4 Weeks Post Op Weigh-In & Review!

Hello Again My Lovely Followers! Yesterday marked my 4th week "out" and I took some pictures to help reflect my current stage of loss. Amazingly the scale, my "fri-enemy", boosted my self esteem for the first time EVER by posting "334.6". That means I've lost 33.4 lbs since surgery four weeks ago and a grand total of 53.4 lbs lost since I began the liquid diet 2 weeks prior to my surgery. I am overjoyed! It hasn't been easy but nonetheless, I've lost a smidge over 50 lbs! I haven't been this "small" in ages! (Honestly, I really can't remember the last time) Now that is my new goal: I'd like to lost another 50lbs by the next month! Take a peek:

I definitely notice a difference in my face! It's a helluva lot smaller than it used to be. It wasn't long ago that looking in the mirror made me feel like Jabba The Hut. Yes, I'm serious! Here's how my stomach is looking: (The image on the left was 2 days post op and the right is from last week)The incisions are healing VERY nicely!

Before I forget, there are some other pointers I'd like to share with you and yes, I've taken pictures to help illustrate it for ya! :) I'm on a tight budget and I feel as if these surgeries aren't exactly catering to those with anorexic wallets. Here are some items I've found, relatively cheap, that help me get by. First up, as you know, you're going to be SURVIVING on PROTEIN ONLY for some time Pre & Post Op. My personal favorite is Body Fortress' various flavors which I found at Wal-Mart. A huge 2 lb. tub is only $14.97! This tub will last you about 2 weeks. Also, post op, you'll need to take CALCIUM for the rest of your life. I found that Vitamin World (in our malls here in Savannah BUT also online! just add ".com") sells LIQUID CALCIUM *CITRATE* (you can NOT have CARBONATE....ONLY CITRATE!) in various flavors for $10 per bottle. Each bottle lasts me about 2 weeks. Here's a pic of those items:

I had some fantastic and motivating pictures on my son's digital camera of my full body BUT of course, I can't seem to get them loaded onto the computer. Ugh. For someone so smart, I feel so damn dumb sometimes! ;) In the past 2 weeks since I wrote last, I've felt WONDERFUL. I've been getting up early and immediately going out to walk for 2 miles with my son each day! In fact, on Monday, Anthony went with us!

I started off only doing 2 miles. In fact, what I do in order to FORCE myself to walk that far is this: I walk up to the main road. It's an entire mile up. Once I'm there I know that if I want to get home I have to walk my big ass all the way back! Once I get home I'm so PROUD of myself for completing two whole miles! This past Sunday I decided I was going go a little bit further. One of the side streets happens to add an extra half mile to my trip. So now I'm walking 2.5 miles everyday. I can't thank my guys enough for their constant support. It REALLY helps me stay positive and motivated to know they (as well as my FB family!) are all standing by rooting for me! Roman is walking with me as well. I have always wanted to be that awesome role model for him in the fitness department; better late than never! :) On Friday I am going back to Augusta for my One Month Check Up with my surgeon. I'll be OFFICIALLY allowed to eat food! Not much food, just some soft foods. Honestly, I've already started on that. In fact, early on, when I talked about being hungry, it's true I was. But now, I'm getting used to my new feelings and my new pouch. When I feel hungry, it's not that same old hunger feeling I used to get. I will nibble on some - get this!- FAT FREE cottage cheese! I used to HATE FF cottage cheese and now, IT IS HEAVENLY! It's so wild how much our taste buds really do change post op! Anyway, I nibble on 4 oz. and feel satisfied and full. Not the "OMG-I'm-gonna-barf" type full, but an "OK-I've-had-enough-I'm-good!" type full. It was really hard at first to learn that I have to eat and drink SLOWLY...in SMALL amounts. Those are things you definitely want to train yourself to do BEFORE SURGERY! (Yes, they tell you that but I am stubborn!) I love, love, LOVE to drink WATER! Especially with LOTS OF ICE! I love ice! :) However, I can't enjoy my giant cups of water that I'd guzzle down like I'd just been rescued from weeks in the desert. I can only have a couple sips here and there. Sometimes I still chug a few sips at a time to quench my thirst and then my pouch will push out a very unlady-like burp with a side of pain to remind me I can't treat her that way. It's true, your pouch REALLY DOES talk to you! So be kind! :) The schedule I've got myself on now is this: It seems as though every 2 hours my pouch is asking for something to nibble on. Yes, I've timed it, so I'm sure it's every 2 hours. I am still drinking my protein. But, it totally sucks. I'm so over protein drinks, it's not even funny! I bought a couple cans of the Starkist Tuna (yes, it's worth the extra money for the name brand, I totally understand the difference now!) which has 15g of protein in every 2 oz! Of course, I had mixed up 4 oz of tuna with some mayo & mustard in my little cute container! Surprisingly, I was able to SLOWLY eat all of the tuna and it held me over VERY NICELY until 2 hours later! LoL Then I ate my other 4 oz that this one can had produced. I also bought some chicken in the can. I've never had that before, so I'll let y'all know how it goes. The cottage cheese is still my favorite thing to eat. It doesn't make me thirsty. Tuna doesn't make me thirsty either but mentally I feel like I SHOULD be drinking after, so that's a side effect I don't like. (But man-oh-man was it heavenly!) I'm really proud of myself for learning how to slow it down on eating and drinking. I suppose it just is going to take TIME to adjust. What can I say? I'm an instant gratification type gal. I want everything to be perfect and IMMEDIATELY DAMN IT! LoL But, overall it's coming together nicely. OH! Remember when I wrote last time about being dizzy and nauseous? Guess what was causing it?!! I WAS DEHYDRATED! I really felt like I was drinking enough but apparently I wasn't. So please, please, please FORCE YOURSELF to take a couple sips EVERY 2 MINUTES while you are awake! Yes, you heard me! EVERY 2 MINUTES! Also, when I got sick and kept throwing up, that was caused my an over production of acid that had built up in my pouch! So...it turned out that I'm (as well as every other bariatric patient too!) supposed to be taking PRILOSEC OTC *EVERY DAY* for at least the first couple years post op! You can also get the GENERIC WAL-MART BRAND, but this is what I bought:

MAKE SURE YOU CRUSH UP YOUR PILLS VERY, VERY WELL! Anyway, I'm on Cloud 9! My whole life has turned around for the better in the past month. I used to take over 20 different medicines every day (most 2x daily!) now I take just 2...and I'm sure once I go back to my PCP that number is going to DROP! My blood sugar levels are NORMAL! They have been in the 80s- low 90s since surgery! I can't tell you how much I enjoy NOT taking insulin injections anymore! My blood pressure was 112/62 yesterday! My clothes are all super loose! Most importantly, I feel accomplished and proud of myself. I was scared and unsure of this decision and now I'm positive I made the right choice. Yes, there are going to be good days and bad days. But, EVERYONE HAS THOSE! If you're considering this surgery (or any of the other types of bariatric surgeries) please don't let my honesty of the pitfalls I've encountered scare you away. At least you know what to watch out for! ;) You will meet people who are going to try to change your mind about this surgery. DO NOT LISTEN TO THEM! Your surgeon will NOT perform a surgery like this if you DID NOT NEED IT! This is not like getting a new pair of breasts! No one REALLY needs a new pair of perky boobies, they just WANT them for whatever reason they have. (Which is fine!) But these types of surgeries SAVE OUR LIVES! We *need* them to survive. So here is an awesome quote from an incredibly sexy man I adore:

Until next time....