"Finally" made it!

The last couple months the scale has been slow in moving, but I have now made my ultimate weight loss goal of being below 200 lb!!! I am 199.4 lb as of last Friday :-) I had to wait to get some pics before I posted my awesome news because I knew you would be asking- hahaha! It is very exciting to be in this new body and to look back at what my body looked like only 7 months ago. Can you believe that? It has been only 7 months since I started on this journey and less than 5 months since my surgery. What an accomplishment! I feel very blessed that I have had such success in my journey, that is for sure.

At this point in my journey I feel pretty "normal." I can eat anything anyone else would eat, I just have a small portion. For instance, I might have an egg with cheese and a slice of deli ham for breakfast, half a turkey/cheese sandwich on wheat or oat nut bread for lunch, some sort of protein rich snack and a small pork chop with green beans and mashed potatoes for dinner. Pretty darn "normal" right? LOL I feel really good and am happy with my body. It sags and drags in places it "shouldn't" but that is a small price to pay to be healthy and hopefully soon be able to conceive a baby!!!

Aaron's urology appointment got rescheduled to December and I am now waiting to ovulate, so who knows! Things are in God's hands right now :-)

So Close!

So, I am sooo close to the 200 lb mark- it's killing me! LOL I am at 202.8 lb at this point (113 lbs down!) and I am just waiting for the morning where I will step on the scale and hit the 199 mark. I can't wait! That will be quite the personal victory for me :)

A couple weeks ago I decided I wanted to try to start getting involved in some organized sports again, so I went out to the Elk Grove community center where the city volleyball league was starting. I didn't have a team and had to sign up as a "free agent" on their web site, but I got to join a team who needed a female for the night. I am still hoping I will find a team this week (this is the last week to add players) but most teams seem like they have enough players :-/ I also listed myself as a free agent for softball and got an email about joining a co-ed softball team for next season, but I want to get going doing some kind of sport NOW! LOL I should sign up as a free agent for BBall as well and see what I can pick up. It is nice to be back playing, though. And my knee hasn't bothered me at all! yay!

On the fertility front.... I have been asked several times if my cycles have started up on their own yet, and no... they havn't. I started a round of provera last night, so I should get a visit from Aunt Flo in a week or so. I guess I can let the cat out of the bag by saying Aaron and I are able to "not prevent" at this point and in December we should be cleared to start medical intervention, including insemination. So, we will see what happens. Hopefully my body will decide to start working the way it is supposed to again and everything will come together the way it is supposed to. Oh! And Aaron has a urology appointment to go over our options with his low counts and the studies Aaron found linking male factor infertility and anti-depressants. I'll keep everyone updated as that progresses.

I will take some pics soon. I did some one Sunday, but they didn't come out looking very good and I dont want to show them off! LOL So, for now, here is a pic of me carrying William at the pumpkin patch a couple weeks ago :)

No relief

Hi everyone! I have not yet had any relief in my flank pain or abdomen pain. I went to the Dr this week to be checked out and she agreed with the ulcer diagnosis and thought the flank pain MIGHT be kidney stones or a kidney infection, so she ordered a urinalysis and x-rays. They came back showing nothing, so we still don't really know what the flank pain is about. Maybe I just need a chiropractic adjustment!?! haha

This week Aaron did his latest semen analysis. We were really hoping it would show some good improvement since he has been on the hormone therapy for almost a year now, but it was actually worse. After a few hours of crying and feeling sorry for ourselves, Aaron got on line and started researching to try to find SOMETHING that might help his sperm count. He found some very interesting information in this search.... He found that Prozac and other SSRIs can cause male factor infertility in the areas of sperm count and morphology (the amount of abnormal vs normal sperm). These studies he found were done by VERY prestigious universities, so it was pretty safe to say they are legit. Aaron took this information to his psych appointment on Thursday and his psychologist was thoroughly shocked and agreed that Aaron should go off the Prozac. So, he will be gradually reducing his dose over the next couple weeks and then he will retest with another semen analysis in three months (that is how long it takes to produce sperm). Aaron also made an appointment with his urologist to see if there is anything he will suggest to do to improve Aaron's count. Oh, and as part of his research, Aaron also found some information on a leading Dr in the field of male factor infertility who happens to be located in San Francisco. Aaron sent them an email to see what the appointments cost, so he may try to get in with this Dr for a consult at some point. And we are also looking into acupuncture to help with male infertility. If you can't tell, we are going to do anything we can to help boost Aaron's fertility.
In other really great news, Aaron finally got his
referral for weight loss surgery, so hopefully the process will keep moving forward quickly for him :)

Here are my latest photos. I am down about 107 lb :)

Catch up

Sorry it has been so long! I have been pretty busy with lots going on, but really that is no excuse. I will try to do better

So, last week was my three month post op visit. It was a group appointment (everyone was 3-4 months post op) and was pretty easy going. We all went over the nutritional information along with the vitamins and all that jazz. We all talked through some post-op issues/complications and things like that as well.

After the appointment I talked with the internist who is taking over my care to let her know I Have been having some pain in my sides and abdomen along with lots of vomiting and she is concerned I have an ulcer. So, I had to start on two medications and did some blood work today to see if it is due to an infection called Helicobacter pylori, which I guess causes ulcers.If it is due to this infection then they will have to treat that as well. So, we will get it figured out. Right now I am just uncomfortable and sometimes have issues keeping my food down, but I can deal with it.

Today I had an appointment with my Reproductive Endocrinologist to go over the lab work I had done a couple weeks ago. My androgen levels were abnormal so I wanted to see what he thought about it and how he wanted to move forward from here. The went really well. My Doctor is very optimistic that my body will do much better after the weight loss in responding to medications and even ovulating on it's own. He ordered a progesterone test to see if I did in fact ovulate on my own last week since my BBT chart shows signs of ovulation.

He looked over my labs and said everything looks "optimal" except the testosterone, but that is was so close to being within range and had already improved a lot already. He didn't want to do anything to medicate me to try and bring it down because he feels it will likely get even better and should not affect my reaction to medications anymore at this point. He wants me to continue to chart my cycles until I am cleared to start TTC again by my surgeon, then I can contact him/his office, get any blood work they need done and get started back with IUI. He said if I am ovulating on my own they will probably add some clomid in to make sure I get a few good follies each cycle and hopefully my "new" body will respond to the clomid w/o having to do any injectable meds.

Aaron will be doing his semen analysis again after pay day (Friday) so we know what's going on with his swimmers, but the doc was very optimistic for us. This is a HUGE change from before where his view was that even IVF would not be possible for us since my ovaries just did not respond well to medication and I was so overweight he worried he would not even be able to get access to my ovaries to be able to do egg retrievals.

So, this is all really great news!! He was very proud and excited about what I have accomplished and didn't have a problem saying so many times through out the appointment.

I will post some pictures soon! I have lost 107 lbs now! YAY!

It's Official!

As of today I have lost...





100 pounds!!

EEK! I am so excited

I have only 16 pounds to go until I am at goal. I have gone from a size 28 to a size 14/16, I am no longer hypertensive, do not have sleep apnea, blood sugars are fabulous and my hormone levels are looking better (not perfect, but better). Thank you to everyone for being so supportive through this whole process. All of the positive comments from friends and family have been awesome and make me want to keep doing the best I can on this journey. THANK YOU!


Here's the pics

Hooray!

Just a quick update....

I took my last provera on Thursday (that is the pill the Dr gave me to restart my cycle) and got a visit from Aunt Flo yesterday. So, tomorrow (day three of my cycle) I will be going to get blood work taken to see where I am at hormone-wise. It will be very interesting to see what the results are. I am also excited to see if the provera will get my cycles restarted. That would be seriously awesome. Once the bleeding slows I will start taking my basal body temperature again and would be THRILLED if I start ovulating on my own. Come on body... you can do it!

Last night I was surprised when Janis, Aaron's mom, offered to take me to get a few new items of clothing. Of course I was totally up for it! hehehe. I was sooo surprised to find that I fit into size 16 pants and 14/16 tops! It feels soooooooo good! Oh, and I got fitted for a bra again and am now in a 38DDD, that is from a 48H/50G! No wonder the 44DDs have not been feeling quite right. Thank you, Janis, for taking me shopping. Not just because I got some new clothes, but it made me feel REALLY good to find I fit into the size clothing I was only hoping I would ever fit into again. I guess I need to rethink my clothing size goal!

Dr Appointment Today

for anyone who cares....

My OB/GYN appointment was today and it went well. I liked my new Doc... It was nice to have a Dr come into the room and tell me all about my medical history instead of me having to rehash it ONCE AGAIN. Seemed like she read nearly all my record because she told me all about it! That was a nice change from my last OB/GYN who asked me "why are we doing this again?" at my last biopsy. UGH! I mean could he not read my file before he comes in the room or (OMG!) possibly remember a patient with a very serious medical condition. I know my former OB/GYN remembered me and my history every time I came in. I got some provera since I havn't had a real period since march. (Provera is a synthetic progesterone that will cause my body to think it has ovulated and thus cause a withdrawal bleed in a couple weeks. Once I get my cycle, I will do CD3 blood work to check all my hormone levels to see what the status is of my PCOS. She said no on the u/s bc she said it wouldn't really tell her anything new and I would have one once i got to the infertility specialists again (OK, whatever). I forgot to ask for a referral to an endocrinologist, so I might send her an email to ask about getting one for me.

oh, and I do not have to get another referral to the infertility specialists once my surgeon gives us the green light, which is GREAT!

Life's a changin'

Hi! Life's been a little crazy so it has been hard for me to get time to give an update, but here it is...

I have been allowed to start trying new foods, which has been interesting. Some things have gone really well and others... well, lets just say there have been times I am throwing up 3-5 minutes after eating it. Yuck! A couple times I was literally throwing up into a cup while driving on the freeway. Not fun. But, it makes you learn pretty quickly what works and what doesn't!

I am now a size 16-18. Pretty soon I will have pretty much NO clothes in my closet that fit anymore. Which is good and bad all at the same time! hahaha Aaron's mom bought me a few shirts a couple weeks ago that are 18/20 (thanks janis!!) so I should be able to wear thsoe for a while even if they area too big. I will have to start hitting some thrift stores, the goodwill or SOMETHING. It seems my weight loss has kinda slowed down, but my body itself is changing rapidly. I really wish I had a gym membership so I could start toning this new body of mine, but we just cannot afford it. So, I'll just have to deal with it what I got

As I mentioned a couple posts ago, I was going to be starting a new job. Well, that happened this week! Last week was full of saying goodbye to my friends and babies at KinderCare and this week I started nannying my God Sons, William and Carlton. It has been really great so far. The commute kinda sux, but it is a sacrifice I am willing to make. (And really... the drive has given me lots of time to listen to all kinds of choir music that I need to listen to so I can chose my choir's fall/christmas music.) My friends (The parents of my God Sons) purchased a lot of supplies for us so it is really great. I have a room upstairs that we turned into a classroom and the sunroom was transformed into the car/train room as well as the art room. I love doing art with toddlers (they are 1 and 2 years old) and we have tons of really great supplies to make that happen. I love it! I have some pics I posted on facebook if you want to see them :-) http://www.facebook.com/#!/album.php...8925913&ref=mf I'll be adding some more tonight as well.

Here are some new comparison pics... A lot of people were pretty shocked at how I looked so I figure it has been too long since I last posted new pics! haha

6 Week Post-op Appointment

I saw my surgeon this past Friday for my 6 week check. Everything looked really good, he was very happy with my progress and the nutritionist was thrilled with my eating logs and feels I am doing really well.

Here's the seriously exciting part....

He thinks I will hit goal in 3-4 months! He told me previously that once I hit goal and was stable with all my labs and such he would clear me to TTC again! Holy crap! How cool is THAT! He said to expect a year or so, but because of all the weight I lost BEFORE the surgery I am way ahead of schedule. I have only 30-40 pounds to be at goal and that is SOO crazy to me!

AND, he said he wants me to get in to see my OB and possibly get a referral to an endocrinologist (not the fertility kind, a regular endocrinologist) to see where we go from here as far as my PCOS is concerned. We need to figure out what to do to test and see what the status of my PCOS is and if I should go off the metformin or not. I will have an appt with my OB/GYN in a couple weeks (ASAP) and hopefully get the ball rolling. I can only hope and pray that the PCOS is gone as well. I would LOVE to not take any meds other than my vitamins- hehehe

sorry, but this is all really good news as far as I am concerned

OH- and I have officially lost 80lbs as of today! Whoopee!!

New Pics

Allen (my brother, for those who don't know) asked me to take some new pictures. I havn't taken any for a few weeks because the changes are much more subtle at this point. I have been losing a lot in my upper thighs and upper arms, but not as much from my stomach. Last night I went to my mother in law's house with Aaron to use the hot tub. I actually LOVED how I looked in a bathing suit. Sure, I have saggy skin on my upper thighs, arms and my stomach, but I look so much more healthy. That was a great feeling...

Anyway, here are the newest pics. Thanks for asking, Allen!

Feeling Better

I am feeling much better lately. I do not take any blood pressure meds anymore, I think that was probably part of the problem with the dizziness. I still have dizzy spells every once in a while, but it is no more than one a day. And my blood pressure has stayed normal, which is FABULOUS. I also have not been using my C-PAP machine anymore (for sleep apnea.) I probably need to do a sleep study to be sure, but Aaron says I have not been snoring and waking him up, nor have I been waking up multiple times through the night.

I go back to work on Monday and will be giving my two week notice. I am going to start watching my God son's at their house. I will be making more money and it will be salary so we will know what I will get every month. It is a great opportunity financially, plus I will get to see my god sons every day! haha The only down side is I will have to drive 45 minutes each way as opposed to my current 15 minute drive. But, overall it is worth it. Plus, in the future when we do have a baby I will be able to take my baby with me to work everyday at no cost. That is just about the best alternative to being a stay-at-home mom that I Can think of!

I am now weighing 242.0lb, which is 74lb overall. Hopefully I will be out of the 240s soon!! I am finally able to get in some exercise since I am not having all the dizzy spells, so I am hoping the weight loss will pick up along with the exercise. I had to go shopping to get some new clothes for work (they changed the dress code while I was out, so I had no tops!)It was so cool to be able to shop in the regular ladies section and purchase XXL and have it fit. I mean, it is still an extra EXTRA large, but it is in regular clothing sizes. So, YAY!

sorry I havn't updated.... I have been struggling with some depression issues.


Like I have said before, I have been struggling with dehydration. The dizziness was becoming so hard to deal with and I just got so down. I went to the Dr on Monday because I couldn't take it anymore. She didn't think the dizziness had anything to do with the surgery or dehydration... she said I have vertigo. It is possible I was also suffering from Protein deficiency, because I have many of the symptoms (one of which is change in mood/depression). All my blood work to check for dehydration came back clean (I was on the low end of everything but still in normal ranges.) She gave me some pills that are supposed to help... just basically motion sickness pills. I havn't taken one yet.

Since then I have been focusing on making sure I get more protein than needed and keep drinking my water. Today I have only had a couple small dizzy spells, so that is great. Hopefully it continues to get better because I was really really down. that wasn't the only thing adding to my depression feelings, though... I have been feeling really lonely. I have had ONE friend come to see me and only one other even call to see how I am doing. (see now I start to cry...) It just makes me feel like my friends don't care... Of course, at church people come to me and ask how I Am feeling, but that is not the same as going out of their way to check on me, make sure I am doing ok and seeing if Aaron and I need help with anything. Maybe it shouldn't be a big deal, but honestly my feelings are hurt. Anyway... moving on...

I also talked with my Dr about my blood pressure because I was still having really low dips at times. I am supposed to just keep checking my blood pressure and not take my pill if it is ob the low end of normal. Aaron and I are hoping I will be able to just wean off them in the next week or so. I am only taking two now (I was taking 6) and my BP is staying within normal ranges w/o the pills. Two less pills to take is such a great thing! My Dr said my body is likely still getting used to being at such a lower weight, so I will have times my BP drops too low and times when I blood sugar gets too low as well, so I will have to be patient with it.

I am eating really well now. I am loving my eggs (egg salad, hard boiled, omelets, etc), made some tuna salad as well that is yummy. I give myself a spoonful of peanut butter every now and then to add some extra protein. That's really yummy! I made some chicken in the crock pot (with cream of chicken soup) and that was really yummy. I made some mashed pots and peas to go along with it, mostly for Aaron, but I had a couple bits as well. It felt like a REAL meal! haha


I didn't take a picture this week... I just didn't feel like it. But, I am weighing in at 246lb which is 70lb lost.

This past weekend I traveled down south to visit my family so I didn't have a chance to do my Monday update...

I am still struggling daily with dehydration. I am getting as much water in as I can, but I still can't seem to catch up. I think part of the problem is I have been having only wet/runny BMs since surgery. I don't know if that is because I am on a "full liquid" diet or if there is something else to it. I just try to rest up as much as I can and keep drinking fluid.

I have my two week follow up with the surgeon last Friday that went well. He checked out my belly button. I had been told last Monday (by the on-call bariatric nurse) to close it back up with steri strips, then when it started draining a different on-call nurse said to take off the strips, pack it with gauze and change the dressing 3 times a day, and then when he saw it he said I didn't need to pack it at all... just cover it with a gauze pad or band aide when I am wearing clothes I don't want to get drainage fluid on. Otherwise I have been keeping it uncovered and clean. It seems to be getting better, so that is really good.

My Surgeon was not happy the on-call nurse had told me to stop taking my blood pressure meds (my blood pressure was really low last week due to dehydration and probably also the rapid weight loss making my dose too high) because the particular blood pressure med I am on can cause rebound hypertension and possible serious cardiac episodes if stopped abruptly. So, he put me on half the dose I was on and said to follow my blood pressure and meds with my PCP from here on. My blood pressure has been normal.

I wasn't able to move on to the next stage diet on Friday like I was supposed to since I hadn't eaten for three days. I was trying to get in as much water as I could, so I focused on water and protein drinks only. I do not feel hungry so it didn't really bother me not to eat. Don't get me wrong, I do have cravings for solid food, but I don't actually feel hunger. I continued with the "full liquid" diet through the long weekend and yesterday had my first "real" meal of 1 egg, 1/2 slice 2% fat cheddar cheese, and 1 deli thin slice of chicken meat (1/6th of a serving) with a dash of salt and pepper. I was able to eat about half of that, the dogs were blessed with the rest- hehehe!

I organized my closet yesterday. I made a HUGE pile of more clothes to take to the Salvation Army and organized what I have that fits me (or will fit me). I put on some size 20 pants I figured would be tight on me, but they fit PERFECTLY I am wearing those same pants in my my weekly picture. I am almost 65 pounds down, weigh 251.2 lb. and am wearing a size 20/22 (from a size 26+). Even though I do not have make-up on and my hair isn't really done in these pics, they are my FAVORITE... This is the first pic where you can actually see my shirt come IN where my big tummy used to be! My big pouch on top is now smaller than the bottom one- YAY! I hate that top pouch SOOOOOO much!









PS- If anyone has size 20, 18 or 16 clothes they are no longer in need of I am MORE than willing to take them off your hands

Post Op Drama

Oy! Where to start?

For the last couple days I have had dizzy spells off and on. Then last night I started feeling really lethargic as well. I wondered if my blood pressure was too low so I took my BP on my home monitor and it was 90/72! That is VERY low for me. Of course I freaked out! My mom advised me to get me feet up and drink as much water as I could since I was probably dehydrated. I did just that and in an hour my BP was 139/92. Then I looked down at my belly button incision bc it felt irritated and it was gushing white watery bloody fluid. UGH! This is the same incision that had opened up a few days ago. I was told to close it back up again with steri strips, but now it was draining fluid!

Long story short-

1. I am dehydrated bc it is really hard for me to get in enough water every day. The nurse at the bariatric center told me to concentrate on getting enough water and drinking my protein shakes and not eat my food until I see the Doctor on Friday.

2. I am not to take my BP meds until I see my Doctor on Friday. The Doctor would rather my BP be on the higher side than be too low and have me pass out.

3. I have to leave my bellybutton incision open, pack it with gauze and cover it to let it drain and heal from the inside out. Sooo not fun.


Just when I thought everything was moving along smoothly....

One Week Post- Op

hi there! Sorry I havn't been doing much updating. Sitting at the computer is definitly not the most comfortable spot in the house at the moment. So, I guess I will start at the beginning to get you all up-to-date!

As I told you in my last post, I had to take some magnesium the night before to "clean my system out." and boy did it! HAHAHAHA I lost a few pounds just from Sunday to Monday because my system was so.... clear! Aaron, mom and I dot to kaiser very early at 6:30 am and started the whole checking in process. Everything seemed to go really quickly on my end at that point. I got changed into hospital garb, got my IV started, answered all the question (there's a looooong list she had to ask), met with the anesthesiologist, met with Dr Dennen and off I went to the OR! Mom and Aaron later told me it took my Doctor longer than usual to do my surgery, the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy (The Sleeve), because I have a 'J' shaped stomach as opposed to the 'normal' crescent shape. Who knew!?

I don't remember much from the recovery room, really the first thing I remember was when they were moving me into my room. I was very uncomfortable from my abdomen being full of gas. Oh my goodness! It was the WORST. After a little while they wanted me to get up and around, so I went for a walk around the floor and then I sat up for a good 2 hours. Mom and Aaron took turns rubbing my back to help the gas come up. That helped SOOOO much. Getting up and around, sitting in a chair and being "burped" was all it took to make me feel a whole lot better.

By Tuesday, I was ready to get out of there, but they wanted to make sure I would be ok putting food in my tummy so I had to stay. I had two meals of "clear liquid" consisting of a whopping 3 oz of liquid. Then they moved me to "full liquid" for dinner, which was 1oz of cream soup, 1oz of pudding, and 1 oz of jello. I kept it all down so we were able to head home. I almost forgot... my Dr also wanted to do this special x-ray to make sure I didn't have any leaks on my sleeve. They made me drink this horrible concoction then turned me upside down (literally) while they took pictures of my stomach. Everything looked perfect!

now, at a week out, I have been recovering well. Every day I feel a little bit better, so that's good. I did not envision the recovery being this slow, but I guess it is to be expected when I had 80% of my stomach removed! haha

I am on a "full liquid" diet consisting of cream soups (strained), broth, pudding, jello, yogurt, cottage cheese, Popsicles, etc. I eat approx 1/2 cup of food at each meal and then do a protein drink in between each meal (has to have at least 25g of protein.) Plus all my supplements and medications.

The most interesting/different/difficult part so far has been taking pills. I used to be able to just take a handful of pills with a few gulps of water and be done with it. Now I have to take one at a time with only a tiny sip of water (it is very uncomfortable to take more than a small sip) and I can feel the pill(s) moving through my sleeve. It's a very odd feeling which I am told will not bother me any more once the staple line along my stomach has healed.

I have six incisions where they put the scope and instruments through. Most are about 1/2 inch long, two are longer at about 1.5 inches. The tape came off the one on my belly button this weekend and opened up, so I had to get some steri strips and close it back up.

As far as activity goes, I try to do more every day. The first few days I walked around the neighborhood a bit and one time went too far which made me hurt. But, now I try to go out and run errands with my husband every day to walk around stores, drop mail at the post office, etc. Last evening I even went to a drum and bugle corp. competition! I was VERY tired and sore by the end, but it was very fun. I came straight home and took a cold shower and then iced my tummy while I watched 'Drop Dead Diva.'

oh, I guess I should also mention I did weigh in today and I am now 259.2 lb !! I am very excited to be in the 250s. It has been a LOOOOOOOOONG time. I was able to go through my stash of clothes I have kept around for "when I lose weight" so I have a whole 'new' wardrobe to wear. Very fun! Here's the updated pics: 1 week Post Op!

Surgery Tomorrow!!

Hi everyone! Surgery is tomorrow- Hooray! Yesterday I had to do the Stage 2 diet which meant liquid and partial liquid diet only. I had yogurt for breakfast, cream of chicken soup, yogurt, lime jello and a fruit Popsicle for dinner. It was a whopping 500 calories in one day! Yikes! hahaha Today was FULL liquid and only clear liquids at that. So, I had a protein drink for breakfast, the broth from onion soup and decaf tea for lunch and probably some chicken broth and maybe another protein drink tonight. So, I might take in 200-300 calories today. Holy cow- that's NOTHING! hahaha

As you know, today is father's day. My dad was so awesome to come up to see me for a couple days and join me in singing at church. It was so nice to share this day with him. I got all dressed up for the day and was able to wear my going away dress from Aaron and my wedding day. It didn't even fit me as well on the wedding day as it does today. It feels sooooo good! Mom and dad will be passing each other on the 99 as dad goes home (he has to work tomorrow) and mom comes here to be with us for a few days after surgery. It is always nice to have mommy around when I'm 'sick' :-)

here are the final post-op pics to share. I am officially down 44 pounds! Yay me!

Week 9- Almost there!

This is the last week until surgery! Hooray! So far the week is going so S-L-O-W...

As you might have read on my facebook page, I have been having an issue with my evening walks. My dogs and I have been chased, attacked and/or harassed by BIG dogs with irresponsible owners. The other night I came home crying and so upset because I simply didn't feel safe walking in my own neighborhood. I was having a hard time getting myself to go on my walks. I did finally go on a walk again last night and Aaron came along. Of course, when he is there with me there were no big dogs that came and harassed us. I hope drama free walks can continue because I need my exercise! Plus I have come to enjoy my evening walks with the dogs.

Anyway, here are the pics from Monday. I am down another 1.5 lb

Sorry

It has been a busy day. I did take my weekly photos this am and will post tomorrow about my weight loss over the last week and post the pics. Sorry it's late

Week 8- No Loss

no loss this week.

With the surgery coming up I have been loose on my diet a bit, allowing myself to have some meals/foods that I will not be able to have for quite a while after surgery ie Pizza, steak, pasta, rice/chinese etc.

I have still kept up on my exercising and have even lengthened my walking, which I am sure the dogs enjoy ;-)

Pre- Op appointment

I had my pre-op appointment on Friday and it went really well! I was kinda nervous that something would come up and they would put my surgery off, but that didn't happen. Whew!

I met with the surgeon who did a physical, which was all fine. We talked about me choosing the sleeve over the bypass. He said there was no reason for him to suggest one over the other, so I should choose whichever I Am most comfortable with. So, yay! Sleeve it is! It was so cool to go over the list of surgical risks and complications and have him cross off a whole bunch of stuff that just is not applicable to the sleeve. I got all the paperwork signed and turned in my FMLA and disability paperwork to the business office.

I had to do a pre-op EKG as well, just to make sure I had a normal rhythm. That was all perfect- which was a relief. I have been told a few times I have abnormal glitch on the T-wave, but it was not there this time.

Officially my surgery is on June 21st at 8am. I have to be there at 6:30am (ugh!) so we will be staying overnight in Fremont. If everything goes well in the surgery and recovery I will be released from the hospital on the afternoon of the 22nd. I will be off work for a month, which will be hard financially, but I will be able to collect short term disability and have some vacation time I can use as well. It will be tight since Aaron is unemployed, but God has always provided in the past!

Thank you for being so encouraging along the way. I can't wait for the next phase of this journey to begin! Only 15 more days!

Help!

I don't know what to do about birth control after I have surgery in a couple weeks. ugh! It is so contradictory for me, someone who has struggled to conceive for a long time, to go on birth control. I don't really want to go on any kind of hormonal birth control, but I dont know what all my other alternatives are and which would be best for me. What about a copper IUD? Family planning (charting, tracking cervical mucus, preventing when fertile)? Diaphragm? Condom? I just don't know!

I definitly DO NOT want to get pregnant until my doctors say it is OK, so I want to make sure to use the best form FOR ME. But, I just dont know what to do. ugh. I dont want to mess with my fertility, which is why I shy away from taking ANYTHING with hormones.

HELP ME, my friends!

Week 7- I need new clothes!

I didn't quite realize how big my clothes are on me until I saw my pics today! This shirt and pant combo are not even the 26es I WAS wearing. They are both 24s and are still huge on me! Hooray! So, today's pics aren't the best since my body is hiding under clothes that are too big, but you get the point. :-)





FYI- Surgery is 2 weeks and 6 days away!

Week 6- Hooray!

Hooray!! I am in the 270s! It has been a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNG time since I have been in the 270s :-D It feels REALLY good.

Exciting News!

I have a surgery date! EEK!

I got the call today from Nancy, the lady in charge of scheduling, to say I had a surgery date for June 21st if I wanted it. SO, OF CORUSE I took it! Hooray!

I go in on June 4th for the pre- op appointment to meet with the surgeon, sign all the consent forms and everything else. Then I just wait for June 21st to roll around.

I can't believe I will have surgery in ONE MONTH. YAY!

Week 5- See the difference!

Aaron suggested I take this weeks pics in the same clothes as the starting picture. So, here they are! I am wearing a different color of the same shirt and the same pants.






And one so you can see how big the pants are on me!