2 years after WLS, still going strong

WOW, it's been a while since I posted anything on this site. sorry for anyone who I left hanging. I reached my goal and have lost 90 pounds. That was over a year ago and I just celebrated my 2 year anniversary of WLS. Surgery was not a magic pill more a head start or perhaps a re-start on learning how to eat and maintain healthy eating habits. I would do it again in a heartbeat. I will post a current picture which will close the chapter of this section of the blog site. The new section will be all about being a Pastor's wife and running a business. that's right, nothing in my life has slowed. As a matter of fact, things are speeding up. There has been a lot of loving, laughter and crying through this journey. Thank you for taking this journey with me. Let's see where the next one leads.

Ready for Real Food!

You know, when I read the Stage 2 food list, creamed soups (strained for any lumps) sugar free pudding, Sugar free Jello, Cottage Cheese, and of course protein shakes, I thought cool this will be easy. Well let me tell you it's not. I'm so tired of eating these foods, and although it's only 1/4 cup of each three times a day, do you really know how many servings are in a full can soup? 12. That's right, there are 12 little containers in my fridge of Cream of potato, and since I was already tired of the cream of Potato by day 2 there are also 12 containers of cheese broccoli and cream of mushroom. Now, before surgery I loved cream soups with Saltine crackers. Heck I could eat a whole can without blinking with about 10 - 15 saltine crackers. well that was the past. I cannot eat that much now. So food has become very boring for me. Now what is a lover of food look forward to.

Recovering well.

Hi All, Well today is day 3 post op and I'm doing pretty good. The pain is very minimal and mostly caused by build up gas from the CO2 that they use. The incisions don't hurt at all. Surgery went well, 1.5 hours and I was in recovery. 4 hours after surgery I was up walking. I walk as much as I can because it helps to lessen the gas pressure. Last night was a better night sleep for me as well. First night home was Thursday. That's right, I spent one night in the hospital and home sweet home I went. I was pretty miserable the first night at home, due to not getting comfortable enough to sleep. I slept on the couch that night with pillows all around me. Last night however I was able too sleep in my own bed. Food is getting boring fast since I'm on stage II food which creamed soups, protein shakes, pudding, applesauce, and jello's. I will be eating like this for two weeks before advancing to Stage III foods.

Surgery Day Tomorrow

Today was a list of all list day. Make a list of things I need to do, what did the list say to pack, what was on the grocery list, what was the list of things we wanted to do around the house before I leave. List, list,list. I started the day reading the list of "Things to do the day before surgery". I woke up at 8:30 am and the list said to drink two tablespoons of Mile of Magnesia, so I did, then an hour later I ate breakfast, the list said only liquids today, so I had a protein shake for breakfast. with in an hour, I was going to the bathroom. I spent more time in the bathroom today, then I think I did all week. (was not a good day for anything) Next on the list it said, "call the Admitting office to see what time to show up" So, I called. the admitting office said, "you need to be here at 6:00 am. ??? oh my Lord, that means I have to get up and out of the house by 4:00 am. no, not because live 2 hours away, because the list also said arrive one hour early to make sure you have time to walk 45 minutes - 1 hour to reduce the risk of blood clots. I'm so blessed that I have Mike. He will be driving me at dark"o"Clock..I received a lot of phone calls and Facebook posts today saying people were praying for me. I love my life, so filled with wonderful people. Well friends, I won't be blogging until I get home from the hospital, so if all goes right, you'll hear from me Friday August 6th. Good night and God Bless.

2 Days Before Surgery

This weekend we went Camping with some dear friends at Lake of the Springs, CA. It was in the low to mid 90's and we spent a quite a bit of time in the water and took some nice long walks, I also took some pictures of me in my swimsuit, which I would have NEVER been brave enough to do if I wasn't about to have surgery. We got to test out Mike's new car (Scion xB) as a camping car. It hauled everything beautifully as well as was roomy enough to fit our air mattress to sleep in. WOW, we have a mini RV now "Smile", normally we just put up our tent, but this time there really wasn't room for our big tent (sleeps 6) due to the space that was rented, so the truck/mini RV, came in very handy.

Two days before surgery and I still have several things to get accomplished. I have to get my pedicure, do the laundry from our trip, pack my hospital bag as well as take a nap, I'm exhausted.

Leave of Absence

Yesterday was my last day of work. The day of surgery is getting closer and closer. I had a Great time at Celebrate Recovery last night and can't believe I won't be back for three weeks. Today's agenda, shopping for Stage 2 foods. Stage 1 foods are only while i'm in the hospital. Which consists of clear liquids. (chicken broth, vegetable broth, diluted juice, sugar free Popsicles, and sugar free Jello, water, and decaffeinated coffee) I'll be in the hospital for only 2 days. The day I come home I start Stage 2 foods, which consists of soft blended foods. (cottage cheese, yogurt, protein shakes, sugar free apple sauce, milk, and strained soups, no lumps.) well, off to the store I go.

The Surgeon

The surgeon was busy at the moment and I was finished talking to the doctor, so I was asked to go downstairs to get a chest x-ray and EKG and when I was done, come back up and by then the surgeon would be ready to see me. Mike says to me, “Honey, it looks like they have you on the fast track” I was still fixated on having a baby, or even the idea of being able to have one. We’ve tried several times in the past. And I looked at him and said. “We could have a baby” He just smiled at me. When I was done getting my chest x-ray and EKG, I headed back upstairs. The Surgeon walked into the room and asked me if I was ready to have surgery tomorrow. I am not kidding I about fell out of the chair, the gasp and my loud NO, was all it took for him to start laughing. Whew, I thought, he was joking. But no he wasn’t. Yes he was about the tomorrow comment, but not about having it very soon. He talked about the gastric sleeve and what it would entail, and commented on my weight loss in 4 weeks. He then asked my husband if he could use him to teach other people how to eat, since my husband was the one that did all the cooking for me. They both laughed but I’m still in Shock. He asked me if I was ready for August 4^th. I told him no that I would need to go home and think about it, Talk to my friends and family and most important pray about it, he was very understanding.

The referral process

The referral through Kaiser Permanente is a process of its own. “Hope you’re not in a hurry to get surgery, it’s a 1 year process” was the first thing that they said to all of us day one. Then they proceeded to go through a 3 hour orientation of what the surgery entails, how many different choices they have, and what your diet will be like for the rest of your life, oh and did I forget that there is a pre-op diet to follow, and I will have to lose a required amount of weight before I even get scheduled to see the surgeon. I call this first orientation, “The Gate Keeper”, 3 hours of the good, bad and the ugly. There were 15 people in the meeting with me and I have to tell you, I was second guessing going through with it by the time the class was over. However when the class was completed they said “If you still want to proceed, email your Dr. and tell them yes, this will start Phase 1.”