31 down ... 71 to go! ;-)

My blog is so jumbled and behind.  I did pretty well while I was in the hospital jotting little notes and thoughts here and there on whatever paper I could find (which was usually the back of a page in a notebook given to me by the hospital to read up on my procedure, etc.)

Anyway - I figure I will fill in the blanks as I can later and go back and update some of the previous days' posts but for now I'm just going to catch up on the here and now and try to stay on top of things from this point on.  It will be more accurate and much easier to follow!  :-)

I am now 5 weeks post gastric bypass.  I am down 32 pounds ... can I get a "YAHOOO?!"  ;-) 

Water is still a battle for me ... but I'm working on this.  I'm also almost out of multivitamins so this is something I will need to purchase ASAP.

Food intake wise I'm doing pretty well.  There are many things I can eat and enjoy -- as long as I chew sooo thoroughly it's crazy -- and chew slowly as well.  Obviously, I do not eat sugar, high fat foods, anything carbonated, etc.  That really hasn't been too difficult of an adjustment - although I must admit that it's the smells that get to me.

Most of my hunger, I am realizing, is emotional and mental.  If I smell something good - I want it.  Whether or not I am truly hungry.  I can't eat it - I won't eat it - but it is interesting to be able to recognize what true hunger is and know that what I am experiencing when I want a food because it's "there" - or because it smells good - that it's simply something I need to recognize as a habit I need to work on.  Right now I cannot consume too much food ... but at some point down the line I will be able to have that "whatever" - and I need to learn NOT to have it just because it smells good, just because it's there ... just because I want it.

Also, I have learned to eat protein first ... before anything else.

I have also been learning how to drink liquid 30-45 minutes before or after a meal but not with a meal.  This is important for both hunger reasons and nutritional absorption reasons. 

I will say - I have been SUPER thirsty lately.  I know I'm not getting enough liquid in and this is going to be a problem if I don't figure it out.

This morning I weighed 195 pounds -- down from 227 pounds.  I really want to discipline myself to stop weighing every morning because I think by doing so I'm not able to really enjoy the losing.  If I waited a week and saw a 3-5 pound weight loss (give or take a few pounds) than that would be so much more exciting than seeing a pound here and there daily.  I'm missing the excitement of a large amount on the scale because I'm weighing daily...if that makes any sense.

I am able to move more freely already - even after only 32 pounds of weight is gone.  I cannot imagine how much better I will feel physically when 70 more pounds is gone!  I am realllllllly anticipating this. 

Yes, I want to look better, yes I want to wear nicer clothing but ... the thought of moving more comfortably, feeling healthier, not having sore/achy joints ... THAT sounds like heaven right now!  :-)

More later ~ and as always I'll keep you ... "posted"!

Bypass Blogging - Continued

It’s been a while since I’ve posted – so I’ll try to update this blog.


We returned home after that “interesting” car ride (with the little detour through Madera, CA, to have the Toyota water pump replaced). We arrived home later that evening at about 10PM … the rest of the ride, thankfully, was uneventful!

As usual – it was always nice to be home. I felt “great” surgically speaking … I don’t think I had any pain after that one “bump” in the road with the bowel/intestine requiring a second surgery. That kinda’ sucked but … Demerol was my friend on the early morning on November 20. Wednesday morning we picked up Ivy from the vets’ office … another thing that was very nice! 

Late Wednesday evening (we’re now @ November 25th) Kimberly and Adam arrived home. It was late so they didn’t stay up late but Thursday morning I swiped their grocery list that was on the counter; I headed to Winco to buy the groceries they would need. I felt bad enough that I wasn’t making Thanksgiving dinner – I would’ve felt that much worse if they paid for our groceries! I know neither of them would’ve taken reimbursement without a squabble so … it was easier to buy the stuff on the list and deal with it later! (ha)

Thanksgiving dinner SMELLED great – obviously I couldn’t taste things but – that was okay. I did have a little bit of the turkey broth, and a little turkey puree. It tasted good.

Fast forward to now … not much else has been happening. I returned to work on Mon., November 30th as planned. By the end of last week I was reallllllllly feeling tired – especially on Saturday and Sunday (this past weekend). Benjamin had his first basketball tournament @ Shasta High and the first game was Friday night … starting @ 8:45 p.m.

Thursday night we had a mandatory training at work until 7pm and then I had to work a full-day on Friday (I usually get off work @ 2:15PM) so to have to work basically two full 8 hour work days was killer for me only post- surgery about 2 weeks. GEESH! I think I pushed it there. So the tournaments kinda were the “icing on the cake” as far as exhaustion goes.

To anybody having gastric bypass my unsolicited advice is: Plan on taking the full 3 weeks off if you can afford to do so. It takes your body a while to build up energy, you’re still trying to heal, you still have to “figure out” your eating protein/drinking water schedule. It is a bit much to try to jump right back into routine so soon after surgery. That’s just my two cents worth.

Anyway – so … this past weekend is the one where I felt wiped out. But today I made a decision to REALLY focus on my water and protein intake. As a result, today, for the FIRST day, I am really not hungry. In fact I am having difficulty getting in the protein. Up to this point honestly I had yet to experience a feeling of fullness and I was wondering what the heck was going on? Had I screwed something up? Eaten too much and stretched the pouch? What?? I don’t think I could’ve possibly eaten too much because I have yet to experience the dumping syndrome or any vomiting, nausea. I think I’m doing things right and today the feeling of fullness finally hit! To feel full is a beautiful thing! A “thing” I’m not completely used to feeling. I hope it lasts!

I think I’m experiencing fullness because I am FINALLY focusing on my water intake. I have a ways to go in mastering the art of “sipping” 32-64 oz. of water daily. (I’m STILL working on my first 16 oz. that I measured out this morning. YIKES!) How do people do this? Get in their water, but get in their vitamins/minerals, while getting in the correct amount of protein – separate from water so they don’t flush out nutrients, screw up their appetite, etc.

It’s an art, I swear.

If you, too, are trying to master it … hang in there. It will click and kick in soon – I promise.

My starting weight before surgery was 227. This morning I was 206.6. I have lost about 21 pounds but I had lost that initial 21 pounds shortly after I arrived home from surgery and things have pretty much stayed the same since. I have felt kind of discouraged by this but … I figure I will be losing more eventually. You can’t hardly eat baby food, cottage cheese and refried beans and expect to gain, right?! At least that’s what I’m choosing to believe so – I’m stickin’ to it.



More later ~