It's DONE!

Jul 16, 2011

The first thing to report is that I lost all the weight my surgeon requested of me by my deadline of 7/6/11!  Yahoo!  I worked hard, and managed to lose 50 pounds by my pre-surgery appointment.  I then celebrated a bit over the next few days and enjoyed a few of my favorite foods:  pizza, a margarita, chips & salsa, and a pasta dinner complete with garlic bread, Cesar salad and chocolate cake for dessert!  Very enjoyable!

I went in for surgery on Monday, July 11, 2011 and all seemed to go according to plan.  I'm not a big worrier in general, but I was a bit nervous about being in the hospital as I've never had any type of surgery and I'm well aware of the potential complications from anesthesia.  Plus, I have slight issues with asthma, allergies etc so I was concerned about further complications of pneumonia or something.  However, so far so good.

St. Luke's Regional Medical Center in downtown Boise, Idaho is where I had my surgery and I had some wonderful care-takers while I was there.  Kristy, an old friend from my church youth group was my first nurse, so that was helpful!  My night nurse both nights was Amber, and she was delightful- fun and upbeat, sarcastic enough to be interesting and we discovered a mutual love of musicals!  I was fortunate enough to have my mom there most of the time during the day, and she is very comforting and helpful.  I am also lucky enough to have had friends visit and spoil me rotten!  I've received flowers from friends locally, as well as Seattle, Denver, as well as family in Tennessee!  I even received some from my friend in Singapore!  I'm definitely well-loved/spoiled. 

As anticipated, I was able to be released from the hospital on Wednesday and I'm opting to stay with my mom for a week or so before going it on my own.  I haven't experienced a ton of pain, and I opted not to take the Rx pain medicine after leaving the hospital, but just my regular doses of extra strength Tylenol!  The worst part is moving from a standing position to sitting or laying down, or getting up from laying down or sitting to standing.  Other than that, the discomfort is annoying, but pretty mild. 

Once at my mom's (again, I'm lucky to have a good care taker!) I settled into a routine of protein shakes, naps, walks, and resting as well as visiting with some friends.  I find I tire pretty quickly, and the pain in my stomach can get uncomfortable, but so far so good.  I'm looking forward to feeling better and having more energy.

For now, I'm just concentrating on my walks (3 per day of 10-20 minutes), protein drinks (I'm getting in about 45-50grams of protein per day), liquids (I'm totaling about 50-64 oz per day), and plenty of rest.  Not to mention Tylenol every 4 hours!

I am focusing on getting better, and I look forward to a point when I feel good.

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