My birthday is coming up and I also found out my hubby will be coming home for his R&R leave mid May instead of later in the summer. So I would like to be in onederland by then. That gives me 6 weeks. I'm going to be super diligent about my eating and get back on the exercise wagon. I CAN do it! Only 14 pounds to go.
Well, here I am ~ one month out.
I am scheduled for my first fill on the 7th. I can't wait, I've been getting hungry. I still can't eat as much as I could before ~ YAY ~ but after just 2-3 hours I'm so hungry again.
I had thought of more to say but now can't remember....isn't that how it goes?
I took my 1 month pictures and I can see a little change,
I'm having to learn some things with this latest fill. I was able to eat a few bites last nite but they have to be tiny, tiny, tiny....and sips of fluid must also be tiny, tiny, tiny. It is hard for me to imagine that I would be full after about 3 bites but for right now, that's what it is. If I try and push it, I burp, have the hiccups and then PB and slime. I was trying to have something soft today but I think I'll go back to soups and protein drinks for the rest of the day, maybe even tomorrow. I have to make sure I'm getting enough protein.
Off to get ready for work now.
I was going to wait until I got home from work to check the TriWest website for my referral status but I couldn't wait. I checked on my first break and then again at lunch. Nothing there yet. I had pretty much resigned myself that it wouldn't be until tomorrow. I checked again when I got home and the page took forever to load. I wasn't even paying attention and looked down and saw that the page wasn't blank as it had been earlier. What? It was actually in there and said APPROVED. I stared for just a minute, too shocked to move. I seriously was surprised to see that it was approved already, I was just hoping to see that it was in there pending. Wow! I'm excited and I don't know...a little apprehensive? I immediately called the surgeons office. The lady that answered was super nice and told me I'd have to talk to another lady and I'd have to go to orientation and then get a consultation. I left a voice mail for them to get back with me. Hope it doesn't take too long. :smile2:
I finally got my surgery date: Dec 2
10 more days! Yeah!!
I thought I'd type up my timeline:
July 11 – appt with PCM to ask for referral for Lap Band surgery
Aug 25 – attended seminar, required before I could see the surgeon
Sept 25 - appt with Dr Fisher
Oct 9 and 16 – nutrition classes
Oct 8 – psychological consult
Oct 17 - called surgeon's coordinator to let her know all was done, had to contact the psychologist to have him resend his report to her.
Oct 27 - coordinator called to say she submitted to Tricare. I checked with Tricare online daily and called a couple of times, by Fri the 31st, called to let coord. know they still didn't have it. Didn't hear back from her until Nov 6 and she called to say she sent it again. Fri Nov 7 finally saw the approval on Tricare so I called to let her know.
Nov 10 – call from surgeon’s office to schedule review appt
Nov 14 – review appt with Dr Fisher and schedule surgery date - DEC 2
Nov 22 – start 10 day pre-op diet
I've eased myself into the 10 day diet by having protein shakes for breakfast this past week and a couple of lunches.
Hubby and I went to a nice steak house for our last dinner last night. He leaves for Iraq in 2 weeks so this was our last opportunity to have a dinner date since I'll be on liquids those last few days he'll be home. I do get to eat one small meal a day on my pre-op diet so I'll get to have a little dinner on Turkey day.
A couple of people have said things like, you'll miss the holiday goodies but it's just food and will always be available later...the important thing is spending time with loved ones.
I love to garden. I haven't had a garden since I left WA state in 2002. Haven't had a space to garden other than a couple of flower pots. We moved into a new house last Nov and I noticed there is a community garden that I drive by everyday. I contacted them awhile back but never heard anything. My backyard has no space for a garden nor does it get enough sun. I got an email today offering me a garden plot. Woo Hoo! I'm so excited. I promptly started looking at seed catalogs online. I got a few plants and some seeds ordered. Being here in CO it's too late for me to start any tomato or pepper plants from seed so I had to order those as plants. As I was looking at all this online, it was snowing outside. Puts a little damper on the spring fever but not much.
I heard from the surgeons coordinator yesterday and got the date for my orientation. The next available date isn't until Aug 25th. I will check back with the lady who does the class next week (she out until next Wed.) and let her know that if she has any cancellations to call me.
I was watching "Big Medicine" tonight and they were showing the before and after pics of a lady that had plastic surgery after she lost all her weight. Hubby made a face and some noises and I just looked at him. He got mad and said, "I'm not going to tell you again that I don't see you that way and I'm not going to discuss it again." I tried to talk to him and say that I understand but he has to understand that when he makes comments about large people or saggy skin, that it bothers me. How do I know that deep down he isn't disgusted by me? So I said, "let me get this straight...I can't say anything to you about how this bothers me when you do that but I'm supposed to understand and it's ok for you to do it even though I've told you it bothers me?" Then he accused me of twisting what he said. Son was upstairs and piped in saying "Dad, that is what you said" and was promptly told to butt out. So I sat here quiet for awhile and that bothers him and he starts bugging me for being pouty. I wasn't being pouty but what could I say? Then he starts walking up the stairs to go to bed and brings it up again and just as I start to reply, he cuts me off and then acknowledges he cut me off but kept on talking and then finished walking up the stairs to bed. And he wonders why I rarely feel like making love. Agh!!! :smile2: I don't even want to go to bed now but I have to get up at the butt crack of dawn so I have to.
A couple of good things ~
I got a new job. My old job was at a credit card call center. Not the job for me although I did stick with it for a year and a half. I finally got a civil service job again....getting back into the system, yea! plus it's a wee bit more money and it's closer to home.
Also, we've had our house in TX for sale since May '07 and finally , finally got an offer. We've got everything ironed out (we have to put a new roof on but insurance will cover most of it I hope, my deductible is huge). It will be so great to not have to struggle each month to make a mortgage plus rent. Closing is set for Mar 10.
I bought some new PJ's on clearance the other day and the largest size was XL. I bought them because I'll be able to wear them soon but I decided to try them on when I got home, just to see how tight they were and THEY FIT. Woo Hoo! I'm almost out of plus sizes.
As of this morning I have lost 41 lbs. 25 more lbs til onederland.
Had my surgery on Dec 2nd at 12:30. Everything went smoothly with that but afterward, I had a hard time getting my oxygen level up. It drops when I sleep and I kept dozing because of the anesthesia and pain medicine. The nurse finally had me sit in a chair and that seemed to satisfy them so I got to go home about 6pm.
The pain the first couple of days was manageable with the loratab. I never had the shoulder gas pain I read about but from all the sipping, I did get gas. I didn't buy any gas-x so on Sat I had my first outing and hubby and I dropped my books off at the library and then went to Wal-mart for the gas-x and more motrin.
I was beginning to worry because I hadn't had a BM yet and I know that the pain med can cause you to get really constipated. Hope this isn't TMI but I finally had one yesterday afternoon. That's a huge relief.
Now the pain feels like a bad stitch in my side from too much running. I went out on my own today to pick up my prescription refills and to make a quick run through the commissary to get a few groceries. That was too much. I started getting a sharp pain on my left side and had to sit a few minutes, then I didn't think about having to lean over and get stuff out of the grocery basket. I made it home ok and took some motrin as soon as I got here. I'll be taking a dose of loratab at bedtime for sure. In fact, it's about time for that now....later.
I had my 4th fill today and boy can I tell a difference. Anything more than a sip is coming back up. I hope after this one relaxes in a few days that I am at my sweet spot. The Dr told me I didn't need to come back anytime soon unless I felt like I needed to.
I started a new job last week and this week I'm working my regular hours of 3 to 11. I'm pretty beat right about now. Gotta get used to this new schedule. I plan on being able to go to the Y in the mornings. Well it's about time for me to head home.
later.
I just realized that today is 3 months since banding. I've been so tired ~ exhausted that I almost forgot. I've been on prednisone for the last week and suffering a couple of "minor" side effects from it. I got real sick with my asthma, didn't realize how bad it was. I have 3 more days of pills but I think I'm going to stop taking them...I know, I know...I should finish them but I can't take the exhaustion, headaches or joint pain (in my ankles and legs mostly) any longer. I'll try to take my 3 month picture soon. Right now I'm just waiting for the washer to stop so I can put the clothes in the dryer and then go to bed.
I took the first step on my lap band journey today. I went to see my PCM and asked for a referral for the procedure. Now the waiting for the approval begins.