purnellj

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No way has it been almost four years. What a journey. I lost weight pretty well. I thought that I had it all under control. In May of 08..I woke up in a wicked amount of PAIN!! It was Memorial Day weekend and I was suppose to be flying to North Carolina in a day or so. I managed to shower..but lo and behold I had to call the ambulance.I felt a sharp pain go up my left arm. My stomach was killing me and I could not get comfortable no matter which way I turned. So there I lay in University of Michigan ER. Then came the news.I had a bowel obstruction and would need surgery. In spite of my plans..the surgery was a priority. The recovery was horrible!! I stayed in the hospital for 8 days. I came home with a tube in my stomach that had to be flushed...not to mention a new 6 inch scar in the middle of my belly. My white blood count was 26,000. This meant that my body was fighting off an infection. Thank God I survived.

Ok, so It's gonna be 7 months and I am still very happy . The scale isn't moving either way and hopefully that's an "OK" thing. Yes I feel like I'm at a plateau and I really want to break it. I feel my pouch working , but I do catch myself doing some emotional eating. I know it's mind over matter..but I have to be extra careful with the carbs and the sugar.I can tolerate both, but I would like to see at least 40 more pounds  go away forever, especially by  my WLS anniversary in November! It's up to me ...I can do it....I know I can do it!!

It's April and I'm holding fast @ 221lbs. That's a 60 pound loss for me.I hope it's gone forever. I read Oh everyday.I learn so much just from the other member's comments. When people make comments about my weight, I sometimes don't think they're really talking to me.I guess it's the disbelief, of me really having lost 60 pounds.People say they see it in my face, and it feels soooo good when they say this. I feel on top of the world. I NEVER want to see those 60 pounds again in my life. I went to a restaraunt with some friends, and of course the meal I ordered lasted me three meals. It's such a good feeling to feel full.I've learned to listen to my body.Knowing that I'm actually full, is something I struggled with before my surgery. Boy did my mind play tricks on me,  especially with head hunger. The only slight downside to the surgery is that I can  tolerate sugar. This makes it a little harder for me to eat what I'm suppose to, simple cause I know I won't dump.Other than that, and carbs..I seem to do ok. I think I'm at a plateau, but it's my own fault.I just need to kick up my protein, and stay FAR  away from sugar and carbs.

OK , so it's my first day back to work.Of course I have on a new outfit. I'm down 29 pounds, and people are commenting.They have thrown out varoius compliments. Others have just starred , and whispered. I feel great and glad to be back @ work. I feel even better, as a lighter person. I got on the treadmill today.It's probably gonna be my new best friend. It's free to use here @ work...so Yipee! I've only thrown up twice since surgery. It was my own fault.I was eating too fast. I knew better, but had to learn the hard way. I'm glad I was able to be off for 9 weeks. I had to use this time to learn what to eat or Not to eat. I really hate getting sick, and would hate it more to get sick on my job.I work at a maximum security facility and not being on top of my game is difficult @ work. It's important that I'm aware of my surroundings. Can't do that  if I'm about to dump...huh?  

Well I survived my surgery. No real problems in the hospital. Everyone was really nice. I stayed an extra day because of a slight breathing problem. After my XRAY came back OK, they released me to go home.The pain was a little more than I anticipated 

OK. Now I have to wait and pinch myself and pinch myself again and again. I have my date. It's November 6th...2006. I am trying to be very cool. I use the time to get stuff together @ work and home. I'm trying protein shakes and the like. The protein shakes aren't that bad.The only disappointment thus far is  my recent break-up.Mr. Wrong (name changed to protect the worthless) was suppose to be in my corner, but bailed  without a trace.Huummm..I guess this is why I kept telling myself that I was doing this for ME, MYSELF & I.Believe it or not, I came into this world alone , so I guess I'll have to fight this one on my own too. I think I'm used to it....oh well ! THIS TOO SHALL PASS!!! 

Ok it's Monday... October  9th and the wonderful lady (Patricia Pugh)@ the Cori Center has submitted my paperwork.Now all I have to do is wait. I tell myself  that I'll give it 2 weeks, before I  go into panic mode. In my mind , all I can do is wait for the moment  the area code" 586" shows up on my cell phone.That will mean that it's someone from my doctor's office calling me with an answer. Now it's Friday  October 13th & my phone shows a "586" number. I'm at work in an area where there are cameras and I can't answer my phone. My lunch break is in thirty minutes. A voicemail symbol pops up....Oh Lord here comes the big one!! I call back and a lady asks when I want to have my surgery...I have been approved!! I chose the first available...November 6th, 2006. I figure that on a Monday morning the surgeons would be refreshed and I would have fewer complications. It occurs to me I have about 3 weeks until the big day. It won't be long now. I'm as calm as a cucumber...at least for now.

Ok so it's now the middle of September.I'm extremely selfish and nervous.My total focus is on my upcoming surgery approval.I'm not approved yet,but I anticipate that I'll be on the table by the end of October.I finally have a little pow-wow with my aunts and I tell them about my surgery.We had lunch at my house and go to an exhibit a the local library.This is their chance to ask me any questions they may have.I hope they know how LUCKY they are to be informed.My aunt Gladys starts telling me that her neighbor had WLS and she hardly recognized her. I was thrilled to not have any negative feedback or comments from them..ONLY WELL WISHES.I keep thinking to myself..A month from now,I'll know a time & date.I'm sort of eating healthier because I know I should use this time to start practicing my new eating habits.So many thoughts are going thru my mind.If I could have it done tomorrow, I would.This entire journey is so very personal for me. It really DOESN"T matter what a single soul thinks..I'm having this done for ME!!I'm the one that struggles with my weight and I see what I've become in the mirror. It' not so easy on the eyes.I feel like crap too. Slowly but surely as the weight starts piling on, you don't notice how sluggish you've become. I'm avoiding mirrors at all cost. This really only tells me that I have to get a grip.Another thing that dawns on me is that if I don't do something about the number on the scale,it tends to just keep creeping up. Obviously I've pretty much lost control. I weighed 271 pounds the day I saw Dr. Wood in his office.If my math is correct,then that means I'm close to 300 pounds.Give or take a few pounds. How scary is that? 300 pounds is a lot of weight to be carrying around.How on earth did I get so out of control? I'm pretty sure that after 300, comes 325..329..350.I even siked myself into believing that I was carrying the weight well and it wasn't obvious to anyone else. Who was I kidding?  

Well now..what's a girl to do. I'm tring to keep my cool, but I'm bubbling over with anticipation. I haven't shared my decision with alot of folks, but they see me at work on OH every single day. It won't be much longer now. The insurance rep @ Cori has said she will submit my paper work on October  9th. After that, it's up to BLUE Cross Blue Sheild. Lord please let them say YES.I have struggled in my mind about whether or not I sould eat what I want . It appears that since my initial visit I have gained 9 pounds in the past 5 months. Stress played a major factor, plus I think knowing my eating  habits would change drastically made me consume what I thought I would be missing. I'm very excited and trying to be patient at the same time.  Will October ever get here? Living in Michigan, it just dawned on me that I started this process in the late part of "Spring" and now it will be late "Fall". The seasons have changed and maybe I didn't enjoy it like I should have...because I was so worked up about my surgery. Oh well , I guess I have to think about going into winter and the possibility of snow on the ground while I'm recovering. The good news is that next spring I'll be on the losing side!!! Yippeeeee.

Everyday I wake up just a little closer to being able to have my surgery done.In the mean time I'm still researching and reading as much as I can. My birthday is the 19th. My friends take me to a "All you can eat" buffett. The food was so good, but I kept thinking that I probably wouldn't  get to enjoy this again.Happy Birthday to me!