One Month Out! Down 20lbs!

Well, It's hard to believe I'm one month out now.. I'm not having any trouble. I was down 21 1/2 lbs Wednesday at my doctor visit and I've lost 3 more since :) . I now weight 226.5. I'm not ever physicaly hungry and I have plenty of restriction, but not too much. I've tried grilled salmon and yesterday I had 2 small meatballs. No problems :). We are going to Disney World the first week of October so I am relieved to be able to eat comfortably. I can eat about 2 oz of protein before I'm full. Some days 3 oz. I feel great.. I do get a little dizzy every now and then. Not sure what that's about. I'm anxious to get my blood work back... I'm hoping it all looks good as I haven't missed a single day of my vitamins. I couldn't be happier!

Three Weeks Out and Feeling Good!

Yesterday was three weeks since surgery. I'm down 19lbs!! Yay!! Plus I lost 18lbs pre-op. My pre-op highest weight was 268. My surgery starting weight was 250. Today I was 231. I'm 5'5". People are noticing my weight loss already! I feel great and I'm starting to adjust to my new life. I definitely feel restriction, however I am able to eat more than most at this point. It doesn't bother me anymore because I'm really not hungry and I do get satisfied and 1/4 to 1/2 cup of food. The restriction is greatest in the morning before 11am and in the evenings after 7pm. As for new foods, I have recently tried tuna salad. I was able to eat 5 ounces, a whole can, but I didn't feel good afterward. No pain, just too full, nauseous and uncomfortable. The next time I ate tuna salad I had only 2 ounces and about ten Special K crackers and felt good, satisfied. The best part is, I really have to make myself eat most days. I'm just not too interested in food. Sometimes I'll think something sounds good, but by the time I make it and get ready to eat, I'm over it. I'm starting to have trouble getting in my protein. I'm not interested in food or drink and that makes it hard to get motivated to drink the shakes. I have made it to at least 50 grams most days. My surgeon would like me at 70 grams. I'm hoping as I add more meat it will get easier. I have started a food journal on livestrong.com.. this link should take you to it http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/diary/who/ . It's not perfect. I do a lot of tracking from my iPhone and I have noticed duplicate posts several times and one or two inaccurate protein counts on things. All in all, it is very useful to me and helps me know that I'm on track. I'm eating between 400 and 800 cals a day. I usually get closer to 800 on weekends and stay pretty low during the week. I have noticed my energy level in the evening is a little low, but I've been very busy lately and doing a lot of running around. As far as pain goes, if I do much twisting or bending I get sore in my right side where my largest incision is. Other than that I feel good. I'm able to sleep in any position now. I really missed sleeping on my tummy. Now, I'm looking forward to my 1 month check up next week and hopefully seeing the 220s in a few days.

The Melt Down...

Ok.... So I had a little freak out the other day. At my one week check up I got the ok to start softs early, when and if I felt ready. I'd had the pureed soup with no problem and I felt ready to move onto something else. So, I ate a string cheese, with no problem, and I felt no restriction. I had a melt down. I cried. I felt like before surgery. I felt like I could have eaten more with no problem. I didn't, of course, because I don't want to put pressure on my new sleeve. I also ate a banana with no problem that same day. I was fully prepared to not be able to eat or drink, but to be able to eat so much so soon... I was not prepared for this. I had 80 grams of protein and 800 calories that day and it just felt like too much. I felt like I was getting too many carbs with soft foods and too many calories already. I made a synth -6 protein shake for breakfast the other morning that had 33g of protein and 300 cals! I couldn't bring myself to drink that many calories. I poured it out. It just seems like too much.

Since that melt down, I have calmed down. I realize that I do feel restriction and I'm not eating nearly as much as I did pre-op. The good people on the Obesity Help VSG Forum helped me through it. They reassured me that I am feeling restriction now, I will get better restriction when I'm able to eat more solid food, and that I will be successful. I realized that I'm so used to failing at diets, that deep down, I still believe that I will fail at this too. It is just a tool and I will have to make good choices. The Sleeve is going to keep me from eating the quantities I used too. I can do this.

I'm only down 2 more pounds this week for just over 12 lbs for 2 weeks. Not bad. I wish it was more. For as few calories as I'm eating I felt like it should have been more. However, I am eating more solid food now and most people do lose less the week they make the switch to soft foods. I'm hoping this is the case with me. I do feel really good. My energy level is almost 100%. I'm not taking any pain meds, but do still have soreness on the right side with my large incision. All in all. I'm pleased with my progress.

Yummy Pureed Soup

I was doing so well at my one week check up yesterday, I got approval to start pureed early. So, I made this soup and it was so yummy I had to share!
Creamy Tomato Bean Soup
add 1 can bean with bacon soup
add 1 can tomato soup
fill one empty can with skim milk- add
fill one empty can with water - add
Puree ALL
Heat.

153 Cal., 6.5g Protein, 2.5g Fat - Per 1/2 Cup (approximately)
Yummy.. I ate 1/2 cup no problem. I added a little extra skim milk to thin it even more.

One Week Post-Op - Almost :)

Tomorrow I'll be one week post op. Its hard to believe. Time flies when your having fun! I'm so happy right now. I was sitting here thinking about how miserable I was before surgery. I felt like there was no hope. I was stuck. I couldn't loose weight and keep it off and I was for whatever reason, I was not moving forward with surgery. That reason will have to be another post, another day. But now? Now? Now, I already feel like I'm shrinking! I've lost 9.5 lbs as of this morning and I feel great. Besides the occasional twinge of pain or rumble in the tummy that is. Definitely not anything I can't handle. I even tried a yogurt today with no problem. It's doesn't appear that I'm lactose intolerant! I'm so excited about that because I love milk. I've also been drinking a lot of ISOPURE this week. You get it at GNC. Its a clear liquid drink in fruit flavors. It resembles Gatorade, but not as strong. I don't like Gatorade, but I like this. It has, I think it's 40g protein. Tomorrow is my one week check up with Dr. Weiss. I can't wait. I don't know why. I'm sure it'll be short and sweet and, it's such a drive.

I'm Sleeved!!!

I'm Sleeved! It took a while to get everything in order. Longer than I expected for self-pay, but I got it done. The pre-op tests I had done were EKG, ECHO, lab work, chest xray, hp pylori, psych eval, and pulmonary function test. Everything was fine and I was sleeved on Wednesday 7-29-09. I woke up from surgery in quite a bit of pain. Mainly from gas that had settled under my sternum and rib cage. As soon as I was out of recovery and in my room I was up and walking trying desperately to get some relief. Relief did finally come, however it took several hours. By the next morning I was feeling like a new woman. I did have a qball to help with pain but it was determined once it was removed that it was not working. I was glad to know that because I had felt like quite a wimp. I took any and all pain meds they would give me that first day and night, but by the next day I was off the Morphine and on liquid Lortab only. As long as I took it every 4 hours I felt fairly good. I stayed 2 nights in the hospital and went home on Friday. I'm very sore still. I feel like I've done a million sit ups and the spot where my drain was is also very tender. It hurts if I move to quickly or try to sleep in any position other than on my back. I have to say I was not prepared for how painful the surgery would be. That first day and night I was really regretting what I had done. I felt way more pain that I had with my c section or previous ectopic pregnancies. Don't let this scare you.. it didn't last too long and I slept through most of the pain. In less than 12 hours I was felling so much better. I have had no trouble drinking. If I drink too many sips too fast it does feel like it gets kind of stuck and sometimes I get foam in my throat and I feel like I need to spit. I vomited once after surgery and it was right after I got to my room. It was a mix of blood and phlem. No other vomiting. I did lots of burping and I still am. I am amazed at the fact I can eat 1/2 a Popsicle and feel full. I have no desire to eat and sticking to a liquid diet is no problem at this point. I've been mostly drinking Syntrax Nectar protein drinks and Crystal Light. I've had a lot less trouble drinking than I expected. It's a nice surprise. I'm feeling fairly good and looking forward to losing this weight! Dr.Weiss was wonderful and so was his staff. Dr. Weiss visited me twice and his PA visited once. Dr. Dink, another doctor in his practice visited me on Friday to let me go home. I was impressed by the number of visits I got from the Dr. Weiss and his staff. Also, Angie, from CBH was in on my surgery and came to visit me twice as well. The best visitor I had by far was Ashley.. She was sleeved 10 months ago and we have been talking back and forth on OH. She is the one who told me about Dr. Weiss and CBH. She looks fabulous and seeing her amazing progress gave me the strength to get through the pain. Thanks Ashley!! You are the best!