Today is my six month surgiversary.  

Exactly 6 months ago, I was laying in my hospital bed, feeling drowzy, and trying to remember to sip my water.  I felt fine.

What always has to come up at this point of the "conversation" is how much have you lost?  I'm never sure what starting to point to use.  There are so many choices!  At my known heaviest, the hospital scale had me at 425 pounds.  I've been at the mercy of my crappy old scale since then ... and for the years in between, I'm now a little sketchy on exactly how accurate it was.  Its problems all came to light after I started on my WLS journey.  When comparing my 'at-home' weight with that at my surgeons office, I was horrified to find out my scale at home was about 20 pounds off from my doctor's!  And of course, my scale would show me lighter than my doctor's.  Of course.  You all knew that right?  In a combination of shock and fury, I purchased a whiz-bang new scale, highly recommended by funkifiederin, and have finally come to terms with much more reasonable poundage expectations.  I always add 3 - 4 pounds between my actual weight at the point of weighing and what I record.  This because my doctor's office scale is always with my clothes and shoes on, and in the afternoon.  I don't want to have these repeated weight shocks between my home and the doctor's office any more.  And since I've had the new scale - no problem.  YAY!      


I weigh myself about once a week.  I make my official record once a month.  I also measure myself once a month.  I track the weight and measurement changes in a journal so I have things going back to January 2003.  My monthly measurements are of the following:  neck, bust, rib cage, waist, hips, upper and lower thigh on both legs, my ankles, my wrists, and finally, upper and lower arm measurements on each arm.  I didn't bother with my calves because of my problem with edema.  Inititally, I also ignored the changes recorded for my ankles for the same reason.  Since I've been wearing compression stockings for a few months now, things have calmed down significantly and the measurements are consistent.  I WISH I had started at the beginning with the measurement around my shoulders.  However, to do this, you'd have to have another person with you to take the measurement.  I know I've lost a lot around there and it would have been so cool to see the changes.  (Method:  stand straight with your arms dangling by your side.  Your assistant would put the tape measure around your upper arm, across your back, around the other upper arm and across your chest - the tape measuring around on the outside of your arms.)

Anyhow, here are my details thus far:

January 1, 2003:
Weight = 425 pounds (BMI 70.7)

One year ago in July 2007:
Weight = 345 pounds (BMI 57.4)
 ===> down 80 pounds  and  52.75 "  from 2003

Consult Day in November 2007:
Weight = 316 pounds (BMI 52.6)
===> down 109 pounds     and    76.25" from 2003
===> down    29 pounds    and    23.50" from July 2007

Surgery Day in January 2008:
Weight = 290.2 pounds (BMI 48.3)
===> down 134.8 pounds  and   78.75" from 2003
===> down   54.8 pounds  and    26.00" from July 2007
===> down   25.8 pounds  and      2.50" from consult day

6 Month Surgiversary July 2008:
Weight = 227.8 pounds (BMI 37.9)
===> down 197.2 pounds   and   134.75" from 2003
===> down 117.2 pounds   and     82.00" from July 2007
===> down   88.2 pounds   and     58.50" from consult day
===> down   62.4 pounds   and     56.00" from surgery day


I am obese now.  That's so much better than being morbidly obese ... or even super morbidly obese.  Weird to think of myself as having been that label.  Marie was super morbidly obese.

I have seemed to lose about 10 pounds a month or so every month after surgery.  I do no real exercises because of my disabilities.  I do stretches and such when I'm in bed, lift some weights ... about as much as I can do until I get my knee joints replaced.

On that front, I am currently on the waiting list.  I went to my knee surgeon in late May and he ok'd me for surgery.  So I'm on 'THE LIST'.  For you non-Canucks, although our health care, like surgey, is free to us, we have wait lists for elective surgery.  I could be going in for surgery any time between August and November for my first knee.  The second knee would be replaced about 3 months later.  I cannot believe this is finally before me.  It has been such a looooooong road.  So many doctors refused to do the surgery on me because of my age and my weight.  I finally found a fabulous surgeon, who specializes in knee replacements, in Ottawa, who would do the knee replacements if I had lost weight.  Well baby, my time has COME!  Thanks to the surgery, I'm there. 


I MUST admit I have not greeted my weight loss stats since surgery with a lot of joy and happiness.  Stupid, I know.  All weight loss is good.  It is soooooo very difficult to not focus on those postings were people have lost like 75 pounds in three months.  As that is not a good feeling for me, personally, I have to shake my head and try, desperately, to NOT focus on the actual poundage.  Don't pay attention to other people's numbers.  As selfish as it sounds, I am in this for me.  I have to lose the weight, with whatever numbers I'm given, at whatever rate I can, to just plain, be me.  That's really all this is for.  I want to live.  And the life I want to live, I want it to be better for not only me, but also the people in my life that I love.

I can't wait to actually go for a walk with my husband.  And then, the icing on the cake:  to hold his hand as we walk along together.  I haven't been able to do either of these things for years.


Is it worth it?  Yes. 

It's worth every jaw-droppingly good morsel I could (and do) dream about having.  

Don't make food the thing you live for.  Remember, it's nothing but crap in the end.