The New & Still Impr Robin

Send Message

Block

Add Friend

Well, since tomorrow is my one month anniversary since surgery, I decided to get my measurements today when I was at my friend Sue's house for Thanksgiving dinner.  During my original measurements, I forgot a few places to measure (e.g. my neck, forearm, and calf), but there is quite a difference everywhere else already.  So without further ado, here are my measurements.........

Neck       Original - n/a       Month 1 - 17.5"
Biceps    Original - 17.25  Month 1 - 16"
Forearm Original - n/a       Month 1 - 13.75"
Chest      Original - 56.5    Month 1 - 55.75"
Waist       Original - 57"      Month 1 - 54"
Hips         Original - 70"      Month 1 - 69"
Thighs     Original - 31.5"   Month 1 - 30.75"
Calf          Original - n/a       Month 1 - 21"

Pretty good for Month 1

Here is somewhat of a journal of my trip to Brazil.  I hope that it will be informative to those looking to have surgery and to give you an idea of how things went for me. 

October 21, 2006

9:10pm (Houston Time):  My friend Sue and I boarded a plane with an ultimate destination of Curitiba, .  Our first stop would be in Sao Paulo, the next morning.

 

October 22, 2006

 

9:30am (Brazil Time):  We arrived in Sao Paulo, with very little sleep. Made our way through Customs with no problem.  Got to the luggage area. I was standing waiting for my bags when this guy comes up to me. Real nice guy.  I started to pull my bag off the belt, but he moved to my left and pulled the bags off for me. Then he placed my bags onto my cart that I had and proceeded, with me in tow to where we exit the baggage area. I thought he was going to set me up in line with everyone else, but he proceeds to cut me into the middle of the line, so I got ahead of a lot of people.  I don’t know if they appreciated that but I sure did.  I never really got to thank this man for helping me out. He was gone before I knew it.  Anyway, this got me separated from Sue, because the last time I saw her, she was just finishing rounding her bags up.  So I trudged my way to find out where to check in for my flight to Curitiba .  I made it. And as I was almost to the front of the line, here comes Sue just in time. We were able to get checked in with plenty of time to spare.  We had a seven hour layover to look forward to. I wasn’t feeling very good.  I attributed it to the fact that I had gotten about 8 hours of sleep in maybe 3 days and the fatigue was starting to rear its ugly head.  But I found out that it was a combo of that and something else.  Aunt Flo had arrived.  I thought “Great. Two days before surgery and my friendly visitor has come to see me.”  Ugh. Oh well. I figured that it was better to get it out of the way and maybe it would be over before surgery since they don’t last that long for me.

4:30pm:  We had been sitting at the gate for at least 3 hours waiting for our plane.  The guy at the counter gets on the intercom to let us know that the plane would be an hour late. Great.  Nothing like a longer layover to add to the trip. But we are in and this will be the last leg of the journey to get to my destination of Curitiba and the beginning of my new life in a couple of days.

5:30pm:  We are finally boarding the plane on our way to Curitiba .  I am so happy and so exhausted at the same time.  I still can’t believe I am doing this.  I am really going to have a surgery that will literally transform my life and the way I live it.  It’s exhilarating to think about.

6:30pm:  We arrive in Curitiba, .  The only thing to do now is get our bags from the baggage claim area and go look for Durval.  However, when we had gotten our bags, a different guy came up to us.  I think he said his name was Daniel.  He was picking us up for Dr. Marchesini.  After Daniel put our bags into the back of the van, he proceeded to call Dr. M. to let him know that we were here and on our way to the hotel.  Then I got to talk to Dr. Marchesini.  He asked about my flight and said that he would wait for us at the hotel.  I was so awestruck.  A doctor waiting personally for me to get to the hotel so that he could meet me.  It’s unheard of in the states.  I was floored and honored at the same time.  We got to the hotel and, true to his word, Dr. Marchesini was waiting for me with a hug and a smile.  This man is so caring and genuine.  He told me that he was going to go and let me get settled and get some rest and he would see me at 8:30 the next morning.

 

October 23, 2006

8:30am:  I went to see Dr. Marchesini in his office for the first time.  He was very kind and made me very at ease with my decision to have the surgery.  I didn’t have any questions because of all the research that I had done.  My surgery weight was figured to be at 386 lbs.  The next step was to have my Endoscopy followed by my psychological evaluation that afternoon.  I was ushered into the waiting room where I waited maybe about 10 minutes before they called me into the room for the Endoscopy.  They must have given me some good drugs because I don’t remember a thing until Durval and Sue were walking me back to the hotel.  Sue told me that when I came out of the room that I looked at her and said something like “I sure do feel good.” LOL I wish I could remember that.

3:30pm:  I went back over to the clinic for my psych evaluation.  I met Dr. M’s daughter Simone, who is the psychologist doing the evaluation.  She is just as nice and personable as her father.  We talked I guess for a good 45 minutes and then it was over.  I was all set for my date with Dr. M the next afternoon.

 

October 24, 2006

 

8:30am:  Durval dropped by the hotel to escort me back over to the clinic for my ultrassongram, which was the final test before heading to the hospital. My surgery is scheduled for 4pm and I was over there by 10:30am.  What a wait I was in for. Ugh.  Oh well.  I had Sue there with me so that I wouldn’t have to sit there by myself thinking too much and getting really nervous.  I did get quite nervous and anxious while waiting that long.  But I would soon be on my way to being switched.

1:30pm:  They come in to take me to surgery.  Yippee!!!! I am so ready to go. They wheel me into the operating room and prep me.  Before they put me under, I heard Dr. Marchesini talking. So I called for him and he came over to me.  I thanked him for what he was doing and I was out.

6:00pm??:  I’m not really sure what time I got to my room.  I was really out of it.  It really hurt when they moved me from the stretcher to the bed.  I kept telling them it hurt in my lame attempt at Portuguese.  I think they knew though.  I finally got into the bed and they gave me some drugs for pain and I could finally relax a little.  Sue called all of the people on my list to call after surgery to let them know that I was okay and had made it through the surgery.  I could now go back to sleep.  I woke up again sometime later and asked Sue to stay with me for the night.  She gladly did and I was able to relax again and go back to sleep.  I slept off and on all night.  It’s kind of hard to sleep through when the nurses come in every 2 hours to take your blood pressure, but they also came in to give me more pain and nausea meds which was why I didn’t mind so much. Thank you may I have another???? LOL

 

October 25, 2006

 

Day 1 Post-op

I’m not sure what time I woke up.  I think it was about 5:30am and the sun was up.  Spent the day getting up, taking a shower (this was tough, but I had the help of Sue and the nurses, so I got through it okay), walking the hall, and doing my breathing exercises.  Then I was able to sleep a lot in the chair too.

Dr. Marchesini came in around 6pm to check on me.  He said I looked good and was doing really well.  I was happy to hear it.

About 10pm, this Gorgeous doctor comes strolling in.  His name was Giorgio Barretta.  He is evidently the doctor who does the night rounds. Anyway, I think he came in last night, but I don’t really remember because I was so out of it. I wish I had a camera with me in the hospital.  I would have liked to get a picture of him to take with me *sigh*. What a cutie.

 

October 26, 2006

 

Day 2 Post-op

 

 

Nothing much happened today.  I had a visit from the Physical Therapist who had me walk 2 laps down the hall and back.  After that, we did my breathing exercises.  When she left, I sat in the chair all day and alternated watching TV and sleeping after they came in with my pain meds. Still on ice chips. 

Finally passed gas this afternoon.  They brought in some tea that didn’t taste much like tea, but it was something other than ice chips, so I was grateful.  Dr. M came in around 8:30pm to check on me. When I told him I had passed gas, he said I might get to go back to the hotel tomorrow.  That made me really perk up.  I want to get out of here. Not that the nurses have been bad. They have been wonderful. But I am ready to go NOW.  LOL

Doctor Gorgeous came in again about 10pm to see me and followed up with the possibility of me getting out tomorrow.  We talked for a bit and he gave me his email address so that I could send him progress pictures of me.  Oh I wish I had my camera.

 

October 27, 2006

 

Day 3 Post-op

 

 

I was released from the hospital today.  It seemed that everything was in working order and my intestines were again functioning normally.  I had a BM about 3am (Thank God!). So that set things in motion for my release back to the hotel.  I got back to the hotel around 12pm and got settled in.  Oh it’s so good to be “home”.

 

October 28, 2006

 

Day 4 Post-op

 

I am not hungry.  This is something totally new to me.  I haven’t eaten since Monday night, but I am not STARVING like normal.  I am working on getting some fluids down me, but even the water doesn’t really taste that good.  I’m trying though.

 

 

October 29, 2006

 

Day 5 Post-op

 

I went downstairs and decided to try the scrambled eggs.  All I can say is EWWWW!!!! I guess I was expecting them to have cheese in them or something, but they were plain.  I only took one small nibble and I guess they were too bland or something. Don’t really know. Oh well, I will try them again another day.  Didn’t eat much for the rest of the day.  Sue made some strawberry jello for me. Might try it tomorrow. Still trying to sip the fluids.

 

 

October 30, 2006

 

Day 6 Post-op

 

 

I woke up this morning with my first realization.  I am not exhausted anymore.  For the longest time, I have been tired from the time I wake up until the time I go to bed. Then I would go to sleep and wake up like I had never slept.  The exhaustion had gotten worse this past year with all of the stress going on in my life.  But it is GONE!!!! Don’t get me wrong. I still get tired.  I am just not extremely so tired that I don’t want to get up in the morning.

 

October 31, 2006

 

Day 7 Post-op

 

 

I didn’t eat very much today. Had some jello and made sure to get my fluids in.

I did 6 minutes on the treadmill up in the workout room on the roof of the hotel.

 

November 1, 2006

 

Day 8 Post-op

 

 

I’m having a time finding food to eat that tastes good to me.  For breakfast, I tried some watermelon, but it wasn’t that sweet.  I did eat a small piece of it and drank a couple small glasses of orange juice. For lunch, I was able to eat a small chicken thigh. That was an accomplishment.

I did 10 minutes on the treadmill tonight.

 

November 2, 2006

 

Day 9 Post-op

 

 

Today was a holiday in .  All businesses were closed to celebrate, I think, All Saints Day, or The Day of the Dead.  From what I heard, everyone goes to church and then out to the cemetery to pay respect to their loved ones who had passed.  I didn’t do very much today.  I ate some scrambled egg and a piece of melon from the breakfast buffet, and at lunch, ate a little beef, but had to take the rest of it back to the room.  I was unable to eat it later.  I think they put some kind of spice on their meat that just doesn’t agree with me too well.

 

November 3, 2006

 

Day 10 Post-op

 

Today Sue and I went on the train ride through the rain forest with the mother of another American who had just recently gotten out of the hospital and was not able to join us.  Ana drove us to the train station and told us she would meet us at the end of the ride in Morette and would drive us back.  The train ride was pretty uneventful and there were some pretty views of the mountains.  The fog on the mountain tops, I thought were really pretty.  Some of the views were obstructed by the fog, but all in all the sights were beautiful.  When we arrived at the end of the ride, Ana was there as promised to pick us up.  We took a scenic route to the coast and got a beautiful view of the bay. On the way back to Curitiba , we saw two different waterfalls and stopped to take pictures.  All in all the day was a great day.  I felt better today than I have felt in a long long time and I am only 10 days out from surgery.  I LOVE MY DS!!!!

 

November 4, 2006

 

Day 11 Post-op

 

I woke up this morning pretty worn out after a long day of taking the train and touring the coast via a taxi ride with Ana.  I didn’t do anything today except sleep a lot.  I did go down to the restaurant and eat a bit. I had some scrambled egg and a piece of melon.  Then I went back upstairs and napped most of the day.  I did go down for lunch but didn’t eat much, maybe a couple bites of chicken.  The rest of the day I spent relaxing.  I know I should have done some walking, but just didn’t feel like doing anything.

 

November 5, 2006

 

Day 12 Post-op

 

I felt kind of funky this morning.  I went down to eat breakfast and ate pretty good. I had some scrambled eggs and about 3 pieces of watermelon.  Then while I was sitting talking to Sue and another lady who had come down to have plastics, I started feeling really tired. So I went back up to my room and laid down.  I think I slept for 4 hours.  I felt a bit better after that and the rest of the day was okay. But this morning was really weird.

 

November 6, 2006

 

Day 13 Post-op

 

I met some more American patients this morning who came for surgery.  They usually frequent Dr. M’s message board and not ours.  I invited them to come on over when they get back online.  Anyway, I had my last appointment with Dr. Marchesini this afternoon.  I have now lost 14 pounds.  I feel really good.  But I am ready to go home.  We are trying to get our tickets from Curitiba to Sao Paulo changed for us to leave at 4pm instead of 8:30pm.  Durval told me tonight that he would take our tickets and try to get them changed for us.  Isn’t he just the best???  Anyway, hopefully tomorrow everything will run smoothly and we will be on our way home.

 

November 7, 2006

 

Day 14 Post-op

 

Durval was able to get our tickets changed for us to leave Curitiba at 1pm today.  So we left the hotel at 11am heading for the airport.  Daniel, who picked us up from the airport when we arrived, took us back to the airport.  We made it through check-in and to the gate.  As we guessed, the plane was late getting in, so we didn’t actually leave until 2pm.  We arrived in Sao Paulo around 3pm and had an 8 hour layover, as our next flight didn’t leave until 11:20pm.  Sue and I decided to get a hotel room so that we could relax and not have to sit at the airport for 8 hours.  We went with the airport Marriott which is about 5 minutes from the airport.  The price was pretty reasonable as they have day rates just for people coming in during layovers.  They charged us about $R 160, which is about $80US. So we had a chance to rest and stretch our legs which did me some good, because I was able to lie down for a while.  We got back to the airport at around 8:30pm and had to stand in line to go through security and re-check our luggage.  That took a while and I ended up getting a wheelchair to finish this process. I then rode to the gate in style.  As was recommended to me, I highly recommend that everyone get a wheelchair beforehand, so as to avoid the tiredness that I felt before I finally relented.  It sure made the rest of the wait bearable.  We left Sao Paulo around 11:30pm.  The flight was a loooooong one.  It lasted about 9 hours 45 minutes.

 

November 8, 2006

 

Day 15 Post-op

 

 

We arrived in Houston at 5:15am.  It went pretty uneventful from there.  We got through customs without any problems and were back to my car by 6:15am.  I had parked in one of the satellite lots so we had to wait for the van to come pick us up. But they helped us load our bags back into my car.  We decided to go to Denny’s for breakfast, because we were getting hungry.  Yes, you read it right. I was actually hungry.  I decided to try an omelette.  I ordered a ham and cheese omelette and was actually able to eat half of it.  This was the biggest meal I had eaten so far since surgery, because I couldn’t find anything in that tasted very good.

 

 

 

Anyway, this is what happened with me during my trip to and back home again.  I hope it helps anyone maybe looking into having the surgery themselves.  I know that your results will not be exactly the same as mine, but I wish you all of the success that I have had thus far, and hope this gives you some answers that maybe you didn’t have before.  Please make sure you have done your research, because this is the only way that I was able to be this successful

Well, this is it.  I have my surgery this afternoon.  I'm anxious and nervous, but I am ready.  I am very comfortable with my decision and know that Dr. Marchesini is the best choice that I could have made to help me achieve the new me.  I have looked forward to this day for a very long time.
Yesterday, my friend Sue helped me to get my measurements and so I will include them here, just so that I can see the change that will take place.

Arms 17 1/4"
Bust 56 1/2"
Waist 57"
Hips 70"
Thighs 31 1/2"

Also, my surgery weight is 386 lbs

As this will be my final post b4 my surgery, I want to thank everyone that I have talked to on the boards for your help and encouragement during my time of decision and preparation for this big day.  You have been an inspiration to me and I look forward to joining the fellowship of the switched and sitting on the "losers" bench.
God Bless and I'll talk to you in a few days.

 1. Being able to clean my house without having to sit down every 2 to 3 minutes after I start

 2.  Taking my dogs to the dog park and not just watch them from the side, but play with them and all of the other dogs at the park

 3.  Getting on my bicycle and not blowing the tires out because I am so heavy

 4.  Walking around inside or outside for any amount of time without immediately starting to sweat like I have been on a marathon

 5.  Taking the spinning class at my gym and being able to ride throughout the whole class

 6.  Waking up in the morning and not being so totally exhausted that I wonder if I even slept

 7.  My knees not hurting all of the time

 8.  No more Sleep Apnea

 9.  Using exercise equipment that have weight limitations of 250 lbs or less

 10. Wanting to get out and do things on a whim just because I can

 11. Having guys come up to me because they think I’m attractive (this is going to be awkward for a while)

 12. Having the courage to walk up to other people and not being self-conscious because of my weight

*Update/Clarification* - Ok. I know I have cleaning house listed first, not because I relish it and wait with baited breath to be able to do this, but because since it has to be done, I want to at least have the energy to do it.  Thanks BT.  LOL