DebLynn

Hi my name is Deb (or DebLyn),

I am a 44 year old recent college graduate and a mammogram/x-ray tech. And no my degree is not in my work field. I was fairly skinny until after my first child. Busted my buns like you wouldn't believe to get back in shape, I was in the Navy at that time. 2 years later I was pregnant again. This time the weight never came off. Didn't help that I was out of the Navy and a stay at home mom trying to go to school. So my weight went from 145 before my second child to 180. Then I went to a hospital based radiology school and graduated 2 years later at a whopping 320 pounds...at least that is the last time I glanced at a scale. Over the next five years I managed to bring it down to a fluctuating 232-250. It stayed there till 2006 when I lost 60 lbs and reach 170. It took working out 2.5 hours a day 6 days a week and eating a strict 1200-1500 calories a day. Anything over that and the weight started to climb. In 2007 during one of my long runs (8 miles) I popped my Achilles tendon halfway off the bone. I opted to let it heal naturally instead of surgery and then proceeded to slowly gain the weight back even though my eating habits hadn't changed much. Then at age 39 I had a hysterectomy...can we say that is all she wrote. In the last 5 years I have tried recording my weight and watching calories with moderate exercise ( I am to old and busy to spend 2.5 hours in the gym!), going vegan for 8 months. Needless to say non of it work. While going vegan improved my skin tone and such it did nothing for my weight, and yes I was watching the calories. Depression and school attacked and started eating at chick fillet when spending 12 hours at the campus and in my last semester gained 20 pounds on top of my normal 232!

My friend and boss went in May 2012 and we discussed it. Told her that I wanted to see first hand how things progressed before making any decision. In October I decided to schedule for the vertical sleeve. I wanted it performed on Jan 1st but have to settle for Jan 2nd. This way I begin the new year with a bang. It also helps that I am out of school and haven't returned to work full time yet so I have to time to recuperate and pay attention to myself.

While my husband does not approve of this surgery, he is still supporting me by reminding me that this is all about life style change and it is a tool not the solution. I understand all this. I have done a lot of research and realize that the largest enemy I have is myself. I have had to come to terms with the fact that life has a lot of unexpected happenings and that it is how I deal with these that is the problem. Also, I need to put my heal first. I can't take care of my parent and my husband if I can't take of myself.

While I am not quit there yet on the mental thing I do have an amazing support group and have been preparing myself for what is to come. On reading over the various blogs and comments, many things were a revelation. Having surgery and then the first though is "I want some fried..." just says that you have a lot of work in front of you. I don't eat fried food but food itself has played an important role in my life. I am trying to make other things more important and take precedence. For example, my mom, dad, niece, husband and I went on a week long cruise immediately after graduation and returned on 12/23/12. My mom's whole focus of the trip was the food, buffet, deserts, ....you get my drift. My husband and I pushed for eating in the dining room instead of the buffet, and if the others wanted the Lido dinning (buffet) we went by ourselves. I am proud to say that out of all our group I am the only one that didn't gain weight on the cruise. But I made up for it with mom's stuffing. I think it was the mind set that it will be the last time I eat it. Which is probably true, since we are already planning on a healthier version next Christmas that uses turkey instead of sausage. And of course eating much less of it.

I fly out tomorrow and am suppose to be packing and charging all the electronics for the trip. To say I am nervous and excited at the same time is an understatement. Another part is trying to imaging what coming home on the plane will be like and I can't even fathom it. I'm not a fan of plan travel, if only I could afford 1st class. Oh well.

So, I am ready and leave bright and early on new years day to start a new journey that will allow for new adventures in the future.
Wish me luck...I am going to need it.

Deb