If ever there was a day to blow my eating healthy, yesterday was the day. The week in and of itself hasn't been great either. A family friend passed away. I found out one of my grandmas has been in and out of the hospital with kidney problems. And also that a trip planned to go see her later in March is probably going to be cancelled. I'm not sure when I will be able to next go to Florida to visit. It was a family trip and we can't afford for me to go alone. Not to mention that at this size in my life, I can't really fly. I have a cold. I have cravings. My husband is catching my cold.
Then yesterday, we start off with bad back pain. So much that I am worried my back is going to go out again. I'm thinking a period has got to be about to start, other body indicators seem to agree. Then, finding a headlight is out. Next, we have poop issues all day long while watching the nephews, one of them, not me, to clarify. I feel gross, and want nothing more than to take a hot shower when I get home.
I get home at 3 pm to discover that there is no power in the kitchen and the large crock pot of chili I started that morning is ruined. I figure the crock pot overloaded the circuit. That has never happened before, but it seems the most logical to me. I throw the breakers and the power comes back on. Shortly there after, I notice it is pretty cold in the house, 60 degrees. But the furnace is now running. I can only think at this point that the kitchen power somehow effected the furnace as the furnace is located in the kitchen.
Fifteen minutes later, the power in the kitchen, and the furnace turn off again. I try throwing the breakers again, nothing. I am panicked now, not so much about us freezing, we can go stay with my parents if need be, but rather about our pipes freezing. This was an issue last winter, an expensive issue. It is supposed to be -7 degrees tonight. So I call my husband, tell him what is going on, he says he is coming home from work.
When he gets home, he tries everything I tried. Meanwhile, I google partial home power outages. It seems that the issue is either with our main breaker, or somewhere farther up the line even to a transformer being out somewhere. He calls the power company and they are sending someone out before 6 pm. Not knowing how long this problem will last, I drive over to my parent's house to pick up their three space heaters.
That twenty minute drive takes me fifty minutes. While stuck in traffic I listen to the radio and discover that an accident has the nearby highway shut down and all the traffic is diverting down my road. Upon arriving, I was told to call home.
I call and talk to my husband, the power is on! The electric company confirmed that the power issue is at our outside circuit box which is located at the electric meter. The guy said either one circuit is going bad, or some wiring is loose. But he was able to fiddle with it and the power was on. I decide to be on the safe side and take the space heaters home anyway. Once there, I crank the heat up, thinking that if the power goes back out, at least we will have some stored up heat in the house.
After dinner, about an hour later, the power goes back off. We are able to jiggle the electric meter a little and it comes back on. Repeat 2 more times. Finally at 9:15 pm, the power goes out and will not come back on. We have the space heaters set up and running. I monitor the rate at which the house temperature is falling, about 2 degrees per hour. It should be in the 50s when we wake up. We set all the faucets to a drip. My husband is miserable at this point with a running nose and watery eyes. I tell him to go to bed, I will monitor everything for a while before following him.
After a while, I check all the faucets to make sure I didn't set the drip so low that they've stopped. I discover a problem in the second bathroom. The toilet is slowly filling with water and every few seconds an air bubble come glugging up. I turn off the bathroom faucet, the air bubbles stop. So I know it is filling because of the running water, but why isn't it draining? We don't have a plunger, so I can't check to see if it is plugged. So at this point I am just going to have to hope it is plugged and not frozen.
After this, I go to feed the cat some wet cat food. I open the refrigerator and realize, oh yeah, the power is out. I transfer everything from that freezer into our chest freezer, whose circuit is still working. Thank you God. I also pile in anything I think will freeze well from the refrigerator. The partial gallon of milk won't fit, so I set that outside. Anything left in the refrigerator will either need to be tossed or should be fine at room temperature, such as our produce.
About 11:45-midnight-ish, I decide the house is losing heat too fast still and I crank the space heaters up from medium to high. My husband comes wandering out, he can't sleep. He sounds even worse, and the space heaters are seriously drying us out. He decides to boil a pot of water and to turn the oven on. I told him I would keep an eye on it until I went to bed. He only stays up a little bit then goes back to bed.
At 12:30 the power comes back on. I have the thermostat turned up to 80 and watch with much happiness as the temperature of the house creeps back up. Shortly after 1:00 am I decide I am too tired to stay up any longer. The house temperature has reached 79 degrees. I turn off the stove and oven and go to bed. I left the kitchen light on, so that if I wake and see it off, I will know the power has gone back out.
As I have almost drifted to sleep, I hear the furnace turn off. I pry my eyes open and see the light is gone. At this point, what will be, will be, and I go to sleep.
In weight loss related news, I have stayed on track with my new eating habits despite the emotional obstacles thrown my way.
Saturday, February 28, 2015
Thursday, February 26, 2015
Second thoughts
My husband is having second thoughts about him having surgery.
I knew when we first began discussing this that he had reservations. He told me that he wasn't comfortable with someone rearranging his insides in non-Life or Death scenario. And he worried about the complication, and the lasting changes he would have to make; there are some foods he may never be able to eat again. He mentioned the possibility of drug-aided weight loss. So I knew that he wasn't sure. And that is okay. I made it clear that I still planned on having surgery, but that he had to make his own decision.
Then. he started the process of getting approved for surgery, he went to the informational session and has had his first dietitian visit. We discussed what losing the weight would be like, getting off our medications and hurting less, things we could now do and places we could go. He talked about having surgery as if it was a sure thing to other people. I started to feel like we were in this together. Shared experiences, not just sharing my journey.
Then the other night, he said something that indicated he might not have surgery. I don't remember his exact words, but I remember mine. I regret my first reaction which was, "You better not back out now!" He retorted, "Or What?" And I had no answer to that really. He does need to make his own decision. I don't want him to regret his choice, and I certainly don't want him to blame me in the future for feeling like I forced him into it. And if, God forbid, something does go wrong, then I would have my own guilt on top of that to deal with.
Bariatric surgery is a major, life changing choice. It isn't for everyone. Yes, a part of me is scared too. I want to be healthier though, not to mention thinner. It has taken me 5 years of seriously thinking about it to come to the conclusion that for me, it is the best option.
I knew when we first began discussing this that he had reservations. He told me that he wasn't comfortable with someone rearranging his insides in non-Life or Death scenario. And he worried about the complication, and the lasting changes he would have to make; there are some foods he may never be able to eat again. He mentioned the possibility of drug-aided weight loss. So I knew that he wasn't sure. And that is okay. I made it clear that I still planned on having surgery, but that he had to make his own decision.
Then. he started the process of getting approved for surgery, he went to the informational session and has had his first dietitian visit. We discussed what losing the weight would be like, getting off our medications and hurting less, things we could now do and places we could go. He talked about having surgery as if it was a sure thing to other people. I started to feel like we were in this together. Shared experiences, not just sharing my journey.
Then the other night, he said something that indicated he might not have surgery. I don't remember his exact words, but I remember mine. I regret my first reaction which was, "You better not back out now!" He retorted, "Or What?" And I had no answer to that really. He does need to make his own decision. I don't want him to regret his choice, and I certainly don't want him to blame me in the future for feeling like I forced him into it. And if, God forbid, something does go wrong, then I would have my own guilt on top of that to deal with.
Bariatric surgery is a major, life changing choice. It isn't for everyone. Yes, a part of me is scared too. I want to be healthier though, not to mention thinner. It has taken me 5 years of seriously thinking about it to come to the conclusion that for me, it is the best option.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Dinner Possibilities
I am attempting to be creative and give us a variety of dinner options that stay within our eating guidelines. The past five cooked dinners, we've had the following modified lower carb/lower fat meals:
Turkey Taco Salad
Crock Pot Beef Roast and Asparagus
Turkey Burger and Baby Vegetable Medley
Chicken Cacciatore
Rotisserie Chicken with Caesar Side Salad
All meals have turned out well and a couple of them had leftovers to have for lunch over the weekend or dinner for the next night. Coming up in the next few days, I am planning:
Chef Salad with tuna(instead of ham), turkey, egg, cheese etc.
Thin Crust Pizza
Crock Pot Turkey Chili
I am really looking forward to chili. I've always loved it. It is great that is is already a higher protein lower carb option and as long as I use a lean meat (93/7 turkey this time) it is a lower fat option too. And it is so warm... I love soup/chili in winter.
I have ham I could use in the Chef Salad, but I am trying to incorporate more fish into our diets. I am generally not a fan unless it is deep fried, but it is healthy and my husband loves it. We have canned tuna, so that is the route I am taking this week. Next week, I think I will visit a store and pick up some type of fresh fish to bake or grill. I think I am going to shoot for having fish once a week. Up until I go into full liquid mode at least.
Turkey Taco Salad
Crock Pot Beef Roast and Asparagus
Turkey Burger and Baby Vegetable Medley
Chicken Cacciatore
Rotisserie Chicken with Caesar Side Salad
All meals have turned out well and a couple of them had leftovers to have for lunch over the weekend or dinner for the next night. Coming up in the next few days, I am planning:
Chef Salad with tuna(instead of ham), turkey, egg, cheese etc.
Thin Crust Pizza
Crock Pot Turkey Chili
I am really looking forward to chili. I've always loved it. It is great that is is already a higher protein lower carb option and as long as I use a lean meat (93/7 turkey this time) it is a lower fat option too. And it is so warm... I love soup/chili in winter.
I have ham I could use in the Chef Salad, but I am trying to incorporate more fish into our diets. I am generally not a fan unless it is deep fried, but it is healthy and my husband loves it. We have canned tuna, so that is the route I am taking this week. Next week, I think I will visit a store and pick up some type of fresh fish to bake or grill. I think I am going to shoot for having fish once a week. Up until I go into full liquid mode at least.
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Sugar-treat Free
I haven't had anything sugary since 2/15... not even a little honey in my tea. Don't get me wrong, I've had carbs in the form of low carb items, but no dessert and no sweet tea. This is a major step for me because if there is one thing I could pinpoint as my kryptonite, it is definitely sweet treats. I think about sweets daily still. Let me be honest, multiple times per day still. When I enter the kitchen at meal time, my first response is to look for something sweet. Although, that is mostly a mental response at this point followed by disappointment. One, because I know we don't have anything sweet readily available, and two because I can't eat it anyway. So I don't bother physically looking any more.
I could bake something, or even easier add a little honey to my tea, but one thing is helping me resist the urge. I have had a cold since last Friday. I have always had a very poor response from my immune system when fighting off colds. They linger forever and I cough so much my chest hurts and the cough lasts at least a couple weeks afterwards. I have to clear my throat so often that I usually miss a night or two of sleep just to keep from feeling like I am drowning in snot. So, I know sugar depresses the immune system, and I want to see if I get better any quicker than usual.
I was feeling a little better yesterday, but then I revisited the site of contamination yesterday afternoon. I had to babysit for the nephews for 4 hours. They all appear to be getting better; much less nose wiping had to occur. But this morning, I feel worse. Maybe it is just because they wore me out. I have to go over again today for a couple hours. Normally Mom and I would trade days if the other was sick, but Mom is out of town. I am on babysitting duty through Wednesday. Perhaps then, I will make a marked recovery from the cold. Hopefully, I won't reinfect the boys.
Back to the main topic... I feel like I should be losing more weight for how strict I've been with my food for the past 9 days. I'm big enough that it should be melting off at this point when you combine my lack of sugar, exercising three times a week, and I am only eating about 1000-1500 calories a day. Especially the past 5 days, when I have just hovered around the same weight within an ounce or two. But I have only lost 3.7 lbs since 2/9/15. It just doesn't seem right. Perchance it is an impending menstrual cycle. I haven't had a period since December, so it could happen any day now.
Besides for wanting sugar desperately, I have a decided lack of interest in food. I have a refrigerator full of protein-y and sugar-free treats. Turkey sausage, turkey bacon, light string cheese, 99% fat free ham and turkey lunch meat, low fat hot dogs, sugar-free jell-o, sugar-free pudding, and eggs to name most of them. Plus the fixings for salad, other veggies that are steam-able, canned tuna and chicken in the cupboard. But pretty much every meal except dinner, I am just making a protein shake.
I could bake something, or even easier add a little honey to my tea, but one thing is helping me resist the urge. I have had a cold since last Friday. I have always had a very poor response from my immune system when fighting off colds. They linger forever and I cough so much my chest hurts and the cough lasts at least a couple weeks afterwards. I have to clear my throat so often that I usually miss a night or two of sleep just to keep from feeling like I am drowning in snot. So, I know sugar depresses the immune system, and I want to see if I get better any quicker than usual.
I was feeling a little better yesterday, but then I revisited the site of contamination yesterday afternoon. I had to babysit for the nephews for 4 hours. They all appear to be getting better; much less nose wiping had to occur. But this morning, I feel worse. Maybe it is just because they wore me out. I have to go over again today for a couple hours. Normally Mom and I would trade days if the other was sick, but Mom is out of town. I am on babysitting duty through Wednesday. Perhaps then, I will make a marked recovery from the cold. Hopefully, I won't reinfect the boys.
Back to the main topic... I feel like I should be losing more weight for how strict I've been with my food for the past 9 days. I'm big enough that it should be melting off at this point when you combine my lack of sugar, exercising three times a week, and I am only eating about 1000-1500 calories a day. Especially the past 5 days, when I have just hovered around the same weight within an ounce or two. But I have only lost 3.7 lbs since 2/9/15. It just doesn't seem right. Perchance it is an impending menstrual cycle. I haven't had a period since December, so it could happen any day now.
Besides for wanting sugar desperately, I have a decided lack of interest in food. I have a refrigerator full of protein-y and sugar-free treats. Turkey sausage, turkey bacon, light string cheese, 99% fat free ham and turkey lunch meat, low fat hot dogs, sugar-free jell-o, sugar-free pudding, and eggs to name most of them. Plus the fixings for salad, other veggies that are steam-able, canned tuna and chicken in the cupboard. But pretty much every meal except dinner, I am just making a protein shake.
Psychologist Appointment
I have been trying to write this post for three days now. It seems like every time I get started, I am interrupted by something. Or I realize I am running out of time and I have to leave. Or it dawns on me that it is after midnight and I need to get up at 6:00 AM. Ugh.
My psychologist appointment was on Friday. It wasn't what I expected at all. I've only ever been to a psychologist once before, and it was to get approval to use donor sperm for AI. That appointment was about 1.5 hours and was pretty much all talking about family history, family support, how we felt about it etc.
This appointment was maybe 15 - 20 minutes of questions from the psychologist about my understanding of the procedure, it's effects on me, the possible complication, what kind of support I have, why do I want to do this? Then it was another 45 minutes of testing. The testing included a paper survey and two computer surveys. I had to rank each statement False, Slightly True, Mostly True, Very True. Most of the questions were just about how I feel about myself and how I think other people see me, or do I feel like people are stealing the thoughts from my head. Every once in a while an oddball question occurred such as: My favorite two hobbies are archery and stamp collecting. I feel like the answer to this question would always be false.
She seemed surprised when I was done. Maybe I took the tests too quickly, but I really didn't need to dwell on any of the questions. I was told this appointment would take 1.5 - 2 hours, but it was maybe just over an hour. I bet I still get billed for the whole time though.
Anyway, I've got to get to bed.
My psychologist appointment was on Friday. It wasn't what I expected at all. I've only ever been to a psychologist once before, and it was to get approval to use donor sperm for AI. That appointment was about 1.5 hours and was pretty much all talking about family history, family support, how we felt about it etc.
This appointment was maybe 15 - 20 minutes of questions from the psychologist about my understanding of the procedure, it's effects on me, the possible complication, what kind of support I have, why do I want to do this? Then it was another 45 minutes of testing. The testing included a paper survey and two computer surveys. I had to rank each statement False, Slightly True, Mostly True, Very True. Most of the questions were just about how I feel about myself and how I think other people see me, or do I feel like people are stealing the thoughts from my head. Every once in a while an oddball question occurred such as: My favorite two hobbies are archery and stamp collecting. I feel like the answer to this question would always be false.
She seemed surprised when I was done. Maybe I took the tests too quickly, but I really didn't need to dwell on any of the questions. I was told this appointment would take 1.5 - 2 hours, but it was maybe just over an hour. I bet I still get billed for the whole time though.
Anyway, I've got to get to bed.
Friday, February 20, 2015
Exercise and Expected Weight Loss
I have 1.5 weeks left until my last dietitian appointment. I am happy to say I've been exercising. I do not enjoy it. It hurts. I know it is a requirement and although 3 days a weeks are needed now, it will be 5 days a week after surgery. But I sure hope I start enjoying it, or at least look forward to it in some type of accomplishment type pleasure.
When it warms up a little, I want to resume taking water classes at the YMCA. I haven't been there since the beginning of December, but I just can't mix below freezing temps and swimming. I am hoping March will be that month to begin again, I just need it to stay in the 30's during the day.
In the meantime, I am using a workout video, playing with nephews, and walking. I am not counting the playing with nephews as exercise in my thrice weekly requirement. Unfortunately, all three of those activities hurt at some point. The workout video makes my muscles hurt while doing it, but once I am done the pain fades with only a little lingering soreness. Playing with the nephews mainly makes my back and sides hurt if I do too much. I chalk that up to my back problems. They have so much energy that when I should probably stop, they just want to keep going. And they love being chased, pushed on wheeled toys, tickled, etc. I love playing with them, but I am always in pain afterwards. The walking makes my shins hurt if I try to walk too fast, but the whole point is to get my heart rate up. So I haven't been just walking much.
I've read that I should try compression socks/stockings to help my shins. Can I find those in my size? Um, no. I have massive calves. Also, that stretching both before and after walking will help. I feel a bit foolish going to a store such as Lowe's and warming-up, stretching, walking, then stretching again. It's too cold to walk outside yet. I wonder if I warm up and stretch at home then drive to a store to walk, then drive home to stretch would be very effective? Probably not.
So anyway, this all boils down to the fact that I am almost solely using the workout video for my exercise. And as I said it hurts, so I don't enjoy it or look forward to it. But exercise I must.
Exercise is going to be so important after surgery in helping me to lose all the weight I want. The doctor's office gave me a Weight Loss Outcomes chart of my doctor's patients ranging from 2002-2012 showing the percentage of excess weight lost over the first 3 years. This chart tells me two things.
First, year one will be the most important time to work hard at my weight loss. Second, in the first year, on average his patient's lose 81% of their excess weight. After that, patients lose a bit more, but by year three, patient's weight loss have have stabilized with patient's gaining back about 5%. So to optimize my weight loss, and hopefully exceed 81% excess weight loss, I am going to need to follow all the guidelines and bump up my exercise to achieve my goals.
I don't know what I will weigh upon surgery day, so I can not accurately calculate what 81% of my excess weight will be at that time. But if I go from today, at 349.7lbs, to my ideal BMI weight max being 150 lbs. My excess weight is 199.7 lbs. 81% of that is 161.6 lbs. So, if I am an average patient of my doctor, I could expect to get down to 188.1 lbs in first year. That number boggles my mind, and I will feel and look so different. But I can't help but think if I work a little harder, think what could happen. I told the dietitian, and it is true, I will be extremely happy, pleased, satisfied, to achieve a weight less than 200 lbs. It couldn't hurt to strive for more though, as long as I remember that anything more is a bonus and not to be disappointed if I never reach 150 lbs.
188.1 lbs... I haven't weighed that since I was 12 years old... mind boggling.
When it warms up a little, I want to resume taking water classes at the YMCA. I haven't been there since the beginning of December, but I just can't mix below freezing temps and swimming. I am hoping March will be that month to begin again, I just need it to stay in the 30's during the day.
In the meantime, I am using a workout video, playing with nephews, and walking. I am not counting the playing with nephews as exercise in my thrice weekly requirement. Unfortunately, all three of those activities hurt at some point. The workout video makes my muscles hurt while doing it, but once I am done the pain fades with only a little lingering soreness. Playing with the nephews mainly makes my back and sides hurt if I do too much. I chalk that up to my back problems. They have so much energy that when I should probably stop, they just want to keep going. And they love being chased, pushed on wheeled toys, tickled, etc. I love playing with them, but I am always in pain afterwards. The walking makes my shins hurt if I try to walk too fast, but the whole point is to get my heart rate up. So I haven't been just walking much.
I've read that I should try compression socks/stockings to help my shins. Can I find those in my size? Um, no. I have massive calves. Also, that stretching both before and after walking will help. I feel a bit foolish going to a store such as Lowe's and warming-up, stretching, walking, then stretching again. It's too cold to walk outside yet. I wonder if I warm up and stretch at home then drive to a store to walk, then drive home to stretch would be very effective? Probably not.
So anyway, this all boils down to the fact that I am almost solely using the workout video for my exercise. And as I said it hurts, so I don't enjoy it or look forward to it. But exercise I must.
Exercise is going to be so important after surgery in helping me to lose all the weight I want. The doctor's office gave me a Weight Loss Outcomes chart of my doctor's patients ranging from 2002-2012 showing the percentage of excess weight lost over the first 3 years. This chart tells me two things.
First, year one will be the most important time to work hard at my weight loss. Second, in the first year, on average his patient's lose 81% of their excess weight. After that, patients lose a bit more, but by year three, patient's weight loss have have stabilized with patient's gaining back about 5%. So to optimize my weight loss, and hopefully exceed 81% excess weight loss, I am going to need to follow all the guidelines and bump up my exercise to achieve my goals.
I don't know what I will weigh upon surgery day, so I can not accurately calculate what 81% of my excess weight will be at that time. But if I go from today, at 349.7lbs, to my ideal BMI weight max being 150 lbs. My excess weight is 199.7 lbs. 81% of that is 161.6 lbs. So, if I am an average patient of my doctor, I could expect to get down to 188.1 lbs in first year. That number boggles my mind, and I will feel and look so different. But I can't help but think if I work a little harder, think what could happen. I told the dietitian, and it is true, I will be extremely happy, pleased, satisfied, to achieve a weight less than 200 lbs. It couldn't hurt to strive for more though, as long as I remember that anything more is a bonus and not to be disappointed if I never reach 150 lbs.
188.1 lbs... I haven't weighed that since I was 12 years old... mind boggling.
Monday, February 9, 2015
Excuses, Excuses
We had one of our nephews over to the house this past weekend. He is three, so I am quite sure spending time with him counts as exercise. My sister had called on Friday night and asked if we had plans for the weekend. I told her no and asked why? She said little G had asked to come to our house. (Awww heart melting moment) So how could I say no? It was a blast, he went to church with us then we took him home.
He inspired me to try harder, so I have resolved that this is the week I will begin exercising. Three times a week, so that gives me four slacker days. There is no room for excuses here!
The day I had my second Dietitian visit, my husband had his first visit. All of the same info was covered of course, but he brought home two insurance denial stories to share with me.
The first was about a woman who did not change a thing towards working on her pre-op goals. She even gained weight, although right at the end (panic time!) she lost five pounds. There was no evidence supporting that she could change her eating habits enough for the surgery to be a success.
The second (and the one that worried me) was of a woman that was too successful at losing weight when working toward her pre-op goals. The insurance deemed the surgery unnecessary as she was able to lose significant weight on her own. Of course, I wish he would have gotten a number so I could pin down, how much is too much?
I forgot to mention this, but during my visit, we discussed appointment/surgery time lines. It looks like if everything works out scheduling-wise, I will be having my Roux-En-Y Gastric Bypass somewhere in the middle to end of May. I had hoped it would be a little sooner, read that end of April, but I guess you just have to go with what the insurance and the surgeon can do.
So in the same day, I heard "Don't lose too much weight" and "You have 3.5 months until surgery." Not a good combo, we proceeded to have entirely too much or a lot of bad things over the weekend. It is my fault, I should have more will power, or at least common sense. The first month I lost 9.1 lbs. And let's face it, I could have tried harder, I wasn't even exercising. And my case would be sent to the insurance for pre-certification in roughly 2 months, not 3.5 months. So even if I lost another nine pounds each month for a total of 27 lbs lost, surely that would not be deemed "too much" when I would still weigh over 300 lbs?
I was just looking for an excuse. I want to be honest here, but I don't want to admit I am human either. I would like to be the perfect poster child for how this journey of bariatric surgery should go. But that's not me, and I've never been perfect at anything.
As a side note: I would really love to be able to lose and keep off the weight without having surgery. And don't think I haven't tried for the past 26 years (weight watchers at age nine, go me!). But that is not me either.
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
Second Dietitian Visit
Today was my second Dietitian visit. We discussed my progress on the pre-op goals. Overall. she was happy with my progress, but told me to work on getting more exercise and fluids. That came as no surprise since I knew I have been lacking in both. She was also pleased with my weight loss so far. That makes me happy too, because, frankly, I feel like it is never enough.
We went over some questions I had percolating since the last visit. For instance, I should be taking vitamin D3, not just vitamin D, because it has better absorption. This led into a talk about vitamins and the role they will play in the rest of my life. She even had cost estimates for me on the different versions of each vitamin. I asked her about Biotin for my hair and nails. She said I should begin taking 5000mcg because based on the input from the support groups it seems to give the most benefit. I have been a little worried about this; my hair and nails are just about the only parts of me I like nowadays.
She said it is true hair and nails will seem thinner, but this will reverse. She told me that my hair won't be actually thinning out, but rather it will get brittle and break easily. The hair follicles will probably synchronize their production pattern. Meaning that on average a person loses 100 hairs a day, while other are growing. After surgery, due to hormone changes, more may break all at once, so you will have a lot more shorter hair growing in. This will make it seem as though the hair is thinner, when really it is just shorter. So, while still not something to look forward to, it won't be a permanent change in my hair thickness.
I asked her if there were any other negative side effects I should look forward to. I was told that most people complain about their bat wings (floppy under arms). Also, the older crowd tends to have more pronounced wrinkles. They younger a person is the more elastic the skin is and the less likely this is to happen. I am 35, so hopefully I won't have a problem with this. I guess I could always start using a skin firming product.
Then I brought up bowel obstructions. She didn't know the complication rate, but explained to me in detail what happens. The doctor I am seeing does sew up the holes he creates when he enters the abdomen, but as the fat shrinks, sometimes a hole is left through which the bowel slips. She said if it were to happen, it would more likely be 1-2 years after surgery and I would know. There would be a lot of pain just after eating or when trying to go the bathroom. She said if at any time I have severe pain in my abdomen I should go to the ER. The sooner it is caught the easier it is to fix.
Lastly, I talked to her about the low fat requirement. I told her I couldn't bring myself to use margarine because I knew it was plastic. I asked if I could use the other healthy fats, like butter, coconut oil, and olive oil. The answer is yes by all means, but you have to use a very small amount. Keep in mind that a large amount of fat could cause dumping syndrome and will negatively effect my weight loss. The goal after all is to greatly reduce my caloric intake while upping my activity level. The surgery is a tool that will allow me to eat less and not feel hungry, but if I eat a great deal of calories, I will not lose weight. Case in point: she has a woman that is 4 months post-op and hasn't lost any weight because she grazes on food all day. She has admitted she isn't hungry, she just wants to eat. I cannot imagine going through all this and not losing any weight! Why give up the foods I love, and I mean I really adore the sweets, and not lose any weight? It boggles my mind.
She emphasized to me that I will have nine months to a year to get off as much weight as I can. After that I will plateau and it will be much more difficult to lose any weight. So I really need to keep my food intake down and my exercise up (30-40 minutes, 5 times a week).
Weight on Tuesday: 350.5 lbs
Weight on Wednesday: 349.5 lbs
We went over some questions I had percolating since the last visit. For instance, I should be taking vitamin D3, not just vitamin D, because it has better absorption. This led into a talk about vitamins and the role they will play in the rest of my life. She even had cost estimates for me on the different versions of each vitamin. I asked her about Biotin for my hair and nails. She said I should begin taking 5000mcg because based on the input from the support groups it seems to give the most benefit. I have been a little worried about this; my hair and nails are just about the only parts of me I like nowadays.
She said it is true hair and nails will seem thinner, but this will reverse. She told me that my hair won't be actually thinning out, but rather it will get brittle and break easily. The hair follicles will probably synchronize their production pattern. Meaning that on average a person loses 100 hairs a day, while other are growing. After surgery, due to hormone changes, more may break all at once, so you will have a lot more shorter hair growing in. This will make it seem as though the hair is thinner, when really it is just shorter. So, while still not something to look forward to, it won't be a permanent change in my hair thickness.
I asked her if there were any other negative side effects I should look forward to. I was told that most people complain about their bat wings (floppy under arms). Also, the older crowd tends to have more pronounced wrinkles. They younger a person is the more elastic the skin is and the less likely this is to happen. I am 35, so hopefully I won't have a problem with this. I guess I could always start using a skin firming product.
Then I brought up bowel obstructions. She didn't know the complication rate, but explained to me in detail what happens. The doctor I am seeing does sew up the holes he creates when he enters the abdomen, but as the fat shrinks, sometimes a hole is left through which the bowel slips. She said if it were to happen, it would more likely be 1-2 years after surgery and I would know. There would be a lot of pain just after eating or when trying to go the bathroom. She said if at any time I have severe pain in my abdomen I should go to the ER. The sooner it is caught the easier it is to fix.
Lastly, I talked to her about the low fat requirement. I told her I couldn't bring myself to use margarine because I knew it was plastic. I asked if I could use the other healthy fats, like butter, coconut oil, and olive oil. The answer is yes by all means, but you have to use a very small amount. Keep in mind that a large amount of fat could cause dumping syndrome and will negatively effect my weight loss. The goal after all is to greatly reduce my caloric intake while upping my activity level. The surgery is a tool that will allow me to eat less and not feel hungry, but if I eat a great deal of calories, I will not lose weight. Case in point: she has a woman that is 4 months post-op and hasn't lost any weight because she grazes on food all day. She has admitted she isn't hungry, she just wants to eat. I cannot imagine going through all this and not losing any weight! Why give up the foods I love, and I mean I really adore the sweets, and not lose any weight? It boggles my mind.
She emphasized to me that I will have nine months to a year to get off as much weight as I can. After that I will plateau and it will be much more difficult to lose any weight. So I really need to keep my food intake down and my exercise up (30-40 minutes, 5 times a week).
Weight on Tuesday: 350.5 lbs
Weight on Wednesday: 349.5 lbs
Monday, February 2, 2015
Weekends
350.6 Friday
349.7 Saturday
351.7 Sunday
351.9 Monday
Weekends are always rough. The presence of my husband and multiple out of home activities make it more difficult to eat healthy. Sad, but true. But I didn't have any major eating disasters and I tried to remain conscious of my healthier food choices. So I guess not horrible all in all.
349.7 Saturday
351.7 Sunday
351.9 Monday
Weekends are always rough. The presence of my husband and multiple out of home activities make it more difficult to eat healthy. Sad, but true. But I didn't have any major eating disasters and I tried to remain conscious of my healthier food choices. So I guess not horrible all in all.
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