Healthy2015

Hi everyone! Well, after four months of jumping through hoops, I finally had the surgery this past Tuesday. Before I go on, I should admit that I struggled terribly with that 2 weeks pre-surgery liquid diet and cheated multiple times in a big way. I was far from a perfect candidate. Anyway, surgery was Tuesday and I went home Thursday night. I was up and walking the same night as surgery. My blood pressure and blood sugar sky rocketed after surgery. I am not diabetic so the blood sugar thing was a surprise. They addressed it via drugs in my IV and it resolved. Surgeon said this is not uncommon when your body has been through surgery like this. I felt really hot too, like I had a fever, but I didn't. Weird, hey? Very little stomach pain, more like soreness like if you did a bunch of sit-ups. The gas pain in my chest was the worst. It has faded as of today, thankfully. I haven't needed any pain meds since I left the hospital. Now I am home and on full liquids. I am definitely weak and woozy because my blood pressure is low now, and also due to the lack of food, of course. To be expected. I am thinking about food a lot, but I figure who wouldn't be if they hadn't eaten substantial in weeks (except the cheat days before surgery)? Drinking as much Water and broth as I can, eating Jello (blech!), and dreaming of Tuesday when I can have refried Beans or cottage cheese, lol. I realized that my life and especially weekends revolved a lot around food so I tried to prepare myself for that but, boy, it's a big reality check now when the food is gone. Time to find a better friend than Popeye's fried chicken. I'm rolling with it and hanging in there. I weighed in at 326 the month before surgery and as of this morning I saw 295. Out of the 300's! Every day I feel a little bit better, and can't wait to see where I am in a month. I hope everyone is having a good weekend.

I had many experiences that pushed me in the direction of surgery, like seeing 300lbs on the scale, a number I never thought I would see, but I wasn't seriously considering it. The straw that broke the camel's back might seem kind of silly though. It was the TV show, My 600lb Life! The first time I watched it, a woman who was totally disabled by her weight and who lived a life that terrified me started talking about her struggles with food, and I realized I could say the exact same things about my struggles. That was a huge reality check for me. I realized that woman was where I was at one point too, and now she had doubled her weight. It really scared the crap out of me. I am only a week post-surgery so I am in the beginning of my journey, but I feel like I am in the process of saving my life.

Oh my God, I had to laugh when I read this post because I am a week out as of tomorrow, and I was wondering this morning if maybe my surgeon didn't remove enough of my stomach. Helps to know I am not alone in thinking about this.

Hi there. My very first post. I am just beginning the process of preparing for the gastric sleeve surgery so I will post more once I have my surgery date and more information. I am hoping you all will give me some feedback regarding whether or not to talk about the surgery to people in your life. I am very conflicted about it for several reasons. I have seen my family, and even some of my friends, be quite negative and gossipy about other people who have had WLS, and I know the same will apply to me. The thought of It makes me cringe. I really do not want to discuss it at work. I feel like my body and my health are such a private matter, but then that feels dishonest not to be upfront about it. I don't want to hide it, but then I also don't want to discuss it with people who don't have a positive interest. Around and around my thought process goes! My gut tells me to wait until I am recovered from the surgery before I talk about it. I'm interested in hearing how other people have decided to handle discussing the surgery with people, especially family members who love you but who will not respect your need for privacy. Thank you for your responses!