Below is a photo of me taken on a trip to Colorado in March of 2014. Pre surgery.
And a couple photos from December 2014, one from Christmas Eve with my extended family and one at a hockey game days after Christmas:
April 2015:
June 2015: I am pictured center at my survivor sign in the local Miles Against Melanoma Walk on 6-6-15
And below I am pictured with my cousins' son on 6-13-15:
July 2015 at a Blues Season ticket holder event:
8-4-15 on vacation in Wisconsin Dells:
And a day shy of my ONE YEAR anniversary, taken today, 8-27-15:
It's been interesting, to say the least.
Today I saw my nurse practitioner at My New Self Bariatric as my one year post-op follow up. I weighed in at 238 pounds, about 2-3 lbs lighter than I fluctuate at home. Difference being I was clothed at their office. My scale at home fluctuates daily between a 120 lb loss to a 123 lb. weight loss. Again, my starting weight was 356.
The NP was thrilled at my results. Her first two comments were that I had exceeded her expectations given I was considered a "revisional" surgery. Then, she told me I was doing so well that I should be on their tv commercials!!! What sweet music to my ears. I know I've personally been thrilled with dropping pounds AND clothing sizes. And I know my husband and family are all proud of me; but hearing it from the surgeon's office made me feel like a success. It's hard to explain how I felt with the failed lap band procedure. People treated me as if I were the reason it failed me. I knew better; but it bothered me nonetheless. Today's appointment validated that I am NOT a failure. In fact, I have far surpassed most patients they do revisional procedures on. As a side note, I am considered a "revisional" surgery since I first had the gastric lap-band in 2006. See previous blog updates for that saga!
I asked Lilly (the NP) what I should expect in the way of a goal and how long I'll continue to lose. She explained that the first year and a half patients typically lose weight easier....then the weight loss slows down or you can experience plateaus. She went on to tell me that I should realistically expect to get down in the neighborhood of 180, give or take. She said I may get to 190 and feel and look healthy at that weight....or if I wanted to lose more I could keep going. She suggested we look at my collarbone and pay attention to when I start to see more bones....as a measure to know when to stop trying to lose. She also explained that when I plateau, I will need to make some changes to trick the metabolism, whether it's in how I eat or whether I amp up my activity level. Essentially, I'm looking at another 6 months more of weight loss, even though it will be slower than it was in the very beginning. I found that to be VERY encouraging.
Truth be known, I will be thrilled to get below 200 pounds and continue having a LIFE back!!!
Right now I am wearing size 22 in shorts and shorts but they are getting loose. While on vacation, I bought some PJs that were on sale. I wanted to buy the 22s; but Kevin strongly urged me to get a size 18/20. MUCH to my surprise, when we got home from our trip, I tried my new pajama's on AND they FIT!!! I am wearing them now. I'll spare you that photo! HA HA.
This week was unseasonably cool which made me realize I need to order some jeans for the fall. Again, I wanted to get one pair of size 22s and one pair of 20s....Kevin told me to get the 20s. I did. They haven't arrived yet; but I'm praying I can get my butt in them!!! It's so hard for me to get a handle on. I buy the size I'm in at the moment, wear them once or twice then drop a size. Frustrating and expensive. I hope Kevin is right about the jeans, too. If so, I may have to consult him before I order clothes. My mind still wants to err on the larger side. The last time I wore a size 18 or 20 was circa VERY early 1990's. TWENTY FIVE years ago!!!!
My New Self Bariatric has support groups twice monthly. I must admit that I haven't attended so much as ONE of them. Mostly because I live across town....and more so because I loathe having to be somewhere at the same time every week or whatever. It's all I can do to have that commitment for work daily, Monday through Friday. They have all types of resources available to patients including dietitians that you can make appointments with, etc. I've been VERY lucky in that I've had ZERO complications or challenges since my surgery. NONE. ZERO. ZILCH. I find this completely INCREDIBLE and wish I'd just had bypass surgery back in 2006. Oh well. Better late than never!!!
I am so passionate about what I've gained from this experience, that I wish I could be a motivational speaker. I have soooo much to say about it. I really hope I can inspire others to find their new lease on life!!! I also find myself looking back at pics of the old "me" and I feel sorry for her. It's really sad and hard to articulate. I never saw myself as the sad person I now see the "old me" as.
I've blogged over the last several months about all the things I can do again; and I feel so many emotions. Earlier this month on vacation I noticed a few more things I can do now.
- I can cross my legs and sit comfortably. I cannot tell you when I lost that ability as it's been so long.
- I can bend over and tie my own shoes or buckle my sandal straps with no assistance required from my husband.
- I am able to sit on an airplane WITHOUT having to use a seat belt extender AND I'm able to lower the arm rest with no troubles and room to spare. In the all the way down position, I might add. Again, I cannot recall the last time I was able to do that!
- My step-son can now hug me and get his arms all the way around me. PRICELESS.
- For the first time in who knows how many years, I was able to fit in an inner-tube and enjoy not only the lazy river at the water parks on vacation, but also the water slides.
- I was able to climb many stairs at the water parks on vacation and ride the water slides. NEVER ONCE did I have to concern myself with weight limits to participate in anything. I cannot tell you how wonderful that felt.
- I walk and climb and keep up with Kevin and Fox now without getting winded.
- I have energy to do more yard work than I ever did. I've planted and weeded and done more this summer to beautify our yard than I have my entire life combined. I am proud of this.
- I do not get exhausted just taking a shower daily. It's so much easier on me physically now.
Sometimes I wish I could write a book about it all. It's like my head has all these thoughts swirling.
And if all those benefits weren't enough......Lilly told me to make an appointment to see my primary care doc (internist) who I haven't seen since my surgery. She suspects I will be able to go off most of my maintenance meds: cholesterol, blood pressure, etc. That would be wonderful. AND I'd save some money in the process!!
Because I hadn't had any lab work done in over 6 months, she did request labs for just about everything. I went immediately over to Des Peres hospital lab to get that drawn......6 or 8 vials later, I was out of there. I am anxious to get those results.
Once those are in, I'll make an appointment with Dr. Murray, my internist, to go over them and see what I can eliminate (med wise).
The BEST news of the day is that I do not have to go back for another YEAR. I LOVE this. With the lap band it was a monthly ordeal....since the bypass I was on a 1 mo, 3 mo, 6 mo rotation then 1 year. She encouraged me to call and make appointments in the interim if I need help or run into problems. And she reminded me I have access to the dietitians. But I am hoping to have continued success on my own. We shall see.
I'll do my best to keep up with timely updates. I was doing them following my doctor appointments; but I'll come up with another way to remember to blog regularly.
In the meantime, I'm down about 120 pounds and living life to my fullest ability. Thank you to everyone in my circles for the continued prayers and encouragement. One day at a time. Work in progress. To be continued.....................
Lori
