cath7112

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And today I'm 239.4, so officially in the 230's, with the new scale. 

And it's slow, still, but I am ok with that.  Weight coming off is weight coming off, after all. 

And my weight is 243.4, which is still 0.4 more than the date of surgery, and just one pound less than last time.  So the weight is coming off slowly right now -- but it is coming off, so I can't really complain.  
 
Perhaps I am not eating / drinking enough.  I will have to do better in that department.  And work on walking a little bit every day. 

Next week is measurements week, and it'll already be one month ago!  Wow, time is flying by. 

Well, I am almost two weeks out from my surgery, which went pretty well, overall.  Surgery was Tuesday, December 16, and I got home on Thursday.  It was probably Sunday when I felt really good. 

This morning, I weighed 244.4, which is actually 1.4 pound MORE than the morning of my surgery.  But I was so worried about not losing enough weight before that for the last two days I essentially ate nothing.  And, joke's on me -- they didn't even weigh me that morning.    So I had no official "hospital" weight. 

But I did take my measurements that morning -- here they are. 

Weight:  244.0
Neck:  18 1/4
Chest:  44 3/4
Bust:  50 3/4
Waist:  46
Hip:  53
Upper Arm:  15 1/2
Thigh:  27
Wrist:  6 1/2

Well, today starts the 2-week liquid diet.  I had hoped to be in the 250's, but with Thanksgiving and my "last supper" of a Wendy's mushroom swiss burger, fries AND a large frosty, I wasn't too hopeful.  But today -- 257.8. 

I was also hoping for photos -- maybe this evening one of the girls will take some photos of me. 

And meausrements!  Those I can do -- here they are:
Neck - 18.5"
Upper chest - 46"
Bust - 52"
Waist - 48"
Hips - 55"
Thigh - 28"
Wrist - 6 1/2"

Wow --

So I am hoping these weeks go by quickly.  I did Medifast last summer, so I am not unfamiliar with a liquid diet. 

Here we go......

So I have been very in posting to this blog.  I have updated my timeline, and now probably (maybe?) tomorrow I’ll hear if my surgery is approved or not.  I am scared it won’t be, and I am nervous, because now it’s real, and excited!!

I have been taking my vitamins, getting in the habit.  The nutritionist said I am the odd case of someone who has not had to take anything on a regular basis (medicines) to someone who will have to take something on a regular basis (vitamins). 

My kids are still great about this, my family less so.  Not only did my brother the wanna be nurse tell me that with a lab band (which I am not doing anyway) I’d have dumping (not true), he announced the other day that “I’d never be able to eat normal food ever again.”  What is that funny German word for delighting when things go wrong for other people? Schadenfreude, I looked it up.  I feel like that is how it is with him.  The girls are annoyed with him, too. 

I want to figure out how to put text boxes on photos so I can put measurements right on my pictures and post them.  I want some good before pictures.  With measurements.  I want to be much better about posting pictures – everyone else’s has been so inspirational.  I hope the girls will help me with this project. 

Oh my goodness, I have typed this post two times already, only to have it disappear! Grrrr.  

I had my first appointment with Dr. M’s office last week, on Wednesday. First was an hour long video, which had nothing really new for me, since I have done a lot of research. The perspective of people who have actually had the surgery, in various stages post-op was good, though.   

Then a visit with the nurse practitioner. We talked about history, eating habits, stuff like that. She did an exam – heart, lungs, blood pressure, feet / legs for swelling or the presence of varicose veins. And she took photos! Front and side. Ugh. Hopefully they will make good “before” photos. She asked if I had any idea which surgery I would lean toward, and I said RNY.   

I have a whole packet of stuff. I need to get a notebook to organize all my stuff. In it, there is a letter outlining the stuff the pcp should speak about in their letter. I will mail or fax that to Dr. Jeff this week. We talked about it at my physical, so he is ready to write a letter in support.   

The NP told me I could make an appointment with the nutritionist. So I have done that – that appointment is Thursday of this week. She said Dr. M likes to see motivation. I am not sure if that means, making the appointments and working through the process quickly, or following the guidelines of the nutritionist / losing weight. Probably both. Any weight I lose now, though, is good…the first steps on a very long process toward better health.   

If I have one worry, it’s that it will happen too fast. But then I think, is there really a too fast here? But I do have to work the surgery schedule around my regular work and my part time job. And since that is busy during the holidays, that will be tricky. Ideally, I’d like to have surgery like on January 1. J But then, if I did it right before holiday break, I’d have a lot of time off at home to recuperate. But that would mess up the M-C job…that is their super-busy time! It will all work out, I am sure. If I waited until January of next year, I could put aside money in the medical savings thing. If we could do it in say, October or early November of this year, that would work, too. 

On we go, though.  I am looking forward to what the nutritionist has to say this week.       

I had my physical with Dr. Jeff on Friday.  Fasting, so he did the whole panel.  And a pap  smear, to boot. 

I asked him how he felt about WLS. He said that he thinks people should try everything else first.  I said I think I am at that point. I mentioned last summer's Medifast (which, to be fair, does work as long as you can do it, and afford to do it!).  And that Weight Watchers was quite sensible.  I said my issue is, I eat a whole ton. 

We went on to discuss my mom's diabetes, and her weight induced arthritis in her knees.  He said, definitely it is healthier to weigh less, and he too worries about my eventual diabetes.  Because at this rate, it's not an "if", it's a "when".  So we left it that his office would do whatever is needed for me to have this surgery -- letters, referrals, whatever.  And that they would wait for me to tell them what was needed.

So that was a big relief.  I thought / worried that he would be negative about it.  He's been my doctor for more than 20 years.  He is my kids' doctor, too.  He was the one that saw them in the hospital as newborns and still to this day.  He is a family practioner. 

Now, this week I see Dr. M.  Monday is a support group meeting, and I plan to go and share the news in this next step in this process. 
Also, at my physical, I weighed a whopping 272, and they measured me with shoes at 5'8 1/2".  So I will say, I am 5'8" even -- that makes my BMI 41.4.  Now, that was with clothes, needing to go to the bathroom and all that -- but sheesh!  That's the highest I have ever tipped a scale at. 

So, I dropped my paperwok in the mail Friday...
Monday, the surgeon's office called me!
I had not filled in the blank next to BMI.  They said,did you not read the instructions? I I felt dumb, and that I had made a bad first impression.
Duh.  I remember reading it too...and thinking, ok I have to do that math.  Turns out, my BMI is...............................

41.8!!!!
So how is that for horrifying? Eeep.

I have an appointment on August 6.  I have a regular physical with my regular doctor on August 1.  I plan to talk to him about it then. 

In other news I shared my decision to have RNY with my mom, and got a lecture on how risky it is, etc.  And it seems like I should be just able to do it "on my own" .  I said, well, being obese is not exactly without risks, you know.  And she says, Andy says it is really risky.  Andy, my brother the nursing student.  I said, well, has Andy done any research about it?  Because it's not as risky as it used to be.  She maintained that although no research had been done by either her or Andy, it's "really risky" and she wishes I would reconsider. 

This from the woman who loves loves loves "Big Medicine". 

I know she doesn't see me as "that fat" and needing to do something "that extreme" and "that risky".  But, hello, I am more than 100 pounds overweight. 

Just in case I have to do the 6 months of formal weight loss program, I am attending a TOPS meeting on Thursday.  I am wary of facing more judgementalism like that from my mom, so I don't think I will share I am a potential surgery candidate. 
On we go, I guess.  Having an appointment makes it seem "real-er". 

Next, the doctor's office will set up an appointment. 

I still struggle with, maybe I should just go all out one more time and "do" Medifast again, and lose the weight.  But I know, having been there before, that while it works while you do it, there is nothing to keep you from going back to old habits.  I know, deep down, I need this surgery and will do what I have to to get there.

I wonder about others and the requirement to do 6 months of doctor supervised weight loss.  What happens if you do that, and you lose a bunch of weight?  Does the insurance company say, oh, look at that, you are cured?  If you don't, do they say, oh, look at that, you can't comply with a program, you are not a good candidate?  Perhaps I will post this to the forum.  I posted something about people having lab band and then getting RNY in time because it just doesn't work for them -- and what good responses I received!  What a nice bunch of people here. 

I am so inspired by other people's pictures -- I'd like to figure out how to post mine so others can see my (someday) good progress. 

Well, I have made the decision to have WLS.  And I am scared and excited.  

Everyone's posts here have inspired me so much!  Seems there is nothing that can't be shared here.  What a great group!  

I have a pile of paperwork to fill out for the surgeon -- the process is, you fill out all this paperwork, submit your $35 fee, then they review it and you get an appointment and all that.  

I hope to post "before" pictures soon.  And someday some pretty awesome "after" picutures, too.