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I can't believe it, finally I have accomplished my ultimate journey!!! I have now lost 100 pounds SINCE my surgery, I am now a 2nd time member of the century club with a total weight loss of 122 pounds, wow!

I hit the century club for the first time earlier this year on January 8th, it took until this morning for a terrible stomach virus to hit me to see my goal weight, there is always a silver lining right???????

Now that I am here I will maintain my constant vigilance and committment to a healthy life!!!!!

I woke up very nervous, worried that my life would end ~ but that part of my life DID end a a wonderful new one begun!!!!!!!!

Yes, I had Roux-En-Y Gastric Bypass surgery a year ago today, I did it to save my life. For the better part of 20 years I struggled with my weight, my highest (non-pregnant weight) was 275 but I ballooned up to 300 when I delivered Colin.

With that weight I also struggled with the verge of stroke complications which forced me to deliver our last baby (Edward) prematurely, it was the wake-up call I needed to change my life. I refused to be that obituary in the paper or the youngest patient in the nursing home.

I literally had no idea how much I was missing out on life, although I wore rose colored glasses most of the time I did not see myself as "that obese", really I was morbidly obese.....morbidly obese. I never imagined in my life that I would be that way, but who does?????

So a year later, I am at a NORMAL weight and a NORMAL BMI. All my co-morbidites are gone (stroke risk, diabetes etc). I've lost 115 pounds forever with those final pesky 5 pounds left to go, LOL!!!!

So is it easy now a year later???? Well, yes and no. I will forever have to watch what I eat ~ I have easily fallen into the trap of eating whatever I want and have had to pay the price ~ so many GBS patients do. I always have to remind myself that food is my fuel but along the way I have found delicious alternatives, i'm not missing out on anything.

Thanks to everyone that has supported me along the way, my family that has been my guinea pigs on new recipes (LMAO) and also my rock during some scary times this year (bowel obstruction surgery), I will never regret saving my life with this surgery, NEVER!

I will add some pics later today to share my journey!!!

I can't believe that I am so close to my final goal.  I am hoping to make it hit goal by July 1st!!!  I am so busy with school being out that I think it's def a realistic goal.

Yay!!!!

What an ordeal! Symptoms started Monday with some adbominal swelling, saw my Surgeon who did some blood tests and said that I was suffering from pancreatitis. Told me to go home and take it easy.

Thursday morning I woke up in excruiting pain, it was on the left side of my stomach, ran down to my pelvis and also ran down my back. After several hours of suffering I finally called the office back and told them that something was really wrong, they said that the Surgeon would call me back.

About 30 minutes later I started feeling like I was having a heart attack. Called the office back and said that I was afraid and was going to call 911. Called my Husband and he rushed home from work, we delegated the kids to our friends house and went to the hospital.

They took me straight back and did an EKG which was normal, did bloodwork (which still showed high amylayse levels but otherwise normal). They took me back for a CT scan which again didn't show anything.

The pain was sooooooooooo bad. Diladaid and morphine didn't touch it at all, I was out of my mind in pain. My Surgeon admitted me and said that he would do a barium swallow on me in the morning.

Here is the scary part: I did the swallow the next morning (Friday) and immediately started throwing it up. No one told me anything, they did as much as they could do and sent me back to my room.

I was in my room for only 15 minutes when a Nurse came in gangbusters and said that I needed to be prepped for surgery ASAP. No one told me what they found and I was NOT happy!

Right before surgery my Surgeon came in and told me that he found an obstruction and he would try to take care of it via lap but he may have to open me wide up.

Did okay in recovery, surgery was about 1.5 hours long and I was amazed at what they told me when I got back to my room:

I had scar tissue (an adhesion) from my gallbladder surgery 3 weeks ago had formed itself around my bowel and sealed it shut tight ~ the reason why I was in such pain and couldn't drink or eat the day earlier. It also caused me to have severe reflux that masks that of a heart attack.

He removed the adhesion and checked me over to make sure everything was in working order ~ which it was and closed me up. Had a rough recovery b/c I had surgery 22 days earlier, YUCK!!!

I don't EVER want to go through that again. Dr. Wadley said that it was a fluke that it happened at all ~ I'm scared it might happen again,this was truly a frightening experience....there were times I really felt like I was going to die. :(

Really have to take it easy now, the babies are in St. Louis with my parents *cry* and I should be joining them in about a week and I can't wait!

Here is the obstruction:

Well, all is well now.  I went into the hospital on Wednesday night and Dr. Hornbostel removed my gallbladder Thursday morning.  Found out during my recovery that I had a hernia along with the gallbladder that was bad. 

Thursday evening I had massive swelling in my stomach which made me look several months pregnant (see pic below) and NO that is NOT my boob!!!!!!! 


It was orginally thought that I was developing another hernia but it was just swelling from the surgery and my surgeon placed me in a stomach binder which has helped some with the swelling.  I also had problems with urination, I had to be cathed 2x to relieve the pressure and could not for the life of me pass urine on my own.  Still having problems but overall it is a little better - I need to put a call into my Urologist.

It is very depressing to me that I came home and weighed 175!!!!  11 pounds of swelling from the surgery, yuck!!!  I know that it eventually will go away but WTF!!!!????!!!!

Glad that it's over....ready to feel normal again!  Uggg!

9 more pounds until my final goal. I've hit my first post-op complication ~ my gallbladder is full of stones and sludge and it's been living hell trying to get the referral set up to have it taken out. Say a prayer for me, my appointment with the Surgeon is tomorrow afternoon.

I think the process of having it removed will put me close my goal in no time, but feeling better takes priority right now.

My camera needs to be recharged so no photos this time around but I hit 165 this week which puts me 10 pounds away from my final weight of 155, woot!

I found out today that my gallbladder has gone bad (full of sludge and stones) so surgery is in my near future ~ I'm hoping that the surgery process will help me shed the final 10 pounds that I so desperately want to be rid of so I can maintain my loss for the rest of my life.

I feel soooo awesome (minus the pain from the gallbladder) and I am currently in size 8 although some 6's are fitting depending on how they are cut ~ I never imagined in my wildest dreams that this would be happening to me!

Lots of new friends recently ~ many who are waiting on a date or just getting started in the process.  I am so proud of each and every one of you, this journey is worth it and has truly saved and transformed my life!

Love to everyone!

Amy

I can't believe it, I am getting so close to goal, YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

I can't believe that I am even typing this!  As of this morning I am down 101 pounds!!!!!!!!!!!!  All of this would not have been possible without my RNY, I can't thank my surgeon enough for giving me my life back!

Today it has been exactly 6 months since my surgery!!!! It felt like that times I was never going to hit the 100 pound mark but I can proudly say that I have lost 101 POUNDS!!!!!!

I worked out this morning and came home to be blessed by a wonderful scale which sometimes I feel hates me, LOL! Thanks so much to everyone who has been my support, listen to me yack on and on about the surgery and what I've gone through to get here.

I have to lose another pound (173) to be a normal BMI but that is the highest end of normal and I plan to lose another 30 pounds after that, my goal is close and I know that I will not FAIL, it is not an option for me.

My new life is soooo wonderful, not like it wasn't before, but now it is filled with more love to give and more life to live. I love how I feel, love working out and will never return to my old habits, that part of me is gone forever!!!!

New goals for me:

Lose another 30 pounds
Continue cycling class
Continue running
Continue to eat right
Continue to love myself and treat myself RIGHT!
Love my family as they love me
Humbly remember where I came from to get here

Amy

I thought I wanted 199 bad but getting to 100 pounds lost is WORSE!!!!

I am currently sitting at 178 and counting. Thankfully the weight is coming off graudally and I feverishly want to hit my 100 pounds by Christmas so 15 days to go!