So yesterday was Day 5, and it was the first day that I woke up in my own bed since surgery in Mexicali. I had an ambitious menu planned for how I would get all my protein in. Since I can't consume more than a sip of liquid at a time without feeling awful, I set my phone to chime every 15 to 20 minutes to remind myself to take another sip.

Not only that, but I woke up at around 6:45am and took what was supposed to be a 15 minute walk, which actually ended up a 33 minute walk! OK, so far so good. But then around 11am or so, I felt confident enough to drive about 5 miles away to run some errands. I made a foolish decision to put on a girdle because I thought that would hold everything together well (sort of like a compression garment). The problem is, it was way too tight. 5 minutes into my ride I was really regretting my decision. I was really uncomfortable and worried that I had done damage to my stomach. OK fast forward. I got back home, and continued on plan.

By afternoon, my timer became unbearable. The gas was annoying. I was doing a lot more physical activity than I had planned, with my baby and also with climbing the stairs back and forth. By midnight, I had not met my nutritional goals. I was exhausted and for the first time in my life, I had a new thought: Food was a nuisance. I no longer had control of what I ate, my sleeved stomach did. And meals were no longer fun or appealing.

Last night when I went to bed, I thought to myself, I'm not going to even bother with the timer. I'll just sip when I'm hungry. But I know that's not the right way to go about it. So here I am, once again, with the Isopure zero punch by my side, hoping today will be better. I just looked at my food log again, and I actually didn't do that bad as far as getting my protein in. I got approximately 71 grams (I originally thought it was around 60, but I forgot to add the punch). Today I'm taking it easy, no long walks, driving, or anything else. Today will just be a restful day (hopefully).