Yesterday I went and saw both my physician and my surgeon for my 3-month post-op checkup.

• All in all it was a great report...I'm down 84 lbs.
• My blood pressure is normal
• Sleep apnea gone
• GURD is gone
• My feet are drastically improved

However, my umbilical hernia is back. :( I need to have that repaired within the next 3 months no exceptions. I know it is for my benefit, but I dread telling my boss that I need to take 2 more weeks off work after being off just 3 months ago for 12 weeks. ACK.

OH and here is something I would like to pass on to people (I didn't know it, and find it fascinating). Earlier in December, I wrote that my legs were horribly swollen. So swollen, in fact, that I couldn't flex my ankles. They put me on a water pill which helped, but I wanted to find out why.

At that time, I hadn't yet tried Inspire or BElieve*. I was NOT getting my protein in--not even remotely close. Well that is why my legs swelled up! Both my physician and my surgeon (2 separate visits) told me that not getting adequate protein will make your legs swell because if protein cannot be found in the blood stream, it goes to tissue to find it. So if you are reading this and you are new to the process, make a commitment that no matter what you will get in as much protein as you are able. I do NOT have circulatory problems, which was my biggest concern (or that I was in kidney failure--I'm not, thank goodness).

Since that time, however, I've been taking Inspire and/or BElieve (I tried lots of proteins out there, and these are perfect for me). I don't have the problem anymore--not even when flying.

Speaking of flying, I don't need my seatbelt extender anymore! That is a huge NSV for me!Oh and I went and bought my first new bra after my dr's appts... I went from a 46 to a *40*!!! Can't get over it!!

(NOTE: BElieve and Inspire are products from www.bariatriceating.com . They are proteins specifically made for bariatric patients--out of the best whey protein isolates. If you have happened across this website and are exploring bariatric surgery options OR are post surgery and looking for a protein that your new pouch will like, I suggest you give this website a look-see. This is the only protein I will now ever use because I tolerate it well and it is not too much to drink. Our pouches are tiny and swollen after surgery. We need lots of protein but don't have lots of room!)

This one's for you, Michael

So it's been 11 days since the last time I posted. I ought to put in an entry. Michael (my friend) said it's about time!

I am going to the doctor on Tuesday. They called me this morning telling me there was a problem with my blood results. Oops. When I finally got ahold of the nurse, I found out that my potassium is scary low. They were so concerned they made me go back today and have it re-drawn again!

I have since heard from the doc's office and now my potassium is in the low normal range. Great. I just bought grapefruit and bananas and had a baked potato (ok, well 5 bites of a baked potato) for lunch. I *am* going to enjoy eating that grapefruit though!

Today finds me down 83 lbs. I am happy to see the scale move again. I am anxious to see what the next 2 weeks off will bring. I have a feeling travel messes with my weight loss. I'm anxious to see what the doctor and my wonderful surgeon have to say about my progress.

We have a lot of drama going on in our home. I have refrained from mentioning a lot of it here in this blog, but it is something that is quite "big" (not in a good sense) in our lives. It involves a custody battle with my husband's youngest (17 y/o) daughter.

I can't wait until she's 18. I can't wait until she is gone. My family members that read this probably will feel bad or upset that I feel this way, but I do. She had an unthinkable act committed against her by her ALLEGED "mother" and she wants to go live there... and she's bound and determined to be a BITCH until she leaves. So I'm anxious for her to be gone.

Ah well. Life has never been promised to be a joy ride. Onward and upward... and counting down the days until the 18th birthday...

So much has happened, so little time...

As of my last entry, I was having trouble eating. I still am, but it's not as bad as it was a couple months ago.

I have found that I cannot eat "dry" food. Pork chops, baked chicken, eggs (gack), etc., are all things Miss Grouchy Pouch does not like. But I'm learning... and that's made my life a LOT easier. Eating things that go down easily make me able to eat more and that makes me happy.

I started out with Chicken Noodle Soup. If the food is wet, drenched in sauce, soupy, I can eat it.

I also supplement with protein that my pouch actually likes. It's from Bariatric Eating.com and it's called Inspire. They also have Believe--a bottled version of a protein drink (think Starbucks' Frappucino in the cute bottles). That helps me get my protein in.

I have some sort of problem with swelling in my legs. For 13 weeks during my medical leave, I had NONE, and now all of a sudden my legs have swollen more severely than at any time before my surgery. A call to my beloved physician got me a prescription and I started losing weight again and going to the bathroom--a LOT. My ankles are now much better, but I will be seeing my doc in 2 weeks to find out WHY this has happened in the first place.







As of today... 3 months and 2 days... I have lost 80 lbs.







Here are some pictures to show the difference. I had such a great experience... yesterday I went to Walmart and wanted a new pair of jeans/leggings. I skipped a size and went all the way down to an 18-20... pretty heady feeling! The first picture is of me the day before my surgery. Second picture is 2 months out, and 3rd picture is 3 months out... before I lost 20 lbs this past 2 weeks. LOL.

And here's me, today, in my new jeans. Barry took the picture, so the angle is odd, but you get the idea :)

Discouraged...

It's been some time since I've posted. Since I last submitted an entry, I was able to come back home to my husband, for which I was very thankful. Homecoming was sweet, but my time has been so short.

I am completely healed. I can lift again, I walk 2 miles a day with Leslie Sansone. My feet still cause me some problems; however, I perservere. My walks are uber important and rare is the day I miss one.

To date, I have lost 53 lbs. YESSSSSSS!

My clothes hang on me. I have nothing new to wear, which is ok--I am not buying new clothes during this leg of the journey.

So what's my problem?

I can't eat.

I have no appetite and no cravings. And all I can eat is 4 bites.

There will be a call to my surgeon tomorrow. I kept thinking I would get past this. That it was part of the healing. I don't know if it is normal. If it is, ok, then. Fine. If it is not then I need to know what to do.

Seriously... FIVE bites and I'm in visiting the toilet to get rid of that 5th bite.

So I just don't understand. Hopefully understanding will come tomorrow when I call Dr. Jandali.

More entries to come. My 2nd month post-op picture will be at the end of the week!

I love my surgeon!

Yesterday afternoon, I saw my surgeon for the last time before going home. I absolutely love my surgeon--he is such a caring individual and always is there to help--no matter what.

I was weighed and my weight loss is now 44 lbs in under 5 weeks. This was an afternoon weigh-in, not a first-thing-in-the-morning weigh-in, so I'm sure it's a bit less. Dr. Jandali was THRILLED. I said, "I've done good, haven't I?!" and he said, "You did better than good; you're doing EXCELLENT."

More than any other accolade I've ever received, I felt as though I just graduated Summa Cum Laude from Harvard.

He has released me to go home, he let me go on soft foods and wants to see me in February. I got their e-mail address to mail my pictures to them. He said to me, "We are a phone call away." I know he means it.

I'm on my way. The path will not always be easy, but I know I have a wonderful team watching, encouraging and supporting me.

Life is good. And I am so very thankful for such a good start.

November 6--One month post-op

Today is my 1-month anniversary. I am down about 40 lbs. in the first month. I look forward to more months of continued success!

A week from Monday I am finally able to go home. I cannot wait--so anxious to be with my family again.

Today finds me with a lump in my gullet; I swallowed some water too quickly. This is one of the "downs" in the "ups & downs" of life as a bariatric patient!

Though I don't know that *I* can tell a difference, here are my pre-op and current pictures:

Onward and downward

Week 3, I have now lost a total of 34 lbs. My nausea was not subsiding at all; I asked Dr. Shepler about it and he handily prescribed me a nausea pill. Little miracle workers, they! I am delighted that I was free of nausea for the first time in a couple weeks. I instantly became a happy camper.





I continue to walk. Somedays I get 4 walks in; other days 2.





My plans to go home have been finalized--finally! I get to go home on the 15th. I can't express enough gratitude to my sister for all her hospitality and being there for me. I think she was the exactly right person for this role. I hope someday I can appropriately thank her though she would say it isn't necessary. I'm just anxious to go home and be with my family.





Never did I think I would be here for two months. I was thinking 6 weeks. But that's not how it worked out. Two weeks doesn't seem that long, but it is.





Last weekend we went to Amish country. I loved seeing the sheaves of corn stalks in the fields...

Anyway, I go to the doctor tomorrow. I am 4 weeks post-op today. I will be anxious to see what the scale is doing. I still have a weird unjustified fear that I have gotten to 30 lbs., and that's all it's going to be.

I cannot wait to get onto soft foods. I am pretty tired of refried beans, egg beaters and so on. Tonight I am going to try lentil soup... while my sister has BBQ ribs. LOL... the injustice! Ah well, I don't regret it. Once my food options open up a bit, I'll be a bit more satisfied. I go to soft foods on the 9th. Can't wait!