Skittle

As I am sure many of us have, I have yo-yo dieted as long as I can remember. I remember even when I was young, I was always larger than the other girls in the class. By time I became a teenager I was already overweight. I damaged my knee when I was in the 7th grade and have struggled to exercise ever since. Even after I had knee surgery to correct the problem, I still have a hard time doing anything physical for long periods of time because of that injury. The best "diet" that I found was when I got divorced in 2003 (lol). I lost a total of 65 pounds in less than 3 months. But as soon as i began eating again, I gained it back. I promised myself I would never let myself get back up that large again. I kept that promise for a while, but only by 5-10 pounds. I'd lose some of the weight, become bored with the diet and fall off the wagon again. I started breaking out in hives every day for no apparent reason and the doctors put me on steroids quite a few times to combat the hives. Needless to say, with the steroids, I began gaining the weight back. I got to the point where I had trouble getting into theater seats, booths at restaurants, and seats that had arms. I had high cholesterol, but was never on medication for it. I began having hypoglycemic "episodes" as my doctor called it. After researching my symptoms, I believe I was very close to diabetes. I decided I had to do something. I spoke to my best friend who had gastric bypass done several years ago, and she helped me make the decision to have the surgery.
I originally went in to have the Lap-Band surgery, but after learning of the complications and many adjustments that were required, I decided(with encouragement from my fiance) to have the gastric sleeve surgery instead. During the process of going to all the classes and different things required by my insurance,
I learned that my grandmother had liver and colon cancer and was not expected to live past 30 days. After a couple weeks, I decided to tell her what I was planning to do. She was hesitant and asked quite a few questions, but told me that if this was what I felt I needed that she would support me. I spent most of the summer caring for her with her failing health that year, and we would sit and talk about everything that was going to happen. She said at one point before my surgery that she hoped to see the results of my surgery, but was afraid she would not be around that long. She was supportive of the surgery and the diet that I needed to follow.
I had the surgery on August 9, 2012. At the same time, my doctor repaired a hiatal hernia and removed my gallbladder. She called me every day in the hospital to check on how I was doing. The first week after surgery was ok. The second week I developed a bad sinus infection and had trouble getting over it. By week 5 I had lost 35 pounds. I visited my grandmother that following Sunday, and she made a comment on how much I had lost, and that she was happy that the surgery was helping. The next morning she slipped into a coma and passed on Thursday of that week(Sept. 20,2012). She got to see the beginning stages of my surgery and I am glad she did. I know she will be rooting me on every step of the way.
I have had a wonderful supportive family this entire journey so far. It has now been 7 weeks since the surgery and I have lost a total of 40 pounds. I am averaging about 2 pounds a week now. I have a long way to go, but I know I will eventually get there. It has taken a long time but I am finally getting over the sinus infection and cough that went with it. The last 3 days have been pretty good, and I am starting to feel normal again. If you had asked me 2 weeks ago if I would do it again I would say no. Ask me today, and my answer is a definite yes! I know I'm on my way to a healthier me, it will only take time to get there.