ObesityHelp

I have been overweight for most of my life. I have my surgery date scheduled for July 30th and can barely wait!

7/24 -- It's now less than one week to surgery and I'm soo excited! My psyche eval/blood work/EKG/etc. etc. etc. are all fine, so I'm a go for the 30th!

7/28 -- It's now only 1 full day (as I'm scheduled for surgery at 7:30 am on Tuesday, 7/30) until surgery. I'm ready and willing. This has been a very tough decision to make, but I've had lots of support and understanding along the way, so that has made it easier.

7/29 -- I made it through my last day at work before surgery. I had a panic/anxiety attack around 3:00 this afternoon, but all is well now. I can barely wait until in the morning!

8/5 -- Well, I'm now 6 days post-op and feel TERRIFIC! I have my followup visit with the surgeon on Thursday (8/8). He'll be taking out the staples and the drain and then I will truly be on my way to recovery & weight loss. I am moving around much easier already and made it through an entire day yesterday without any pain medication.

8/8 -- Well, I had my first follow-up visit with my surgeon this afternoon and I've lost 21 lbs.!!!!! My surgeon said that I was very close to the record setter on weight loss for the first follow-up visit!!!! I'm SOOOO excited! He took out my staples and the drain and said that all is looking great. I will be on a basically liquid diet for an additional 2 weeks and then I can start on semi-solid foods. I have to go see him again on 9/5.

9/16 -- At my second follow-up visit with my surgeon, I'd lost an additional 7 pounds, for a total of 28 pounds. He seemed pleased with this progress and needless to say, I am! I feel absolutely wonderful. Most foods are doing ok, although I do have to continually remind myself to SLOW down and chew my food thoroughly. I've made arrangements with my primary care physician to be able to go in to her office once a month for a weigh-in. I am trying very hard to stay off my scale at home and only go with the "OFFICIAL" scale at the doctor's office. My next weigh-in will be October 4th. I feel that since I've started back to my aquaerobics, I'm losing at a faster rate. Lord knows, all my clothes (and shoes) are getting too big for me. AND I'm fitting back into dress clothes (for work) that I haven't been able to wear for a very long time.

10/17 -- At 2 1/2 months out, I've lost a total of 43 pounds and am feeling absolutely wonderful. I've dropped from a size 24-26 pants and 3X shirt to a size 20 pants (and they are extremely loose) and a size 14/16 shirt (in regular clothes, not plus size anymore!!!!). I do aquaerobics 3 - 4 times per week and am feeling so great. I have been experiencing a little hair loss, but my doctor assures me that if I get the correct amount of protein on a regular basis, this should cease. I am mostly eating just about everything but red meats, including beef & pork. Chicken is not my friend still. I don't know if it's because it's so dry or what. I can handle like McDonald's chicken mcnuggetts, but to eat a baked chicken breast - no way!

11/27/02 -- At 4 months post-op, I've lost a total of 54 pounds and I feel so great. I have so much more energy and am dropping clothes sizes almost monthly. My husband and daughter are very excited with the changes they are seeing in me. I'm much more upbeat, positive and happy. Amazing how losing weight can make one feel so much better about themselves. And the way people are treating me is unbelievable. I used to feel like people just looked through me. Now, people smile and say hello all the time. Even people I don't know! I do have a couple people I work with that haven't been very supportive. I think they are jealous. So, I just try really hard to not say or do anything regarding my surgery and weight loss when they are within hearing range.

1/30/03 -- Well, it's been a couple months since I updated. Over the holidays, things were so hectic that I just didn't have time to come out here. I'm at 6 months post-op now and have lost a total of 74 pounds!!!!!! I am SOOOOOOOO excited, it's unbelievable. I made it through the holidays fine. I'm now officially able to eat anything I'd like, including red meats. I've been eating a little ground beef now and again for the past few weeks and don't seem to be having any ill effects. I have 6 more pounds and I'll be at my half-way mark to goal. My goal for 6 months out was to have 75 pounds off, and I have 74, so I certainly can't complain about that!

5/6/03 -- Well, it's been a few months again since I've posted. At my 9-month weigh-in at the doctor's office, I'd lost a total of 85 pounds - only 75 more pounds to go! I cannot believe how much easier it is to get around, pick stuff up from the floor, release the emergency brake in my husband's truck, etc. etc. etc. My weight loss over the past few months has stabilized to about 4 pounds per month. I'm a little concerned about that, by my dr assures me that I'm still doing great and not to worry. The other day, my husband made the comment that he has really noticed how I can just bee-bop up our driveway (which has a fairly steep hill) with little or no effort. Used to be that I wouldn't go down the driveway because I didn't want to have to climb back up. Now, I can even enjoy working in my beautiful flower gardens in my yard. My daughter, who is not overweight, is beginning to not like the fact that I can wear the same size clothes as she does. I used to get clothes for her quite a bit, but now when I see something I like, I keep it for myself. I'm going in and out of clothes sizes every 6 weeks or so. I'm now wearing a Large top and 16/18 pants. I even have a few Medium tops and a couple size 14 bottoms. This is SOOOOOOOO cool! It's been a long long time since I've been this small. I still have 75 pounds to lose, I don't have a clue what size clothes I'll be in when I get to my goal (6 or 8???) I have a sister that's always been smaller than me, but she's not going to remain that way, at this rate. We go clothes shopping together sometimes, and she's always saying stuff like "You won't be able to fit into a Small shirt" or "You won't make into Size 8". I don't see how I can't, if I truly lose another 75 pounds! And that goal is mine! If I go to where the doc wants me, I still have 95 pounds to lose. But that would put me at 105 and there is NO WAY I want to weigh only 105, even though I'm only 5'1". Anyway, my sister might be convinced to start losing some weight, once she sees me getting smaller than she is. She isn't overly overweight, but could probably lose 25-30 pounds easily.

8/25/03 -- Well, I'm now officially in the CENTURY CLUB! I had my bi-weekly weigh-in at my PCP's office on 8/15 and I'm down a total of 101 pounds. I still have 59 or more to go to get to MY goal. I can't remember the last time I've felt this good. I can do anything with little or no effort anymore. My husband & I, along with some very dear friends, are planning a trip to Disney World from 12/6 through 12/12 (this year). I've never been and am looking so forward to it! Two years ago, I wouldn't have even considered going there, knowing that I'd have five whole days of walking and being on my feet. Now, I can hardly wait! I'm now wearing mostly medium tops and size 14 slacks.

12/18/03 Well, we are back from our trip to Disney World. We went non-stop from 8:00 in the morning until 10 or 11:00 at night every day we were there. I had an ABSOLUTE BLAST! I ran circles around the other 5 people who went (including my "normal weight" husband!) They just couldn't believe how much energy I have.

My weight loss has all but stopped, at least the pounds have. I do believe that I'm losing inches hand over fist though. The size Medium tops and size 14 pants that I was wearing just a couple months ago are all getting too big for me. I do work out on weights and machines 2-3 days per week, so I'm sure I'm just firming up what I have. That's ok too though!