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i only lost 9.4 lbs in month 2, which ended two days ago.  but my loss for this week is 5.2 lbs.  i wish my trajectory was more predictable.  even more, i hope i'm done with stalling and water weight yo-yoing, at least for a while. 

i'm beginning to approach lots of milestones.  at 309.4, i'm finally seeing the end of the 300's for me.  my bmi is 51.5, so i'll soon be in the 40s.  i've lost 44.6lbs, so i'm coming up on a 50lb loss, which is 1/4 of the total weight i want to lose. these will be days for celebration!

 

this seems to be floating around.  i think it's great, so i figured i'd post it here, so i can find it when i'm looking for it. i wish i had an url to link to the source, but i can't locate the source...   WHAT HAVE YOU LOST COMPARISON: 

1 pound = a Guinea Pig
1.5 pounds = a dozen Krispy Kreme glazed donuts
2 pounds = a rack of baby back ribs
3 pounds = an average human brain
4 pounds = an ostrich egg
5 pounds = a Chihuahua
6 pounds = a human’s skin
7.5 pounds = an average newborn
8 pounds = a human head
10 pounds= chemical additives an American consumes each year
11 pounds = an average housecat
12 pounds = a Bald Eagle
15 pounds = 10 dozen large eggs
16 pounds = a sperm whale’s brain
20 pounds = an automobile tire
23 pounds = amount of pizza an average American eats in a year
24 pounds = a 3-gallon tub of super premium ice cream
25 pounds = an average 2 year old
30 pounds = amount of cheese an average American eats in a year
33 pounds = a cinder block
36 pounds = a mid-size microwave
40 pounds = a 5-gallon bottle of water or an average human leg
44 pounds = an elephant’s heart
50 pounds = a small bale of hay
55 pounds = a 5000 BTU air conditioner
60 pounds = an elephant’s penis (yep, weights more than his heart!)
66 pounds = fats and oils an average American eats in a year
70 pounds = an Irish Setter
77 pounds = a gold brick
80 pounds = the World’s Largest Ball of Tape
90 pounds = a newborn calf
100 pounds = a 2 month old horse
111 pounds = red meat an average American eats in a year
117 pounds = an average fashion model (and she’s 5’11”)
118 pounds = the complete Encyclopedia Britannica
120 pounds = amount of trash you throw away in a month
130 pounds = a newborn giraffe
138 pounds = potatoes an average American eats in a year
140 pounds = refined sugar an average American eats in a year
144 pounds = an average adult woman (and she’s 5’4”)
150 pounds = the complete Oxford English Dictionary
187 pounds = an average adult man
200 pounds = 2 Bloodhounds
235 pounds = Arnold Schwarzenegger
300 pounds = an average football lineman
400 pounds = a Welsh pony 

i've been on a clear liquid diet for the last 24 hours and nothing by mouth since midnight save a small sip of water with some meds.  i took half my dose of long acting insulin today, as well as a few meds.  i was surprised to find out that i was to continue taking aspirin.  i thought because of its blood-thinning effects that i would have come off it about a week prior to surgery.  however, i was told specifically that i should stay on it; the positives outweigh the increased chance of bleeding.

 

about a month prior to surgery, i went through three hours of pre-admission testing where i met with an anesthesiologist, nurse and had lab work.  the most important part of that meeting was discussing fibromyalgia with the anesthesiologist, particularly the guidelines for elective surgery:  http://www.healthcentral.com/chronic-pain/fibromyalgia-254553-5.html.  i was assured that the guidelines would be followed.  i was impressed that the resident actually knew about the notion of giving a dose of opioids prior to surgery to help prevent central sensitization of pain.

 

i arrived on time at the hospital for 7am.  my surgery was scheduled for 930am.  everything was progressing smoothly until i arrived outside the OR, and the anesthesia team prepared to give me an IV.  it took three anesthesiologists over an hour, even with the use of an ultrasound to locate appropriate veins, to finally give me an IV.  the IV ended up in the crook of my left arm, right where i typically have blood drawn.  blood draws are difficult on me to the point that i try to go to one person to have my blood drawn because they are able to get it with ease, while others fail miserably.  

 

during the hour they were attempting to get an IV in, we discussed the fibromyalgia guidelines and my intubation.  i was upset to hear that they were intending to ignore all the guidelines because they were concerned about doing a safe intubation.  my impression was that they were more concerned about their ease than any ongoing pain issues i might have from not having the guidelines followed.  i do have a history of having a difficult intubation because i have an anatomically narrow airway that requires the smallest tube to be used.  because of these concerns, they decided to intubate me while i was awake.   they also planned on using succinylcholine  which is specifically discouraged because it is known to cause muscle pain in some people following surgery.  the opioid pain medication i was to receive 90 minutes prior to surgery was being scrapped as well.  while i understood their desire to be cautious, i was finally able to convince them to give me the pain medication immediately after intubation and prior to the start of surgery, figuring that some time ahead was better than none.  needless to say, after all the hoopla of getting an IV and trying to get them to comply with the fibro guidelines, i wasn't feeling too optimistic about surgery.  

 

finally i'm in the OR.  being intubated while conscious sounds horrendous, but it turns out that it wasn't so bad.  once i was finally out, i'm pleased to say that the surgery was unremarkable, which is pretty remarkable for me.  the surgeon stopped by to see me in recovery as she was leaving for the day and told me everything went fine.

 

arriving in my room, i was surprised just how out of it i was.  i expected to be parched and craving water, but surprisingly i wasn't.  perhaps them having lactate ringers running at a good clip through the IV helped keep me well hydrated.  even my lips, which are perpetually chapped, weren't crying out for lip balm.

 

a scary start but a good ending :)

i met with my surgeon, denise gee, on monday, 10/7.  it was a good appt and i was given the go ahead for surgery, though she does want me to meet with dr. butsch at the mgh weight center to establish a relationship since i have multiple medical problems.  my surgery is scheduled for nov 19, just 6 weeks away.  we also scheduled the 9 appts i'll have to complete pre-op.  the only issue will be two morning nutrition groups, one at 9am and the other at 8am that i'll have to attend.  i'm not sure how i'll wake to attend these groups, but twice won't kill me, even if it will mess me up for a few days.

there's been no discussion of insurance, although with medicare and masshealth, i should be good.  i'm pleased with how quickly things are moving, since i only had my initial visit at the weight center on 9/11/13.

a good start...