So I have been overweight all my life and at my heaviest I weighed about 350 pounds. I have Diabetes, High Blood pressure and a few other issues. In January of 2016 I decided to start losing weight. It worked, for the most part. I was walking every day, I started taking my gym membership seriously and even got a part time job at the gym. So far I have lost 50 pounds. In about March of last year I signed up for Bypass surgery. Having been a big fan of the show my 600 pound life, I felt this was a good idea for me. I had just turned 45 that April and knew I only had a short window of time to do this while I was young enough to recover.
However, I was dealt a huge blow in September of 2016, when I had a mini stroke (a TIA). You could have knocked me over with a feather. After all the weight I'd lost. How could I have a stroke? I was okay, and had no real side effects (thank God) but I worried about one thing, could I still get the surgery? So many people told me they wouldn't do it because of the stroke. Well, after consulting with the doctors, they all agreed that my risk was small enough that I could go forward with it.
So since then life has been challenging. I have suffered from so many small ailments that I hadn't suffered from in years all within the space of a few months. All of the appointments I had just for the surgery were doubled because of the stroke. This was the coldest, wettest weather we'd had in ages, and since I don't drive, I wasn't getting out as much as I should, but continued to exercise as much as I could. I still had my job, and made a good friend there, and I was still motivated, but my old eating habits were creeping back in. However, I was shocked that instead of gaining, I was still losing. But I am still concerned. Concerned that when the time comes, some doctor will say it's a no go, scared of some of the upcoming tests I still have to go through, like the sleep apnea test. I would rather get a colonoscopy than go to a Sleep Apnea clinic. But mostly, just scared of the post-operative stuff. My sister, who I live with and who has been my biggest cheerleader, threw me for a loop when she said, "I can't take five days off", after the Dietician told me that was a requirement after surgery. This whole surgery had been her idea. Fortunately my new friend from work said she would stay with me for a while as well, but still...
Anyway, I am worried about something going wrong, about my old habits interfering with my new life, about how long it will take me to recover, and will it be really painful? But mostly, I worry about my stroke, and whether the rug will be pulled out from under me at the last minute, after over a year of preparing and doing everything I needed to do to get here.. I feel pretty alone in all of this and could use some encouragement...
They sure make it look easier on my 600 pound life!
