annz74
4 weeks out...
Oct 21, 2008
well, it's been a while, so thought i'd write a quick blog. today makes four weeks since my surgery. that doesn't seem possible to me. they say time flies when you're having fun, but i guess it flies when you're trying to learn how to please your pouch, too. =)
i guess i didn't realize until last night how lucky i was with my surgery. in talking to four other people at my support group (who all had the same surgeon), i see now how fortunate i was not to have staples....a drain...a catheter when i woke up....plus i was he only one in my group who was able to go home after one night in the hospital. don't know why i was any different, but dr. matin ROCKS!
right now i'm at 39 pounds lost (that counts my 11 from the pre-op diet). i'm hoping that tomorrow i'll hit the 40 pound mark! my first goal was to lose 60 by christmas....so i'm hoping i can do it!
some positive things that have happened since surgery:
~no more BP meds! (after taking them for about 14 years i was off them a week and half after surgery)....wow.
~my clothes are fitting differently....i've bagged up a bunch to take to my support group for the clothing exchange. even some of my shoes are too big (wide) already!
~my skin feels better (smoother i guess).
~my bad knee (surgery in '01) has not hurt at all since right after surgery.
~i have wayyyyy more energy and "give-a-damn' than i did before surgery
~overall, i just feel 110% better!
obviously i still have a long long way to go. it just amazes me that 39 pounds can make such a big difference in the way i feel. i can't even imagine what i'll feel (or look) like in 6 months or a year! can't wait!!
i've only thrown up once. and let's just say it was not cute. noooo fun. i won't be eating feta cheese for a very verrrrrrrry long time. lol
alright, that's enough for now. going to take one-month pictures this weekend, and i've gotta get better about blogging more often so i can look back and read my progress.
good luck to anyone reading---hope everyone else is as pleased with their surgery! =)
i guess i didn't realize until last night how lucky i was with my surgery. in talking to four other people at my support group (who all had the same surgeon), i see now how fortunate i was not to have staples....a drain...a catheter when i woke up....plus i was he only one in my group who was able to go home after one night in the hospital. don't know why i was any different, but dr. matin ROCKS!
right now i'm at 39 pounds lost (that counts my 11 from the pre-op diet). i'm hoping that tomorrow i'll hit the 40 pound mark! my first goal was to lose 60 by christmas....so i'm hoping i can do it!
some positive things that have happened since surgery:
~no more BP meds! (after taking them for about 14 years i was off them a week and half after surgery)....wow.
~my clothes are fitting differently....i've bagged up a bunch to take to my support group for the clothing exchange. even some of my shoes are too big (wide) already!
~my skin feels better (smoother i guess).
~my bad knee (surgery in '01) has not hurt at all since right after surgery.
~i have wayyyyy more energy and "give-a-damn' than i did before surgery
~overall, i just feel 110% better!
obviously i still have a long long way to go. it just amazes me that 39 pounds can make such a big difference in the way i feel. i can't even imagine what i'll feel (or look) like in 6 months or a year! can't wait!!
i've only thrown up once. and let's just say it was not cute. noooo fun. i won't be eating feta cheese for a very verrrrrrrry long time. lol
alright, that's enough for now. going to take one-month pictures this weekend, and i've gotta get better about blogging more often so i can look back and read my progress.
good luck to anyone reading---hope everyone else is as pleased with their surgery! =)
Just Waiting Now...
Sep 10, 2008
Well, I haven't posted here for a while. Just an update...
My surgery is scheduled for 9/23....less than two weeks away! I can't wait. Just want to get it over with and start LOSING!
Right now I'm on the pre-op liquid diet. Definitely no fun, but I'm doing okay so far.
More blogs to come...
My surgery is scheduled for 9/23....less than two weeks away! I can't wait. Just want to get it over with and start LOSING!
Right now I'm on the pre-op liquid diet. Definitely no fun, but I'm doing okay so far.
More blogs to come...
my last pre-op test...
Aug 20, 2008
yesterday i had my egd (endoscopy) done. i can honestly say that the worse part of the process was sitting next to a guy that STRONGLY resembled a strange bird in the waiting room. lol
the procedure wasn't bad. the doctor was absolutely adorable, and the nurses were very friendly. no complaints. and i was very glad to be in what seemed to be the minority of patients who WASN'T there for a colonoscopy or anything to do with THAT end. ;)
they did find some polyps in my stomach and did some biopsies. doc doesn't seem to be concerned, but i'll be relieved to know nothing is cancerous. **keeping fingers crossed on that**
once the results are faxed to the surgeon, i should be getting a phone call to SCHEDULE SURGERY. woo hoo! i'll be glad when that part is done because the whole unknown makes me nuts.
will it be in september? will it be in 2008? before christmas? 6 months out? dunno. hoping for asap. wish me luck. i think once i have my date, all of this will become real instead of a moving target.
DISCLAIMER: in the one in eleventy-billion chance that someone reading this was at the endoscopy clinic yesterday, they were NOT talking to me when they kept saying, "ann....ann....c'mon ann, we need you to bear down and pass gas." LOL
the procedure wasn't bad. the doctor was absolutely adorable, and the nurses were very friendly. no complaints. and i was very glad to be in what seemed to be the minority of patients who WASN'T there for a colonoscopy or anything to do with THAT end. ;)
they did find some polyps in my stomach and did some biopsies. doc doesn't seem to be concerned, but i'll be relieved to know nothing is cancerous. **keeping fingers crossed on that**
once the results are faxed to the surgeon, i should be getting a phone call to SCHEDULE SURGERY. woo hoo! i'll be glad when that part is done because the whole unknown makes me nuts.
will it be in september? will it be in 2008? before christmas? 6 months out? dunno. hoping for asap. wish me luck. i think once i have my date, all of this will become real instead of a moving target.
DISCLAIMER: in the one in eleventy-billion chance that someone reading this was at the endoscopy clinic yesterday, they were NOT talking to me when they kept saying, "ann....ann....c'mon ann, we need you to bear down and pass gas." LOL
you can't just walk in here and get an ekg...
Aug 20, 2008
i haven't taken the time to blog about my LOVELY experience of getting an ekg. let's just say here are a few of the highlights and things that were actually said to me...
*when i got there, they told me my appointment was for the previous week (when i KNEW it wasn't)
*it took three, yes threeee, different nurses to get the ekg done
*and the first one tells me to get COMPLETELYundressed, and later says "oh i forgot to tell you that you didn't need to take your pants off"
*while i'm COMPLETELY naked, lying on the exam table with my legs sticking straight out in mid-air (because she didn't bother to pull up the bottom third of the table), the nurse proceeds to OPEN the exam room door in order to walk outside. wow. at this point, i was beginning to wonder if i was on candid camera.
*after connecting and reconnecting and connecting and reconnecting the clip thingies at least a hundred times, the second nurse manages to get two ekgs.
*i've skipped a lot here, but finallllllly i get to get dressed, and the third nurse proceeds to tell me that "you can't just walk in here and get an ekg" and after i explained to her (at least three times) that i had called and gotten an appointment, she asks to see my "little appointment card" to prove it....because somehow one should've printed out of my phone after making the appointment?? ugghghgh
anyway, LONNNNNNG story short -- it was an experience i won't soon forget. afterall, it's not often i can say i was sprawled out naked on a table for the world to see AND argued with by a nurse all in one day.
let's just say next time i see my doctor, i will definitely fill her in on my treatment that day...
...oh btw, i guess what matters is that the ekg was normal, and yes, they did finally manage to fax it to my surgeon's office. yay!
*when i got there, they told me my appointment was for the previous week (when i KNEW it wasn't)
*it took three, yes threeee, different nurses to get the ekg done
*and the first one tells me to get COMPLETELYundressed, and later says "oh i forgot to tell you that you didn't need to take your pants off"
*while i'm COMPLETELY naked, lying on the exam table with my legs sticking straight out in mid-air (because she didn't bother to pull up the bottom third of the table), the nurse proceeds to OPEN the exam room door in order to walk outside. wow. at this point, i was beginning to wonder if i was on candid camera.
*after connecting and reconnecting and connecting and reconnecting the clip thingies at least a hundred times, the second nurse manages to get two ekgs.
*i've skipped a lot here, but finallllllly i get to get dressed, and the third nurse proceeds to tell me that "you can't just walk in here and get an ekg" and after i explained to her (at least three times) that i had called and gotten an appointment, she asks to see my "little appointment card" to prove it....because somehow one should've printed out of my phone after making the appointment?? ugghghgh
anyway, LONNNNNNG story short -- it was an experience i won't soon forget. afterall, it's not often i can say i was sprawled out naked on a table for the world to see AND argued with by a nurse all in one day.
let's just say next time i see my doctor, i will definitely fill her in on my treatment that day...
...oh btw, i guess what matters is that the ekg was normal, and yes, they did finally manage to fax it to my surgeon's office. yay!
YAY!!
Aug 05, 2008
well today i called my insurance company. almost felt silly calling because my paperwork was just submitted yesterday. but if you know me, you know how impatient i am...lol
after reading a lot of posts about people who were given approval in a matter or a day or so, i vowed that i was going to call my insurance company every day until i was given their answer.
well, today i called. i was really sweatin' it when the lady said..."this says zero days authorized. let me me go see what this means. please hold." i really thought to myself OH NO. THIS CAN'T BE GOOD IF SHE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT IT MEANS. CRAP!!
but within a couple minutes she came back and said i was approved. i should have my written approval in about five business days.
so!! that means i have my ekg on thursday, my endoscopy on the 19th, and then they can schedule my surgery! i can't wait to get a date!! the whole unknown makes me nuts. hoping for a september surgery, so we'll see!!
well, anyway, figured this was one of those days when i just HADTA
blog. =]
after reading a lot of posts about people who were given approval in a matter or a day or so, i vowed that i was going to call my insurance company every day until i was given their answer.
well, today i called. i was really sweatin' it when the lady said..."this says zero days authorized. let me me go see what this means. please hold." i really thought to myself OH NO. THIS CAN'T BE GOOD IF SHE DOESN'T KNOW WHAT IT MEANS. CRAP!!
but within a couple minutes she came back and said i was approved. i should have my written approval in about five business days.
so!! that means i have my ekg on thursday, my endoscopy on the 19th, and then they can schedule my surgery! i can't wait to get a date!! the whole unknown makes me nuts. hoping for a september surgery, so we'll see!!
well, anyway, figured this was one of those days when i just HADTA
blog. =]
monday monday
Aug 03, 2008
well, tomorrow is the big day. on thursday the insurance coordinator said she just needed one thing...my surgeon's signature on the nutritionist's paperwork. she said she can get it on monday and submit everything for approval. finally! and then comes the waiting game. i hope someone has warned the insurance company that patience isn't one of my best qualities. lol i'm sure i'll be wanting to call them on tuesday!
this week i'm having my ekg. then the endoscopy on 8/19. that one i'm dreading a little bit...not sure i'm fond of something going down my throat like that. kinda creepy. but, i guess it won't be the end of the world. as dr. matin said when i was leaving the consultation, i have to do SOMETHING that isn't fun.
once i get approved (hopefully on the first try), i'll have to do a nutriton/psych class, and i'm done. once i have a date i've got to do a liquid diet one week before surgery and weigh in two days before surgery. then clear liquids only the day before surgery. i guess dr. matin wasn't counting that as no fun, but I DO. lol oh well, it will all be worth it in the end. just wish i had a time machine and could fnd myself about three months out post-op.
soooooo, monday monday. let's see how quickly definity reviews my request!
this week i'm having my ekg. then the endoscopy on 8/19. that one i'm dreading a little bit...not sure i'm fond of something going down my throat like that. kinda creepy. but, i guess it won't be the end of the world. as dr. matin said when i was leaving the consultation, i have to do SOMETHING that isn't fun.
once i get approved (hopefully on the first try), i'll have to do a nutriton/psych class, and i'm done. once i have a date i've got to do a liquid diet one week before surgery and weigh in two days before surgery. then clear liquids only the day before surgery. i guess dr. matin wasn't counting that as no fun, but I DO. lol oh well, it will all be worth it in the end. just wish i had a time machine and could fnd myself about three months out post-op.
soooooo, monday monday. let's see how quickly definity reviews my request!
the "w word"
Jul 27, 2008
well, here it goes...my first OH blog...
never in a million years did i think i'd ever be blogging online about the "w word"---weight. i've struggled with being heavy my whole life...well, as long as i can remember anyway. i was a spoiled rotten kid, and doughnuts, ice cream, and pizza were all things i'd look forward to as a reward. don't get me wrong--i'm not blaming my mom here. she did what she could to get me to like healthy foods. but i was (and still am) the most stubborn person you'll ever meet.
i was never the hugely overweight kid. i didn't look like roly poly death on short legs. but i was always "the chubby one." i guess i started gaining in a bigger way when i left for college and had the freedom of eating what i wanted when i wanted. in february of 1998 something snapped, and i decided to seriously lose some weight. i cut way back on fat and calories, started walking, did all the right things. in a matter of 6 or 8 months, i lost close to 90 pounds. i think the lowest number i remember seeing on the scale was 170. after that, i plateaued and decided i was happy at about 175. then 180. i stayed there for quite a while...fluctuated some, but i vowed that i would never weigh 200 pounds again.
well, here i am WISHING i weighed 200 pounds again. how'd that happen? in 2001, i got married. i guess i was happy, got comfortable, and started letting myself eat more. go ahead--have seconds--he is. in 2006 i found myself divorced. and fat. not a good combination for someone in her thirties. never thought i'd have to deal with the single life again. NEVER thought i'd be considering a drastic surgery such as RNY.
i've come to realize that i need to do this. for myself. i need to take control and get back to being healthy. at this stage, i feel like my best option is the surgery. last year i was seriously considering the lap band. something told me it wasn't right for me. i feared that without the malabsorption and without the restrictions on types of food i could eat (like sugar, bread, pasta), i didn't think it would work for me. not long term anyway.
i know surgery is definitely not the easy way out. i know it's merely a tool that i need to use for the rest of my life. i get it. i'm there. i'm ready. i've always felt that before i could lose the weight FOREVER, i'd have to understand, WHY i am overweight. i know now. there are a few reasons. first, i love food. secondly, i rely on food...it's my entertainment, it's my crutch when life sucks, it's my "fun" when things are going well. wow...just admitted all that....pheewwww!! lol i think that proves that i'm at the point in my life where i'm done letting food direct my days. i am ready to just eat to live...NOT live to eat.
with any luck, my surgeon will be submitting for insurance approval this week. i am starting my pre-op testing (ekg, egd, etc.), so i think he's pretty confident that i will be approved. this can be taken as an insult, but he told me at my consultation that i'm the perfect candidate for gastric bypass and i was glad to hear it.
if you've read this far, i'm sorry. didn't mean to take up so much of your time. i don't mind that other people might read this, but that's not why i wrote it. so WHY did i blog about the "w word"?? i guess just to get this all out. and secondly, i hope to look back in the coming months/years and realize that i did the right thing. i want to look back when i'm at my goal weight and confidently think, DAMN, FOOD WAS THAT IMPORTANT TO ME?....I COMPROMISED MY HEALTH? MY LOOKS? MY LIFE?....FOR FOOD???? NEVER AGAIN.
never in a million years did i think i'd ever be blogging online about the "w word"---weight. i've struggled with being heavy my whole life...well, as long as i can remember anyway. i was a spoiled rotten kid, and doughnuts, ice cream, and pizza were all things i'd look forward to as a reward. don't get me wrong--i'm not blaming my mom here. she did what she could to get me to like healthy foods. but i was (and still am) the most stubborn person you'll ever meet.
i was never the hugely overweight kid. i didn't look like roly poly death on short legs. but i was always "the chubby one." i guess i started gaining in a bigger way when i left for college and had the freedom of eating what i wanted when i wanted. in february of 1998 something snapped, and i decided to seriously lose some weight. i cut way back on fat and calories, started walking, did all the right things. in a matter of 6 or 8 months, i lost close to 90 pounds. i think the lowest number i remember seeing on the scale was 170. after that, i plateaued and decided i was happy at about 175. then 180. i stayed there for quite a while...fluctuated some, but i vowed that i would never weigh 200 pounds again.
well, here i am WISHING i weighed 200 pounds again. how'd that happen? in 2001, i got married. i guess i was happy, got comfortable, and started letting myself eat more. go ahead--have seconds--he is. in 2006 i found myself divorced. and fat. not a good combination for someone in her thirties. never thought i'd have to deal with the single life again. NEVER thought i'd be considering a drastic surgery such as RNY.
i've come to realize that i need to do this. for myself. i need to take control and get back to being healthy. at this stage, i feel like my best option is the surgery. last year i was seriously considering the lap band. something told me it wasn't right for me. i feared that without the malabsorption and without the restrictions on types of food i could eat (like sugar, bread, pasta), i didn't think it would work for me. not long term anyway.
i know surgery is definitely not the easy way out. i know it's merely a tool that i need to use for the rest of my life. i get it. i'm there. i'm ready. i've always felt that before i could lose the weight FOREVER, i'd have to understand, WHY i am overweight. i know now. there are a few reasons. first, i love food. secondly, i rely on food...it's my entertainment, it's my crutch when life sucks, it's my "fun" when things are going well. wow...just admitted all that....pheewwww!! lol i think that proves that i'm at the point in my life where i'm done letting food direct my days. i am ready to just eat to live...NOT live to eat.
with any luck, my surgeon will be submitting for insurance approval this week. i am starting my pre-op testing (ekg, egd, etc.), so i think he's pretty confident that i will be approved. this can be taken as an insult, but he told me at my consultation that i'm the perfect candidate for gastric bypass and i was glad to hear it.
if you've read this far, i'm sorry. didn't mean to take up so much of your time. i don't mind that other people might read this, but that's not why i wrote it. so WHY did i blog about the "w word"?? i guess just to get this all out. and secondly, i hope to look back in the coming months/years and realize that i did the right thing. i want to look back when i'm at my goal weight and confidently think, DAMN, FOOD WAS THAT IMPORTANT TO ME?....I COMPROMISED MY HEALTH? MY LOOKS? MY LIFE?....FOR FOOD???? NEVER AGAIN.
