50!

Today, I was 8 weeks postop.  Also, I have officially lost 50 pounds since 2/1/12.  It's starting to feel more real now.  Only 15 pounds until my lowest weight that I've lost down to (about 3 years ago I think).

I had a really intense workout with Trainer Tim today.  He had me doing things to really push myself.  I couldn't do everything that he asked for as well as he wanted me to, but I tried so very hard!  This girl is stubborn, and she does not give up easily, if at all.  :)  What's more, after he got done with me, I did some newfangled cardio machine for 30 minutes, then walked a mile on the treadmill.  Go away, fat girl!  There's a skinny girl inside me fighting to get out!

Last week I got in 5 days of cardio, which was good for me.  I've been doing the elliptical at the gym and working with Tim.  At home on the days/nights I work, I've been doing the Wii game Zumba 2.  I am soooooo uncoordinated.  Well, I shouldn't say that:  I'm not uncoordinated; I just can't dance.  So I'm sure it's amusing to watch, but Zumba makes me sweat, and there's good music, and I like it!

I made it almost 2 weeks without throwing up.  A veritable miracle in my book.  I'm not sure what caused me to throw up, but at least I kept my food down; it was just some water I drank about an hour after I ate.

Some of the new things I've eaten in the last week or so:  crab stuffed flounder, tomatoes, strawberries, shrimp, and cashews.  Tonight, I made shrimp in salsa verde (Mom mentioned the idea to me over the weekend), which was yummy!  Apparently it was too spicy for Mike, but I'm so grateful that my pouch doesn't seem to get pissed off with some spice.  I haven't pushed the spicy limit very far, but I would be miserable without the occasional hot sauce or spicy something or other.  And there are jalapeno plants in my garden being loved on, so I want to eat some of those!  Last night was the crab stuffed flounder (from Trader Joe's) and some kumato brown tomatoes on the side (also from TJ's).  Yum!  I made strawberry cannolis for dessert (see Shelly's Blog, theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com).  Tomorrow night I'm going to make that crockpot taco chicken again.  :)

I've been a good girl about taking my vitamins and getting my protein in.  I don't think I mentioned it, but my postop labs from about a month ago were perfect.  I was very pleased (and surprised)!  Starting to get nervous about losing my hair though.  Should start happening in about a month if it's going to.  Maybe I'll get lucky...  I'm definitely doing everything right, so if it happens, there's really nothing else I could have done to prevent it.  In the grand scheme of things, I guess thinning hair for 6ish months isn't so horrible.  I feel blessed to have only had the one complication I have had (so far).  There are so many people with such awful issues that I really feel like a jerk when I complain sometimes... especially seeing what I see every day that I work...

Check in with Tim

Yesterday, I had my "date" with my trainer, Tim. He does my measurements every 2 weeks, and this was the first time he did them since I started working with him. He then spent the rest of my workout bragging to various random people at the gym about "his" work, haha! It was cute. So since I've been working with him, about 2.5 weeks, I've lost 7 lbs, .8% body fat, 6 inches off my waist (crazy right?), 3 inches off my hips, and various other half inches in other places he measured. I was blown away! So, the next time you hear me getting frustrated with myself because I'm not slimming down quite as quickly as I'd like to, please remind me of the above stats. And -49 lbs since 2/1. Which IS good. Oh, and the eating is still going great! I have been hitting the little store at my surgeon's office, discovering the various little protein snacks they have. I've had to pack a cooler of stuff today because we'll be out all day, and I doubt there will be anything I can eat at Clark's (my nephew, just turned 1!) birthday party! Work is going well too. I just worked my first 3 nights in a row since surgery. I was tired, but I can tell its getting better. I got Zumba 2 for the Wii last week, so I've been doing that for cardio the days that I work. Maybe that is helping. I'm a total spaz, but I enjoy it! At least in the privacy of my own home, haha! Bye for now...

My Week of "Real" Food!

It has officially been a week since I've thrown up.  Yay!  I have come close a couple of times, but I'm pretty sure those times were due to my eating too fast or trying something new.  It is a much more manageable feeling now after they fixed my stricture than it was before.

I've been eating real food, and I've actually been cooking for the past week!  I've made mini turkey meatloaf, stuffed zucchini, chicken in the crockpot, and chocolate protein waffles!  Protein donuts are next on my list, but I want to try to go through some of my leftovers first.  I also want to try some cannoli strawberries.  I'm not supposed to eat raw fruit yet, but I may try one or two.  I've been eating new foods most days, which is very exciting after my prolonged restricted diet.  Don't get me wrong, I'm eating very healthily.  Depending on the food, I can also eat a little larger portion size.  But don't get excited, we're still talking only about 4 ounces (volume-wise) at a time, and sometimes only 2 oz.  It just depends on the food.

So everything is moving along, but my energy level still isn't back to where it was before surgery.  I've been doing lots of working out, going to the gym, etc.  Meeting with my trainer has had its ups and downs.  I was sore for about 3 days after I met with him last week!  I got Zumba 2 for the Wii, so I've worked on that the past couple of days too.  Work has been pretty exhausting for me still.  This week, I work 3 nights in a row, the first time I've done that since I've been back.  I'm praying that all goes smoothly.  I'm doing everything I'm supposed to be doing right now, I guess I just have to be patient and to have a little faith.

I went to the surgeon today for a check-up.  All is going perfectly, according to them.  My post-op labs from 2 weeks ago were actually good!  I was really excited about that.  The only thing that was on the low side of normal was Vitamin D, which I already take as a supplement.  I guess that means I need to get out in the sun more.  Beach trip anyone?  :)

I don't have to go back to the surgeon's office for 6 weeks.  Wahoo!  They scheduled me to meet with my actual surgeon next time, rather than with the PA.  That part doesn't matter to me.  I am good with either one.

And... according to my scale, I'm 48 lbs down 6 weeks out from surgery (but I did lose 18 of those before surgery).  So 48 lbs since Feb 1.  I'd say that is pretty darn good.  My clothes definitely fit differently, and I can wear some stuff I haven't worn in a while.  I'm still kind of in between sizes.  My scrubs are way too big, lol!  My coworkers have been giving me a hard time about them, but they're gonna have to deal.  I can't run out and buy new ones every time I drop a size.  I am so ready to get back to the weight I was the last time I lost weight, back in 2009 I think.  I lost 60lbs back then, but I gained back more than that, so I still have about 27 lbs to go to get back to that point.  I think I'll be really excited once I make it that far.

Enough rambling for now.  Have a great week everyone!

The Stricture

Today I had my endoscopy.  Here's the "before" picture of the bottom of my stomach pouch.  Notice how there really isn't a visible opening for food/drink to exit my pouch in a forward direction.  No wonder I was throwing up so much!

Here's the picture after they stretched out the anastomosis (the connection between my stomach and small intestine).  Note the comparatively giant hole for my food and drink to pass through.

This time the sedation they used was propofol.  The previous time they had used fentanyl and versed.  Propofol kicks versed's ass!  Except it did burn my arm all the way up to my elbow when it went in.  The CRNA scared me to death telling me how much it would hurt; it was much less pain than he described.  It was amazing how much more awake I was right after the procedure.  Although I did feel rather drunk.  And my awesome friend and chauffeur for the day, Erin, told me I said some pretty interesting stuff after the procedure.  Most of which I don't remember.  Good times, good times.

So the rest of the day has been awesome.  I probably should have taken a nap or something after the propofol, but I wasn't really tired until later this evening.  They told me I could eat soft foods right away, which was totally unexpected.  I thought they would tell me to stay on liquids for a bit longer, or to move to pureed foods if I was lucky.  I drank a whole bottle of water (and it didn't take me 3 hours) right away.  Then, I started off with some apple sauce, and it was incredible the difference in how it felt going down.  That made it painfully obvious that I have been absolutely miserable for the past 3 weeks, and that was not a part of normal expected recovery.  After no problems with the apple sauce and more water, I tried a piece of cheese.  No problems there.  So then some Spaghetti O's, something else nice and soft.  No issues!  I was so excited.  Then when I went to a baby shower this evening, I was able to eat 2 meatballs.  So cool:  not only did I eat a new food, I was able to eat food with everyone else, something I have not been able to do in 5 long weeks!  It's very awkward to stand around drinking water or a protein shake (or nothing because you can't stop puking) when everyone else is eating, fyi.  And tonight I had some scrambled eggs with sausage!  I can see so many more options will be open to me.  With all these recipes I've been finding, I can't wait to cook up some good stuff!  I'd better hit the grocery store!

Optimistic...  :)

Liquids Again???

I know I was already on a liquid diet for 2 weeks, but at least I knew about it and was prepared for it.  Somehow, it's worse this time.  First of all, my pouch must not be nearly as inflamed as it was right after surgery.  I can drink more at one time than I could those first two weeks.  Secondly, I had no time to mentally prepare for going back on this liquid diet.  I've had a taste of "real" food again, and it sucks to have that taken away!  For both of those reasons, I want "real" food more this time.  I'll be ok, just needed to vent.  The plus side is, I haven't thrown up since I've been awake today.

My ice cream maker is here.  Just waiting on my SF Torani syrups to show up, which should be tomorrow, and I'll be a protein ice cream making fool!  My friend Erin made some today, and said it was yummy!  I can't wait!

At least all this frustration hasn't come without its benefits.  My energy level is starting to increase, maybe due to exercising more.  And I am losing weight still:  41 pounds overall, and 23 since surgery.  4 weeks out.  Nice!

For now I'm gonna try to be Positive Polly and not Negative Nancy.  But I may need some help.  Thanks in advance for having my back!

A Complication

I had my 4 week followup appointment today.  I expressed my concern over the daily vomiting that has been going on.  Turns out my symptoms are classic for a stricture, which is a narrowing at the connection between my stomach and small intestine.  The PA says it doesn't sound like a really bad stricture, unlike one she described that happened this past weekend to someone else.  "Pinhole" was the word she used!  Yikes!  Apparently a narrowing of a couple of millimeters can make all the difference.  So I have to go back on the liquid diet, hopefully not for too long, because my pouch is all pissed off from all the puking.  And, I get to have another endoscopy.  They can insert a catheter and dilate the opening to make it a little bigger.  I was told that if I had to get a complication after this surgery, this is the one to get.  It's the most common complication after surgery, and it's (relatively) easily fixed.  So just waiting to hear back from the surgeon's office as to when the procedure will be scheduled.  They said this week sometime.  I have to admit that I feel a little better after talking to the PA.  I was worried that they would just tell me to give it some more time, when clearly something is wrong.  Plus, I get some fun versed.  :)

In other news, I had my first workout with my personal trainer Tim today.  It felt really good to push myself like that again.  I can't wait to get in better and better shape!  I got cleared by the PA to do "anything that isn't illegal or immoral," so I guess I can pick up anything I want now.  Yay!

And, the ice cream maker I ordered arrived today.  Just waiting on my sugar free flavored syrups, and I'll be making some yummy protein ice cream!  I truly hope that it is yummy.  What an excellent way to get in that protein! 

Keep thinking positive.  Moral of the day:  my pouch is the boss.  Lol.  :)

Back on Track

Well today (technically yesterday) was a better day than the previous day.  I tried some fish (a very small amount) and was able to keep that down.  I also made some homemade mozzarella cheese sticks, and I was able to eat an entire one of those!  Hooray for fun new sources of protein!  I also ordered an ice cream machine.  One of the blogs I've been following has recipes for protein ice cream.  Talk about fun ways to get in protein!  I bet it wouldn't be a struggle if the ice cream is yummy!

On the con side, I got sick once, but I think I ate just a bite too much of my pureed soup.  I have got to learn my cues better.  It's a process having to learn my "new" body all over again.

A Day of Setbacks

Well, yesterday was pretty good.  It was my first day at the gym, and I was feeling good, so of course I pushed myself.  I think I pushed myself a little too hard in fact.  Hard to believe, I know!  But other than that, I ate well, didn't throw up, and got in all my protein and vitamins.

Today, however, has been awful so far.  Despite not trying any new foods or doing anything wrong, I haven't been able to keep anything down.  The surgeon's office said to go back to liquids for a day or two.  I am almost a month postop, and I should be getting ready to move toward "real" food, not moving back to liquids!   I know I'm not the first person this has ever happened to, but that doesn't really make me feel any better.  Let's just hope I start keeping down liquids, or the surgeon's office said I would have to go to the ED.  No thank you!

Beginnings

I should have started this blog right after surgery, but oh well.  I am about 3 weeks postop RNY Gastric Bypass now.  I have lost about 35 pounds altogether, including the preop diet time.  About 17 pounds down since surgery.

Week 1:  I was in tremendous pain all the time!  A little bit was soreness from the incisions, but mostly it was gas pain.  They blow up your belly during surgery, and then the gas gets absorbed and just has to work its way out.  Sounds benign you say?  Well this was gas pain to double you over and take your breath away.  Unbearable pain.  All the things the surgeon's office had said to try did not work!  

Week 2:  Still having gas pains, but with less frequency and slightly less intense.  I think the first day I could tell a noticeable difference was postop day 6 or 7.  I was on a liquids only diet for 2 weeks!  That part sucked, but at least I wasn't hungry.  I was losing about a pound every day.

Week 3:  I went back to work.  2 days of class, followed by 2 night shifts.  Class wore me out, which should have been a sign not to go back so soon!  Both night shifts, I had issues with blood sugar being a little low, which made me feel awful.  I guess I tried to eat a little too much the first night too.  That led to a new kind of pain; a heartburn-y kind of pain.  I finally had to go throw up for some relief.  Gross, I know.  But throwing up postop is not nearly as gross as it used to be.  I guess it may just be a part of life now, as much as I dislike throwing up!  

Week 4:  This is where I am now.  Thanks to some good advice from a great friend, I punched my pride in the face, and I asked for some more time off at work.  Instead of having class one day, working 3 days and a night all in a row, I dropped the class and took 2 of the days off.  I have been trying to push myself more at working out too.  So hopefully all these things will help me get by better at work.  This whole process has been very interesting.  It's like having to learn my body from scratch:  the things I can tolerate, and the things I can't tolerate.  Nothing like having your guts rewired to make you feel like a baby!

I'm still on the pureed diet at this point, for one more week.  I'm so ready to chew something!  The first day I did pureed, I think I pushed a little too hard because I seemed to be tolerating the food just fine.  But the whole first night, I was up all night with stomach pain and throwing up (I think just from the pain).  So I think I'll be introducing solid foods rather slowly.  The pain just isn't worth it.

I'm also a little frustrated at this point.  I haven't lost any weight for a week!  I have to admit, I did not expect a pause in weight loss this soon.  I have been trying to eat more, to make sure to get in my vitamins and protein, and I've definitely been more active.  Grr!  Not quite the birthday present I was hoping for!