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Goals

1. Feel energetic and healthy.

11 People
 in progress, 
3 People
 achieved this
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Surgeon Testimonial

Charles A. Svendsen, M.D.
Dr. Svendsen walked into the exam room today with his hand extended and said \"Hi, I'm Chuck\" with the warmest smile on his face. I found him to be very straight forward and full of information. He answered all my questions completely. His nurse Barb is wonderful. Not a typical no nonsense type medical professional. You can tell she loves what she does and is fun to be around. He put a lot of emphasis on the after care program and the help it provides his patients.
Member Interests

Latest Surgery Support Comments

  • Comment by Lori Pool on 4/20/07 4:30 pm
    Hey! By now you should be post-op. My thoughts and prayers are with you as you recover. How cool is it that you and Sabrinna are there together. Well, rest up and heal fast. Lori
  • Comment by Heather L. on 4/20/07 6:19 am
    Amy! Good luck today, will be thinking of you! :) Heather
  • Comment by calgal on 4/19/07 7:30 am
    hi, best wishes for a smooth surgery and a good recovery. see you soon on the losing side of life.... hugs, sally
Click here for the surgery support page
My name is Amy.  I am 41 years old.  I am beginning my journey to WLS.  Starting at 315-ish (not exactly sure...will update with confirmation).  At this point have submitted first round of papers with Health Partners in St. Louis Park, MN.  Now the wait begins.
AmyRG's Blog
AmyRG's Blog


Update 2.4.2009
on February 4, 2009 11:42 am
Just joined a local gym.  Looking forward to the water arobics and fun pool time with the kids.  I am back on track and have lost the holiday gain.  Back down to 164.  My back is still bothering me quite a bit but the PT is helping...I think.  Am looking forward to Jamaica in a few weeks.  Can't wait to leave this frigid tundra we call home.

Peace.
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Been a long time. . . .
on January 15, 2009 8:21 am
It's been quite a while since I posted.   Life has gotten more and more busy it seems.   And I think the farther you get out from surgery the less you obsess about it as life becomes more "normal", whatever that is.  I think I am getting to comfortable where I am now and need to shake things up a bit.  I am up a few pounds to 173...need to get that back down.  It's easy to make excuses like it's too cold to walk or too busy to exercise but it's just excuses.  So I started back on the treadmill.  It is much more fun to walk outside in nice sunny weather, but we just don't have that here in frigid Minnesota so...gotta do what ya gotta do.  Treadmill it is.   And I need to cut out the carbs and get more protein in again.   Back on track and all that.  But I do feel good.  And I am still below my drs goal (not mine) which is good I guess.  I want to get back down around 160. 

I am heading to Jamaica with the hubby in February...no kids this trip.  Looking forward to it.   So now I have a little extra incentive to step things up a bit.   Wanna strut my stuff on the beach...hahah.  I have never had "stuff" to strut.  I will settle for enjoying the beach and sand and sun. MMMM.  Sounds heavenly on this -20 degree day.  I started tanning last night.  I know it's not the greatest for a person to buy wrinkes and all that, but there is something about it that just feels indulgent to me.  I love it. 

I am definitely glad the holidays are over.  Too many dang temptations to resist.  Cookies and candy everywhere.  I know I should just say No thank you....if it were only that easy. 

So here are my new goals...

1.  exercise...walk on treadmill 1 hr 4 times/week...plus take wellness walk at work with buddies

2.  eat more protein...always been a hard one for me.  Don't like meat all that much.  Don't like milk.  Lunch meat and cheese it is.  Maybe more yogurt and beans.

3.  drink MORE H2O, Crystal Lite.  Cut way down on pop.  Should cut it out all the way...baby steps, baby steps.

4.  journal eating habits...not fun but a great tool

These are all attainable goals for me.  It helps to write them down....makes a person more accountable somehow.

So, here's to 2009!!!

Peace.
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A Year and Half
on October 15, 2008 1:41 pm
I cannot believe it has been 18 months since I had this amazing, life changing surgery.  My life has been so profoundly impacted by my decision to go ahead a "just do it".  I have never been healthier.  I have never had more energy.  I enjoy my children more than ever.  It is fun to be with them as a participant in their lives, rather than a spectator. 

I havent been very good at updating this blog.  Regular life seems to get in the way.  Today I had my 18 month check up.  The dr asked me how much protein I eat a day and how much was I supposed to eat.  OMG...I dont even know.  At one time that was the most important number in my head.  I guess the further away from surgery the harder it gets.  A person begins concentrating on other things than eating.  Maybe it's because it is becoming second nature and not that much thinking has to go into it anymore.   I know if I am doing something I shouldn't be doing and how to make a better choice when necessary.  Like anything else, it is just a matter of doing it.

I am no longer morbidly obese, or even obese at all.  My dr told me I am just like all the other americans out there...overweight with a BMI of 29.  I would like to lose a few more pounds, but not much more.  I feel good where I am.  I am having some trouble with iron absorbtion which is making me very tired and sluggish.  I have to triple my iron intake (which means I  will never poop again...haha) and see if it helps.  I have been so tired that it has impacted my walking.  I was walking 4 miles a day this summer and somehow that has stopped.  I just want to take a nap after work instead of walking.  Monday (two days ago) I decided to push through the tired and walk...and you know what?   I feel better for it.  Might just be psychological benefit, but it works nonetheless, so what the heck.   And I haven't been attending my group therapy meetings.   Life is so busy.  I decided to get back into the meetings.  I love going to them and I need to take time for me.  So tonight I am going to a coffee group.  I don't like coffee but I love the peeps.

So, I had like a quart of blood drawn today at the doc and will wait to see how my labs come out.  I know the iron is low...I wonder if anything else is.   My doc told me it was okay if I don't know how much protein I eat as long as I eat protien at every meal.  That is easier to remember, anyway.  And I have to add 1000 IU of Vitamin D.  (Apparently everyone is supposed to do this, not just bariatric patients.)

So here are my stats:

Highest:               350
@ surgery:          315
Today:                  167 (fully dressed)
Lowest:                160 (naked)

Peace.


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Where does time go?
on July 22, 2008 7:09 am
OMG!!  I can't believe it is the middle of July already.  Summer is flying by.  Before we know it school will start again. 

I haven't posted in quite some time.  I am feeling very good now.  My depression is so much better.  The meds and the counseling have helped tremendously.  I find it also helps me alot to go to the support group meetings.  I can't encourage others enough about this fact. 

Today I weigh in at 159 lbs.  Down 156 from surgery.  That is just amazing to me.  I am walking and riding my bike and enjoying life with my family. 

One thing that never did bite me is the shopping bug...thank goodness.  A lot of people going through this process find that they like shopping for clothes for the first time in their lives.  I still hate it.  Doesn't matter if I wear a 30 or a 12...I don' like shopping.  I still have a hard time with body image.  I still gravitate toward the plus sized clothes...it's where I feel comfortable.  I find myself wandering through Lane Bryant....and now nothing in there even fits me.

Peace.
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Ups and Downs
on April 24, 2008 7:57 am
Ups and downs...we all have them.  They are part of life.  How we handle the ups and downs is what is important. 

I am feeling better this week than last...let's call it an "up".  I started taking my prozac again (why the heck did I ever stop) so life seems a little better already just with that.  And I look forward to my appt with the psycho-therapist coming up.  I have stepped up my exercise and my water intake and that makes me feel better physically, too.  At my one year appt with the bariatic team I was told I was probably settling in where I will be with my weight.  I didnt like hearing that because I don't think I am done yet....so I got a little fire lit under me.  Since then I have lost 7 more pounds.  

My stats:

Start: 315
Now: 170
Loss: 145
Start BMI:  54 (super morbidly obese)
Now BMI:  29 (overweight)
Starting Size: 4X, 30-32
Now Size: L, 12-14

Peace.
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My Story

Where to begin.  I have been overweight my entire life.  I am either on a diet or off a diet.  I have the usual weight issues that all lifelong chubs deal with...low self esteem, low self-worth, depression, etc.  I am all about changing that now.  I want my story to have a new direction and and a new theme.  I want my story to be about a better and healthier me.

I have two wonderful little boys that are the joys of my life.  I worry about what kind of roll model I am being for them.  They are ages 6 and 11 mos.  I need to make some big changes for the better.  I love my children soooo much.  I want to be able to watch them grow up and enjoy their lives with them.  I want them to be as proud of me as I am of them. 

You know, eventually you get that "wake-up, ahaaa" moment.  Mine came when I was watching Dr Phil when my 6 year old came home from school.  It was about this 500 pound woman dealing with her own weight issues.  My son Billy came in and saw it and started sobbing, asking my to turn off the tv because he couldnt stand to see it.  All I could think was, "Oh my God, what have I done?"  I have been able to lose weight in the past and it always seemed to find me again, with extra to boot.

So here I am...ready to embark on the biggest lifechanging decision of my life.  I need help and I am not afraid to ask for it.