame and would start to look aneroxic so I will stop at 144.
We had Christmas at my SIL's & BIL's house on the 23rd of December. My nephew is 7 years old looks at me so serious and says, "WHY AREN'T YOU NORMAL ANYMORE?" We just looked at him and asked him what he meant by that. We also figured he was talking about my "buttons" because i was wearing a tight shirt. He asked again, "WHY AREN'T YOU NORMAL ANYMORE?" We asked him what he meant by that then he says i will tell mommy, she is not fat. His mommy says that is because I had surgery to lose my weight.
Weight today is 152
