Back After Life Takes Over

I'm back after a small hiatus. I have been crazy busy at work and crazy busy taking care of myself. My total weight loss so far is 30 lbs. I am really happy with my progress!

My routine has been really steady. I work out at least once a day, at least 30-45 minutes a day. I also walk about 14 blocks getting to and from work each day from my bus stop. I feel stronger and stronger every day. My incisions are all mostly healed. The scabs have come off as has the adhesive from the surgical tape. My incisions are small and still red, but I imagine as time goes by, they will lighten in color.

I have been eating real food now for around a month. So far it's been by the book, "protein and then produce". For breakfast, it's two eggs and a slice of bacon, or a 1/2 cup of oatmeal and a few clementines. Lunch has been a small salad with a side of chicken or turkey. I also have been marinating frozen chicken tenderloins and baking them frozen (it stays more moist that way) and I take two of those along with a few spoonfuls of greenbeans or some other veggie. Dinner is some roast beef from a roast I make on the weekends or a little chili, or I'll even eat eggs again. I also make sure that I have some dark chocolate on hand if I am feeling munchy after I have eaten my dinner- when I want something sweet. The dark chocolate does a lot less damage calories-wise.

With the holidays upon us, it has been a challenge to steer clear of the sweets and treats and such. I allow myself a few pieces of chocolate or whatever. We recently had a potluck and I did very well taking the smallest bowl and having a little bit of everything I wanted. I didn't feel deprived and I got to participate in the social aspects of it all. I make and decorate special sugar cookies for the holidays each year and I spent two weekends in a row baking and decorating. I feel I did very well. Tried to remember that little saying I see at my surgeon's office "All Bites Count!" 

I went in for my very first fill on the 13th of Dec. I was very apprehensive about it. I was worried about the needle, I was worried about it hurting, I was worried about them missing the port, or the port being tilted. It ended up working fine. She had to take two runs at it, but got it in on the 2nd attempt. My fill tech, Audrey mentioned that my port was placed really close to my ribs and she wasn't happy about that- but she said as I lose weight, the port will be easier to get to. Things shrink and shift. 

I go in for my next fill on the 2nd of Jan. My parents are in town for the holidays and I decided to postpone it until after they leave. I will then go in again one week later and I should be getting pretty close to my green zone.

Right now, I don't feel too much restriction. Things feel different-and I have to be careful about eating things like cookie dough- it gets stuck pretty easily, but otherwise I am eating pretty close to what I ate after surgery. My portions have increased a little- and I get hungry a little quicker, so I am anxious to see how things change when I am in the sweet spot. I am still losing right now, but it will be nice not to feel hungry as much.

So that's my update and I will try to get a regular report on here as often as I can!

First Day Back At Work

Today was my first day back at work after having the band installed. My coworkers all know why I was gone and what I had done. They were all very cool and welcoming. They had questions about how I was feeling, they all said I looked great (I was wearing pants that I haven't been able to wear in a long time!) and I felt like they sincerely missed me! It's nice to be valued and missed.

As far as eating goes today, I did very well. I had some cream of wheat before I went to work. I was going to have a banana too, but it turns out I didn't have room for it. I hopped the bus and got off a stop early like I did the week before my surgery-no sense in stopping doing that! So I walked to Starbucks and got my iced venti no-room americano with a dot of nonfat milk in it. Then headed to work. I sipped on my coffee for several hours. 

After I finished it, I made a few batches of crystal light in my cup and drank those. The single-bottle serving packs are really convenient and make it easy for you to get all your waters in for the day.

At 11 or so, I needed to get out and walk a little and take a break. I walked around several blocks downtown, looking at the christmas decorations and people-watching. Then I decided that I needed at least 1 serving of milk today- so I hit the little italian espresso place and picked up a sugar-free vanilla nonfat latte.  I liked that the barista was actually italian and had a thick accent. It allowed me to have the briefest daydream that I was in italy! Very nice!

So I went back to work, ate the other half of my dinner from last night- chicken salad wrap from Arby's (won't do that one again- Arby's has NO decent healthy food available!). After my hour lapsed, I started my crystal light regimine again. 

Finished work, took a very swift walk to the bus. It's mostly uphill 7 blocks. It's a good little workout. I had some Madonna cranked and stomped up those hills to the beat. It went really fast. After standing for 30 minutes my express bus finally arrived.

I got home, changed into my workout clothes and went out walking. It was dark already of course, but not too cold. Cold enough to see my breath, but as long as I kept moving I didn't get cold. I enjoyed this evening's walk because I was really motivated by my good day, my good weightloss results, and how strong I felt. All those miles I put on in Montana everyday really paid off. I just felt really strong and healthy and capable of pushing myself physically. I busted my ass on my walk and really paid attention to my strides, and posture. 

I also really enjoyed the holiday decorations people had out. The neighborhood to the west is fairly well-to-do, and they have some REALLY cute decorations out. I like that people put so much effort into them. I think it's neat.

I walked until I felt like I had done enough and was walking back home when the jostling of my belly from all the walking downhill made me place my hand on my belly to steady things-as I often do now. Upsettingly- I could feel my band moving around in there- it felt like it was catching on something over and over- it was an unpleasant painful clicking feeling. Same with the port area. Needless to say, I slowed down immediately. 

I think I have to remember that I am not even 2 full weeks out from surgery- I need to remember to take it easy. I know that I have been really pushing myself during my recovery, and that it's good for me over all. But I need to be mindful that I am still healing and I might need to slow it down just a little until things are all seated and healed up.

I came back home, ate the 2nd half of a dinner I had a few days ago with the in-laws at a BBQ place in Montana. I had 2 St. Louis ribs, a few green beans, 1/2 a corn muffin, and 2 halves of a canned pear. Stopped just right. I might have veered off course of the mushy diet. It's been tough.

I then went to the store to pick up some much needed items. It was a challenge to find protein that would be easy to prepare on weeknights. I will have to do some cooking or planning during the weekends to make this work. I go fully to solid foods and produce on Thursday! I have salmon and whitefish and chicken tenderloins. And herb salad mix! I haven't had a good salad in weeks!

Oh- one other development- I called and scheduled my first fill today! December 13! I can't wait to see how it feels! I hope I hit the sweet spot in just a few fills!

Recovery, Week 2

My surgery and recovery ran together with the Thanksgiving holidays like watercolors. My surgery was one week prior to Thanksgiving day. I also traveled the day before Thanksgiving day by car for 8-9 hours. Fortunately, I was still on liquids for the trip. The very next day I switched to mushies. I was able to add bananas, cream of wheat, crackers, tuna fish, canned salmon, canned fruit (no sugar added), cottage cheese. Since we didn't have the typical Thanksgiving feast this year (grandmother-in-law was in hospital, mother-in-law was recovering from shoulder surgery) I was able to stick to my mushies diet fairly well. I did get brave and start trying beef jerky.... and as long as I chewed the heck out of it in tiny bites, I was just fine eating that. (They have the BEST beef jerky here in Montana!)

I also made a large batch of homemade lasagna and parmesan garlic bread for the fam. No one likes to cook here and I do, so I always like to make some good food when I come. I had a salad plate with half a slice of lasagna and a small piece of bread. It was VERY good. I waited a little while and felt like I could have a little more so I had a little more lasagna and bread. I suppose that meal was the requisite "bad" meal for the holiday. I didn't feel too bad about it as I have been working out like a fiend here. It will balance out. (turns out that the lasagna didn't really agree with my system too well anyway- so I'm not tempted to take some home no matter how good it tasted)

I have returned to my coffee habit, which I am SO VERY grateful I didn't have to give up. I am an addict of massive proportions. There is no denying it. I have a giant caffeine-monkey on my back, and I give him whatever he wants. I would just like to say thank god for SF flavors and nonfat milk. During my normal workdays, I have a huge iced americano (espresso & water on ice- with a dash of nonfat milk) to start off my mornings. So I am grateful I can still do that too.

My bandages have started falling off. The first to go were the three that covered my largest incision for my port. Most of the others are curling and could go at any time, but I'm going to let them tell me when they are ready to be uncovered. The sensation around the largest incision is all numbed. It feels weird. I am able to sit up in bed without any pain in my abdominals anymore. I've been walking 1-3 miles a day here everyday. It's been good for me. I think I might have overdone it yesterday with the 3.2 miles I walked on this road that was extremely hilly. My legs are "barking" today.

According to the scale here (who knows how accurate it is) I have lost another pound in these few days here. That brings me to a grand total of 21 lbs lost so far in this journey. I am hoping it's actually more- but won't know till I go in for my first fill. I call tomorrow to schedule my first fill. I am excited to do it- all the swelling has pretty much gone away and I have started to actually feel hungry again. I am excited to get moving on the maintenance of this cool new contraption! And start losing these pounds like there's no tomorrow!

I need to really concentrate on staying hydrated. I find it's easier to do that when I am at work. I have a drinking obsession when I work, so it's easy to get all my liquids in and then some. Luckily I am located close to the water cooler and the bathroom!

Well, getting ready to get back to Seattle now. Catch you later!

jh

Recovery, Week 1

The first week and a half after surgery, I really didn't have much of an appetite. The first few mornings upon waking, the largest feeling I had was pain from my incisions. Getting out of bed was an interesting prospect as you use your abdominal muscles quite a lot to sit up! But after getting upright, my main goal was usually to pee and then get some pain meds down me. This proved to be a challenge the first two days.

I would take my liquid Lortab, and then try to get down a little bite of yogurt. This would immediately make me nauseous. The first day, I managed to choke down some anti-nausea meds and then I went immediately back to bed. Laying down really helped. The next morning, I woke up at 4 a.m. or so hurting. I went and took some more pain meds, and again tried some thinned down yogurt- and again nausea. This time it wasn't cured by just laying down. I fought and fought to keep from vomiting- but in the end, I had to do it. It was incredibly painful, but luckily didn't last more than two good pushes.

I was really afraid that I did some damage to my band and I felt awful. Once that adventure was over, I got some more sleep. I felt fine when I woke up. I addressed the bandster boards and asked for advice on morning nausea- Most people said it was likely a reaction to the anesthesia from surgery. Happily, this problem never reared its ugly head again. I felt fine each morning after that.

Week one post-op was a culinary adventure in liquid goo. The goal was to find the most flavorful, lowest caloric items to put in the blender with nonfat milk and sip down in liquid form. There was a tie for the worst concoction I made. It was neck and neck between cheddar broccoli soup and campbell's tomato bisque. Neither of these soups are ones I recommend! They were really unpleasant. Otherwise, the week one liquid diet was fine. I wasn't really hungry at any point- so I wasn't really interested in food. (which is QUITE the change from my normal behaviors) Trying to stay hydrated was a difficult thing to do as well because I would get so full so quickly.

Each day walking helped me to recover quickly. I took to the walking with vigor and serious obsession. I ended up walking more and more each day. I didn't feel good unless I did so. It is absolutely true what your surgeon tells you! DO YOUR WALKING!

jh

Surgery Day

The day of surgery, I was excited, but not nervous. I never really felt a large amount of anxiety about this decision during any portion of it. The most anxiety was probably centered around obtaining the funds on time for the procedure. It sounds very backwards, but I was very certain that this was the right choice for me. I've read many other people's blogs describing their feelings before surgery and the day of- and most expressed a great deal of nervousness about being put under, whether they would survive it, and just general jitters. The reason I address this is because I am a gigantic crazy person when it comes to flying- I just go mad. But knocking me out and stirring around my guts- Meh... whatever... it's fine! LOL

Anyway, my surgery was scheduled for 8:15 a.m. I was instructed to arrive there at 7:15 to prepare. After spending maybe 5 minutes in the waiting area, Matt and I were taken back to the prep area. The first thing they did was weigh me. After that sweet surprise, I was given a duffle bag with my name on the tag and taken to a changing area/ bathroom. Everything off. The always-gorgeous hospital gown on, then the robe on over it. Don't forget the sexy hospital footie-traction socks. I was stylin. They order their robes to fit the majority of their clients who are apparently much larger than me- and when I had that robe on, I felt like I was swimming in it! The upside was that with all that fabric, I was toasty warm.

They had me sit up in the special chair, and they started an IV. Took my blood pressure, and gave me a shot of heparin (blood thinner) in my thigh. I had a visit from the surgeon, praising me on my weight loss. He talked to me about making sure that I was up and walking at least 10 minutes, 4 times a day in order to heal well. The day OF surgery and beyond.

Then I met the anesthesiologist. He looked so tottery and old, the thought crossed my mind that he might not make it through the procedure! But he was nice enough. After another 10 minutes or so, the nurse came out to take me back. Kisses and hugs to husband and I was off.

She led me into the operating room and it was SO COLD in there! I was surprised. They were playing a catchy Sinatra song. They took my robe off, and had me get up on the table. I put my arms out on the T-shaped extensions made just for that. They put the robe back on me. Right away the anesthesiologist went to work on me- distracting me with questions about my hair color (I have a large amount of the front of my hair that is always a fuchsia color). The nurse asked me to breath deeply as they put an oxygen mask on me. The nurse said I would feel a little pain or strange feeling up my arm- but it just felt cold to me.... and then I was out. That's all I remember.

I woke up in the recovery area and the first thing I noticed that it was 11:15 or so. I asked the nurse if it was really 11. She said it was. She said that I needed more pain medication than they expected afterwards- so that knocked me out. I must have been making some noise or something for them to know that. I don't remember any of it.

They gave me some water immediately and asked me to start sipping on it. As I woke up more and more, they asked if I wanted to see my husband. I said yes, of course. He came back, and we talked a little. I gingerly felt my tummy to see what they did- it didn't really hurt at that point. They had me sit up and start to get a little more awake. After 30 minutes or so, they had me get up and move to an area where I could change into my street clothes while Matt went and moved the car to the discharge area. I changed, they handed me a bottle of water, and led me to the door.

Matt drove home, I sipped water, and drifted in and out of consciousness. My beetle is so low to the ground, that getting out of it was quite the challenge. Rather painful overall. I went and got my tennis shoes on, and my hoodie. Matt grabbed the umbrella as it was pouring rain outside- and off we went for a 10 minute walk. I was pretty out of it anyway- so I don't remember much of it- I just remember asking Matt if this was 10 minutes. He said definitely. After the walk I took my pain medication and anti-nausea medication and went straight to bed. My kitty joined me of course. I slept for 2-3 hours, and got up. Felt hungry and had some thinned-out cream of chicken soup. I ate about 1/2 cup and walked around the apartment for 10 minutes. Then I went back to sleep.

jh

Pre-Op Experiences

When I finally decided to move forward with the band, I had attended a required seminar about 3 months prior. I called NWWLS and scheduled my required psychological evaluation, my nurses consultation, as well as my surgeon consultation. 

Within days, I had my psych evaluation with their in-house psychiatrist Linda. Linda's job is to make sure that you have your head on straight about losing weight, your over all expectations of living a life with the band, and to make sure you aren't too depressed or too extreme in any facet of your thinking. If you are in touch with the reality that is being obese and what it takes to overcome that hurdle, you are typically ready. She recommended that I was an excellent candidate for the band, and that I be open to receiving additional counseling, should the need arise.

My nurse's consult with Ethel/Edith, e-something (sorry, she's really sweet, I just can't remember her name) went very well. She took my vitals, went through a short questionnaire and then went over the high points of the booklet they give you that is essentially the "Bander's Bible". It's a guidebook that covers all the things that you can typically expect before surgery, right after surgery, 1 week post-op, 2 weeks post-op, and onward. It also addresses the behavior adjustment aspect of living with the band and making weightloss a priority.

My surgeon's consult was with Dr. Michaelson. He showed my husband and I actual photos of the operation, described what would happen, and then talked to me about reducing the size of my liver before surgery. He stressed that I must lose 7-10 pounds prior to surgery in order to shrink the size of my liver. This makes the surgery much easier to perform, and ensures that the placement of the band and the few sutures they must place in the stomach to secure the band, are tight and in the proper place. Losing that much weight in a week is expected by going on a mostly liquid diet of protein shakes, and one Lean Cuisine for your evening meal. The Dr. then lead me to the examination room, where he listened to my lungs, and poked around my belly to make sure there was nothing weird going on there.

We were then lead to the administrative people to schedule the surgery, schedule payment, and have a "before" photo taken. They sat me down and proposed a surgery date that was one week out! I was stunned, excited, and madly calculating in my head how quickly I could get the funds to pay for it! I agreed on the 1 week date, and got additional directions on my liquid diet. The administrative person and the surgeon recommended going out for a "Last Meal" that evening as I would be starting on the liquid diet the next morning!

I had Matt (my hubby) take me to The Melting Pot on Queen Anne that evening. It was a lovely meal, but I was SO full that I couldn't possibly do dessert. Which is why I wanted to go there in the first place! It was disappointing, but I got a card for free dessert next time we go there. So maybe for a b-day or something we'll try it again... JUST dessert though- I won't be able to eat anything more than that! 

I went out and picked up several packs of EAS Protein shakes in the requisite vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry, and then picked up 7 Lean Cuisine Entrees. That was it. This was my world in terms of food for the next week. The shakes weren't too bad. They stuck with me pretty well, but I needed to drink a LOT of water, crystal light, and iced americanos to keep from being hungry. And I mean A LOT! I was in the bathroom more often that week than I was at my desk at work! In the afternoons, I had the hardest time, feeling lightheaded, really shakey, nauseous, and run-down. 

It turns out I misunderstood the directions of the diet on how many shakes to have per day. I thought it was 2 shakes a day, and one Lean Cuisine at night. I was ingesting a total of around 400 to 500 calories per day- which is QUITE a drop in calories! I called up the clinic about half way through the week and asked how many calories I was supposed to have per day because I felt like crap. I was straightened out when they said I was supposed to have 3-4 shakes a day plus the meal! So I was elated to be able to have a little more to eat! 

After the misunderstanding with the amt of food, getting extra exercise whenever I could, and working my tail off at home over the weekend, come the day of the surgery when I got on the scale, I got the HUGEST surprise! I had lost 16 pounds in 7 or 8 days! It was completely crazy. I was really happy and the surgeon was as well. It was the best start to this journey!

jh

The Beginning

I've decided to keep a blog documenting my journey and life after having adjustable gastric banding. Gastric banding is a restrictive, adjustable band that is placed on the upper portion of the stomach. The placement of the band coincides with the nerves in the stomach that register satiety. When a normal stomach receives food, it fills from the bottom up, and once the top is reached, the nerves tell the brain that it's full and it's time to stop eating. The band restricts the stomach at the top, allowing one to fill the stomach from the top down. The band allows about 1/2 cup capacity for your new stomach, and this restriction in capacity allows you to feel fuller faster, and also longer.

After months and months of research, seminars, watching a "live" webcast of the surgery, and reading others' blogs of their experiences, I decided to go for it. I was unable to get my insurance to pay for it. I was fortunate to have the resources available to me to self-pay.

I received my band on November 15, 2007. I had my band "installed" at North West Weight Loss Center in Everett, WA. My Dr. was Dr. Robert Michaelson. If you are interested in getting a LapBand, and live near Washington state, this clinic is the one to choose. This procedure is ALL they do. They are specialists. Everyone employed at this clinic has a LapBand and that is a huge resource available to you as a patient. They have ALL been through the things you are going through, the unique strangeness that is the LapBand, and all the ups and downs in the process of healing, living and succeeding with it.

jh

Now that I have provided you with a background of what my blog is about, I can go ahead and close this post.