It has been a long time since I have written but I have been very busy. It is amazing how you like can change in 1 month. Weight Loss: Last Thursday I went in for my first fill. I was very anxious and my blood pressure was up 135/76. I was just uncertain of what was going to happen. It was really no big deal. The doctor put 3cc's of saline into my band. They put it into the port with a syringe. It did not hurt at all, just alittle pressure but not much. He had to hunt alittle once he had the needle in but did not bother me at all. After the fill they have you drink cup of water to make sure it will go down. At first it was actually difficult to get the water down, it made me want to burp but all OK now.
Work status: In the last 14 days I have received 2 jobs, 1 part time at Bed Bath and Beyond and a full time at James B. Nutter & Company as a Loss Mitigation Manager. They are both wonderful. I am also still helping Dana Nickell at the Remax Results real estate office when I can. Hope to continue that, she is so sweet.
Just going to try and pace myself and not get tired.
Weight this morning is 236.5 making progress.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
240.0
Not much has been happening. I am weighing about 240. Not sure what was going on the day I weighed 237.5, I liked it but I think it was a fluke. I am still eating soft puree food. My hunger is back so that means that my stomach is healing. I will start to eat solid food the first week of November. I go back tot he doctor Nov 5 and they will give me a fill. With the fill the amount of food that I eat will be restricted and I will feel full sooner and will not eat as much. Hope that is what happens.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Chris Strep
Took Chris to the doctor and he only had strep, not Swine Flu. Getting some meds so he will go back to school next week. He Just needs to rest.
237.5
Vicky went home today. I hated to see her go, we had such a good time visiting. Today I weight 237.5, on this puree diet the weight comes off.
Chris did not go to school today, he had 101.8 temp. Think he either has strep or Swine Flu. Have a doctor appointment for him at 10:20. Will advise what he has when I get back.
Chris did not go to school today, he had 101.8 temp. Think he either has strep or Swine Flu. Have a doctor appointment for him at 10:20. Will advise what he has when I get back.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
241.5 today
This morning I weighed 241.5. I have increased my protein each day and trying to walk each day. It seems to be working. Vicky is still here, we are just having fun talking about everything and everyone. She got me signed up on facebook and now I can be your friend if you like.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Post Doctor Visit
Went to the doctor today, but before I tell you about today, let me back up to Saturday.
Saturday, I went to my first "Band Wagon Support Group". The Malley Surgical Clinic has a support group for people that have been banded or want to be banded. It is held once a month and is free to all. I know that a support system is a very important part of succeeding in my weight loss journey. The support group was really good. There were 25-30 people there of all ages and sizes. There were 3 of us that had just been banded but the rest were 5-12 months out from their surgery. Some had lost lots of weight and other only 20-30 lbs. It was just an open group for all kinds of questions and the people there would tell how they coped with the surgery and the problems they had or problems that I might have. The support group is something that I will try and go to every month. There is also a nutrition class once a month and I am going to try and go to that also.
My diet at this point of my recovery is full liquid and I can also have any food that I can puree in a blender and eat. The important thing at this point is that the food I eat does not require me to chew very much if at all. The food is to be liquid enough to slip through the band and into my lower stomach so that the food does not irritate the band. I am eating soups, mashed potatoes and gravy and any food that slides down. Tonight I made Frito Chili Pies for my family and I put my chips and my chili in the blender and pureed it and it was very good.
I started back to work on Monday and I worked all day. I was very tired at the end of the day when I picked up Chris from school but it was a good tired. After I got home from work when John got home we walked for about an hour. It was a little cold but we had on our coats and it was not bad.
Today my sister, Vicky, came to see me. She lives in Oklahoma City and we see each other as much as we can. She was on vacation last week when I had my surgery so she thought she needed to come up and check on me. It is really nice to see her and spend time with her.
I took Chris to school this morning and than I had my first post-op doctor appointment. I went in and weighted and an their scales I weighed 247.5, on my scales this morning I weighted 243. The nurse took my staples out of my incisions, and they looked good. They were a little red where the staples were but they were healing. I have the 5 incisions and altogether I had about 20 staples. I had never had staples before but they did not hurt when they were coming out.
The doctor came in and looked me over and said I was doing well and to come back in 4 weeks. Until than I have to stay on the puree diet for everything to heal. The doctor stay a little bit and answered my questions that I had and than he was off. I think he is a good doctor but he is all business. I will go back the 9th of November for my first fill. Can't weight to have it done so I can eat solid food.
I am feeling food, going to try to increase my protein intake and also my walking to continue to lose weight. The doctor said that right now I can eat mashed potatoes but after I have my first fill, they will be off limits. For about 3-4 months I will be learning how to work with my band to lose weight. I know I can do it.
Saturday, I went to my first "Band Wagon Support Group". The Malley Surgical Clinic has a support group for people that have been banded or want to be banded. It is held once a month and is free to all. I know that a support system is a very important part of succeeding in my weight loss journey. The support group was really good. There were 25-30 people there of all ages and sizes. There were 3 of us that had just been banded but the rest were 5-12 months out from their surgery. Some had lost lots of weight and other only 20-30 lbs. It was just an open group for all kinds of questions and the people there would tell how they coped with the surgery and the problems they had or problems that I might have. The support group is something that I will try and go to every month. There is also a nutrition class once a month and I am going to try and go to that also.
My diet at this point of my recovery is full liquid and I can also have any food that I can puree in a blender and eat. The important thing at this point is that the food I eat does not require me to chew very much if at all. The food is to be liquid enough to slip through the band and into my lower stomach so that the food does not irritate the band. I am eating soups, mashed potatoes and gravy and any food that slides down. Tonight I made Frito Chili Pies for my family and I put my chips and my chili in the blender and pureed it and it was very good.
I started back to work on Monday and I worked all day. I was very tired at the end of the day when I picked up Chris from school but it was a good tired. After I got home from work when John got home we walked for about an hour. It was a little cold but we had on our coats and it was not bad.
Today my sister, Vicky, came to see me. She lives in Oklahoma City and we see each other as much as we can. She was on vacation last week when I had my surgery so she thought she needed to come up and check on me. It is really nice to see her and spend time with her.
I took Chris to school this morning and than I had my first post-op doctor appointment. I went in and weighted and an their scales I weighed 247.5, on my scales this morning I weighted 243. The nurse took my staples out of my incisions, and they looked good. They were a little red where the staples were but they were healing. I have the 5 incisions and altogether I had about 20 staples. I had never had staples before but they did not hurt when they were coming out.
The doctor came in and looked me over and said I was doing well and to come back in 4 weeks. Until than I have to stay on the puree diet for everything to heal. The doctor stay a little bit and answered my questions that I had and than he was off. I think he is a good doctor but he is all business. I will go back the 9th of November for my first fill. Can't weight to have it done so I can eat solid food.
I am feeling food, going to try to increase my protein intake and also my walking to continue to lose weight. The doctor said that right now I can eat mashed potatoes but after I have my first fill, they will be off limits. For about 3-4 months I will be learning how to work with my band to lose weight. I know I can do it.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Day 5 Post Op "242.5 lbs"
Today I will give you all the details of my surgery and the week following. Today I feel pretty much like my old self but only 20 lbs less. Here goes.
DAY ONE:
Monday morning we had to be at the hospital by 6:00 so we wanted to get up about 5:00. Well at 5:00 our doorbell rang and it was Tom, my father-in-law to stay with Chris and take him to school. That was our signal to get up and get going. All I had to do was get dressed in comfy clothes because I had to take my shower the night before and than wipe down with these special wipes the hospital had given me. As I heard one patient say at the hospital, the wipes felt like they had glue on them. Back to the night before, I have to shower, wipe down, sleep on clean sheets with a clean nightgown. With that all done it was simple for me to get ready and go to the hospital. John did a short form of his morning routine and we were ready to go to the hospital by 5:30. We packed a bag for both John and I to spend the night in the hospital, took my c-pat machine and we were on our way.
When we got to the hospital we went to the surgery waiting room and waiting for it to open to check us in. Believe it or not, we were not the first there, there were 5 other family groups there also. About 5:50 someone came out and started checking us in for surgery. About 6:00 I was taken back into the surgery area and my preparation was started. John was told that he would be called back in about 30 min or so and he could stay with me until I was taken into surgery. I signed a few papers and they started my IV. Like my father, it is not easy to take blood or start an IV in me. The RN only wanted to stick me once so she ended up putting it in the back of my left hand. She did a really good job and it did not bother me anytime during my stay. The only other medication that they came me was a shot in my stomach of a blood thinner, it really burned but after this I think all medicine burns when it is given through an IV. After my prep was all finished, they called John back and we waited for the doctor to come by. About 7:00 Dr. Hitchcock came by and explained to John and myself what was he was going to do, how long it would take and left. He does not have much of a bedside manner. John and I had fun watching the other patients and their families while we waited for me to go back. Soon it was my turn and they gave me the good drugs in my IV, I remember turning the corner going out of the surgery room and that was it.
Next thing I knew I was waking up in recovery. I did not really have any pain just a feeling of fullness in my stomach area from all the gas they use to do the surgery. People by every few minutes asking me the same questions, do I have any pain, do I have any nausea. I had neither so I just continued to wake up. One thing they did do to me was take an xray to make sure the band was in place and everything was working. They had to get 2 xrays and they really scraped up my back when they were putting the file cartridge under me. I was still to asleep to say anything, I just knew it was happening. About 10:30 or so, not sure of the time, all my vital signs were stable and they took me up to my room for me to spend the night. John was given my room assignment and showed up in a few minutes. It was a semi-private room but I was the only one there at the time. We go settled in and it was pretty uneventful. I didn't have alot of pain but AI took their pain medicine because I did not want to have paid. I was given hydrocodone liquid for pain and also an anti nausea medicine in my IV. They both worked very good. I was sore but no real pain. I got up and started walking before noon because the only pain I had was from the gas that walking would get rid of. They brought me a clear liquid lunch of beef broth, green jello and orange sherbet. I ate some of all of it and it was really good. It didn't take much to fill me up. I continued to walk during the day and I think I made a total of 12 trips around the hospital floor during the day. Tom and Judy picked Chris up from school but he did not want to come to the hospital and see me, which was OK, they spent the night with him also.
Late in the day I got a roommate that had also had lap band surgery. She came in about 5:00 and she did not think she was going to have to spend the night so no one was with her. She needed a specific xray before she could go home and it could not be done until early the next morning so she had to stay. While I was there, no one came to be with her, it was kind of sad. Once when I lived in Stillwater, I had to go to surgery alone and it was a little scary. I know someone would be there when I came out but going in alone was not fun. Since I now had a roommate, the nurse said that John could not stay with me, but my roommate said she did not care so they said he could stay.
John stayed with me all the time I was in the hospital and he was such a comfort. He is such a great care give and I am so lucky that he loves me and I love him in return.
DAY TWO:
Tuesday was a totally different day. I still really did not have any pain from the surgery, just pain from the gas and I had the startings of nausea. During the night, I didn't know if it was a dream or real, but I had waves of nausea that I fought back and they still lingered this morning. I didn't eat any breakfast and when I got up to walk, I only made one trip around the floor. I had no energy. We started back with the ice chips and built up from there. I still had my IV and they continued to give me antibiotics, pain medication and anti nausea. I walked a couple more times but only 1 trip around. John was very worried about me and I am sorry for that, I just didn't feel well. Once I finished my last dose of IV antibiotics and the RN talked with my DR office, I was ready to be dismissed. They gave me my discharge instructions and let me walk to the car and we went home. I was very slow but I did fine.
They gave me 2 prescriptions one for pain and one for nausea to take at home and John got them filled. Most any medication I take needs to be in a liquid form so it does not get stopped by the band. The doctor puts the band in with a few cc's of restriction so from the beginning you have to be careful about what you swallow. When I got home I was not at all hungry so I ate Jello and broth. I called the doctor and the nurse sent over more discharge instructions from their office that the hospital did not have. It explained alot about what foods I could eat and when and what to expect. They suggested I get liquid Tylenol and Mylanta for gas. John picked them up and the Mylanta was my savior. It really helped get rid of the gas. This is Friday and I think I took my last dose of Mylanta last night. I think the gas is pretty much gone.
DAY THREE:
On Wednesday, I took my first shower and it really helped. I was feeling much better today. The nausea was gone, just soreness in my abs like I had been doing crunches. Gas is better but not gone. The pain in my left shoulder is still intense and the pain medication does not help, so that is my biggest complaint. John had to go to work for a few hours and he will bring home liquid Tylenol and Mylanta. I talked with my family during the morning while I felt good so everyone knew I was doing better. John got home about 2:00 with the medications and they both helped alot. Wednesday was a good day, I walked outside and just rested. Still didn't feel much like eating but had a protein drink late in the day to get some nutrition. Took only the Tylenol for pain and it is doing the job.
DAY FOUR:
This was my first day alone at home. Feeling good, just a little tenderness but not bad, gas is better and my appetite is coming back slowly. The doctor instruction on diet is clear liquid through today and than full liquid until I go to the doctor on Tuesday, Oct 13. I had a protein drink but I also made some chocolate pudding and cream of chicken soup today instead of waiting until day 5. Didn't eat much and seemed to do fine. John and Chris were very upset with me so I need to follow the rules from now on. I have been pushing the fluids to get rid of the fluid weight I gained in the hospital. When I came home from the hospital I was back up to 250.5 but on Thursday, I was down to 243.5. It rained all day today and couldn't walk outside so I just walked around the house.
DAY FIVE:
Today if Friday and I am getting out of the house today. Have an appointment at 11:00 and it feels good to get out. Really feeling good, no pain today, just slight tenderness, gas is almost gone and nothing hurts. Weight is down to 242.5 today so that is great. Just have to be careful with what I eat, chew it alot and drink alot of water. FOLLOW THE RULES and I will succeed.
I have great support in my family and I love them all very much. Even Chris in his own way lets me know he loves me. He is very protective. I have a deal with him. When I get down to his weight, he weighs about 210, he will join me on my weight loss journey. We will have fun. He is very competitive with me in everything.
I have had an exciting and great week, I will never regret having the surgery done. Thank you everyone for your thoughts and prayers. All for now.
DAY ONE:
Monday morning we had to be at the hospital by 6:00 so we wanted to get up about 5:00. Well at 5:00 our doorbell rang and it was Tom, my father-in-law to stay with Chris and take him to school. That was our signal to get up and get going. All I had to do was get dressed in comfy clothes because I had to take my shower the night before and than wipe down with these special wipes the hospital had given me. As I heard one patient say at the hospital, the wipes felt like they had glue on them. Back to the night before, I have to shower, wipe down, sleep on clean sheets with a clean nightgown. With that all done it was simple for me to get ready and go to the hospital. John did a short form of his morning routine and we were ready to go to the hospital by 5:30. We packed a bag for both John and I to spend the night in the hospital, took my c-pat machine and we were on our way.
When we got to the hospital we went to the surgery waiting room and waiting for it to open to check us in. Believe it or not, we were not the first there, there were 5 other family groups there also. About 5:50 someone came out and started checking us in for surgery. About 6:00 I was taken back into the surgery area and my preparation was started. John was told that he would be called back in about 30 min or so and he could stay with me until I was taken into surgery. I signed a few papers and they started my IV. Like my father, it is not easy to take blood or start an IV in me. The RN only wanted to stick me once so she ended up putting it in the back of my left hand. She did a really good job and it did not bother me anytime during my stay. The only other medication that they came me was a shot in my stomach of a blood thinner, it really burned but after this I think all medicine burns when it is given through an IV. After my prep was all finished, they called John back and we waited for the doctor to come by. About 7:00 Dr. Hitchcock came by and explained to John and myself what was he was going to do, how long it would take and left. He does not have much of a bedside manner. John and I had fun watching the other patients and their families while we waited for me to go back. Soon it was my turn and they gave me the good drugs in my IV, I remember turning the corner going out of the surgery room and that was it.
Next thing I knew I was waking up in recovery. I did not really have any pain just a feeling of fullness in my stomach area from all the gas they use to do the surgery. People by every few minutes asking me the same questions, do I have any pain, do I have any nausea. I had neither so I just continued to wake up. One thing they did do to me was take an xray to make sure the band was in place and everything was working. They had to get 2 xrays and they really scraped up my back when they were putting the file cartridge under me. I was still to asleep to say anything, I just knew it was happening. About 10:30 or so, not sure of the time, all my vital signs were stable and they took me up to my room for me to spend the night. John was given my room assignment and showed up in a few minutes. It was a semi-private room but I was the only one there at the time. We go settled in and it was pretty uneventful. I didn't have alot of pain but AI took their pain medicine because I did not want to have paid. I was given hydrocodone liquid for pain and also an anti nausea medicine in my IV. They both worked very good. I was sore but no real pain. I got up and started walking before noon because the only pain I had was from the gas that walking would get rid of. They brought me a clear liquid lunch of beef broth, green jello and orange sherbet. I ate some of all of it and it was really good. It didn't take much to fill me up. I continued to walk during the day and I think I made a total of 12 trips around the hospital floor during the day. Tom and Judy picked Chris up from school but he did not want to come to the hospital and see me, which was OK, they spent the night with him also.
Late in the day I got a roommate that had also had lap band surgery. She came in about 5:00 and she did not think she was going to have to spend the night so no one was with her. She needed a specific xray before she could go home and it could not be done until early the next morning so she had to stay. While I was there, no one came to be with her, it was kind of sad. Once when I lived in Stillwater, I had to go to surgery alone and it was a little scary. I know someone would be there when I came out but going in alone was not fun. Since I now had a roommate, the nurse said that John could not stay with me, but my roommate said she did not care so they said he could stay.
John stayed with me all the time I was in the hospital and he was such a comfort. He is such a great care give and I am so lucky that he loves me and I love him in return.
DAY TWO:
Tuesday was a totally different day. I still really did not have any pain from the surgery, just pain from the gas and I had the startings of nausea. During the night, I didn't know if it was a dream or real, but I had waves of nausea that I fought back and they still lingered this morning. I didn't eat any breakfast and when I got up to walk, I only made one trip around the floor. I had no energy. We started back with the ice chips and built up from there. I still had my IV and they continued to give me antibiotics, pain medication and anti nausea. I walked a couple more times but only 1 trip around. John was very worried about me and I am sorry for that, I just didn't feel well. Once I finished my last dose of IV antibiotics and the RN talked with my DR office, I was ready to be dismissed. They gave me my discharge instructions and let me walk to the car and we went home. I was very slow but I did fine.
They gave me 2 prescriptions one for pain and one for nausea to take at home and John got them filled. Most any medication I take needs to be in a liquid form so it does not get stopped by the band. The doctor puts the band in with a few cc's of restriction so from the beginning you have to be careful about what you swallow. When I got home I was not at all hungry so I ate Jello and broth. I called the doctor and the nurse sent over more discharge instructions from their office that the hospital did not have. It explained alot about what foods I could eat and when and what to expect. They suggested I get liquid Tylenol and Mylanta for gas. John picked them up and the Mylanta was my savior. It really helped get rid of the gas. This is Friday and I think I took my last dose of Mylanta last night. I think the gas is pretty much gone.
DAY THREE:
On Wednesday, I took my first shower and it really helped. I was feeling much better today. The nausea was gone, just soreness in my abs like I had been doing crunches. Gas is better but not gone. The pain in my left shoulder is still intense and the pain medication does not help, so that is my biggest complaint. John had to go to work for a few hours and he will bring home liquid Tylenol and Mylanta. I talked with my family during the morning while I felt good so everyone knew I was doing better. John got home about 2:00 with the medications and they both helped alot. Wednesday was a good day, I walked outside and just rested. Still didn't feel much like eating but had a protein drink late in the day to get some nutrition. Took only the Tylenol for pain and it is doing the job.
DAY FOUR:
This was my first day alone at home. Feeling good, just a little tenderness but not bad, gas is better and my appetite is coming back slowly. The doctor instruction on diet is clear liquid through today and than full liquid until I go to the doctor on Tuesday, Oct 13. I had a protein drink but I also made some chocolate pudding and cream of chicken soup today instead of waiting until day 5. Didn't eat much and seemed to do fine. John and Chris were very upset with me so I need to follow the rules from now on. I have been pushing the fluids to get rid of the fluid weight I gained in the hospital. When I came home from the hospital I was back up to 250.5 but on Thursday, I was down to 243.5. It rained all day today and couldn't walk outside so I just walked around the house.
DAY FIVE:
Today if Friday and I am getting out of the house today. Have an appointment at 11:00 and it feels good to get out. Really feeling good, no pain today, just slight tenderness, gas is almost gone and nothing hurts. Weight is down to 242.5 today so that is great. Just have to be careful with what I eat, chew it alot and drink alot of water. FOLLOW THE RULES and I will succeed.
I have great support in my family and I love them all very much. Even Chris in his own way lets me know he loves me. He is very protective. I have a deal with him. When I get down to his weight, he weighs about 210, he will join me on my weight loss journey. We will have fun. He is very competitive with me in everything.
I have had an exciting and great week, I will never regret having the surgery done. Thank you everyone for your thoughts and prayers. All for now.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
3rd day after Surgery
I have had the surgery and am feeling pretty good. It doesn't hurt like any other surgery I have had. There is no real pain from the surgery, just the gas that they use to expand the stomach so they can do the surgery. I will post more details tomorrow, Just wanted to let everyone know I was doing fine.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Day of Surgery
Today is my surgery at 7:30. It is about 5:00 now and getting ready to go to the hospital. Tom, John's father, has come over to stay with Chris and make sure he is up for school. He will also take him to school this morning. They are such a help with Chris. I will be spending one night in the hospital and John will be staying with me. The hospital ask or requires someone to stay with me for the night. We got our bag ready yesterday so all I had to get ready this morning was my c-pat machine.
This morning I weighed 244 on my scales, anxious to see what the hospital scales say. I am very excited, not really scared, just ready to get it done and start feeling better. I already feel better with just the 18 pounds that I have lost.
Yesterday at church, Father Bill, my pastor, anointed with the oil of the sick and prayed over me. In the Catholic faith, there are three blessed oil's and on is or anointing the sick. It was very nice to have it done.
Well John is about ready, guess it is time to go.
This morning I weighed 244 on my scales, anxious to see what the hospital scales say. I am very excited, not really scared, just ready to get it done and start feeling better. I already feel better with just the 18 pounds that I have lost.
Yesterday at church, Father Bill, my pastor, anointed with the oil of the sick and prayed over me. In the Catholic faith, there are three blessed oil's and on is or anointing the sick. It was very nice to have it done.
Well John is about ready, guess it is time to go.
Friday, October 2, 2009
245
Not really much new happening except that I am down to 245. I have not weighed that amount at anytime this year. Yesterday I went walking with Shelli at a park that has a walking trail around a little lake and it was very nice. We walked the 1.5 mile trail. We are going to try and walk each day when she gets off work about 5:00. I think the walking is helping as much as anything. On the diet they have me on, I cannot help but loose weight. I am only eating about 800 calories a day. It is truly amazing, I am not that hungry. Well the surgery is Monday, Oct 5 at 7:30. I can't wait.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
248.5 lbs
I went to the hospital yesterday for my pre-op visit. I consulted with the anesthesiologist, they took blood and I completed lots of paperwork, but now when I go in I do not have to do anything. Just show up and have the surgery. I am trying very hard to follow the suggest items on my diet and walking 20-30 minutes a day. It seems to be paying off, I am down to 248.5 this morning. Lots of weight to go but I am glad I have started to journey.
Monday, September 28, 2009
250 lbs
Weighed this morning and I weighed 250 lbs. I have not weighed this since January. Since my high weight of 262.5, I have lost 12.5 lbs in 8 days. I am starting to walk also, will try about 30 per day. Going to do another walk on Saturday with the Tallgrass group. I am going this morning for my hospital pre-op visit and lab work. Only 7 days away from surgery. I am excited.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Diabetes Walk
Yesterday I went on a walk for the Diabetes Foundation with some other employees and residents of John's community, Tallgrass Creek. It was a 3 mile walk down by the Plaza on the Missouri side. Shelli picked me up at 7:15 and than we went to the community to pick up Tom and Judy and than on to the walk. We thought there was a 1.5 mile and than the 3 mile. Well we were wrong it was a 3 mile walk. Shelli and I walked over 2.5 miles and we cut off back to the park. Tom and Judy went about .5 mile and than turned back. They had only planned on doing 1 mile. We all had fun, got free t-shirts and other stuff.
Later in the day I started to read other blogs about the pre-op diet. It seems there are a million out there. Doctors what their own for their patients. I was concerned about the number of carbs I was getting each day, because the diet needs to be low fat, sugar and carbs. The drink I have has 14 carbs each x 2 or 28 in my protein drinks. The Healthy Choice steamers have between 25-45 carbs so I was afraid that was to much. But I was still loosing weight. The doctor had suggested Lean Cuisine or Weight Watchers meals. The carbs in these were more than what I was eating, so I decided I was fine. Just don't want anything to hinder the surgery and my recovery. I was eating sherbert but it had 45 in 1/2 cut so I cut it out. Will do the pop sickles instead.
Later in the day I started to read other blogs about the pre-op diet. It seems there are a million out there. Doctors what their own for their patients. I was concerned about the number of carbs I was getting each day, because the diet needs to be low fat, sugar and carbs. The drink I have has 14 carbs each x 2 or 28 in my protein drinks. The Healthy Choice steamers have between 25-45 carbs so I was afraid that was to much. But I was still loosing weight. The doctor had suggested Lean Cuisine or Weight Watchers meals. The carbs in these were more than what I was eating, so I decided I was fine. Just don't want anything to hinder the surgery and my recovery. I was eating sherbert but it had 45 in 1/2 cut so I cut it out. Will do the pop sickles instead.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Weight
I have got to decide when I want to weight during the day and go by that weight. We all know if you weight in the morning you weight less and more later in the day. As Most, I think I will go with the morning weight. First thing in the morning after I get up. That is when I will weight the least and that will make me happy.
Today's weight 255 lbs.
Today's weight 255 lbs.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Pre-op Doctor Visit
Today I went to the doctor for my pre-op visit to learn what will happen the day of my surgery. My appointment was at 10:00. About 9:00 I received a call from the hospital to schedule my pre-op visit with them for Monday at 9:30. I am on a roll of getting things done for the surgery. I went to my doctor appointment and everything went great. I have to be at the hospital at 6:00 am on Monday, October 5th for my surgery at 7:30. The doctor explained why I was on the liquid diet to shrink the liver. When you are overweight you liver gets really big due to all the fat and other waste the liver filters. So I have to be on a liquid diet so that the liver will shrink and nothing is stored in the liver. The liver needs to be small because the liver lays on top of the stomach so it has to be moved during the surgery. If they can't move the liver they can't do the surgery and I want nothing to stand in the way of my surgery. While I was at the doctor, I met a lady that had her surgery 5 weeks ago and she was there for her first fill. I also talked with a lady that had her surgery 8 days ago and was having her staples taken out. They both said their surgery went great and they were feeling good. They were only down 4-5 days after the surgery and feeling really good after a week.
The doctor checked out my hernia and said that it was not a hernia but he would check during the surgery to make sure. He said it was the soft tissue around the ab muscle that was being pushed up by all my fat. He said after I lose my weight if it is still an issue, it can be corrected with cosmetic surgery. We will see how it goes.
My food today was a big issue. I ran out of my small bottles of water that I use for my protein drinks so I only had broth and water before I went to the doctor. After the doctor visit, my stomach was rumbling. I made the mistake of going to Wal Mart when I was hungry and I bought and ate food I should not have had. I go chicken from the deli and it was really good but the rest of the day I had to drink broth. Hope to do better tomorrow.
The protein drinks that I am using is from a company my son is a partner in. It is Viacore Nutrition and they have a time released protein drink that have 24 g of protein in a serving and that is more than the drinks have that the doctors sells. It comes in vanilla, strawberry and chocolate and I have all 3 flavors. As Ray, my son, told me, no matter how good it is, after a while you want a change so you need a variety of flavors. They are that bad. I will have to drink them also after the surgery while my stomach is healing from the lap-band being sewn in place around my stomach.
At the doctor today I weighted 258.4. My scales at home have always weighted about 3-4 lbs light so I am going to go with my scales. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
The doctor checked out my hernia and said that it was not a hernia but he would check during the surgery to make sure. He said it was the soft tissue around the ab muscle that was being pushed up by all my fat. He said after I lose my weight if it is still an issue, it can be corrected with cosmetic surgery. We will see how it goes.
My food today was a big issue. I ran out of my small bottles of water that I use for my protein drinks so I only had broth and water before I went to the doctor. After the doctor visit, my stomach was rumbling. I made the mistake of going to Wal Mart when I was hungry and I bought and ate food I should not have had. I go chicken from the deli and it was really good but the rest of the day I had to drink broth. Hope to do better tomorrow.
The protein drinks that I am using is from a company my son is a partner in. It is Viacore Nutrition and they have a time released protein drink that have 24 g of protein in a serving and that is more than the drinks have that the doctors sells. It comes in vanilla, strawberry and chocolate and I have all 3 flavors. As Ray, my son, told me, no matter how good it is, after a while you want a change so you need a variety of flavors. They are that bad. I will have to drink them also after the surgery while my stomach is healing from the lap-band being sewn in place around my stomach.
At the doctor today I weighted 258.4. My scales at home have always weighted about 3-4 lbs light so I am going to go with my scales. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Hospital
I called the hospital today to set up my pre-0p visit for lab test and such and the doctor had not scheduled my surgery with the hospital. I called the doctor and yes, they had forgotten. Now the hospital has the information and order but they need a day to process. Will call again tomorrow to schedule all my hospital stuff. Is this ever going to happen?
LOST 6 LBS
Started the pre-op diet on Sunday and I have lost 6 lbs. It is a start. The liquid diet is OK, it is hardest at night. Trying different combination of the different items I can eat to see what keeps the hunger away the best. Beef broth is not bad if it is really hot.
Monday, September 21, 2009
September 21, 2009
Well this is the second day of my liquid diet. Yesterday I did pretty good, I only cheated once with a bag of 100 calorie chocolate covered pretzels. For me that is good. I had 2 protein drinks, lots of beef broth, jello, sorbet and Popsicles. They were all so yummy and also 4 liters of water, I was in the bathroom alot. John would follow me around with my drink, he would say " a dieter without her water is not a dieter". He is very supportive.
You will see attached pictures of my family, this is the true reason I am having the surgery. I love them all very much and want to be around to enjoy them alot longer. My husband, John, sons Ray and Chris, my mom, Jodean and Ray's wife Lacie and my darling grandson Cannon. All for now, have to go warm up some delicious beef broth.
You will see attached pictures of my family, this is the true reason I am having the surgery. I love them all very much and want to be around to enjoy them alot longer. My husband, John, sons Ray and Chris, my mom, Jodean and Ray's wife Lacie and my darling grandson Cannon. All for now, have to go warm up some delicious beef broth.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
First Day of My New Life
Well this is my first blog so it will be a learning process. My sister, Vicky, told me to keep a diary of my Lap-Band surgery process so this is what I am going to do.
In January, 2009 I decided to have Lap-Band surgery to help me lose weight. I have a friend, Shelli Giardino, who was also wanting to have the surgery and she had investigated the process, doctors and what our insurance would pay. She works with my husband, John at Tallgrass Creek.
There is a clinic in Overland Park, KS, The Maley Surgical Clinic that does the surgery and they are on our insurance plan so I contacted them for information. The present seminars on the process almost every Saturday so I went to one of the seminars to see about the surgery. They have two doctors, Dr. Maley and Dr. Hitchcock. Maley is the main doctor but it would be 3-4 months to get into him so I made an appointment with Dr. Hitchcock. After the appointment, they contacted my insurance to see what they required to pay for the surgery.
Insurance required:
1. 6 month doctor supervised weight loss program
2. Psych evaluation
3. Nutritionist evaluation
4. BMI of 40( 100 lbs over ideal weight)
5. Co-morbidity factors. (high blood pressure, diabetes, sleep apnea things like this)
In January I started my 6 month doctor supervised weight loss program with my general doctor (GP), Dr. Wendi Bissett. What is so strange about this requirement is that weight loss is not required, they just want to see if you will stick with anything for 6 months. With my GP, I established that I have a BMI of over 40, I am borderline Diabetic, I had sleep studies done and I have Sleep apnea, my cholesterol is high, I have acid reflux and all of the medical issued are considered co-morbidity factors so I qualified there. I had my psych evaluation and also my nutrition evaluation so by the end of summer, August, I had all my requirements met.
Now the hard part started, getting insurance to approve the surgery. First we gathered all the doctor notes from all the doctors to be submitted to insurance because the doctor required a letter from the insurance saying that the surgery was medically necessary and it was a covered procedure. I required the doctors notes from my GP and was told that it could take up to 30 days to process the request so I went to the Medical Records department and gave them a sad face and Dr. Hitchcock office had them the next day. The nutritionist sent her notes over as well as the psych doctor. The nutritionist and the psych doctor were choices from Dr. Hitchcock's office so I thought their notes would not be a problem, I was worried about the notes from my GP. Everything was gathered and late in the day faxed, 30 pages, to the fax number insurance said to send them to for pre-authorization of a surgery. The next morning when the insurance person got back into the office, all 30 pages had been faxed back to her to say that they do not pre-authorize out patient surgery. This was a real problem because the doctor would not do the surgery without the letter. The insurance person said she was also told this but they would always go ahead and send the letter. Well my insurance would not do so, so she asked me to call them. I got the same answer she got. They would not send a letter for out patient surgery and lap-band surgery is done out patient. I argued with the insurance for 3-4 days and got nothing. At this point to have the surgery, I would have to pay for the surgery upfront $20,000 and take my chances with insurance paying for it, I could not do this so we had to have the surgery approved as an inpatient procedure. Stupid, instead of giving a letter, it would cost them more money to do the surgery in a hospital and stay one night. Well we got it approved by the doctor to it the surgery in patient at a hospital and sent the information in once again to the insurance but to their pre-approved outsourced company for the letter. I checked almost everyday to see that they had received the information and to see if had been assigned for review. Finally after 7 days it was assigned and reviewed and DENIED. It was denied because the psych doctor had not put in his final notes that I was a good candidate for the surgery and that I was released to have the surgery. This really made me mad because this was a doctor that had been doing these evaluations for my doctor for a long time. We had to get corrected notes which took 3 days and than it had to be reviewed again. Now it was the Labor Day holiday so everything came to a halt due to everyone being on vacation for I had to wait a few more days. Finally during the first week of September I received the letter approving the surgery and it has been scheduled for October 5, 2009.
Most of my family and friends are happy I am getting the surgery done but my older son, Ray, is not to excited. Not sure if it is because he is worried about his mom having surgery or if he thinks I should just be able to lose the weight, but either way I know he loves me and is just worried.
I had to get a big list of vitamins to take before and after the surgery and also started my 2 week pre-operative low fat, low calorie diet. This is needed to shrink the liver that stores fat and toxins. The diet is very exciting. Mostly liquid and one low fat, low calorie meal. Today I started this diet in earnest. I can have protein drinks, jello, broth, tea, coffee, one meal a day and 2 cups of sherbet a day. I am going to cut out the diet soda at this time because after the surgery, I cannot drink soda of any kind so might as well start now.
My weight today is 262.5 lbs and this is the most I have ever weighed. I hope to get down to about 150-170 after the surgery and I know I will make it. Lap-band is only a tool, not a quick fix. All for today.
In January, 2009 I decided to have Lap-Band surgery to help me lose weight. I have a friend, Shelli Giardino, who was also wanting to have the surgery and she had investigated the process, doctors and what our insurance would pay. She works with my husband, John at Tallgrass Creek.
There is a clinic in Overland Park, KS, The Maley Surgical Clinic that does the surgery and they are on our insurance plan so I contacted them for information. The present seminars on the process almost every Saturday so I went to one of the seminars to see about the surgery. They have two doctors, Dr. Maley and Dr. Hitchcock. Maley is the main doctor but it would be 3-4 months to get into him so I made an appointment with Dr. Hitchcock. After the appointment, they contacted my insurance to see what they required to pay for the surgery.
Insurance required:
1. 6 month doctor supervised weight loss program
2. Psych evaluation
3. Nutritionist evaluation
4. BMI of 40( 100 lbs over ideal weight)
5. Co-morbidity factors. (high blood pressure, diabetes, sleep apnea things like this)
In January I started my 6 month doctor supervised weight loss program with my general doctor (GP), Dr. Wendi Bissett. What is so strange about this requirement is that weight loss is not required, they just want to see if you will stick with anything for 6 months. With my GP, I established that I have a BMI of over 40, I am borderline Diabetic, I had sleep studies done and I have Sleep apnea, my cholesterol is high, I have acid reflux and all of the medical issued are considered co-morbidity factors so I qualified there. I had my psych evaluation and also my nutrition evaluation so by the end of summer, August, I had all my requirements met.
Now the hard part started, getting insurance to approve the surgery. First we gathered all the doctor notes from all the doctors to be submitted to insurance because the doctor required a letter from the insurance saying that the surgery was medically necessary and it was a covered procedure. I required the doctors notes from my GP and was told that it could take up to 30 days to process the request so I went to the Medical Records department and gave them a sad face and Dr. Hitchcock office had them the next day. The nutritionist sent her notes over as well as the psych doctor. The nutritionist and the psych doctor were choices from Dr. Hitchcock's office so I thought their notes would not be a problem, I was worried about the notes from my GP. Everything was gathered and late in the day faxed, 30 pages, to the fax number insurance said to send them to for pre-authorization of a surgery. The next morning when the insurance person got back into the office, all 30 pages had been faxed back to her to say that they do not pre-authorize out patient surgery. This was a real problem because the doctor would not do the surgery without the letter. The insurance person said she was also told this but they would always go ahead and send the letter. Well my insurance would not do so, so she asked me to call them. I got the same answer she got. They would not send a letter for out patient surgery and lap-band surgery is done out patient. I argued with the insurance for 3-4 days and got nothing. At this point to have the surgery, I would have to pay for the surgery upfront $20,000 and take my chances with insurance paying for it, I could not do this so we had to have the surgery approved as an inpatient procedure. Stupid, instead of giving a letter, it would cost them more money to do the surgery in a hospital and stay one night. Well we got it approved by the doctor to it the surgery in patient at a hospital and sent the information in once again to the insurance but to their pre-approved outsourced company for the letter. I checked almost everyday to see that they had received the information and to see if had been assigned for review. Finally after 7 days it was assigned and reviewed and DENIED. It was denied because the psych doctor had not put in his final notes that I was a good candidate for the surgery and that I was released to have the surgery. This really made me mad because this was a doctor that had been doing these evaluations for my doctor for a long time. We had to get corrected notes which took 3 days and than it had to be reviewed again. Now it was the Labor Day holiday so everything came to a halt due to everyone being on vacation for I had to wait a few more days. Finally during the first week of September I received the letter approving the surgery and it has been scheduled for October 5, 2009.
Most of my family and friends are happy I am getting the surgery done but my older son, Ray, is not to excited. Not sure if it is because he is worried about his mom having surgery or if he thinks I should just be able to lose the weight, but either way I know he loves me and is just worried.
I had to get a big list of vitamins to take before and after the surgery and also started my 2 week pre-operative low fat, low calorie diet. This is needed to shrink the liver that stores fat and toxins. The diet is very exciting. Mostly liquid and one low fat, low calorie meal. Today I started this diet in earnest. I can have protein drinks, jello, broth, tea, coffee, one meal a day and 2 cups of sherbet a day. I am going to cut out the diet soda at this time because after the surgery, I cannot drink soda of any kind so might as well start now.
My weight today is 262.5 lbs and this is the most I have ever weighed. I hope to get down to about 150-170 after the surgery and I know I will make it. Lap-band is only a tool, not a quick fix. All for today.
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