jagracer

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So, I'm down 90 pounds now and have gone through absolutely everything I had hidden in any closet in the house...I think I may have missed on downstairs...lol. I finally bit the bullet and went shopping last week for some clothes. I bought some really cute jeans and a jean jacket, they look great!  Well, I lost 6 pounds over the weekend (was at 84 last week) and the jeans and jacket are too big! Since I haven't worn one pair of jeans or the jacket I am going to exchange them for a smaller size.

My shoes are getting to be too big. I know, I thought that was strange when I heard it from other people. I had to tighten things a lot and now they look "pinched" I may have to go shoe shopping before too long...what a horrible problem...lol. I notice my feet are feeling better since I've lost weight, maybe one day I can actually buy some cute shoes.

I am having to re-adjust everything! The car seat, the mirrors, seat belt, I sit differently with a smaller bum. My desk chair, keyboard, items on my desk...the bum thing again...I sit closer and have a farther reach so I can actually have some work space around me now. I have to put pillows behind me on the couch because my legs shrung, alright, it's really the bum thing! I'm not very tall and without the extra padding I can't sit all the way back in a lot of chairs and this requires me to put something behind me for back support.

I get cold a lot, most of the time, and had to buy some fuzzy warm jammies and booties. They are so warm and cuddly, I've always wanted a pair but was always to hot. The dogs aren't complaining either, I make them cuddle up with me and blankets in the evening. You can tell they hate it, the way they lay their head on my lap and wag their tails...lol.

I'm going to be part of the patient panel for Dr. Snyder this weekend. I really enjoy being part of these. I remember how I felt sitting in the audience and what it was like to see and hear from people who had been there done that. I wondered if I would ever be the person on the other side.

Sometimes I look in the mirror and can't believe it's me. My face and shoulders have changed quite a bit. I look in the full-length mirror and am amazed at how much smaller my legs are and almost feel like I need to pinch them just to be sure they belong to me. I still have a long way to go, but I have come a long way and can only guess at how I might change over the next 6 months.

Well, I'm not getting much better at adding to this regularly...lol. I guess the good thing is, I'm out enjoying life instead of sitting at home posting!

October was a little rough for me with all of the Halloween candy. I don't get dumping syndrome and was able to have a piece of candy off and on throughout each day...aaagggghhhh! The good thing is, I'm not really into breads and pastas anymore so I know a small piece of hard candy is a lot fewer calories than a roll with butter.

November was so much better without all of the candy around, thank goodness! I really enjoyed Thanksgiving, and yes, I ate a little too much, darn it! By the time you put a little spoon of each thing on your plate and then take a bite of each thing you are full. I've always been the person who strips the leftover meat from the turkey and once I was full I started working on the turkey. It was nice, kept me busy but I was still able to be involved with everyone. I think it helped others in my family as well when they saw me quit eating and there was still a lot of food on my plate it made them more aware of what they were eating and how much.

My husband commented how hard it is for him to eat very much any more. He has been sharing meals with me since my surgery and has been eating less and said he doesn't miss all of the junk food anymore and actually feels better. I like that we can inspire others without trying.

My friend had RNY last month and my new friend from OH is having her surgery today. I have been so excited and happy for them. They inspire me when I hear each new thing they discover and how they feel physically and emotionally. I think it keeps me grounded and helps me remember where I started and where I am today.

I celebrated my 25th anniversary on October 8. We decided to take a little road trip and went to visit the Capulin Volcano outside Raton, NM. We drove up the cone and started down into the crater - very impressive - and I couldn't believe how well I was doing with the walk and my breathing!

The next day we headed up to Colorado Springs and as we were nearing Pueblo I commented on the river walk they have been working on in Pueblo and we should go sometime...so, we stopped and checked out the walk. They are refurbishing the buildings and have put in an awesome walking path right by the river and it was a beautiful morning to just stroll. We then made our way through a southwestern shop and back on the road to the Springs.

Once we reached the Springs we went to the Seven Falls and checked out everything there is to see and do and then made our way to Manitou Springs where we walked through all of the tourist shops and stopped at the arcade for a few.

That night, I couldn't hardly stay awake and couldn't figure out why I was so tired!!! My husband pointed out how much walking we had done that day and I was absolutely amazed! It felt so good, so right, and so comfortable to be out doing all of those things, I hadn't realized how active I had been! Four months ago I would enjoyed as much as I could from the car and this time I participated. I can't hardly explain the feelings I have from that realization.

I thank God for giving me Dr. Snyder and Dr. Snyder for giving me the tools to be able to "join" life.

Being right on the ball, it has only taken me over a month to post again.

I am doing GREAT! I am down 72 pounds and running out of clothes. I looked in my closet and realized I would not be wearing the larger sizes again and it was time to purge. So, I started going through my tops and promptly had a small mountain. Some tops I felt I needed to try on and when I looked in the mirror couldn't get past how large my pants were to be able to focus on the tops! I decided I needed to change pants before moving on. I had a hard time finding a small enough pair of pants and ended up finding a pair of leggings stashed in the back of my closet, thank goodness! By the time I was finished, I had gotten rid of 3 large bags and one small bag of just tops. Next purge will be pants as soon as I get smaller ones so I have something to wear...lol.

I went out and bought a couple pairs of pants and a pair of REAL jeans! You know, front and back pockets, zipper, buttong, non-stretchy JEANS! I love the people I work with, they notice the small changes immediately and they didn't disappoint on the jeans.

I am now moving through smaller spaces than before and find I'm not looking at them as closely wondering if I will fit. What a great feeling that realization was! Speaking of space, I have had to adjust my car seat so I could reach the pedals and I have plenty of space between me and the steering wheel. I hope I never take that space for granted.

I have been using the treadmill at the gym and have increased my speed and haven't been taking a break every five minutes or leaning on the machine during my 30 minutes. I was quite excited that I had completed a mile for the first time on Sunday morning...woohoo!!! My parents are passing their treadmill on to me and plan to use it daily, I can't wait! Just have to make room in the house...you know, that whole space thing again...lol.

Wishing you smaller spaces...

I feel satisfaction when I step on the scale and see I'm down. I notice my clothes are getting baggy. People are telling me how much better I look. I even had to tighten the straps on my shoes. However, there are a lot of little things that really make your day.

I got in the car one day after my husband had been driving and about 45 minutes later realized I hadn't moved the seat back and there was room between me and the steering wheel! That is something I hope I never take for granted. I still look at that space every time I get in the car. I even moved the seat back just to make sure I was sitting further up and realized I couldn't reach the peddles.

I was trying to get through several tables one day and looked at the different ways I could go and thought, "I'm not going to fit through any of these spaces." I picked a path and hoped for the best. You know what? I fit through the spaces without banging into people! Just the other night, I needed to get through a small space between someone in a chair and another table. I looked at that space and just knew I was tipping that woman over on her face when I tried to get through, because the person who went through ahead of me was pretty darn skinny. Well, I knew everyone at the table and they all said I could get through so I took my chances and hoped not to embarass myself, and I made it through! It was tight, I won't lie, but two months ago I wouldn't have made it at all! I sat there and kept looking at that small space and was amazed I had made it through. Even knowing and experiencing these changes, I still find them amazing.

My friends know me for saying, "It's the little things" and it truly is. May you notice the little things and find great joy in them.

As with many people, I have several issues going on making it hard to get out and walk. Breathing problems, short leg, arthritis, and the list goes on. I wanted to get out and walk but I live on the side of a mountain and the weather is hot. So, I discovered super-size stores.

I live in the vicinity of three Wal-mart stores, two super Target stores and several large grocery stores. Each of these stores have carts, I put my oxygen tank in the cart and started walking up and down every isle at whatever pace was working for me that day. I know where all of the benches are for taking a break if I need one, and I just walk. I try to move for 30 - 60 minutes each time I go and I pick up the pace when as I'm able. My family started to notice how much better and quicker I was moving. Next thing I know, I'm up and down the stairs at work instead of an elevator and I'm really starting to feel good. Every time I conquer those stairs I hear the theme from Rocky...lol.

I am almost completely off of oxygen other than when I am using the tread mill and putting extra effort into my walk. I'm hoping to say goodbye to it in the next couple of months. In the mean time, I try to work in a lap around the store every time I go shopping, doesn't matter the store. I take the long way around 7-11 if I stop for a cup of decaf or a bottle of water. I may even walk up and down every isle just because I can. I hope to get back on the rowing machine next visit to the gym.

Well, it's been a little while since I posted and I will get on with my experience.

You will be told you need to follow the three D's - drink, drink, and drink. Dr. Snyder says the last one is the hardest for people and he's right! I either got all of my fluids in or all of my protein drink in, but it was hard to get it all in at the beginning. Using your big drink cup from the hospital will help a lot in getting fluids in and be sure to set a timer for your protein drink, it helps.

After about a week I was hungry.  I mean, really hungry, and thought I must be really strange because I had heard so many people from other surgeries say they were never hungry, this is a good time to throw in how important your protein drink is and I highly recommend you have jell-o and popsicles, sugar free of course, through out the day, they will help keep you satisfied. Imagine my relief when I went to the nutrition class and found most of the people there saying they were hungry! That was a huge pick-me-up.

After two weeks I got to move onto select soft foods, refried beans never tasted so good! I enjoyed the egg beaters quite a bit as well. I was happy to have something that wasn't sweet. Moving onto to pureed foods was great, because I got to have more variety. Making sure the pureed meat had enough liquid and not be too runny was a trial and error process but after about two weeks you get to have real food you can cut and chew...woohoo!!!

I am one that has to try things to get them right, so let me share some of my insights on eating real food. They tell you no bigger than a pea for the size of your bite, believe me, bigger bites of food, no matter how well chewed, do not go down easily and cause air pockets, this is not a pleasant feeling. Like wise, 5 - 15 minutes for your meal - do not eat in a hurry, remember the air pockets from before? Yep, you will experience those by eating too quickly. Be sure to measure or get a really good idea of how much food the size of your thumb is. You will either under eat or over eat. The first will have you feeling hungry within an hour or so and the latter will have you feeling very badly and the air pockets dim in comparison.

I know this sounds as though I am focusing on food. However, you need to learn to eat again and how to do so in a way that is good for you. Find some beef jerky or a good protein bar that can be carried in your bag, kept in your desk, in the car, or any other place you spend time. This is not for snacking, it is for those times you have gone to run errands and are late getting back or didn't have time to pack your meals. They will be a life saver because missing a meal will leave you feeling very weak and when you do get to eat, you may either eat too fast or too much.

I am still trying to train my brain. I put my food on my plate and mentally feel as though it isn't enough food and find myself worrying more about the lack of food instead of paying attention to how I feel as I'm eating. I do quickly realize I have had plenty of food and am trying to find the joy in eating what I do have instead of worrying about being deprived.

My taste buds have changed. I always liked balsalmic vinegar or anything else that is sour and find it doesn't go down so well with me anymore. Or I really enjoyed the inside of a roll and once again realized it didn't taste the way I remembered. This leads back to training my brain and realizing that I don't eat enough to eat things that don't taste good. Why waste my food space on something I am not enjoying. In the past, pre-surgery, I would have eaten the things that were so-so first and then finished off with the things I really liked. I can no longer do that and am finding it pretty easy to give up the so-so foods.

This has all been a great learning curve for me, in a very good way. I realized I celebrated food for 48 years and now I am celebrating life. I will get past the food issues once I retrain my mind and face it, if it was easy I don't know how well I would learn.

Hi, my name is Jackie and I had verticle sleeve surgery on June 9, 2008 by Dr. Michael Snyder at Rose Medical. As with most people, I have a story to tell and hope not to bore you to tears.

I first attended a seminar with Dr. Snyder in October of 2007 and found him to be very charismatic, funny, and very caring. The other thing I noticed was his confidence in himself, his abilities, and his patients. I knew I couldn't go wrong when someone shows as much compassion for people who suffer from obesity as Dr. Snyder shows when he is talking to a group or to you as an individual; and so, my journey began. 

I started all of the testing I needed to have - mental health, blood work, pulmonary, etc. and had my first meeting with Dr. Snyder. It was decided I would have gastric by-pass and I couldn't believe how quickly I could get scheduled, just a couple of weeks! And then, as things tend to happen, I found out I wasn't strong enough to have the by-pass surgery. As most of you know, the decision to have this surgery is not easy or quick. It had taken me almost 6 months to decide this was the way to go and now it wasn't going to happen.

Dr. Jerry Pluss and Dr. Snyder were not ones to let me wallow in self-pity and started pushing for the lapband. I finally saw the "light" and knew this was the way for me to go! I was scheduled for surgery on April 17, 2008 at 3:00 and was very excited! I woke up from surgery and was happy as a lark. Then I found out, I have an extra artery running behind my stomach. Dr. Snyder said he had never seen that before and had to abort the placing of the band. I kept waiting for someone to tell me it was a joke and as I watched my families' faces, I knew it was the truth. Life just likes to throw a curve ball once in awhile.

Dr. Snyder talked to me about a new procedure called a gastric sleeve. They remove approx. 75% of your stomach and is similar to the lapband as far as eating and weight loss. I started researching this surgery and knew this was the answer! ( I know you've heard me say that before...lol.) Dr. Snyder was very confident in performing this procedure even though I was his first sleeve patient and at this point he knew what a "hostile" anatomy I had, so I was ready to move on!!!

On June 9, 2008 at 10:00, I had the gastric sleeve surgery performed at Rose Medical Center by Dr. Snyder. I was very excited (my family was very nervous)! Dr. Snyder came in and was excited and upbeat, then Kim came in and was very excited and in scrubs and said she would be in there to help! Then the surgeon's assistant came in and was very excited...I think we can safely say that this was an exciting day for all of us.

I came through the surgery, with what I will call, flying colors--It worked!!! I spent a couple of nights in the hospital and felt better every day.