kathyb

Send Message

Block

Add Friend

1/10/05 
23 months out and weight is holding steady at between 122 and 124. I had my annual exam with my pcp last month and he is thrilled with everything, except the fact that I shrunk an inch. He is doing a bone scan to check it out. I still experience nausea if I eat/drink certain things, but feeling much better overall. 

I still haven't made it back to Curves. No energy or time. I am working 4-5 nights a week on the second job, so there isn't a lot of time. They don't open early enough in the morning for me to go before work and I don't have time to go between jobs. And they aren't open on Sundays. 

That leaves me about two days a week I could go and on those days it seems I usually have something else that needs to be done. I think I will just let my membership lapse and then join the Y perhaps. I could go there on my lunch hour. 

My appetite is still small. Small piece of meat and about a 1/4 c of vegetables for dinner. Low carb roll up with a couple of pieces of turkey and cheese for lunch. No snacks during the day. I usually don't eat breakfast lately - it doesn't settle well. I do drink Rocamojo soy coffee for protein in the morning before work. I get a good deal of protein from that. Maybe a small bag of popcorn or a couple of graham crackers for snack at night. And lots of decaf coffee. 

Wonder what Dr Drinkwater will say next month when I see him for my two year follow-up? He predicted I would have gained some and so far I haven't. I told him I wouldn't - told him I couldn't afford to buy any new clothes!

12/13/04 
Almost forgot again! Ulcers appear to be healed. Feeling much better! Second job is going ok. It's tough - I'm working in Dunkin Donuts so I'm surrounded by Donuts and specialty coffee drinks. Donuts I can usually resist because they don't sit well, but the coffee is another story! Fortunately, it's so busy I don't have much chance to do too much damage. Almost done Christmas shopping. It's so nice to go shopping and not be dead after a half hour. I still think this surgery is a miracle. Happy holidays to all!

11/11/04 
Forgot to update last month. This past month has been a struggle. I was having problems with nausea for about a month. Doctor did a EGD and found a couple of ulcers. Doubled my dosage of Protonix and I'm feeling a lot better now. Still nauseaus eating certain things, but much better than I was feeling, thankfully. I just started a second job last night. I know I will now be exhausted, but I got to do it. Can't make it on one salary. I'm just glad I'm taking the Vista Vitamins - they are what got me through the second job last year. I truly believe in them. Despite the problems I have had, I would still have the surgery again in a heartbeat. 122 beats 215 any day. (or the 238 when I started my journey!)

9/11/04 
Cast is finally off the arm. The doctor said the hand is healing slowly, so I still have to be careful. It hurts a lot from being in the cast for so long - it's really stiff. But I'm sure it will loosen up with time. I plan on starting back up with Curves on Monday - I've got plans for today so I can't go. I'm lost another pound today so I am at 124. I can't believe I have been maintaining this weight for so long - within a couple of pounds. Seems like a miracle to me. I could never have done this without the surgery.

8/16/04 
Well, 18 month follow up went great. Dr Drinkwater is very pleased. He cut back my potassium! I'm psyched about that as it was killing my pouch. Will check again in a couple of weeks and maybe stop it completely. I hope so. On a bad note, I broke a bone in my hand on Thursday. Cast halfway up my arm. That means no Curves for a while. Just when I was getting into a routine. Hurts too much right now to even do what I can. That means keeping even a tighter rein on my eating for a while. I'm not happy about that - plus it hurts like crazy. Seems like every time I start to get into exercise something happens. Cast is on for a month. I'll see what happens. I did lose 3 inches the first month at Curves too!

7/10 
Forgot to update last month. Currently 127. Had problems with my thyroid and was up to 130 - fighting to lose back the weight. I finally broke down and started an exercise program. I joined Curves last week. So far, I love it! It's only been one week but I think it is something I can stick with. First, it is only five minutes from my house. Second, it is only a half hour and you are changing machines every 30 seconds so it feels like even less. Best part is that I can do it - every other exercise program I've ever tried I am so out of shape that I have not been able to finish - especially aerobics classes. I think this is a good program to start with. I signed up for a year. We'll see what happens after that.
I start a new job on Monday. I'm excited and nervous about that. It's closer to home so I will have a lot more free time at night. I'm looking forward to that. Problem is that I am a nighttime snacker. So, having more nighttime to snack in may be a problem. We'll see. I did find last week that on the nights that I exercised after work I wasn't hungry in the evenings so hopefully that will keep up. We'll see. I'll keep you posted.

5/10/04 
Crazy month. Still holding steady at between 123 and 125. I like that. I was sick for a couple of weeks and in the hospital with an gastrointestinal virus and lost down to 118. That was way too low for me. I looked sick. Even my doctor told me to gain back a little. Finally quit my second job. When I got sick, I realized just how run down I was - working the two jobs plus commuting 10-15 hours a week was just too much for me. So, I tried just cutting back my hours - that wasn't enough. I finally had to just quit. Last night is Saturday. Maybe now I will have time to exercise. I know that is something I have to do to get rid of my stomach.

4/10/04 
Down another couple of pounds this month. Slowly inching my way to 120 - I'm at 123 now. Even if I never make it to 120 or find I can't maintain it, at least I'm going to know I tried. I've never been this small for as long as I can remember. The closest was about 145 for a couple of weeks about 10 years ago. It's amazing. This is so different.

3/11/04 
Day late in updating. Everything is going well. Tailbone is still sore, so no exercising on the exercise bike yet - the orthopedist said it could take two to three months to heal and I believe him. Damp and rainy/snowy weather is really bad for it. Gained back a couple of pounds this month. Not pleased about that. Working on getting rid of it - doesn't seem like it will be hard to do. Was up to 129 - now back down to 126. I think that may be where my body likes - at least without exercise. We'll see when I can get into an exercise routine. I would realy like to get down to 120. It's only six pounds, but it's significant to me. Eating a lot better. Reaching for protein snacks first. When I went for my one year checkup, my protein level was a little low, so that's where I have to concentrate. Everything else was fine. Overall, thousands of times better than a year ago.

2/10/04 
Happy Anniversary to me! I can't believe it has been a year already. Would I do it again? In a heartbeat. I was talking to a friend earlier today and was talking about the changes in me since this time last year and it's phenomenal. 

Last year, walking one block would cause extreme pain in my legs and back. One flight of stairs and I was dead. Now, I work a second job in retail and I spend 6-8 hours walking around, bending over and picking clothes off the floor and I don't have a problem (well, my feet are a little sore, but that's about it.) There is no way I could have done that at my former weight.

My appetite is back where it should be and I lost the weight I gained on the neurontin. I still have the neuropathy in my leg - they are trying a nerve block now instead of medication. Hope that works. I am tired of the pain. 

I started drinking Rocamojo coffee this month to increase my protein intake while decreasing my intake of caffeine. I really like it. I'm drinking the half regular coffee kind. Has a different but good taste. I was having problems getting protein in at breakfast, so this works well for that as well. Also started back on protein bars as my afternoon snack. I was having peanut butter crackers - fewer crackers but also less protein. I also discovered Atkins low carb bread this month. I love it! I can finally bring a sandwich for lunch! I was using the small pita breads but it wasn't the same. I can only eat one slice, so it's only a half a sandwich, but it tastes so good. I was going out to lunch too often - this saves money and calories. 

So, I guess as I came to the one year mark, I did make some positive changes and eliminated some bad habits that had crept in. Hopefully, this will help in losing the final couple of pounds and then in maintaining the weight loss. I also finally decided that just the second job wasn't enough exercise so I bought an exercise bike. Used it one day and the next day I fell down and I slipped down some stairs on the ice and broke my tailbone. It's going to take 4-6 weeks for that to heal, and it hurts like crazy. Using the bike is out of the question right now. So much for good intentions. Next month...