Julie R.

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Finally, after a two and a half week stall, I've made the century club!   I finally hopped on the scale and saw 167.2 staring at me.   I'll take it!
My six month surgiversary is coming up this Friday, and I will post more, and hopefully some pictures then, too.  I am actually down 115 pounds from my highest ever weight, but 100 pounds from my MMPC weight.   Yay Me!

Christmas was just great this year.   Of course, it is always fantastic to be together with my family, and I love the whirl of shopping and wrapping and family visiting.   But this year, I can't begin to express how wonderful it felt to not worry about starting the new year weighing eight to ten pounds more than I did before the holiday season.  I think much of my weight gain over the past twenty years has been associated with the holiday season.  I would gain ten pounds, work hard to try to lose it, but would only end up losing and regaining throughout the year, and then adding MORE weight on during the next holiday season.   I ate a few more carbs than I normally do, but still kept them to just a taste or stuck to whole grain versions of various foods.   Having the stomach flu for a few days over break didn't hurt.   

I finally got the chance to weigh in, and am down to 176.4.   I have not weighed that little since about 1989 or 1990.  I went shopping over break and ended up buying three pair of pants in a size ten. A size ten!!!   Definitely a joyful experience for me.   We went out for New Year's Eve, and I was standing at the sink in the restroom of the club we went to.  I was shocked to notice in the mirror that I didn't look any bigger than most of the skinny mini young things standing next to me!

I can go for a day now and forget that I had the DS.   My eating and other habits have stabilized so well now, and although simple carbs still give me gas, I am now very accustomed to how I feel and how to eat to optimize that feeling of well being.  I can eat more than I used to, but still cannot eat very much.  Perhaps about a cup of food at a time.  So, my best Christmas gift of all was the gift of this wonderful surgery and the sense of health and well being that I now have.    I am looking forward to losing this last 40 pounds and having a wonderful new year!

I am actually four months and five days, but I have been too busy to write.  As a matter of fact, I have been too busy to even find a scale somewhere to see how much I weigh.  I have lost at least 80 pounds.   I know that I am somewhere below 188.    Every week, my pants are bigger.    I have decided that at this point in time, that is going to be my biggest determination of whether I am losing or not, but darn, it can be very hard to resist the urge to quantify, right down to the precise tenth of a pound, how much one weighs.   Me and the scale, we go way back, and we do not have a functional relationship.   When I get to goal, that will be the time to drag a scale home and monitor my weight on a daily basis.   For now?  pffft.....relax.  I am compliant, I am shrinking.  My only big goal is that I would love to hit the 100 pound mark by my six month anniversary. 

Last night I wore my smallest jeans.  A stretch ten.   They fit great in the legs, but are a bit tight in the waist.   I am running out of pants to wear, and I hate wearing baggy loose clothes around.   I also hate spending money on sizes that I am just going to blow right through.   I have a feeling though, that my weight loss will probably start slowing down here pretty soon, and perhaps I'll stay in sizes a bit longer.   

The other day, one of my middle school students said "You used to be fatter, but one Monday you showed up and you were skinny!"  It's funny how your weight loss reaches that point where people can do nothing but notice.  Since I do not know many people up here where I have moved, I really only get comments from church and school friends, but I am loving it.   I can feel my hip bones and wrist bones now.   I have collar bones and ribs, too!   This is pretty cool.   The lowest I have been in recent years has been 183.   That was about nine years ago.   Anything below that will be ancient history for me, and I have very little recollection of how it actually feels to be thin.  Strange times ahead, for sure!

I feel fantastic...energetic and light.   I have no complications.  I have problems with white flour and dairy products still, and I still can't eat very large meals (except for popcorn!), but I just can't believe how darn normal I feel.

I think for the first time in my life, I actually experienced a holiday where I never even worried once about gaining weight.   It was just wonderful.  We drove down to Detroit Tuesday night and my son and his g/f arrived from Boston Wednesday morning.  We drove out to Ann Arbor to pick up my middle child and stopped at Trader Joe's on the way home, picking out all kinds of goodies to cook up for dinner that night.  For the first time since my surgery, I had a small taste of chocolate.....beautiful, gorgeous, high-quality, 80% cocoa dark chocolate.  One small square had five net carbs, and because of the fat content, I figured out that I only absorbed 27 calories.   It was delicious....because of the high cocoa content, a tiny piece goes a long way.  It was very low in sugar, so no problems there either.    I have to honestly say that we ate our way through the weekend.  I just kept the carb count low - had a few bites of stuffing and mashed potatoes, and ate sugar free cheesecake and a bit of sugar free pumpkin pie without the crust.  My family teased me that I actually ate less than my two year old niece.   We went out for middle eastern food one day and dined at my brother's house another.  It was just never a worry.   I brought some low-carb lavash bread along to my brothers, because we were also having middle eastern food there, and never felt deprived.

I really enjoyed my family's reaction upon seeing me.  My brother looked me up and down and said "DAAAAAMMMN."    We went for long walks in the woods, and it was just so nice to be able to clamber over logs and move along at a brisk pace.   I know I say it every time I post, but I REALLY REALLY REALLY love my DS!
p.s.  I am finally starting to lose some hair.  Not buckets full, but enough to show up in the shower after I wash it.  Hope it passes soon, as I don't want to cut my hair any shorter.

I had my three-month check-up yesterday and all is well  I am officially in OneDerland.  Even fully dressed, the scale said 198.2.   I received loads of compliments from the dietician, for my knowledge of my dietary needs, from the exercise physiologist, for my exercise efforts and from the PA, who said that I was really  making the DS work for me.  I couldn't be happier.   I feel happy and healthy.  My protein is a bit low and I have been told to up my protein intake.   I am in a good place in my head about this weight loss.  I went to a party this past weekend and it felt wonderful to no longer be the largest person in the room.   My mom, who is never one to give out compliments, told my sister that I look like I did back in high school, and my dad told me that I just look like a normal 45-year-old mom now.    I can't believe that in another forty or fifty pounds, I'll weigh less than I did when I was 25 years old!

My surgery was three months ago today, and I can't express how marvelous I feel.   I will not weigh in until my check-up at MMPC on Monday, so I am not exactly sure on how much I have lost.   I think I am down close to 70 lbs, since my two-week pre-surgical date, 57 lbs since the surgery itself, and people are really beginning to notice.   I am not accustomed to being flirted with either!! At age 45!!!     The wow moments come almost daily now.....from being able to pull on a pair of pants that didn't even fit me two weeks before, to being able to cross my legs, to being able to hike up and down the dunes of Lake Michigan without feeling like I am having a heart attack.

I was really expecting to wake up this morning, pull a brush through my hair, and have it all fall out.  It didn't!   My hairdress says she doesn't think it is going to, but I don't know how she can tell.

I can tolerate more and more foods now, and I have a good healthy appetite.   Some meats will still make me get that "stuck" feeling in my stomach and esophagus, but if I eat the meat with gravy or sauce, I generally do well.  I avoid sugars and white flours.  They give me terrible gas.  Too much fat will send me to the bathroom, but if I am going to indulge in anything, that'll be it.   I still eat a very low carb diet, and have found many products out there, such as low-carab tortillas and pretzels, that fill my carbohydrate cravings.  I do not miss sweets at all.   At least not till Christmas!

I am wearing size 12 and 14 pants, and size medium or large tops.   Actually, the 14's are getting rather loose on me.  It's amazing now, because it seems that every ten pounds brings me down another size.   

This DS is great.    Although I do resent people saying that WLS is the "easy way out,"  because we DO have to be very vigilant about our health, our nutrition, our vitamins, etc., I must admit that now I feel like I have been given a fantastic gift, and that this is just so effortless compared to the constant feelings of hunger and the pull to go back up to a higher weight that I always felt with other weight loss attempts.   As I mentioned in one post, I now feel like I have an "on/off switch" that tells me when to stop eating and to only eat again when I am hungry.  I get hungry every two-three hours.  I think I eat a really good amount and variety of foods.   My sense of gratitude is enormous, and this board has been instrumental in my success so far.    Yay Me!!! 

Well, I think I mananged, after lots of juggling, to get my profile transferred over and even got my pictures uploaded from my photobucket account.  Now blogging and adding photos should be easier.

I am still feeling very well.  I have hungry days and not so hungry days.   My energy level and overall ease of movement increases daily.  I started working out at Curves and am already feeling stronger.  The only thing I notice that concerns me is that I seem to have dark circles under my eyes alot.  Not sure if this has anything to do with anything.  My mom developed progressively darker circles under her eyes as she got older.  However, I just started taking iron pills, and  maybe that will help.

Today, for the first time since my surgery, I had a bit of white bread.  I ordered a french dip when we went out to eat, and it came on a lovely, crusty, toasted bun.   I generally stay very low carb, but this just looked too good to pass up, and I had a few small bites dipped in the au jus.  Well, now I have some gas to write home about!    Yikes!  It is not painful, just.....not pleasant to be around.
At any rate, I am just loving this DS.  I have oodles of two year old clothes in sizes 14, 12 and 10, and it seems that every week, I try on something new and it fits.    I am wearing size 14's, missus large, and even can wear one or two of my size 12 jeans or pants if they are stretch cotton.   We are having unseasonably cold weather here, and I left my size XL winter jacket down in Detroit.   I dug out a size 12 down jacket from my skinny clothes bin and low and behold, it fit!   I wore it today to protect myself from these brutal Lake Michigan winds.  

My fiance' compliments me constantly on my weight loss and has been so supportive.  He tells me that he hugs me, I feel different to him every day, LOL.

June 28, 2006

I received a call today from MMPC and even though I had originally been told that I would not be able to get in to see the internist for at least a month, they had a cancellation for tomorrow and I will see him and the behaviorist tomorrow, and then the surgeon in one week! I am so happy that they've finally gotten the ball rolling, because I reall hope to have this surgery in early August. That will give me a few weeks to recover before school starts. My job teaching music is a demanding one - it is non-stop action all day, and I am on my feet constantly. (No sitting behind my desk saying "okay class, open your books to page 128 and read the first chapter") I have not even told my extended family about the surgery. Only my fiance' and my daughters know. It seems that every time I tell my parents about something, whether it's about a house we're going to put an offer on, what I am serving for Christmas dinner, or what kind of dress I bought to wear for a wedding, my mom or dad has a way of shooting it down. I was so upset talking to my mom yesterday about a house we had put an offer on and her negative, discouraging comments about it, even though she has never seen it and lives 250 miles away from it, that last night I couldn't fall asleep thinking about all of the things she's said that I wouldn't be able to do that I HAVE done.

I am a happy, healthy person with positive things going on in my life, and I refuse to let anyone bring me down!

I considered making a list of all the things I want to do when I lose my weight, but I realized that they are all the same things that other people have written about. I know one thing for sure - of course I want to live longer, be healthier and move about better. But just between this forum and me...I want to look great in clothes!!!!


June 29, 2006

I went to see the behavioralist and the internist at MMPC yesterday. I guess I "passed" so to speak. The behavioralist said that even though I've had some very significant life issues that affect my relationship with food, he feels I'm in a good place about them. He did suggest, but not require, counseling to deal with my food addiction. I did make a commitment to him and myself that between now and the surgery date, I'd start journaling my eating so that I'd get a good idea of how, when, what and why I eat. I really liked the internist, Dr. Gawel. She was very non-judgmental, had a great sense of humor and talked to me as another professional. I worked as an ER tech for years and as a person of (hopefully) above average intelligence, and knowing what I know about doctors, I HATE being talked down to. My vitals were great, and she said I'm an excellent candidate for bariatric surgery. I will see the surgeon next week.

I also went to my first meeting with the bariatric surgery support group in Pentwater. My fiance' drove down with me, and when we pulled up in front of the church where it was held, he said "this can't be it - all of these people are thin!" Doh! I said "Go figure, ya dummy, that's cause the surgery works!" They were very helpful and I like the way they had many activities besides just sitting around and talking - like walking in a 5k at the end of September. They wanted to have matching t-shirts printed and were trying to come up with a name for the group. Someone said "how about Livin' Lite?" and a few others had other names of such. I suggested we just have t-shirts emblazoned with LOSER across the front. Guess they didn't like my idea, LOL.

Big moment here, after doing lots and lots of research, I think I'm going to go with the Duodenal Switch surgery. I keep reading more and more positive things about it, and because of the high weight of regain with the RNY, and the risk of stricture and blind stomach ulcers, I really feel the DS is a better choice. Plus, I get to eat like a normal person! I don't mind eating differently for the rest of my life is this is what it takes, but I just don't know if I can handle a stricture and the regain.

July 8, 2006

I am meeting with the surgeon on Monday, July 10. I am really excited. After deciding to go with the duodenal switch, I called and asked to reschedule my appointment with either Dr. Foote or Kemmeter, and they were able to get me in on the 10th. I just got all of my labs back, and with the exception of my HDL/LDL ratio, and a cholesterol of 195, they were very good. I feel like another hurdle has been cleared from that aspect.

I am hoping and praying and praying and hoping, that I will be able to have my surgery the first week of August. That will give me until August 23 to recover at home. That first week back to school is all inservices, so if I have to miss work, that'd be the best time. That would only mean I'd have to take three days off of work, as that's a short week for us.

In the meantime, I've been trying to eat a bit better (not as much bingeing!) and walking every day. My fiance' gets me out to the end of the pier at least once a day, and I do feel like I'm getting in better shape. Guess I'll post more after my appointment on Monday!

July 11, 2006

I HAVE A DATE! Woo hoo! I met with Dr. Kemmeter yesterday and he expressed some doubt that he would get me in before school starts, but told me he would see what I could do. Well - he did it! I received a phone call at 8:45 this morning that will change my life. I have so much to do between now and then...lesson plans to write, bulletin boards to make, a classroom to prepare. I'm not going to have much time between the surgery and when school starts. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that there are no post-surgical complications.

I REALLY like Dr. Kemmeter. He treated me as if I were an intelligent human being, and was impressed with my knowledge of the surgery. I didn't feel like I was a "bad girl" for being fat, like so many doctors have made me feel.

What an interesting journey I'm about to embark upon. My fiance' told me this morning - "geez - now you've got your surgical date, do you have to spend so much time obsessing about it?" I was really pissed at him. He just has NO idea.

July 23, 2006

I finally told my parents today that I was having WLS. I had been putting it off and putting it off. I'd even told my aunt and uncle and they were very supportive. I had just spent the last half hour on the phone with my mom defending every aspect of my life (I can do no right by that woman) and I decided, "What the hell - what's one more thing for her to knock me down about." So, I told her and she said "That's GREAT! Go for it." I kind of had to stop and look at the phone a sec to make sure I was still talking to the same woman. I thought to myself "Whew, finally, she approves of something." Of course, then she had to add, "Cause I was just thinking last week after I saw you that you had gotten SO fat, that you'd be lucky to make it to age 50." This statement is coming from a person who has been significantly overweight most of her adult life. Oh well.....at least they live 250 miles away.

August 3, 2006

I should be better about updating. Since my last posting, I went to my pre-op orientation where I met with the nutritionist, exercise guy, and PA. It was pretty informative. I started on the two week pre-operative fast and had a really tough time with the product (Barix) for the fast. I got extremely hungry and shaky, and I was so miserable. I started getting diarrhea. Nutritionist had me go on low-carb atkins shakes and I've been feeling better since. I still have a great deal of head hunger though!

Still, I went to the PA today for my pre-surgical check-up and I was down 9.2 pounds! Down almost 14 from my highest recorded there.

I am feeling at peace about the surgery and looking forward to being on the losing side.

August 12, 2006
I'm a loser, and I sure am glad to be in the arms of my sweet darlin' and with my spunky daughter (even if she did ask SF if I died if she could have my cell phone!) Surgery went fine, over four hours. The doctor said that they had a lot of maneuvering to do because of my previous open GB incision. They also took my appendix out while they were in there. I was under a long while and had a couple of tough days. I think the doctor planned to turn me into an accordian. The gas pains were incredible, but the best piece of advice I can give is that as soon as you can, walk, walk and WALK! I walked about ten minutes out of every hour. After two days of feeling crummy, the the third morning I woke up and said, "You know what? You're gonna make it!" and asked to go home, whereupon they quickly agreed. I think they were getting tired of see me walking past them hundreds and hundreds of times. The nursing staff said they'd never seen any so *compliant* (I think that was supposed to be a compliment, or else they thought I was severely OCD.)

At any rate, I'm a bit stiff, but easily treated with Lortab, tolerating my Barix stuff pretty well, and I miss the crushed ice machine.

I can't pay enough good compliments to Spectrum Blodgett Campus and to the MMPC docs and PA's. I worked in a hospital system as an ER tech for years, had my kids at what was considered one of the state-of-the-art hospitals in Detroit, and NEVER, EVER have I received such conscientious care and concern. From the docs to the NA's right down to the cleaning staff. Great people and I felt wrapped in the arms of several angels this week.

August 13

From a strictly post-surgical standpoint, I am recovering great. Pain is manageable and I'm really moving around well. Digestively - YUCK. Having supplement problems and terrible diarrhea. My period also started yesterday - two weeks after my last one - which I hear is quite common for me.

Talked to the PA and he switched me from Barix to Carnation Instant Breakfast, and I'm having even worse problems with that. I now now what DS farts smell like! I will talk to the nutritionist next morning.

August 23, 2006

I went to the surgeon today for my two-week check-up. He was impressed with my recovery and engery level. I only lost ten pounds though post-surgery! I was disappointed. He gave me the lecture of all lectures - told me to give my scale to someone I don't like very well, and to start focusing on how my clothes fit and how I feel. He told me that if I exercised a half-hour every day, and stayed away from the temptation to eat sweets and bad stuff for six months, that I will set myself into a great pattern for the rest of my life. I know I am down inches though. My clothes are rapidly getting bigger on me, and my rings are falling right off of my fingers. I wore a pair of pants to work yesterday that presurgery, I could not fit over my hips.

I returned to work two days ago. Easy days for me - teacher inservice days. The students return on Monday. I am a bit concerned about launching into a full-time teaching schedule because I am still getting pretty sleepy in the afternoons. I figure I am going to try to sleep a lot this weekend to get rested up. Also, some things are giving me TERRIBLE diarrhea. White flours and sugars do, and even though I am conscientiously keeping my carb count low, sometimes I'll eat something that will play tricks on me, such as some honey turkey jerky I had yesterday. I had a small cup of cheese soup at dinner last night, as I normally tolerate cheese very well. There was either some flour or too much milk in it, and I just spent all last night on the toilet. I will have to make sure that during my work week, I stick to tried and true things, and do any experimentation during the weekends.

Here are the things I tolerate particularly well:

String cheese
Slimfast Low-carb shake (ONLY low-carb!)
deli sliced ham
beef jerkey (non-sweetened types, like black pepper)
Atkins protein bars
egg salad
avocado
shrimp salad
crab salad
any slightly fattier meats - i had one rib last night, and that went down very well!
farmer cheese
yogurt goes down great, but i have become so lactose intolerant that I can't handle it now.
Soup at Hand cream of chicken soup
mashed potatoes (but i try to stay away because of the carb count)

As a DS patient, I do not absorb fats - something my dietician does not yet understand. I have learned rather quickly that just because something goes down well, like a piece of dry toast, it does NOT go out well! Right now, flours and sugars are pure poison to me from a gas and diarrhea standpoint.

I hope that this list will be added to as the weeks go by!

September 3, 2006
Well, I couldnt resist and stepped on a scale at Meijers and I am down to 235. That was fully clothed, so perhaps a bit less. So, at 3.5 weeks out, Ive lost about 19 pounds. I think I am going to be one of those slower losers. I am hoping for a good 20 lb weight loss for month one. A little disappointing, seeing as some people lose like 30 pounds their first month, but I cant complain...I am having no complications, I am not hungry, I am enjoying food and feel quite well. I went back to work at two weeks out. I might be pushing that a bit....I was AWFULLY tired last week, when my students all came back, and because I am on my feet alot, I kind of just crashed and felt worthless when I got home. My stamina is not fantastic when I exercise, but I have been reassured by my fellow DSers that I am exactly where I am supposed to be. I will post at my one month checkup and get a better idea of my weight then.

One month (9/9/06)

Well, I feel great, I am eating well, and I am losing inches, but I am only down 23 pounds in my first month. I will be honest and say that I am REALLY disppointed. I was expected to lose at least 30, based on others' recorded losses. I know I can console myself and say everybody loses at a different rate, I will have a big drop sooner or later, yada, yada, yada, but I am still disappointed. I have been so compliant. Maybe others were able to eat less than me earlier out, I dunno. Maybe my stomach is too big. I just hope I have a good loss next month too.



Almost six weeks (September 18, 2006)
Went for my six week post op check today, and from last week, lost another seven pounds! I am now down nearly thirty pounds from the surgery, 43 pounds from my pre op appt. I am pleased with that, and am really noticing the difference. The next twenty five pounds make a huge difference for me and I am hoping to be down that much by my three month check-up. I met with the PA, the nutritionist and the exercise physiologist today. I do not particularly like this one PA, he is rushed and arrogant. He kept looking at his watch. The dietician pissed me off, because she kept referring to my stomach as a pouch, and I finally corrected her and told her that the rules were a bit different for DS patients and that I did not absorb fats and therefore why did she have to insist I stay on a low fat diet like the RNYers? She finally back pedaled and admitted that she keeps forgetting. The exercise guy was very encouraging and enthusiastic about my progress, and gave me some great exercises to do with the therabands and the stability ball.

I feel great. I had my first barfing episode yesterday. Chicken and I have become arch enemies. I now know that if I ever have that stuck in my esophagus feeling that I had last night, to just make myself barf and move on with my life! We celebrated my six week check up by going out for middle eastern food. My favorite! I had some kibbe, some stuffed grape leaves and hummous. I managed to shovel in a fair bit. I normally stay wayyy low carb, but this was a special treat, because there are no middle eastern restaurants in my neck of the woods, and growing up in Dearborn, that was almost like a second culture to us. Yummy!

October 9, 2006
At two months out I have lost about 43 pounds! If you take into account the 15 I lost before the surgery, I have lost 58. I am thrilled beyond belief. I feel wonderful. Lighter, more mobile and with more energy throughout the day. I would say the only two lingering post-surgical effects are that I get dehydrated easily and that I am ready for bed by nine p.m. I have been told that the rapid weight loss can make you tire more easily. I have been walking, and I did return to Curves today. That was a better workout than I had remembered. I really need to start strength training, and this will do the trick for the time being. I thank God every day for this DS. I am tolerating more and more foods, I rarely have major gas issues, and my bathroom issues are controlled by how many veggies I eat and how much fat I eat. I have yet to eat many carbs...just a nibble of something or another, and nothing sweet has touched my lips. I want to hold off for as long as possible before I introduce those in my diet! If anybody is considering this surgery vs. the RNY....my vote is for the DS!