Laura B.

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Well, I don't come onto my profile very often anymore, but I thought that an update was long overdue. I began my weight loss surgery journey at about 300 lbs (not my highest weight). As of now I am at approximately 179 lbs. So I have lost a total of 121 lbs so far. I am still losing, but it has slowed down a lot. My doctor still wants me to lose about 40 lbs. I have also gone from a high size 28 pant and 3X shirts to size 12 pants and small or medium shirts. It is unreal. I still feel pretty uncomfortable in "normal" stores. That's pretty much it for now. I guess I will write again in another few months

So as my title suggests, I am coming close to a milestone. I am more than halfway to my goal weight, which is about 140. When I started my weight loss surgery journey I weighed 300 pounds. At the time of my surgery I weighed 172 pounds I believe. Now , almost four months out, I weigh approximately 212 pounds (and that was almost a week ago). I am almost in Onederland! I am so excited! I am thinking that at the rate that I am losing, I could reach that goal in the next couple of weeks, and almost certainly before Christmas. Once I reach 200 pounds, I will have also reached the 100 pounds lost checkpoint. WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!! Two big milestones at once! When I get there I am so going to reward myself with some shopping! The only problem that I am having right now is that my hair is falling out like crazy! I never thought that I could lose so much hair every day and not become bald. Thank God I was born with thick hair  I just started taking Biotin so hopefully that will help a bit. I am also starting to notice some loose skin. I was hoping that I wouldn't have much, but I expected the worst. It isn't terrible (though my bat wings are just plain scary, lol), but I will probably want to get at least some plastic surgery in the future. 
      Well, enough about me. My mom just drove up to San Francisco today for her surgery tomorrow morning. I know she will be fine. I am more worried about after the surgery. Anywho, that's it for now.

Well I have been a bit disappointed lately. I go to a weight loss group every week, but each week when I weigh myself I lose less and less. I know exactly what I have been doing wrong though. I never thought that I would have to say this, but I am not eating enough. My body isn't getting enough calories so it has gone into starvation mode  Today I have begun to fix that problem though. I have had two meals so far (I usually get one or two with my schedule) and I am planning to have one more in a minute. I think that I am also going to try to get in more protein each day as well. Otherwise I am doing grewat. I am still getting in all of my vitamins and fluids. On a good note, I am still shrinking like ice in the summer. I have gone down three sizes and I can easily slip into the desks at school instead of squeezing myself in and breathing in quick, shallow breaths to prevent serious discomfort. 

Tomorrow I go to my new gym and meet with a trainer. Not just any trainer, but a guy that I went to high school with  I am a bit nervous about that, but I'll get over it. That is pretty much it for now. I'll write again soon!

Well, this week I started school again and yesterday was my first day back at work. All I have to say is, man it is hard keeping track of things when you get so busy! I keep having to remind myself that I have to get my water and vitamins. In order to get all of the water in I have only been able to get in one meal a day, so I am going to try to start finding more time for that, but it is difficult when I am supposed to spend 30 to 40 minutes eating. The swoft foods are great by the way (at least what I've tried). I also found out yesterday that I have gone down two pant sizes! My first wow moment! That is pretty much it for now.

I am so happy! I just got cleared for soft foods a couple of days ago! I have to say that I never thought that nonfat cottage cheese would taste like heaven, but it did. It is just crazy. I have to be on soft/pureed foods for at least a week before I can move on to soft solid foods, but I think that I will be able to make it I am starting to worry about how I am going to do with getting my liquids in when I go back to school next week. Oh well, I'll figure it all out somehow

I know this is gross, but I just wanted to get this on my page so that I can look back at what I had to deal with right out from surgery. So here it goes. Of course I have been doing my liquid diet and getting all of my protein in, so I should be peachy right? Wrong! For the past few days I have had diarrea, and I mean liquid. I have been getting very worried, thinking that I was losing all of my liquids through my butt  Today I decided to call my doctor's office and get the lowdown. Apparently I am going to have this for a while, because I am only drinking fluids. I had an inkling that this was the reason, but I can just be so crazy sometimes  I keep trying to look for signs that something has gone wrong. Maybe I am just having a difficult time believing that my life is really going to change for the better. 

On another note, I have my first post-op appointment with my surgeon on the 22nd of August. I am so happy that they were able to schedule me so quickly. That's pretty much it for now. More wacky adventures to come in the future!

Yesterday was my real turning point. In the morning I was feeling slightly nautious still, so I called my doctor's office and they said that I should have been sent home with a perscription for nausia, but that they would fax it to my pharmacy. Almost right after that I didn't feel nautious anymore! It was the craziest thing. I also don't feel much pain (just around my incisions and a little in my back) and my temperature has gone down significantly. I am just glad that I am getting better so quickly, because those first few days were hell!

So we just got home  a few hours ago. I had to stay an extra day because I wasn't peeing or farting (gross, I know). Now I am urinating normally and I have minimal pain, so I was released this morning. The ride home wasn't fun (lots of bumps), but once I got home I felt soooo much better. Soon I am going to take a nap, and when I wake up I am going to try to take a shower. I have only gotten nautious a few times now, and I have only thrown up twice (when I tried to take some oral pain medication and when I tried to take some watered down protein suppliment). So I am feeling pretty good. I am just making sure that I get up and walk every hour that I am awake and that I am getting in plenty of fluids. Tomorrow I begin my vitamins. In a few weeks I should be in tip top shape and ready to begin my new life!

So I left Wednesday for San Francisco, where I was supposed to have my surgery. When my family and I got there I had some blood taken and then we went back to the hotel so that I could do the day before clean out. I didn't sleep well that night, but I was ready to get the surgery over with the next day. We arrived at the hospital around 9am (a half an hour early) in order for me to register. I went in and got changed and then my family came back to wait with me before the surgery. The nurses were being so nice and I was watching the clock, waiting to be told that I would be going to surgery soon. One of the nuirses said that I may go in early because my surgeon was on a roll. A little later a nurse came and put my IV in. Then 11:30am came and I knew that I would be leaving for surgery at any moment. At 11:45am a woman came and asked if I was Laura. I said yes and she said, "I am so sorry but we are going to have to cancel your surgery today. We will be able to fit you in on Monday." What? I went through so much this past year and I have been nervous and excited for the past few weeks (to the point where I wasn't getting enough sleep), not to mention that I had done the liquid diet and the clean out the day before, just to be told that I would have to do it all again in a few days? I couldn't believe it. I just wanted to start my new life. My mom freaked out. Apparently I was the only person who was going to be cancelled (and I wasn't even the last surgery of the day). They are going to pay for our hotel stay those two days and for the hotel when we go back, but that doesn't change how I feel. I feel as if a person has died. I have just never heard of a person having an iv in their arm, and then being to ld that they can't have their surgery that day. They didn't even explain why he chose for me to get dumped. I have been crying on and off since yesterday. The doctor's office called today (they are kissing my a$$ now) and said," It was a tragedy what happened to you yesterday, would you like us to give you a two weeks supply of protein suppliments when you come back?" As if protein suppliments are going to make me feel better! I just don't know what else to say.

My brain just keeps going in circles! I keep thinking about what I still have to get done before my surgery. The list is getting smaller and smaller, but it is still nerve racking. I have been having a difficult time getting sleep lately. Every night when I go to bed I start to think about what I still have to do, and then I start to think about the surgery itself. It is making me very nervous. I am mostly nervous about the hospital stay. I have never stayed over night in a hospital; heck, I have never even had to go to the hospital (never had broken bones or anything that would warrent the trip)! Though I am worried about the hospital, I completely trust my surgeon and I know he will do a great job. Even though I have my worries, I know I have made the right decision. I can't wait to become a loser!