6 Months

Oct 03, 2009

There is so much...soooo much. I don't know where to start.....

how about stats.  I had blood work done and things look really good considering I'm off all my meds. A couple things still aren't perfect but there is definately an improvement.

Test	Range	9/14/2009	7/1/2009	Surgery 3/24/09 - Off all meds	12/18/2008	8/28/2008	6/13/2008	Lipitor	5/14/2007
A1C	less than 6%	5.5			6		5.9
Glucose	70 - 99	91	104		108	128	111
Cholesterol	Less than 200	168	123		159	167	140		229
HDL (good)	50 or higher	31	31		31	31	28		37
LDL (bad)	Less than 100	118	72		93	112	90		167
Tryglycerides	Less than 150	93	102		176	118	108		127
ALT (liver)	5 -  40		60		37	57	64		50
AST (liver)	7 - 56		39		31	40	43		40

The weight is still coming off too and the inches are disappearing. 

	3/24/09	4/24/09	5/24/2009	6/24/2009	7/24/2009	8/24/2009	9/24/2009
Right Arm	14.5	14.5	13.75	13.5		13.25	13
Bust	51.25	49.5	49	48.5		46.5	45
Waist	49	47	45	43.5		41.5	39.5
Hips	54	51	49	48		45.5	44
Thigh	26	24	23.5	22.5		22	21.5
Knee	17.5	17.5	17	16.5		15.5	15
Calf	18.5	18	17.75	17		16.5	16.5
Weight	252	233	217	208		191	185

Almost 10 inches off my waist and hips.  10 INCHES!!!!  Holy Crap!

There was one part of my wardrobe that I had been ignoring because it seems kind of strange.  But after getting down to only two pairs of shoes I had to take action.  My shoe size went from a 9W to 8 1/2 M.  It's so weird to think my feet changed size too.  At the last support group meeting someone was talking about a clothing exchange and how a group memeber donated his clothes includes some shoes that were just too wide for him any more.   Early on, when I first started going to support group someone asked about foot size and the nurse said yes that feet do get smaller.  It was one of those things that I knew but didn't really know.  I suppose it's one thing to know it and another to live it.  Anyway, still wanting to be careful about the money I'm spending tired on a few shoes at the Goodwill but, I don't know.  The shoes didn't feel right.  Everyone walks a little different and wears out their shoes in different places. For me, it just felt odd, so I went to the cheapest shoe store I knew, Payless Shoe Source. 

I've always liked Payless. They carried a variety of wide widths before other stores had them.  Their prices are always reasonable too.  I find it hard to spend $50+ on a pair of shoes maybe because I've always got very low heals or flats.  Trying to put 262lbs on top of a 2.5 inch pump is not comfortable to say the least.    So one day at work my BFF and I hit Payless during lunch.   She is my BFF for a reason. I was so excited about the shoes I spent almost a good solid hour trying on everything I saw that was cute, no matter what the heel size.  She was patient while I indulged and squealed like a school girl.  There was just something so...so.....grown up in a woman sort of way about it.   And boots!! OMG!  I could never buy stylish boots because they never fit around my calfs. I could never zip them.  Not a problem any more!  I tried on boots after boots  after boots!  It was totally awesome.  I didn't buy any that day but we narrowed it down to 4 pair.  The following weekend Mark and I went to a different Payless.  He had to sit and endure the same thing my BFF did.  In the end I came away with three pairs of pumps and two pairs of boots!!!! 

I have to talk about Goodwill for a bit. I have found a Goodwill that I .  Sept 19th  was half off day at Goodwill.  I got up early (it was a saturday) and decided to drive over and wait until they opened.  I figured no one else would be there.  HA!  There must have been 30 people waiting at the door.  It was a freakin' mad house.  I spent just over 2 hours there and boy did I score!  8 pairs of pants, 2 pairsof sweatpants, two sweaters, a suede jacket and a purse all for....ready....drum roll......$30! I felt like a seasoned GW shopper.  I got myself a cart and stood my ground in the aisles as I touched and looked at every pairs of pant and jeans on the racks.   I also tried everything on.  I wheeled my cart in and took about 30 minutes taking off and sorting through the clothes. WooHoo!  It was a good shopping day at the GW.  

I figure I'm somewhere between a 14 and 12.  I have clothes in both those sizes and some fit, some are too big and some are too smal.  Probably all just par for the course.  It's still an exciting journey.

Some of the things I'm still struggling with....
...food being ok one day and then not the next, like eggs.
...my body feeling different.  It really freaks me out when I touch some part of my body and it feels different. I touch my hands or my hip or around my neck and I feel bones.  It takes my mind a few seconds to adjust.  Weird.
...graciously taking compliments. I've never been good with taking them so I'm working hard at just smiling, accepting and saying a heart felt thank you.
...being cold.  I'm always cold. My insulation is dwindling I guess.  I need new slippers. LOL
...exercising. I have to find an active hobby I like.  I'll go to the gym but it's boring.  Something to keep working on.


Finally, my 6 months pictures. I've been putting off posting them because I don't like them.  Don't ask me why.



I had to come back and edit this. I didn't want to leave saying I didn't like my 6 month pics so I went back and looked at my pre-op pics. Guess what?  I LOVE my 6 month pics!!!!

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