Stuff

Where in the world has the time gone? My surgery was one week ago yesterday. PK left about 3:00 yesterday afternoon. I just spoke with her on the phone. She's almost safely home. I hope to hear soon that she made it all the way safely.

Her visit was just what the doctor ordered. We talked. We laughed. We walked the pup. We went for rides. Neither of us need much to excite us so we are a perfect match. Sitting quietly talking about whatever comes into our heads is the best ever. I never had a sister. I would imagine that's not half as good as having a twin!!!

I saw my primary care doc this morning. She's quite pleased with my surgery and progress this summer. I asked her what my highest recorded weight is on her records. I'm updating the ticker with this post because I want to make a few changes. First off, the highest she has me recorded at is higher than the ticker's high and by golly, I want credit for EVERY LAST pound I lose.

Okay so I would have been mortified previously for anyone to know this weight but now that it's on the decline, I really don't care.

If anyone out there has considered this surgery can I recommend a book to you? It's called "Before and After" written by Susan Maria Leach who had surgery a few years back and has lost 143 pounds. It's her journey and also tons of recipes which she follows. You can find it here.

I highly recommend that web site. She has a recipe for vanilla custard that I made yesterday. AWESOME. I get six "meals" a day now. A meal might be 3 ounces of jello, pudding, or soup. Three ounces. That's it. Measure out three ounces of something, pour it in a bowl. Take a look. That's a meal. One item. Three ounces. Six times a day.

Wanna hear something bizarre?

It's too much.

I've only been able to squeak in 5 meals a day. Incredible for me. I'm supposed to get 48-64 ounces of water a day too. I drink nonstop and the most I've done is about 35 ounces. Unreal.

So anyhow, about that ticker.

I am changing my starting weight because there's documented proof that within the past six months it's been a bit higher than what's there. I also want to change my goal to a more realistic 160. At least for now. 150 scares me. Most will tell you that I would be entirely too thin at that weight. I'm 5'7-1/2" and VERY large boned. My surgeon's office says my normal range is 147-167. Hmmm... maybe I'll split the difference and go with 157. Yep. That's what I'm going to do. I won't change my current weight until sometime Saturday, though. You all will get bored with that if I do it too often.

The pup's growling. He wants to go for a walk, I'm sure. When Adam brought me in from the doctor's office this morning we found the pup had gotten into raw spaghetti and scattered it all over the kitchen. I had planned on a walk right then but he made me mad!!! Guess it's time. Now he's whining.

Have a great week everyone!!!!

Better than Expected

I am so thankful to be doing better than I expected after this surgery. I wasn't quite sure what I was expecting but on Monday evening when they wanted me to merely dangle my feet off the edge of the bed and stand long enough for them to straighten the bedding, I thought I was going to pass out.

Tuesday morning I took my first walk. I made it half way down the hall and back to my room.

OH!!! MY ROOM!! Let me tell you about my room!!

I was on a floor that handles mainly bariatric patients and other surgical patients when extra room is needed for them. There were two surgeries scheduled for that day but the other one got canceled. When Adam and I arrived at the hospital we found out that they have two private rooms on the floor and they give those to bariatric patients on a first come, first serve basis. Not only do they have two private rooms, one is a VIP room. THAT is the room I was put in because I was the first bariatric patient there. The six who came the next day had to share rooms.

My room was gorgeous with scalloped curtains, shiny hardwood floors with marble looking trim around the edge of the floor, and very stylish wallpaper. Not only that, the staff was WONDERFUL. Many times, a nurse would pull up a chair and just chat about anything and everything. It was a great stay.

Anyhow, by the time I came home I was going CLEAR to the end of the hall (my room was on the other end) and back 4 times. I was also doing steps. And yesterday PK and I took a pretty nice walk. So all in all, it's not been as horrible of an experience as I was expecting. I'm not sure what I expected but I did not expect to feel as good as I do right now. Sure, I have to move slow especially getting up and down but it's okay.

Now about my weight at this point. I checked into the hospital weighing 248. I'd lost since I first posted that little meter here on my site but that was mostly from the whole colon cleansing routine I had endured the day before surgery. Before surgery they warned me to not be alarmed when 24 hours after surgery they weigh me the first time and I find I've gained ten to twenty pounds.

Excuse me?

OUCH!!!

Sure enough, true to their word, I found I gained 18 pounds. Yikes!!! It would have really upset me however they had warned me and explained it would be all water from the massive amount of IV fluid I would have pumped into me. By the time the IV came out on Thursday my kidneys were functioning finally (another story) and I had lost about half that weight. I got on the scales yesterday to find I am only a few pounds above my check in weight.

Today is Saturday and I've decided that Saturday each week will be the day I update the meter above so for what it's worth, I'm now only 1.5 pounds above my check in weight.

Check back each Saturday for the update as I melt away!!!

First Day Home

So PK's here. Between her and Adam I'm strictly sticking to my eating schedule. Don't worry. That's not as bad as it sounds. It's not like I am trying to eat things that I shouldn't have. I'm not tempted by food at all right now. Well, wait. I saw oreo is making cake cookies. If and when I reach my weight goal I will let myself try one of those just because they look awesome. But seriously the eating problem I'm having is keeping up and eating everything I'm supposed to.

I'm given a half hour to eat three ounces of something or a whole hour to drink 4 ounces of water. Occasionally I get half an hour to "rest" where I don't do anything however it seems to me as though that half hour goes by way to quickly or I'm playing catch up. It's just not easy to keep up on this schedule.

Today - my first day home - I've had sugar free jello, a little bit of crystal light peach tea, some beef broth (gag) and a lot of water. In a little bit I'm going to have a hot cup of decaf tea with sweetener in it for supper.

I'm looking forward to my evening snack though. I get a sugar free Popsicle!!!!!! I know that doesn't sound like much BUT I'm looking forward to it like a little kid. In fact, I'm looking forward to it so much that PK has been using it as leverage. She's threatened to dangle it over my head in order to get me to do other things I don't want to do...... like eat more gross broth for supper. We all negotiated and decided I get tea instead. So while Adam and PK eat chicken, coleslaw, bread and pie, I'll be doing a cup of tea. Don't feel sorry for me though. The tea sounds good. The other sounds like torture.

Gosh, it's going to be nice to be thin.

The two of them are a team when it comes to changing my dressing. I have an 8 or so inch incision and 4 smaller wounds from the drains which need cleaned and covered. Things were going well until Adam held his hand out to PK and said "scalpel." PK said "No, we've done that, we're gluing her back together."

Ouch. It hurts to laugh.

And poor PK. Bad enough being exposed to my bare belly, she's had a few shots of my bare boobs too. I commented on that and she says "yeah, I have two of those too." Nothing's phasing her and she seems to like my pup so for sure, she can stay as long as she wants. Liking the pup is a prerequisite to staying here. She passes with flying colors.

All in all she and Adam are making a great team. I try to comply for the most part but broth is nasty stuff. I really can't wait till tomorrow when I advance from a CLEAR liquid diet to a FULL liquid diet which means I get to add sugarfree pudding, strained creamed soups, thin oatmeal, thin mashed potatoes, and cottage cheese. Yum.

Quick Post

As much as I would love to answer emails and comments individually, I simply can't at this time. Tomorrow they will make sure there are no leaks in my system and then they will feed me a few liquid items - broth, jello, etc. If all is well,I will be sent home. In the meantime I want you to now I've read all comments, emails, and e-cards and appreciate every word of support and encouragement you've written.

Today they took my cath out. I still have needles in both hands and two drain tubes in my abdomen. Assuming all goes well tomorrow I'm looking forward to all that being removed. Oh and they finally removed my oxygen tonight. So anyhow thank you for all support and encouragement.

Thanks Everyone

PK here! The surgery is over and Eva is back in her room. To get all the details I have click here!

Now you will see why I have been so supportive of the surgery, it has all been a blatant attempt to steal her readership!

Before I head to bed tonight I just wanted to take a quick minute to thank you all for your warm wishes, comments, emails, and support. I love you all!!!

We have to leave the house at 5:30 so we're headed to bed kind of early. I'm hoping to get a few good hours of sleep. It's been a long day so that shouldn't be a problem.

I'll be back sometime before this time next week.

In the meantime, PK, keep them all posted here...

Upcoming Surgery

There's a lot going on.

First off, take a minute and notice the above Ticker. Yes, I know. I'm disclosing my weight which is very hard to do however, I wanted to find a way to share my progress with you. My starting weight is what I weighed on May 11 of this year. I've managed to lose 35 pounds by making a few dietary changes. I cut out diet pop and all white carbs... bread, rice, potatoes, pasta.

Anyhow, I will be updating the ticker once a week so stay tuned and watch me melt!!!!

My back no longer hurts. People are coming right out and asking why- if my back isn't hurting and I've lost that much weight - am I still going through with the surgery.

Easy.

There's a number of reasons.

I need the permanence that the surgery will provide. I want/need that continual reminder nagging at me to watch what I eat and more importantly HOW MUCH I eat.

My weight has gone up and down my whole life. Mostly it's been up. When it has come down it's never stayed down for long and I'm tired of being a yo yo. I know. This surgery will NOT stop that but it will help ME to stop it.

Adam and I talked about it. We're celebrating our 26th anniversary in a couple weeks. We know each other well and we both agree that if I do not follow through with the surgery now, I will only gain the weight back and then some.... and be kicking myself for not having followed through.

Another thing..... HELLLLLLLOOOOOOOO.... I still have over 100 pounds to lose. That's a lot. I need HELP. I do not have it in me to stay the course without the aid of this procedure.

So that's pretty much why I'm still going through with it.

I've been having some trouble sleeping. Adam said I even talked in my sleep the other night. I NEVER talk in my sleep. He said he and the pup both sat up and looked at me. He couldn't understand what I was saying though. I told him I wasn't surprised. I dreamed I was at work. A coworker and I were looking in this big mirror and he's saying "I'm telling you, there are ghosts living in that mirror. Look harder." And then these white love seats came into view inside the mirror but I couldn't see the ghosts.

Damn Harry Potter.

Yes, I got the books. I'm only on the first one but I know it is why I had that dream.

Offspring #1 is home. She lives about 2 hours west of the Mississippi. She flew in. Picked her up at the airport late last night. She's here till next Wednesday. I feel bad that she took the time off work to come home for my surgery. I didn't ask her to. She wanted to. On the way home from the airport I told her all that. She said, "shut up." So I did. It wasn't in a mean way or anything. It was in a "mom, I love you" way.

I found a blender which crushes ice and is a food processor too. I'm in my glory. It crushes ice to the consistency of a smoothie that you can only buy at the mall. How cool is that? Protein smoothies!! I had one this morning. Awesome!!! And the pitcher part of the blender, is big, fat and made of glass. Very sturdy, durable. I like it a lot.

Sunday is a big day. Clear liquids, dulcolax, and enemas for me. Yeeee hawwwww. I can hardly contain the excitement!!! Then on Monday we have to be at the hospital by 7:30 a.m. and my surgery is scheduled for 10:30. I don't think I'll be back on before that since I want to spend time with my family these next few days and there's a lot to do. So you all take care!! And keep checking back.

I'll have PK bust in here and post updates next week, if she wouldn't mind and I will update myself ASAP. I'm due home from the hospital one week from today if all goes well. All warm, fuzzy, good thoughts and prayers are appreciated!! I love you all!!!

PAP Results and Barney Fife

I told Adam that 2 1/2 years of Zoloft is a good thing.

Used to be that I would appear angry in most circumstances. Well the truth is, I probably was torqued about something most of the time. Now though I can walk into places - such as my gynos office - and jokingly say "I'm here to be one of THOSE annoying pain in the butt patients."

The receptionist is a woman I've known since I was about 8 years old. She asked what was going on. I explained to her that the surgeon has yet to receive the documents needed, blah, blah, and blah.

She told me to wait, that she's pretty sure she had seen that on the docs desk very recently. She was gone a while. When she returned she had my file in her hand and showed me PROOF that 2 days earlier they had faxed multiple pages.

Hmmmmm......

She then recommended that I call the surgeon and have them double check and if they STILL didn't have it, they would need to call and request it again.

I did that.

They didn't have them. I gave them the number to call. Told them who to ask for. Also told them this was really stressing me out and asked for a phone call pretty please letting me know if/when they got them.

Ten minutes later, as I'm walking through the grocery store, my phone rings.

And all is well.

I went home, put groceries away, showered, and headed back out to get Adam. We drove to the hospital where surgery is to be held for my pre-surgical testing.

It was pretty routine.

The gave me the details as to what time to be at the hospital, etc. I met the anesthesiologist. I had blood drawn. I had an EKG. Blah, blah, blah. Oh, and on the day of my surgery they will do a pregnancy test. If I'm pregnant, the surgery is off. ROFL

Yeah, whatever.

Adam and I stopped for a quick lunch because it was almost 3:00 and I'd had to do the fast thing for the testing and I barely had any water and nothing to eat all day. And like your area probably is, ours too is hot and humid.

I returned him to work and headed home.

It was then that I started to realize that finally ALL hoops had been jumped through. This is really going to happen. Nothing can stop me now.

Ummmmm.......

Well..........

Did you read the comments from yesterday's post? PK said something about the long arm of the law being after me??

Yeah well.....

I get home and there's a letter to me from our county sheriff. Can you guess what that's about?

JURY DUTY!!!

Geeze. I have NEVER been summoned for that. I honestly wouldn't mind doing it and think it would really be interesting but here's the deal: Exactly one week after surgery I am to appear at the courthouse every ... EVERY ... morning at 8:30. Until I'm selected for a jury or discharged.

A close friend of mine did this a couple years ago. She went every morning and often sat there till noon when finally given a lunch break. Then she'd be sent home at a later time. Finally after a couple weeks of that, she spent a couple more weeks actually sitting on a jury.

For one thing, I won't be allowed to drive. For another, do you know what the diet is like in the beginning after this surgey? It's constant eating and sipping small amounts not sitting waiting for hours to be let go to the greasy spoon diner across the street from the courthouse.

Can they make me postpone my surgery?

My surgeon's office said if that happens, they can't get me in until NOVEMBER!!!

Ummm... I don't think so, Barney Fife.

In all fairness, the letter said that if I am unable to serve that I must write a letter explaining why and if it's medical I must have a Doctor's excuse.

That has already been faxed to Adam at work. He'll bring it home tonight. (I'm writing this friday night)

The letter is written. It's very polite. I had PK proof it for me so I'm sure she'll have some comment about that.

I will mail it tomorrow which is today ... Saturday. I will mail it Saturday.

They say that I will receive a letter from them as to whether or not I can be excused. I'm trusting that it won't be a problem but you just never know. And if that's the case, not showing up for this is contempt of court naturally.

I could be fined AND jailed.

Get that bail money ready, folks.

Juror #21 is having surgery. In 10 days. Not three months. Ten days.