mabarbee

I may be 47 years old at this point in my life, but at times I feel a bit older.  I have struggled with weight issues all of my life.  I have tried many different diet and exercise programs with limited success.  Who of you all out there know the feeling of doing exactly what you are supposed to do only to lose like 0.25lbs at weigh in when everyone else is actually losing pounds?  Well, I can say I know that feeling  :)
 
 I developed health issues in my mid-twenties including Fibromyalgia and after the birth of my second child when I was about 38yo, the Fibromyalgia went into full force and I was diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (doesn't help when you get exhausted for days when you triy to exercise to lose weight!)   <_<  and high blood pressure, and borderline diabetes.  
 
  Well, 2015 was the best year ... NOT ... my health really took a downhill turn and I became so exhausted and fatigued I had days when I had to leave work or had to call in sick.  So lucky me  ;), I got some diagnoses added to my existing ones ... add in Adrenal Hyperfunction, Hormonal Issues (FUN!  :huh:) and PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome - a metabolic syndrome!).  Of course, maybe things are starting to make sense.  I can't lose weight because everything is working against me --- AAH  :D
 
Anyways, found a great Fibromyalgia/Chronic Fatigue/Thyroid specialist who is helping me get my health back on track with natural supplements and a not-your-ordinary (in a good way) treatment approach.  I have been regaining energy and my pain levels are decreasing.  I had been researching weight loss surgery this past year and finally made a decision to start the process around about August 2015. 
 
The surgery preparation process took about 3 months:  blood work, h.pylori test, stress tests, sleep study, echocardiogram and evaluation of my veins for blood clots, psychiatric evaluation, nutrition group, and so forth.  I knew I wanted to have my surgery in December 2015 as it is a slow time for me at work, and what better way to ring in 2016 but with a jump start on my weight loss goals  :) ... now that my energy is returning and my pain levels are decreasing some.  
 
So here I am, 1/02/2016 typing this up and wondering what lies ahead for this upcoming year.  Will I actually be able to finally lose some weight that has crept up on me over the years ... due to bad eating habits when exhausted, due to weight gain from certain medications, and apparently metabolic issues that I didn't know I had until this year!
 
I want to be hopeful, but I have a bit of a combination of a pessimist and realistic side of me, I have tried many things and those many things have not been successful in the past.  So that pessimistic side of me is saying ... just hold out wait and see if this surgery will actually produce results and don't get your hopes up too soon.  The realistic side of me says ... you know your body doesn't work like it is always projected to do so you may experience some difficulty with losing weight as fast as everyone else so just hang in there and keep at it!   ^_^
 
So, I plan to follow my program, and keep communication open with my doctor.  I will keep making efforts to improve my physical activity as my health conditions allow, and I will just do the best I can do at any given point in time.  I will remind myself that I am worth doing this for myself and my family. Any weight loss is better than none, and any health improvement is better than none at all.  
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