9 months postop

I am posting a day early.  Tomorrow will be 9 months since I had my WLS (Weight Loss Surgery).  I have lost 129 lbs as of today.  My goal is to lose another 25 lbs between now and April 16, 2011, on my one year anniversary from surgery.  I started last April at 354 lbs, and I am 5ft 5 inches tall.  Today I weigh 225 lbs.  I really want to be at 200 by my one year mark, then continue working my way down. 

I was wearing size 32 jeans last April, yes..they really make them that big! LOL  I am now wearing size 16 jeans.  My husband will be happy when I am done losing weight and we won't have to buy new clothes so often.  My head still has me wearing the bigger sizes though.  I go shopping and head straight for the biggest sizes.  I'm hoping that will change with time.

I have found that having this surgery is definitely just a tool to help you along the way.  You can't just have surgery and expect to not do anything and meet your goals.  I have to exercise every day.  I have to make sure I'm eating right. Yes, my stomach can only hold a tiny amount, but you can definitely eat the wrong things in tiny amounts.  You still have to make the right choices.  I try to eat only foods high in protein.  I need to get in at least 60 grams a day of protein.  I still don't have any hunger, which is a great thing, but then again, I have to remind myself to eat so that I meet my goals for protein for the day.

Weight loss has slowed down after about 6 months.  I'm now losing about 6 pounds a month.  My loss slowed down over the weeks surrounding Christmas.  I was surrounded by all the goodies, but food just isn't that tempting to me anymore.  But...I found myself buying Pepsi again. I hadn't drank any since before surgery.  I was a  huge Pepsi addict.  I was frustrated with not having anything that felt like a 'goodie' to me around the holidays, so I bought Pepsi.  I figured I can't eat much for food..but liquid will go down just fine.  It did.  It tasted great..which is a problem.  I have heard from many professionals that along with weight loss surgery there are many times transfer addictions.  The psychologist I had to see prior to being approved for surgery (its required per insurance), had me take a test.  Her results were that I have a good chance of being an alcoholic.  I found that odd, because I rarely ever have alcohol (once or twice a year maybe).  But now, when I'm looking for liquid to satisfy me and my emotions, because food doesn't anymore..I can see what she was talking about.  Note to self..don't start with the alcohol..LOL  I am laying off the Pepsi also, I just don't want to sabotage myself.  I didn't do something as drastic as having 85% of my stomach removed to go and mess it up.

I am very happy w/my progress so far.  Without this surgery I could have never lost this much weight.  I'm sure I have already added many years to my life.  I am off all medications for diabetes and high blood pressure, and on the road to becoming healthy again.

The only down side to having had the surgery right now is not feeling like I have anyone to talk to about all the emotions a person goes through after weight loss surgery.  Losing 129 lbs in 9 mths really does change your life.  How I eat has changed, what I eat has changed.  I cannot drink anything when I eat, or I will literally vomit.  If I'm thirsty, I have to choose..do I drink..or do I eat.  When I feel my stomach is full, I have to stop immediately.  One more bite has literally made me ill.  I still have troubles swallowing my pills without throwing them back up.  I've had to purchase calcium chews and take those 3 times a day, because the calcium pills are just too big.

Right now I take calcium chews 3 times a day, Iron, a Multi-vitamin, B12 and B1 and Vitamin D..and I also take Biotin to try and help with the hair loss.  I started losing alot of hair at month 3 after surgery.  I cut my hair short because of all that I was losing.  Now the losing has seemed to slow down, and I see alot of regrowth.

If you've read this far...thank you..LOL  If you ever have any questions about weight loss surgery, feel free to send me a private email at dkramer88@charter.net  I'm an open book.

Finally updating..a little over 7 mths postop

Yes, I am finally updating this blog.  I will try to do better.  The whole reason I started this was to help others who are thinking about weight loss surgery, so they have some idea of what to expect afterwards.  I know I did alot of research before surgery, and soaked up alot of information. I still don't think I was really prepared for how much your life changes after surgery.  I used to be one that said having surgery was 'the easy way out', but now...I can only tell anyone that thinks that way that they have NO idea what they're talking about.  This has been the hardest thing I have ever done.  Much of this journey is mental.  I have such a wide range of emotions. 

To my family, all appears to be fine.  Unless you have had surgery, you can't possibly understand.  Food was my 'drug of choice'..and it's no longer there.  I very rarely feel hungry, in fact, most of the time I have to make myself eat because I know that I have to get in the protein and calories to stay healthy.  The surgery doesn't fix that emotional attachment to food though.   There are foods that I wish I could have, but I know that I physically cannot without getting ill.  I miss the silliest things.  I really wish I could just eat a tuna fish sandwich, but I just cannot eat the bread.  See..silly.

I am very happy that I made the choice to have surgery though.  I feel great.  But it is hard.  People start treating you differently, friends, family and even strangers.  I am still the same person.  I like to think it's only because I'm more outgoing now, and not because of weight that they are treating me differently.

I have found that I can eat a little more now at 7 mths postop than I could previously.  I used to only be able to eat 3/4 of a scrambled egg, now I can eat the whole thing.  I can eat bread if its toasted. Before I ate 1/2 piece, now I eat about 3/4.  So I still can't eat much, but the amount is a little more.  I still stick to the rules of not drinking before a meal, and waiting about an hour before drinking after a meal.  I physically feel ill if I try and drink water right after eating.

I am still having issues trying to swallow my pills.  I didn't take them for months because I got tired of puking them up after swallowing them.  They will get caught in my throat quite often (the calcium pills..they're huge), and I can't handle the amount of water at one time that it takes to get it to budge.  I've bought a pill splitter and that is helping.

Working on getting in enough calories each day.  I'm right around 600-700 cal per day and 60 grams of protein.  My nutritionist wants me at 1,200 calories per day.  I haven't lost a pound in almost 2 weeks now, and I was told its because I'm not getting in enough calories.  So, I've got a meal plan set up so today I should get about 1,050 calories. 

Breakfast
1 scrambled egg

Snack
1/2 cup cottage cheese

Lunch
boneless chicken (3oz)

Snack
3oz Cheese

Dinner
1 sm Salmon patty

Snack
Protein drink

So far I have lost 117 pounds.  I have went from 354# to 237# in 7 mths.  Was wearing a size 32 jean, now in a size 18.  I haven't been in a size 18 in at least 15 yrs, so i am very happy with my progress. 

My first post

First I'd like to thank Karen for mentioning I start a blog here at Blog Spot.  I was trying to keep everyone updated on Facebook, but I cannot post as much information at a time as I'd like.  I've just created this blog, so give me a bit to get everything added.  Bookmark this page and stop by again, as I'll try and update on a daily basis.