5-ish years!
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It's been 3 years, y'all
Didn’t lose any weight prior. I was on high cholesterol and blood pressure meds, diagnosed with fatty liver, pre-diabetic, peed every 20-30 mins, and snored like a freight train (so said Mr.) Day of sleeve surgery: 223.2 lbs No recovery issues, but I became dumper on sugar (still am). I got off my meds, eliminated liver and diabetic diagnoses within a month. I can hold my pee like a superhero (including not having to go once during a 9 hr flight pre-covid!), and I sleep so silently that Mr. admitted to checking on me during the night in the beginning to check if I was even alive. I ate VERY little during weight loss phase compared to most, but it worked for ME…I didn’t suffer any medical/nutritional issues nor any angst throughout. I tracked everything I ate/drank, weighed myself every morning and took my measurements every Wednesday (I STILL track and weigh daily - its just habit now -, but no longer take my measurements regularly) Reached goal of 127 lbs 7 months after surgery. I had zero stalls. I had a tummy tuck, arm lift and breast lift at 14 months post op. Lowest weight: 109 lbs (this was a month or so after plastics, but quickly gained back to 115-ish) I’ve basically been 115-ish +/- 5 lbs since a couple months into maintenance. Weight this morning: 116.0 lbs even. Happy place is below 120 and/or that my clothes still fit, LOL. These days I exercise semi-regularly, running minimum 5km 2-3 times a week supplemented with the occasional 20-30 min strength training sessions at home (I continue to hate strength training exercises but consider it a necessary evil), and various other for-fun cardio activities. Part of me wanted to get back to higher exercise levels so I can get the “fitter” look I had back then, but I long ago reconciled myself with the fact that I don’t want it THAT badly. Maybe someday I may change my mind, but I’m cool with it for now. I average 1800-2000 cals a day. I drink alcohol and carbonated water on the regular, use straws, chew gum, drink coffee, and eat popcorn, fried foods and carbs. I love desserts. At 3 years out, my restriction is still in effect and could probably eat about 1-1.5 cups of food in volume at one sitting before I need to tap out: some things I can eat more of (salads) than others (dense protein & fluffy bread). I will barf if I eat too much or too fast. I have energy for days, and am more than satisfied with how I look and feel. Life is good. Had my 3 year follow up last week and I continue to be the picture of health, and my surgeon asked again if I wanted to be on a poster. Ummmm, no thanks. Regrets? ABSOLUTELY ZERO. Well, except maybe that I didn’t get a v-shaped tummy tuck incision vs the straight line one that I got. Just means that I can’t wear higher cut bikini bottoms without my scar showing (see the last pic in the collage below). But I mean, I’m just nit-picking at this point. This forum has been a constant in my life for the past 3 years, and I’ve made some great connections and some actual REAL friends. Its really nice to engage with others who know what the eff you are talking about, even if its just about food porn and clothes sometimes, lol. Hugs and Congrats to those who made it to the other side with me, and Hugs and Good Luck to those on their way.
1 year, 3 months after the PS Trifecta
2 Months PS Update
2m-Po Weight: 117.1 lbs Pre-PS Bust - Waist - Hips measurements: 32.5" - 25.5" - 33"
2m-Po Bust - Waist - Hips measurements: 33.5" - 25.0" - 34" Pre-PS Left UpperArm Circumference: 10.5"
2m-Po Left UpperArm Circumference: 10.0" Pre-PS Right Thigh Circumference: 17.0"
2m-Po Right Thigh Circumference: 19.0" * I didn't think to measure my lower abdomen before, but I did this morning, so I can start keeping track:
2m-Po Lower Abdomen (measuring widest part): 33.0" Next Steps: I have my 2 month post op appointment with my surgeon tomorrow. He had given me homework to stretch/massage my arms at my 6 week appt, as he felt I should a fuller range of motion that I did at the time. He wanted to see me be able to raise my arms completely straight up with no resistance. Well....I CAN do it, BUT i can feel the areas between the armpit and upper tricep stretching to its limit. It doesn't hurt, but I can definitely feel the pull. I'm not sure if this is where he wanted me to be at, and I guess we'll see what he says tomorrow. I promised myself I would not go back to my normal level of exercise until ALL my wounds have closed. This may be overkill, but I really DO NOT want a repeat of last month. Hopefully this will be in the next couple weeks. I am going back to "work" in a couple weeks as well, so this should help with the boredom. Pictures: My surgeon will be taking pics of me at my appointment tomorrow, will see if I will post those, or take some myself...will decide later. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edited to add update from 2 month follow up appt with Doc:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Soooo....went to my 2 month follow up yesterday and Doc scheduled me for some steroid shots next month...I guess he is not happy with my my scar healing (I was fine with it, but I guess he knows better ) He also asked me again to not wear my tape as much as I have been. I wear them basically 23 hours a day and he wants me to halve that, if not more (he asked me to do this last time, but I didn't listen...but since he asked AGAIN, I guess I should pay attention). I have been tape-less since about 6pm yesterday, and it feels odd. Almost as if the incisions are getting sore again? Only on my arms though...my boobs and tum feel the same. *shrugs* I do notice this morning that a lot of dried skin was flaking off the (healed) incision lines...not sure what the impact of this is *shrugs again*. I slathered some bio oil on them (he did tell me to moisturize). Wound update: I was down to 3 open wounds yesterday! BUT...this morning a new one opened on my left underboob due to another suture expelling, so my number stays at 4. Le sigh. Btw, Doc says that part of the reason why I'm expelling so many sutures is because I am "so skinny". Something about no where for the sutures to be absorbed into. On another note: Speaking of being "so skinny", when I asked Doc about what we can do about my saggy butt, he said that I am not a good candidate for a BBL in my current state, unless I want to gain at least 10 lbs OF FAT. Um, no thanks. He also does not support nor perform implants, which left his option recommendations to: Traditional butt lift Some machine treatment (I forget the name), which is basically a device that simulates 100's of mini squats per session (think Dr. Ho's) Actual Squats I'm gonna go with the Actual Squats
6 Week PO Plastics Update: Is that really ME??
3 Week PO Plastics Update: I ❤️ my Boobs
Day 19 Update: With Pics!
2 Weeks after Plastics Update
PS PO Day 10: Holiday Party Aftermath & Poop Watch 2019
PS Post-op Day 5: So Long, Drains! (Hello Itch)
PS Post-op Day 4: Energizer Grandma
Plastics Post-op Day 3: Random Updates
Plastics Post-op Days 0-2
I had meant to write the entry below as a blog entry at first, but I ended up posting it to the thread "A Tale of Two Arm Lifts (rs & ms.sss)" yesterday instead.
Anyway, I am now including it here as originally planned
****** Get comfortable, this is a long one... So here is the additional backstory info to my PS journey: So I ended up getting a last-minute Tummy Tuck two days ago (Dec 18), along with my arm and breast lift. Back in June 2019, when I initially scheduled my procedures, I was going to get an arm lift, a breast lift (to address side boob skin), and a tummy tuck. The tummy tuck was actually partially covered by provincial insurance. Basically the panniculectomy part was covered and I we only need to pay out of pocket for muscle tightening or any required Lipo. But sometime around August or September, I decided to forego the tummy tuck because I thought that I could live with the state my stomach was in, and I didn't want to have more surgery if I didn't really need to. So I called my surgeons office and let them know. Fast forward four months later and I'm at the registration desk at the hospital on surgery day. I'm signing all the papers, and one of them is a confirmation surgery procedure form and lo and behold the tummy tuck is still on there. Apparently, the fact that the tummy tuck was removed was not properly communicated to the hospital. (As an aside, this is a perfect example of why confirmation of surgeries is necessary at registration!!) I had a discussion with my surgeon: he said the OR is already booked and set up for all three procedures including the tummy tuck. So if I wanted to, we could go ahead as originally planned back in June, or not. Whatever I decided was fine with him. If I didn't want the tummy tuck, there would be some paperwork to do beforehand, but it was doable since the OR was booked for all 3 procedures, and there was time to do the paperwork/system corrections and still complete the arm and breast lifts in that time. So now I had a discussion with Mr.: It wouldn't really cost much more, and they were all set up for it already anyway, so why not? It's funny because the decision making process felt like when you're in a grocery store line and decide to buy that pack of gum at the checkout. It's been almost 48 hours since the completion of my surgeries...here's what's happened so far: Day 0: Got to hospital at 7am and all the above happened. I got on the operating table at 9:30am, and don't know what time I woke up at recovery. The surgery was supposed to be 4 hours. All I remember was that it was 4pm when I got rolled into my room. That first night after the surgeries was relatively pain-free as I was drugged up and in bed the entire time. I slept a lot but not for very long periods of time. They put these leg type massagers on my legs that work kind of like a blood pressure cuff. Each one inflates a chamber with air starting from ankle to thigh, to squeeze my leg nicely and then deflates. Then the other one on the other leg does the same thing. Its to promote circulation and prevent blood clots. I've had them on the entire time (except when going to bathroom or taking a short walk) and I LOVE THEM. I want to buy one of these contraptions for home! The nurse said that I am the first patient she's met that likes these things. Which I find hard to believe because these things are awesome. Didn't eat anything all day, other than Water, a cup of tea and 1/2 an unsweetened apple juice box. Day 1: Now the next day I felt the pain for the first time when my drugs wore off and I had to get out of bed to go to the washroom (they took my catheter out). Oh. My. God. When I twisted my body and put my foot on the ground, I felt like I was being stabbed in my hip with a large knife. It was so painful that when I walked I couldn't put my heel down. I had to do I sort of walk–tiptoe shuffle to the toilet. So first lesson: do not twist your body. Because of the tummy tuck, I have to walk hunched over and this quickly puts a strain on your back. So second lesson: walk with the help of your IV pole/cane/walker/buddy. I have 2 drains in my tummy, which are mildly annoying. I forgot about them once when I got out of bed and pulled on one a bit which caused some bleeding. Boo. I was surprised that I could move my arms relatively freely and pain free. I could even put weight on my arms to lift myself out of bed, type on my laptop, feed myself, and go to the washroom by myself. I may not have been very efficient, but I could do it. Also, I could brush my teeth but not my hair. Nor could i adjust my head pillows. Basically anything where I have to raise my arms above shoulder height is a no-go. My boobs didn't/don't hurt at all. As if nothing was even done there. I got to see all the work done when the nurse changed my dressings. My arms are tiny. My boobs are nice and perky with matching nipples (my previous breast reduction had one of the nipples wrinkle/fold over at the outer edge and my guy fixed it). My tummy is wrinkle free and my new belly button looks better than the old one. My inner thighs from the front has been smoothed out! This was an unexpected bonus My va-jay-jay, however, is quite "perky". When I look down sitting in bed it stares right up at me. My nurse said she noticed it was swollen. She said it is a combination of being yanked up and the use of the stomach binder. Didn't show it to surgeon this first day, but will remember to bring i up when I see him before I leave. Today I had a cup of coffee, 1/2 a chicken breast and some beef Jerky. Day 2: Now today I feel exponentially better. I got an a good seven hours of continuous sleep. When I woke up I could feel that my pain meds had worn off but I was able to get out of bed and walk to the washroom just fine. I can tell I'm walking much faster now and am much less hunched over. I could probably skip the pain meds from now on but I think based on @sillykitty's comments, i'll take them for another day or so. Mr. has already filled my prescriptions, so I may as well take them. I'll play it by ear. I find that the only real pain I get is from twisting my torso. I can easily do a sit up or leg lift motion pain free, but if I twist in any way, I get a sharp pain. Everything else is bearable. On a scale of 1 to 10, I'd say my pain level is about 1.5. Compare this to the pain of WLS recovery, which I would have given an 8 at its worst. They took the IV out this morning because my swollen hands were basically embedding that entry thing into my flesh and it was starting to hurt. They tried to put a new one in twice but couldn't find a vein because I'm too swollen. They asked if I was OK with them trying a third time, and I was all, No Thanks. IV insertion hurts, man! So they are off finding an alternate antibiotic to administer without an IV. I'm supposed to be discharged sometime today but honestly I'd rather stay because I love these leg massager things. Plus I like the adjustable hospital bed! Anyway just hanging around now waiting for my surgeon and next instructions. P.S. I ate 1/2 an omelette & a peach yogurt cup so far today.