Sarah Palin ain't quite bright

Sep 01, 2008

Palin is against sex education (abstinence yada yada yada), how did that work out for her daughter? Oh, that's right, her kid was knocked up by age 16. Great life plan.

And you know what? If a girl gets pregnant as a result of rape, tough luck, no abortion, somehow it's the girl's problem and she's supposed to carry the child. Now that's cruel and backwards and idiotic.

I don't begrudge anyone the right to act like a moron in the public eye, I enjoy making fun too much, but Sarah Palin shouldn't be allowed to become VP and heaven help us if McCain kicks the can.

Worse, Palin's son-in-law to be (Levi Johnoston) doesn't want children, at least that's what he said in his My Space profile.

So let's review: Palin's daughter is pregnant by a kid who doesn't want kids, but they're getting married so it's all right I suppose. WHAT? Palin's daughter had unproteced sex with a guy who doesn't want children and a marriage certificate is supposed to make it all right?! Stupidity clearly runs in that family. And then you have Sarah saying there's something wrong with giving teens condoms...

Did I mention that Palin is stupid? And McCain was desperate for some young looking female thing, so he picked her despite the obvious problems. Now McCain having had cancer 5 times, he should know he's on borrowed time. He doesn't care. He just wants to get elected. And if we're stuck with someone even stupider than W. for a President, too bad, so sad.

So clearly McCain isn't quite bright either.


I guess I'm stuck at 185lbs, but I'm happy

Aug 28, 2008

Happy because I just finished watching Obama's acceptance speech and he ROCKS, may he beat the crap out of the old smug dinosaur.

I have not come back to OH for a couple of months during which my health has been great, I haven't gained or lost any weight (despite a cruise and not being careful at all), so I'm happy. I still exercise, but I haven't gone running for 4 weeks, will get back on the band wagon now that school is back on and regular life starts again. I should really lose at least 20 more lbs, but if I don't, oh well, the surgeon warned me that going below 180lbs was going to be very very hard, he knows a thing or two I suppose. So long as I don't gain I'm happy.

Quality of life is greatly improved, health is great, nausea once in a while, but only when I push the enveloppe with fatty foods. I do live in Southwestern France, the land of foie gras and magrets, and sometimes I indulge. Yesterday I had pasta carbonara at a restaurant, could only eat 1/3 of what they gave me, but it was so rich and wonderful, it was worth the nausea for an hour afterwards. I'm not going back to that restaurant any time soon however, it was the bomb!

My cruise to the Baltics was really enjoyable, we saw some fabulous ports, places where I'll probably never go again but I am glad I went once. The Carnival Splendor was a fine ship, decor is overdone, cruise director needs to change his jokes, but for the price it was worth every penny. I'm ready to try Royal Carribean next time, will see how that goes.

Well I'm off to a long walk/run/arm workout, it's a sunny day and my daughter and poodle are coming along which will make it fun.

If you're new and considering WLS I can only tell you this, it's the best thing I've ever done, and it works out for most people, so I wish you the best of luck.

One year surgiversary

Apr 01, 2008

This year has been a dream come true, I lost 100lbs, 18" in the waist, went from a size 28W pants to a size 14, and yesterday I ran 3 miles without caughing up a lung, first time ever in my life! My body feels like a totally different body, I truly got a second chance at life.  

I notice it in the little things. For instance I have much better balance, I don't have that sick feeling of getting winded just from walking up some stairs, I have energy galore, I exercise 3 times a week on average and ENJOY it, and I like the look of me in the mirror. 

I--meaning my soul, consciousness, whatever "it" is--have not changed much at all. I didn't get a divorce or pickup some new addiction. I have more confidence, I am more outgoing, but I am still ME with the same aspirations and the same life, except for my relationship with food has totally changed.  

Food is not the center of my universe any more. I still enjoy cooking, I eat and digest pretty much everything I've tried. No problemo. Surgeon says my "food well-being" is perfect.  I don't get sick, I don't throw up. If I overeat I feel awful, and if I eat too fatty I get nauseated. I know this, so I try not to overeat or eat too fatty. Voilà! I don't have long bouts of either diahrrea or constipation although it happens sometimes just like it always did. I get hungry around mealtimes, but I don't have to eat the whole cow to feel satisfied. 

Any negatives? Nothing that can't be fixed. My surgeon--who has been wonderful and I would recommend him without any hesitation--isn't up on the whole VitD thing. Great with a scalpel, not interested in doing general medicine. He didn't prescibe any VitD supplementation right after surgery and let it go low. When I talked to him about it a couple of weeks ago he upped my supplementation a tiny bit and said check again in 6 months, nothing to worry about most people don't have enough VitD, relax lady.  I hate it when doctors do that! 

So I went to my general practitioner and told him either you help me or I order my megadoses of supplements from the US. He happens to take care of a lot of geriatric patients and knows all about VitD problems. He prescribed mega doses and wants me to test every 6 weeks. We'll keep trying different things until we get it right. I trust we'll figure it out soon enough if we monitor that closely. Next I'll try the sun+tanning booth, and if that doesn't work I'll have to import Vitalady's megadoses from the US. After that? Not sure, but I trust it won't get to that, but in case I'll keep checking every 6 weeks. 

My advice to newbies? Pick a surgeon who you trust to deal with problems should they arise. My surgeon had a big surprise when he started giving me a sleeve last year as my body wasn't taking the staples at all. He had to open me up and give me a RNY instead. That turned my 1hr surgery to 3.5hrs. When he told me what happened I wanted to die. I felt horrible and I always had a really bad attitude about the RNY. But what were my choices really? It was done and I was alive, so I fought and I won. I don't have regrets, I would do it all over again, but I'd rather not as the first month post surgery feels horrible. Another piece of advice is do your blood lab work faithfully. It's expensive in the US, but you have to keep up. I don't feel like I have a VitD deficiency, and I wouldn't feel it until my teeth started falling out and my bones got brittle. Then it's too late. Do your labs! 

My goals for the upcoming year are: 
1. Lose another 20lbs. I should really lose 40lbs to get to my ideal weight, but I doubt I will and I'm not about to beat myself up over it.  
2. Get to 35" waist. 2.5" more to lose! 
3. Get to the point where I can run a 5k often for exercise. 
4. Continue strength training. 
5. Enjoy the journey! 

I plan on sending my surgeon a thank you fax today. He's not perfect, but he's made it possible for me to turn my life around, I am extremely grateful to him for that. WLS rocks!

My labs are getting better!

Feb 22, 2008

I got some of my lab results today and I'm very excited that the news is good. 

-My iron is up comfortably within the normal range now, it was below normal before we upped my supplementation 2 months ago.

-My calcium is steady whereas it had been falling the last 6 months, it is also within normal range, but barely. I will talk to the surgeon how we can get my calcium up a little more.

-I won't know about B12 and VitD for another week, but I suspect that if calcium is steady, then probably VitD is a little better also, we shall see.

This is fantastic news to me as it indicates that the measures we took 2 months ago are having a positive impact of my labs. I do absorb supplements in the form I am taking them (for instance I take calcium carbonate whereas American surgeons now recommend calcium citrate). It is reassuring that we can get to good levels, it's a matter of finding the right levels of supplementation. 

It is also fantastic that this close monitoring is available to me for free within the French health care system!

Somebody paid me a wonderful compliment yesterday

Jan 21, 2008

Overall I am amazed how few comments I've gotten on my weight loss (almost 100lbs to this day). A few people can't stop telling me how good I look, which is always appreciated, but most people say nothing. Friends I haven't seen in a year (back in my 290lbs days) saw me recently and I caught the husband doing a double-take, but not a peep on my weight despite the fact that we chatted all night. Most people who see me casually at events or school or various community activities have not said a word. 

I went to my book club meeting yesterday. A bunch of wonderful ladies I've associated with for almost 3 years. Lisa is a slim lady in her 30s, very cute, very lively, very bright and well-read. She missed two meetings of the book club so she hadn't seen me in 3 months. When I walked in she exclaimed "you look so good you're a vision!" Nobody had ever called me a vision before, that was really nice!!! 

Later that day another two skinny ladies in their 30s who I associate with for Brownies (that's British Girl Scouts) noticed that I put away a huge folding table by myself. I couldn't have done that just a few months ago, too heavy. But I've been working out. They said "We saw that!" and "It shows that you've been going to the gym!" That really tickled me!

So later today when I go to the gym I'll be replaying to movie of the "you're a vision" comment and "we saw that!" It's a great feeling indeed. Now I just need to keep pushing forward to lose another 60lbs so I can get to "normal" BMI. One day at a time!

Jogging is evil, but I'm so grateful I can do it at all!

Jan 10, 2008

Weight loss (over 90lbs gone, thank you very much!) must have driven me insane because I've been wondering if I could jog for exercise.  I have good reasons: it's such a convenient form of exercise, you can do it anywhere, no gym membership, it's outside, no expensive equipment, and seeing that I live in the south of France right now you can pretty much do it year-round. 

That is, if only I could run. It has been decades since I even tried it, and back then I hated it and was very bad at it. I have avoided running my whole life to the point where for a long time I couldn't have done it if my life depended on it. I couldn't run after my toddler, I couldn't run to catch a bus, my own weight held me down so tight it felt like my feet couldn't be lifted up the ground.

Then last November my dog got deathly ill. Long story, won't take the time to tell it here, but she tried to die several times on us. Vet pulled her through for which I am so grafeful. By mid-December, but she was skin and bones and really weak. We were walking home from school and it was cold and rainy and I wanted to get back quickly so she wouldn't get too cold. So I ran a tiny bit, and she looked up at me with that happy look on her face and I could tell she wanted to run with me. Believe it or not, that motivated me to try to run.

Several OH members pointed me to a great site "The Couch-to-5K Running Plan" at http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml and it looked like the kind of thing even I could do. So, for Christmas I asked for running gifts: a great sports bra (Enell) and some good running shoes (Aesic) as well as a great sports watch (Mio). 

Two days ago I went running for the first time. The dog and I ran to the vet's office with the dog because she needed to get her stiches out from her last surgery. It's about 3k to that office and that was probably too much for a first day, but I walked more than I ran. The vet saw how sweaty I looked and said take it easy on the way home, which I did. Dog wanted to run a lot more than I did, which doesn't surprise me as she was always the athlete in the family.

I got out of breath, I was embarrassed how slowly I was going, I wasn't a "good looking" runner, I kept needing to stop, but I was running!!! A year ago a slow walk to the vet's office would have been a struggle, and here I was running some of the way there!!! Just as I was coming home my next door neighbor (who runs herself) saw me and commented on how much weight I've lost. I told her I got help from a surgeon and she'd never heard of a bypass, but this is France where very few people ever get as obese as I was. She gave me great encouragement to take it slow and keep trying.

My legs have been killing me from this running. I took some Tylenol but it didn't help with the pain much at all. I almost took some Advil (knowing I shouldn't rely on that because of the RNY) but decided to put up with the discomfort. My husband who is an occasional runner said the only thing to make it feel better is to run again and keep doing it until my legs get used to it. Soooo, I did.

Today was my second attempt. I followed the rules better this time: I walked more than I ran and I only did 12mn of running total. The first minute was ouchy, but then the aches went away and it felt really good. I was careful to choose a flat area, I took my iPod this time, and I tried not to care that some of my neighbors might see me. This girl is going to get in shape and get to the point where I can run a mile without stopping and without caughing up a lung. Doesn't have to be a fast mile, but no stopping! 

I've got a long way to go, but I feel so lucky I can do this at all. Just 9 months ago this would have been totally unthinkable! And it feels great, even if my legs are unhappy with me again. Tomorrow I go to the gym and the day after a little more running. And next November maybe I'll do the village 5k run with my dog!!!


Take care of yourself each day

Nov 09, 2007

Most of us get too busy (dang work!) or too distracted (TiVo calling you, or the internet) to take care of ourselves properly. We don't exercise, we don't cook for ourselves, we don't take the time to apply lotion and color our grey hair. When I say "we" I mean "I", but I know I'm not the only one, and it feels better to blame all of us.

I'm trying to change all of that. Gym at least 3 times a week, a bike ride or walk twice a week in addition. I shop at the farmer's market and cook. Just made a big batch of Salsa from a recipe a Mexican friend gave me. That project just about gobbled up my whole Saturday, but it's worth it. I AM WORTH IT!

There are no fat women in France

Oct 28, 2007

I went to a community yard sale today, sold mostly books and clothes that no longer fit because they are too big. My clothes were size 28W, 26W and 24W and 3X tops. Husband's old clothes were 38" and XL tops. I sold all of his, takers were large French guys, but there are a few of those. My clothes however were way too big. At least 100 women stopped by when they saw my "large sizes" sign, but none of them were THAT big. Well, one was, and she bought a few items, but she wore traditional muslim women clothes, so she wasn't interested in my old jeans. A few tried the better looking tops over their clothes and it was still way too big that way. The pants were so large they would have fit the largest French women and their 10yo too! It's funny in a way, but really sad as well. How on earth did I allow myself to get that large? I guess I'll never be able to answer that. But never again, that much is for sure. So I'll donate the elephant clothes to a local charity, hopefully they'll find a taker.

Oh, and I also pretty much gave away a medical stroller (made for child up to age 10 who can't walk very far but not ready for a wheelchair) to a man who knows a family who needs this. He showed me a picture of the boy who outgrew his regular stroller and the parents weren't sure where they'd go next. Felt good to get the stroller out of the garage and into the hands of someone who needs it. And it feels good that my kiddo (who had pretty bad juvenile arthritis a few years ago) doesn't need it any more.

I joined a gym!

Oct 09, 2007

I've been thinking about it for many weeks and the first step was really hard to take emotionally. But now that I've done it I feel really good about it. I felt great right after my workout, I guess that was the endorphins I've heard about all my life!

My husband decided to join a gym also and he visited several gyms in our area and picked one called Scandia. I thought maybe Curves for me, I was afraid of the "big bad gym". So I visited a Curves and pop! didn't like it at all. It was tiny, maybe 10 machines, and nobody was wearing headphones, instead they were gabbing. I need music folks, my own thing on my iPod! So I tried Scandia with my husband, he showed me around, there were guys who are semi-professional iron pushers, young girls in spandex, I got a few looks, but it wasn't too bad. Besides, I'm a free-lancer, I can go at low times.

I went back to the big scary gym today alone, was afraid for my life, but I lived to tell the tale. There was a trainer there who was very encouraging, asked me about my goals, showed me around machines that would help me reach them, and who got me to spend 50 minutes on various cardio machines and some abs too. 

Yikes, abs!!! I felt like a beached whale on the gym floor, but I can already feel my abs are stronger. The plan is to do cardio + abs one time and cardio + strength training the next. I'll try to go three times a week. She encouraged me to join a class too, maybe a pool class or a spin class. We'll see how I get along.

6 moths along, life is sweet!

Oct 01, 2007

Tomorrow it'll be 6 months since my surgery. I have lost 70lbs, I would have liked to be further along on the weight loss, but I am very happy to report that I am healthy, able to eat some of everything, I feel great and I went from pants size 28W to 18W. It has been almost 20 years since I've fit in that size!!! My blood work last month was good, no pain or digestive issues.

My stomach gurgles loudly, sometimes I get gassy (gasX works like a charm), my shirts are all too large, my skin sags a bit around my thighs, my upper arms look awful as they always have, but I don't care, I am a happy camper! The next 6 months I need to establish a steady exercise regimen (will probably join a gym) because my exercising has been touch and go and I need to muscle up.

Yesterday someone I see rarely see asked me "Did you get a haircut? You are looking well!" Youbetya, a haircut!!! I don't even care that so many people are totally clueless. I did this to feel better and I certainly do.

Portion size has changed so much for me since surgery. I used to eat huge amounts really, and now I'm happy with a meal that fits on a dessert plate. I hope to keep that going forever, and then it won't matter that I'm a slow loser because I'll keep losing steady.

Goals for the next 6 months: 1. Exercise 5 times a week. 2. Continue to stay away from snacks.

Gotta run unfortunately, but I wanted to mark this anniversary and and say how happy I am I did this!

About Me
Toulouse,
Location
49.4
BMI
Jun 13, 2006
Member Since

Friends 66

Latest Blog 20
Sarah Palin ain't quite bright
I guess I'm stuck at 185lbs, but I'm happy
One year surgiversary
My labs are getting better!
Somebody paid me a wonderful compliment yesterday
Jogging is evil, but I'm so grateful I can do it at all!
Take care of yourself each day
There are no fat women in France
I joined a gym!
6 moths along, life is sweet!

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