What would I tell the
Pre-Op Girl now?
Three months is such a short time, yet life-changing. Looking back on
this post I did August 31, 2010 -- I had such anxiety, fear, and yet all that was overshadowed by the excitement and hope I had for the future.
Truth is, I still have some of that anxiety & fear (though it has changed) but now-- 3 months after my gastric bypass surgery-- the hope I was feeling is becoming reality. And
that is exciting.
Some fears from my Pre-Op Stage revisited:People thinking I took the "easy way out" --
Psh. If you think that having your guts rearranged is "easy," then you're nuts. I am beginning to believe that obesity and food addiction is just slow suicide. I'm sure that seems harsh, but that's really what we are doing to ourselves... it's a slow death, and often an unhealthy road getting there. WLS was not an easy decision, and post-op is FAR FROM EASY. Yes, the weight comes off quickly BUT that comes with forcing yourself to eat when you don't want to, constantly drinking liquids to prevent dehydration, and oh the vitamins (Morning, Mid-Morning, Noon, Night). Not to mention-- nausea, never knowning if one food will be fine one day but not stay down the next, and the head hunger that you still have to deal with.
Marriage & relationships --
MOST people have been extremely supportive. Others I believe just don't know how to react. Heck, sometimes I don't even know how to react! Part of this I do believe are the misconceptions about bariatric surgery (believe me, everybody has a friend of a friend of a friend who died from gastric bypass surgery -- this is a post for another day.)
My marriage is great. Richard is SO complimentary & supportive, and I've tried to be mindful of how my weight loss might make him feel. He looks out for me saying, "you shouldn't eat that" "you don't want to get sick." Rich is moving along in his journey as well, even has his psych evaluation on Wednesday :o) I'm excited for him!
PCOS --
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. (
Read more here.) My symptoms have actually gotten
worse in the last couple of months. Boo. However, I'm still hopeful as the next 30-50 lbs come off, I'll see an improvement. I have been seeing
my doctor regularly to get this worked out.
Stomach fixed, brain still messed up --
Even though my stomach is the size of an egg, my brain still tells me I can (and want) to eat the whole pepperoni pizza, large Coke, and not to forget the big slice of chocolate cake afterwards. BUT this changes. Richard & I were just talking today about how I don't crave that stuff anymore. I DON'T, not kidding. I can pass a McDonalds, Wendy's, Domino's and not think twice about stopping. My tastes have changed. I actually
love red peppers... who knew!? My head still has moments of utter food addiction weakness, and wants food that I can't have. But the yearning does pass quickly.
Foods that used to satisfy me don't give me the same euphoric comfort anymore. I do indulge occasionally in a piece of sugar free candy or SF cookie. But I eat 1 -- not the entire sleeve of Thin Mints.
I'm still a work in progress. It's a constant battle but now a battle that I feel I am winning, and in turn will win this war against obesity.
