Kell's Journey

May 29, 2011

      I have always been the person who said that they would never have surgery for weight loss. I had always felt that if you couldn't get it off on your own, then you were just meant to be fat. I have obviously had a change of heart, since I'm writing this. I blame middle age, diabetes, high blood pressure, and my weight. They zapped my energy, my determination to take care of things, and my spirit. I had become the lazy blob in the lazy boy, doing only what had to be done. So, I began researching, after all lazy blobs are usually pretty good with their computers because that doesn't require much energy,
     I did my research, decided that the bypass would be my best choice, and began looking into it. The hospital that I work at has a bariatric program, but my insurance wouldn't cover it. So, I had to wait for the annual insurance enrollment period to get insurance that would cover it.  Luckily, the insurance I had and liked, changed their policy for our hospital, so that the employees  would have coverage for bariatric procedures done through the hospital. I would now be able to  proceed with my journey.
     My journey began January 3rd, of this year. I flew through the pre-op period and the surgery day arrived. When I weighed in pre-op, I was down 25 lbs, Happy dance at this point. I was poked, prodded, and wheeled in to what was supposed to be a routine bypass surgery.
     The next thing I remember is waking up in the ICU with my doctor telling me that they found a growth on the outside of my stomach, which they removed before they did the bypass. My surgery was seven hours long. The growth was in the lab, to see what it was. My surgeon was afraid that it might be cancer.
      A couple of days of pure grogginess, with nothing but ice chips, and the results were in. The growth was a benign fatty tumor! At that point I was allowed to start on liquids and I lost a couple of IV's. Progress was being made.
      I went home 4 days after surgery, with 8 incisions and a well bruised spot on my arm where a PICC line had been inserted. I think my recuperation is going a lot slower than most because of my extra surgery. The first two weeks were spent sleeping, walking, and trying to get fluids and proteins in.  I'm still working on eating, my pouch seems to be a little sensitive as to what it likes.
       I had lost 10 pounds at my two week post op visit. I was feeling good, getting almost everything in, and starting to get a little energy back. Then, about halfway through the next week, wham, my lower leg starting hurting, so I went to the doctor and they found a blood clot. Woo-hoo, more meds, a shot twice a day, and back to feeling  bad again.  Plus, I am having lots of nausea with my protein, I'm okay with food and liquids, so I'm focusing on the protein, to get as much in as I can.
       The journey has not gone as planned. I am kind of at a point where I know in a way that the surgery probably was a blessing given what they found, but I need to feel better and get myself up and going. It's going to a hard trip, but I am determined to get there. Yes, the surgery is done, the weight is falling off (25 lbs. as of this a.m., 19 days post-op)
but I need to start feeling a little more like myself.
                                                                                     Kell
    

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