Energy? Where are you?

Today I've had more energy than any other day since surgery. But I still feel pretty zapped. I'm not used to laying around on the couch, ah!

My day is pretty regimented. I have to to get in 70g of protein each day, at least 64oz of fluids, and take my vitamins (2 multi, 1 iron, 3 calcium, 1 b-12) divided between breakfast, mid-morning, lunch, and dinner. Oh and a couple prescriptions thrown in there. My alarm clock is going off constantly :o)

I made some pouch-friendly chicken salad later this afternoon. But after I made it, I was too tired to eat! I had to laugh at myself!

Crystal Light is my best friend. Plain water, although it tastes good, doesn't sit well on my new stomach. This is what happens when Rich goes shopping...



Bottoms up!

Dinner -- Pureed Food Day 1

After a week of sweet crystal light, sweet pudding, sweet jello, sweet yogurt, sweet protein shakes, and sweet popsicles.... I cannot begin to tell you how excited 2 tbsp of pureed egg salad makes me! Crazy, right?!



(That's more than 2 tbsp- that's about 3-4, I can't eat all that. And yes, I eat with a baby spoon.)

I'm not hungry. From what they tell me, I won't be hungry for 6-8 months BUT I have to eat every 2-3 hours in order to get in my 70 grams of protein each day. This is tough, but I'm getting it.

Off to enjoy my dinner :o)....

1 Week Post-Op

a short video to record my weight loss for the week... and so you can see how good I'm doing :o)

What did they do to you?

I've had some people ask me "What did they do to you?" So I thought I'd share a drawing that my surgeon, Dr. Stephen McNatt, drew for me at my pre-op appointment on January 6th.

This first drawing is of a normal digestive system. The big part there is my stomach, and you can see where he wrote Liver and Pancreas (that's the point where they are attached to your intestines and deliver all their goods that we need.)



This is a picture of my NEW POUCH. You can see that they made a small pouch out of the upper part of my stomach. The rest of my stomach is still in there, it still makes digestive juices and things that aid digestion. They pulled up a lower part of my small intestine, and you can see the arrow at the pouch indicates where my new pouch was connected at that point. (The little thing that looked to me like a mouse attached to the end of a piccolo was the drain. They took that out on Friday, didn't hurt.) You can see by this illustration that my stomach and intestinal track now resemble a "Y"; hence the name "Roux en Y" Gastric Bypass.


I hope this was a little informative. I refer to these drawings quite often these days, and I'm still in awe of how God has made our bodies to be so resilient!

Every day is not rainbows and butterflies :o) but I'm doing great! Today I made the decision not to take any pain meds, and I've done well. Only 1 more day of full liquids, then I get to venture into the Pureed Food stage for several weeks.

Post-Op Diet (Phases)

There are several phases to my Post-Op Diet.

Hospital:
In the hospital, I was on Clear Liquids. I think my biggest treat was a sugar free Popsicle. I was restricted to 2 medicine cup fulls an hour.

Home:
The first 5 days after discharge (which I'm currently on), I progressed to Full Liquids. Full liquids consist of: all clear liquids, protein shakes, light yogurt, skim milk, sugar free pudding, sugar free jello, and broth.

The next phase will begin Thursday, 1/20/11. Pureed Foods. Pureed Foods consist of pureed fish or chicken, finely lean ground beef or turkey, beans, cottage cheese, soft cooked veges, soft fruits (no peels), Weight Control Oatmeal (thinned out), and all Full Liquids.

I am looking forward to trying a tbsp of chicken salad and maybe some Wendy's Chili. (To give you an idea of portion size ---- One 99 cent Wendy's Chili will last me at least 4 meals.)

Risk

This picture hung in the hall of the hospital a couple doors down from me. Everytime I passed it, I would stop and read it.

RISK
"You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore."

When making the decision to have WLS (weight loss surgery), I did a lot of research. When it came down to it, for me it was all about risk. Was the risk of surgery & complications worth the life-long, life-changing benefits that it had the potential to bring?

For me, this was an overwhelming YES. Pre-surgery, I was on no medications, had no serious health problems, no sleep apnea, no diabetes, no high blood pressure. Just being completely honest, about the only thing I've had issues with was with conceiving. But I would not allow myself to become diabetic before I was 30 years old! I could not allow myself to miss out on what God has in store for me, because of my addiction to food. WLS is not a quick fix, it's not the easy way out, but it has given me a time frame that I'll call a sort of "divorce from food."

Losing sight of that shoreline is like heading into the unknown. It's a good thing! It's a little painful, and I sometimes get a little seasick ;o) But knowing that God's leading me with every sip of Crystal Light, every swallow of the calcium... the risk of of the unknown is far less scary, and only that more exciting!

Hospital Stay

I was in the hospital for 3 days (2 nights). I had some amazing nurses, NA's, and doctors taking care of me while I was there. Not to mention my parents and Rich -- who were there any time I needed them!

I didn't realize how much I was laying down when I took this picture. I had a neat view from my window. Every couple of hours, the helicopter would fly right across my view here to land.


My sweet Sister and Brother brought me these beautiful flowers on Wednesday. (I believe it was Wednesday-- I just remember they saw me at my worst! *ah pain meds*)


Nannie Snipes sent me these as well. The roses were so fragrant!


Thursday Evening I got a visit from my friend Crystal, and her son Tyler. Crystal brought me some unmentionables... size Small. Cracked me and Rich both up! and Tyler drew this for me.

Thank you all for the love and prayers. I'm doing well! Nurse Mom said I'm doing better than she ever expected :o)