thompsonnj

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I reached my first goal exactly 1 month post op, I am finally under 300 pounds.  I haven't been under 300 pounds in 15 years.  My surgery date was 7/12/2011 and I am on my way to a new healthier me.  Since my surgery I have been removed from all diabetes, blood pressure and cholesterol medictions.   

I'm finally starting to see the pounds drop!!  It's so funny how good it feels to see my weight start to go down.  I've decided as incentive to work hard that I will "reward" myself with something each time I reach a weight goal.  This time my reward won't be food.  My first goal is to be under 300 pounds and I'm now only 12 pounds away.....YEAH!!!   

Things are going quite well.  I don't really have pain except when I try to sleep.  I am a side or stomach sleeper and normally like to lay on my left side where the drain is placed.  Everytime I lay on my left side it feels as if my organs are shifting left, I know they aren't but it must be the drain rubbing against them.

I'm not having any difficulty keeping down my liquids but you have found that I have to be very definite about what and when I'm going to eat.  Since the desire to eat and the hunger is gone I don't have it as a signal and it is easy to go for hours without eating.  So I mix my protein shake early in the morning in a large water bottle that has marking on it for the amount and I drink the specified amount at the appropriate time.  The rest of the time I eat or drink to make sure my fluid intake is appropriate.  I have specific sized containers to hold liquids so that I know I'm on track and don't really have to measure.  

All in all I can't complain about any of it and am extremely happy with my decision. 

I am officially on the loser's bench!!!!  I had a successful surgery on Tuesday, July 12th at George Washington University Hospital.  My surgeon was Dr. Juliet Lee, who by the way is a phenomenal woman.  The staff at GW handled me with care and compassion from the time I checked in until I was discharged.  

Ok, here are the details.  I really didn't have much pain, believe it or not.   My surgery took much longer than expected because they had trouble getting a tube down my throat because the tissue was very thick.  Other than that the surgery was text book.  I remember be in the pre-surgery area with my friends and the nurse coming in the give me something to relax me.  My friends prayed for me and left.  The next thing I remember is a group of people asking me to scoot over to the operating room table.  I remember doing that and looking to my left and seeing a nurse walking toward me with a syringe to give me something to put me to sleep in my IV .  The next thing I remembered is hearing a flurry of people around me and them calling my name, when I opened my eyes I was in recovery.  Then I saw my best friend walking toward me smiling, saying "It's over".  She told me how long I was in surgery and what happened.   The nurse in recovery checked on me frequently and it took a while for my bed to be ready but by 10:30pm my bed was ready and upstairs I went.  I was got up around midnight and asked to sit in a chair, and around 3am I went for my first walk around the hall.  I walked again almost every three hours.

Over the next three days I continued to walk and on Thursday, I was able to finally have some liquid.  I could not have any liquid including ice chips until Thursday.  I was amazed being the "foodie" that I am how  I just wasn't hungry this was indeed a novel concept for me.  I had a morphine drip that I used occasionally.  Oh yeah, here's the TMI nugget, as soon as I arrived to the hospital on Tuesday, I came on my cycle.  I'm a  48 year old perimenopausal woman who had not had a cycle since Feb 11, why now of all days???  The only pain I had in the hospital was from my cramps!!! Which by the way are horrible and the morphine really helped them.  Now, I was upset set that I didn't have any surgery pain but I did feel like a wimp needing the morphine for cramps.  Anyway, they took me off my IV of Thursday and switched me to Roxicet which is acetaminophen and oxycodone combined.  I had a terrible allergic reaction and broke out in hives.  Just a note, itching is a normal reaction to morphine and roxicet.  So they switched me to Dilaudid which worked fine.

I was discharged on Friday around noon and got home mid afternoon.  I slept a good deal of the day yesterday.  I did eat a little soup and juice.  I woke up around 5:30am this morning. I got up and went to the bathroom, check my JP Drain.  Oh, I forgot to say I came home with a JP Drain which stays in until I see my surgeon in a week.  I check it during the day and record the volume and empty it.  Pretty painless and easy to do.  I got up and went for a short walk up the block and came back.  I got something to drink because it is easy not to eat or drink because you don't have the urge.  I am suppose to get a least 4oz of fluid in every hour.  


Well that's all for now my OH family, thanks for the love and support.  I'm praying for a speedy recovery for everyone out there.

After being excited all day, my surgery time has been changed to 9:45am from the earlier change of 7:15am...ugggh.  But I know that God knows best.   

For those of you who have already had WLS or any type of surgery involving the stomach you will understand.  For the newbies out there all I can say is that it pays to do your research.

 1:  Keep Citrate of Magnesium in the refrigerator until ready to use it.
 2.  Pour it over a large cup of ice.
 3.  Use a straw to drink it.
 4.  Get the baby wipes ready.
 5.  A&D ointment ( just in case - I needed it)
 6.  Make  a space in the bathroom for a note pad and pen, telephone, and light reading material.
 7.  Above all else, make sure you stay close to the bathroom because when this stuff starts to work -- IT WORKS!!!


Overall the experience was not bad at all, preparation makes a big difference.

Ahhhh, it seems as if it has taken so long to get so far.  My surgery is scheduled for tomorrow at 9:15am.  I've made all the necessary arrangements and am preparing for the bowel prep to begin at 11:00am today.  I decided to take a long walk with Yorkie to try and relax before 11.  I returned home at 9:30am to find several messages on my voice mail from the pre-admission team at the hospital.  Now I begin to worry, have they rescheduled my surgery for another day, is there something wrong that will prohibit me having the surgery??  I wait pensively while I call them to find out what is wrong......the nurse says, "Did your surgeon's office call you about rescheduling your surgery?"  I give a heavy sigh and said, "No, I haven't spoken with anyone about it."  I have to say in what seemed like an eternity, she final tells me that the surgery time has been changed from 9:15am to 7:15am and that I should be there by 6:00am.  I got very excited;  and she explained I needed to start the bowel prep earlier than planned and she'd see me in the morning.

My surgery is just 5 days away and I'm excited.  Tomrrow I will have been on my liquid diet for 4 weeks and I'm so tired of it but I have to do it.  I just can't wait to get to the other side.

Day 1
Today was very hard!  I was hungry most of the day. Although I didn't have a headache or a growling stomach, food was everywhere. Listening to the entire office discussing their lunch plans and smelling the food that was bought into the office. The biggest challenge for me has been drinking sweet (chocolate, vanilla or strawberry) shakes when I'm hungry, I'm not a sweet eater.  I  prefer savory to sweet so, I have ordered unflavored protein which hopefully will be at my home when I return from work tomorrow.  I'll be able to add it to tea, soup or juice. I've done the liquid diet before but it was for a couple of days not four weeks.  Nor never has it been as important as it is this time,   Well, at any rate I made it through today and tomorrow is a new day.  For all those on the preop liquid diet or who will be, stay focused....we can do it!!  

Day 2
Today was a much better day!!  I think I found the answer.  I had a regular protein shake for breakfast and crystal light for lunch.  I was hungry when I arrived home and found my unflavored Novus Whey Isolate Protein waiting for me. I mixed it with chicken broth and it was absolutely delicious.  The protein mixed well and had no taste at all.  All I could taste was the broth.  I also mixed it with Crystal Light and again no taste or change in texture.  I ordered it from www.novuslife.com and a 10lb box which will last about 37 days for $59, which will take me to my surgery with just enough for a couple of days after.  Everything that I've read says don't buy too much because your taste are different after surgery and you may not be able to tolerate it.  

I purchased the usual stuff, chicken and beef broth, sugar free Jell-O, sugar drink mixes, decaffeinated coffee, sugar free Popsicle.  

Oh yeah, as tempted as I am to weigh myself I promised myself I will only do it once a week.  I hope this helps anyone who is about to start there liquid diet phase.  I know I can do this now, I just had to find the right combination.  

Day 3
Today I struggled, but made it through.  

Day 4
Today was the first day I wasn’t hungry. But now I live in the bathroom.  

Day 5
Still in the bathroom!!  

Day 6
Finally back to work and feeling great!!!!  

Day 7
I MADE IT 1 WEEK!!!! I lost a total of 7 pounds and I’m so excited. More to come……

I got my approval from my insurance company!!  I am praising and thanking God for this victory!    I'm so excited I can't stop smiling.