Walk without pain

I am in my 7th day of the pre-op diet. My instructions were to start on Wednesday but I started on Monday to have a couple extra days for luck

I had a great deal of anxiety about starting the diet- I thought it was going to be really tough because I am weak - so I did a lot of prep work. I knew that if I waited until the day of the diet to  go from my regular routine to the pre op diet I was just setting myself up for failure.

About 6 weeks out I started breaking my crack (starbucks) habit-
I have 2 cups of 1/2  caff  coffee in the morning before I leave the house  and  that's it. It took  2 weeks  before the  headaches and crappy feeling began to go away.

Three weeks before starting the pre- op diet I started slimfast for breakfast and eliminated all snacking during my work day.

Two weeks before starting the pre-op diet I started slimfast for breakfast and lunch and eliminated snacking between dinner and bedtime
(that about killed me)

One week before the diet I had slimfast for breakfast and lunch, no snacks all day, and introduced thick soups for dinner-
I found some great ones at the local "fancy mart"
carrot ginger cashew bisque
cuban black bean
tomato parmesan
squash
southwestern corn
blended red pepper
these are also for my full liquid stage after I return and have graduated to that stage.

I had my final hurrah lunch of Thai on Saturday and started the diet on Monday.

I drink 2 liters of water while sitting at my desk- I flavor mine with the Special K ice tea- it is less sweet and I like it the best. I also have several cups of hot decaf green tea during the day.

I have my protein drinks spaced out during the day and eat LOTS of sf jello and sf pudding.

I am drinking a lot of broths fortified with Unjury. I add chicken protein to the chicken broth and veggie  broth  and unflavored  to the beef broth.
It really helps to slow hunger pains.

The family has helped- DH and kids are doing the cooking and immediately clearing the dishes and putting away leftovers-

I knew the weekend would be rough so I left the house yesterday to run errands and get some Isopure at GNC for my return. I also went shopping for some post op draw string cotton pants and some loose tops.

Today I took my mother out and we got our toes done- that was a nice way to kill some time and was really relaxing. I love the massage chairs.
I may have it all hanging out on the operating table but at least my feet are going to look good.

(IMHO)- work in progress

I've been thinking about this one for awhile
- taking the easy way to lose weight

When friends/family/coworkers/strangers or even some of us talk about being perceived as or even accused of-
- taking the easy way to lose weight


There is a very nasty subtext to this statement- how dare we- take the easy way to lose weight? The message is that  obese people are weak or sinful or dirty and must be punished for gaining this weight, for doing this to themselves. - Taking the easy way to lose weight- means obese people are not suffering enough in penance for what they have done to themselves.

WLS seems effortless to the uneducated- people on the fringes of your life see the weight falling off but don't see the daily details of your life that make WLS successful.

Why don't people celebrate that - an easy way to lose weight
has become available to obese people? what in our society or upbringing reflects the need to "punish" obese people as wrongdoers?

Every time I hear that phrase or see it posted I get angry. WLS is not easy.The path to make the decision is not easy. relearning to live is not easy. and I'll be damned if I let some judgmental,  self-righteous buffoon tell me I am - taking the easy way to lose weight.


 

I worry about the 2 week liquid diet pre-op. I fully understand how important it is to a successful surgery and easier recovery and healing. I am determined not to cheat and not to fail.

BUT- 2 weeks! on liquids! all liquids, all the time! damn

So what makes me anxious must be conquered by control and planning!

I have been getting my protein samples in the mail and have those lined up-
I went to the local "fancy market" and bought a couple more expensive gourmet broths to alternate with the everyday "usual" broth.

I went to GNC and spent about an hour chatting up the 20 year old hottie behind the counter- he knew a surprising amount about the nutritional needs of a post-op WLS patient.

I  have found that alternating hot decaf tea with cold sugar-free, flavored, protein enhanced drinks makes my stomach forget about food for a couple hours. That is how I will get through my working hours.

I still have not made a plan for the evenings and weekends- getting through those while cooking for my family- or being around while they cook for themselves will be hard-I will educate them and enlist their help and support when the time to start gets closer.

Slim Fast and Advantage Edge give me horrible gas- and really do nothing for my hunger. They are OK for my practice days but I will use better proteins for my pre-op.

And of course- I read the stories of the successes before me and they help reinforce my determination to succeed.

heating pad                                                     weight scale
spanish-english dictionary                           thermos
colase                                                              insulated mug for tea
new slippers
metamucil
more gas x
benefiber

small air hot pot for desk at work

prior preparation prevents piss poor performance

March 5, 2008

getting a little twitchy now which is pretty usual for me- I tend to over think everything

I have countdown ticker to my flight- have got my plane tickets and  have logged on and chosen my seats
 
I have been reading and reading and reading at OH. I am probably going to get in trouble at work because I sneak onto OH too much.

I have spent way too much time on endobariatric.com. I have found every typo and grammatical error cuz i am crazy that way. If Dr A knew how much time I spent on his website he would think he was being stalked.

I am trying different proteins
I am trying to increase my fluid intake and am going pee every 20 minutes.
I am stocking up on vitamins and GasX
I am experimenting with greek yogurt, ricotta cheese, and sf pudding
I bought a bullet blender and a regular blender and food processor
I bought new luggage.

I am very anxious about  failing the pre op diet and have been practicing all liquids 2 times a week- I will increase the days as my date gets closer.

I posted on lonelyplanet.com and got feedback on ideas for the area of eagles pass and piedras negras.

Found out about modernos restaurant and Kickapoo Indians,.

On my shopping list is a hot pad, an English to Spanish dictionary. and new slippers.