Two weeks out & back at work

Nov 17, 2009

I am two weeks out today. Yay for me! I also returned to work today. But one thing at a time:

I write this section for the pre-ops because I know I voraciously read others' post-op accounts. The last two weeks have been embarrassingly easy for me. Trust me, I'm counting my lucky stars! In many ways I can't believe it's only been two weeks, because it just feels so natural to have had the DS now.

The first week following surgery one incision site was significantly sore. I say this in relation to the other sites that I didn't even feel and look like little pink scratches now. Seriously, I've had cat scratches that looked worse for longer. My surgery was lap, so I woke up with 5 incisions plus one drain site--the drain was removed before I left the hospital--leaving me with a total of 6 "holes." The one above my belly button was the only bothersome one. I figured this was because they did the most work through that site, what with removing my excess stomach and appendix. I'm sure there was a fair amount of tugging and angling going on through that spot. According to my operative report that site was slightly larger than the others. It was pain but not bad enough to take medication for and it became more of an annoyance than anything else. It lasted almost the entire two weeks, but then magically on this past Sunday it just stopped. I woke up in the morning and the pain was gone. I wore jeans to work today (what can I say, my job is low key) without any problem.

My new tummy has been very cooperative. Nothing seems to bother it. I'm doing really well on getting my liquids and basic vitamins in (working my way up to a full schedule). I'm swallowing several whole pills a time without issue. I can drink all temperature beverages and even plain water. I've been drinking at least two protein drinks a day. My food quantities are very small. I am never able to finish the amount of food I prepare for myself. It's funny, I use small dishes and still make too much. I was starving and miserable on my surgeon's food plan (which had a full week of liquid then 3 weeks of purees). Since I do not have a Valtec ring, I very carefully started testing the waters of soft foods at about one week out. Lunch meat roll ups and squares of cheese make me ridiculously happy. I watched others eat their lunches at work today and couldn't fathom how they were able to eat in such quantity. I caught myself thinking this and had to laugh. I know my quantities will increase as I get further out from surgery, but it doesn't bother me to be eating less. I eat a few bites and feel full, then I get hungry again in a few hours so I eat a bit more. I listen to my tummy. I can't ignore feeling hungry like I used to. If I ignore it, I end up feeling foggy and queasy. As soon as I feel hungry, I take it as a cue to eat something small and I continue to feel well.

I have been more tired than normal. I felt exhausted after just getting showered/dressed/lunch for work today. That being said, I found it surprisingly easy to drive to work, do my desk job, and come home. I will admit I put the babies (17 months) to bed a half hour earlier than normal tonight because I was drained. Selfish Mommy. Hopefully they won't remember this travesty for future therapy. ;)

Mini-wows:
* I can see a difference in my face already. I can see more definition in my cheeks. My hubby and mother swear they can too. They promise they're not just saying it.

* Because I refused to buy new bras with my most recent weight surge, I had gotten a few of those bra extenders. I had been using it on the 3rd set of hooks. When I went to put a bra on for work today, I was surprised to be able to easily move past the 2nd, and then the 1st set of hooks and was shocked to find that I didn't need the extender AT ALL! In case I doubted whether there really was a change, a certain gentleman friend at work with whom I'm comfortable was VERY disappointed to see me today. He says my boobs are smaller. He's devastated. (Ya know, after he was happy I survived surgery and all...)

Things I've observed with returning to work:
* People who knew truthfully why I was out the last two weeks stared very intently at me for the first few minutes of the day. I know they were trying to figure out whether they could see any differences. I wasn't offended by it, but I could see where that sort of thing would easily grow old.

* I work in a medical environment, so I was able to use the big old style doctor's scale with the weights and all. While I knew I had lost a certain amount since surgery, it felt so different to get on the scale and have to physically move the weight blocks down from their typical positions. Suddenly the amount of weight I've lost in these two weeks felt MUCH more significant! It felt...real. My digital scale at home just isn't as much fun. I think I might choose to weigh myself weekly at work. (I must confess, I've been scale obsessed at home.)

Ok, I think that's about it. Sorry this became so long. Anyway, so far I'm nothing but happy with my DS! I'm looking forward to a long life of being a boring, skinny DSer.

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