Day 20 (5th day of liquid diet)

So today kinda sucked. Not for any post-surgery reasons though. But because our a/c is broken. And I live in Texas.  So....yeah. I've pretty much stayed in my bed with two fans blowing on me so it's been bearable. But just barely. My boys have taken turns hanging out with me. And thank goodness it's been in the 80-90's and rainy. If it was in the 100's, I'd be typing this from a hotel right now.

Other than that, today was pretty good. Although I'm getting a little worried about Thursday. I walked to the mailbox, came in and made the boys a sandwich and had to lie down because my side was burning.
I don't think I'll make it all day at work without the meds. Which means I can't drive. But we'll see how tomorrow goes. I have one extra vacation day I was saving but I may have to take it this week. I really thought I'd be further along by now. I'm not hurting terribly. Just very tired.

7/16/13 Data:

Weight: 272.6
Exercise:  walks to the mailbox
"Food" Diary:

Zac was keeping me company.

Day 19 (4th day of liquid diet)

Today is Monday. I have to go back to work in 3 days and I'm trying not to freak out. I feel pretty good but I'm still moving pretty slowly. I've spent most of the day in bed but I did make it out to the mailbox twice today. I'm definitely taking it easy. :) My friend Suzy brought BBQ tonight for the boys, which was so sweet. It's nice to not have to worry about them.

7/15/13 Data:

Weight:  272.8
Exercise:  2 trips to the mailbox
Food Diary:

This has been my view for several days now.

Day 18 (3rd day of liquid diet)

Sunday was just about a repeat of Saturday although I did feel a little better. I'm trying really hard to cut back on the meds so I only had two doses today. I'm really really taking it easy so as not to pull anything. It's really really hard to walk past the dirty dishes in the sink and the mess in the living room, but I am. I refuse to over-exert myself right now. I need all the rest I can get so I'm ready for work on Thursday. Still no problem getting fluids down but the gas is still there. I wonder how long that will last?

7/14/13 Data:

Weight: 276.8
Exercise:  still not much
Food Diary:

I could seriously sit and look at this all day!

I mean, come on....how cute are my fur-babies?

First full day home - Day 17 (2nd day of liquid diet)

Saturday was my first full day home. I actually slept pretty well although I couldn't sleep on my left side. Guess what I did first thing?  That's right.....weighed myself!  I was still a bit above my pre-surgery weight but I was able to let it go. No, really. I spent most of the day in my recliner with a heating pad on my tummy. Watching lots and lots of TV. I didn't worry a lot about protein because the nurse said staying hydrated is most important now.  Tricia and Colton came over to keep me company since Dan had to go out of town. He took Zac to grandmas so I didn't have to stress over him. Tricia was a huge help with the boys and the dogs. I tried to get up and move but my left side would start burning so I took the meds pretty regularly. All in all a pretty decent day. The worst part was the gas pressure in my belly. But it felt like every sip I took pushed some of it out. I could literally feel each sip going down. Very weird.

7/13/13 Data:

Weight:  278
Exercise: Very little
"Food Diary":
Lots of water
Crystal Light
1 Unjury protein shake with Mootopia
Carnation Instant breakfast with Mootopia
2 SF Popsicles
Chicken broth with 1 tbs RF cream of chicken
2 sips of a protein shot. yuck.  Won't be doing that again.

Check out my seatmates!  They were very good company. 

Surgery!! Days 15 and 16 (First day of liquid diet)

Thursday morning I woke up at 4:30 am and couldn't fall back to sleep.  I was just so excited to get started! We made it to the hospital right at 6:00.  I was taken back to pre-op very quickly and changed into my gown.  And hair net!  Not a good look on anyone, really.  The last thing I remember is the anesthesiologist asking if I wanted some "happy juice" to relax.  Ummmm, YES please!

Someone suggested cute socks, so I couldn't resist!

The next memory I have is waking up in recovery.  I don't even remember going to surgery!  I think the surgery itself took about an hour, then another 1 1/2 hours in recovery.  Dan and Hunter were able to wait in my private room for me to get done, which was really nice.  I'm so glad I chose The Physician's Center over St. Joseph.  My nurse only had me and one other patient that night.  Plus, my day nurse actually had WLS so she was really a great inspiration for me and a good source of information.

I was able to get up and walk just a few hours after surgery.  I was very sore, of course, but not in a lot of pain.  Of course, it could have been the pain meds :-)  I really wanted to try and stay ahead of the pain the first few days, which I did.  The absolute worst part (which is what I had been expecting) was the dry mouth.  Oh boy!  I've never had that before and it's brutal.  Luckily, my nutrition class teacher had suggested bringing a wash cloth, wetting it and wiping my mouth with it periodically.  Man, it really helped so much!  Plus, I would brush my teeth and gargle every time I got up and that helped too.  I was able to walk the halls 4 times that first day, which definitely helped with getting rid of the gas.

The next morning, they took me for my barium test at 7:30 am.  It was pretty cool, actually.  They stand you in front of the x-ray machine and then hand you the drink and tell you to throw it back "like a shot".  The doctor then watches the fluid flow through your new stomach to make sure there's no leaks.  Good news for me!!!!  I was ready to start my liquid diet.  You may not think so, but I was SO happy to see this:

I got a little excited when I saw the blue cover, but it was just warm chicken broth. 

I started with the apple juice and got that down pretty easily.  I had a few sips of the broth, a few bites of jello, then I finished off the ice water.  I don't think anything has ever tasted so good.  I was able to go home around 10:00 am.  I spent the rest of the day in bed, with a heating pad on my tummy, sipping ice water and eating a few popsicles.  I also tried something Tricia's mom ate.....mixing about a tablespoon of reduced-fat cream of chicken soup with chicken broth. That made it taste SO good.  It never ceases to amaze me how good food can taste when you can't eat much. :-)

I made the mistake of weighing myself when I got home.  I told you I have a problem with weighing in.  Well, the scale said 281!!  The morning of my surgery I weighed 277 so I was super bummed.  I didn't understand how I could gain weight after no food for two days.  But Tricia made me feel better....she said the IV fluids and gas cause bloating and that her mom 'gained' 10 pounds, so that made me feel better.  I'm trying to be patient and not expect the weight to just fall off.  But it should, right??

7/11/13 Data:

Weight: 277
Exercise:  Walking the halls....does that count?
Food:  NONE!

7/12/13 Data: 

Weight:  281
Exercise:  Walking the halls and walking to the mailbox (we have a loooong driveway, so don't judge! :-)
Food/Drink:

Lots of water
Chicken broth with RF cream of chicken soup added in
2 SF popsicles

Pre-op Diet: LAST DAY!!!!

Wow...it's almost here.  This is the last day of the Pre-op Diet.  Honestly, I almost can't believe I survived.  I truly expected it to be much harder than this.  I was afraid I would literally starve to death.  I was so afraid of that hunger feeling.  I always have been.  I used to always eat to 'stay ahead' of that feeling.  In fact, when I told the hypnotist (yes, I tried hypnotherapy...haven't you?), she said she had never heard that before.  Now, this is a lady that specializes in weight loss therapy, so THAT was scary to hear.  She finally decided that I was a peasant in a former life and didn't have enough food to survive.  YIKES!  Needless to say, that was my last visit with her.

So anyhoo...I think I'm officially prepared for tomorrow.  My surgery is scheduled for 7:30 am, so we have to be there by 6:00.  I'm the first one in line, so hopefully I'll catch Dr. Mason nice and fresh.  I'm not quite packed, but I have all my stuff ready to go.  Tonight, I'm doing one last load of laundry, the dishes are all done, so I don't have to worry about that when I get home.  'Cause it WILL bother me, y'all.  I want to be able to just lie in bed, sipping my water and watching The Closer (all 7 seasons) in peace.  And of course, I'll be joined by this dynamic duo:

And I guess I'll start doing the headshot thing, like everyone else seems to do, so here you go:

I won't make this one too big....you're welcome!

7/10/2013 Data: 

Weight:  277.4

Exercise:  20 minutes walking

Food Diary:  The nurse told me to keep it light tonight, so we're going to our favorite Chinese restaurant and I'm going to have their house wonton soup (without the wontons, of course!).  It's basically broth with wonderful steamed veggies and chunks of meat like beef, chicken and shrimp.  Then I plan to drink, drink, drink until I go to bed.  The nurse said this would help with the hydration/dry mouth issues tomorrow.  

Pre-op Diet: Day 13

Second to last day on this diet.  Honestly, I know people say this all the time, but it literally FLEW by.  I think since I had other things to occupy my mind (going out of town, getting a new puppy), it helped me.  I don't think I would say it was "easy", but it was definitely less painful than I expected.  I finally had to stop reading stories on the http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/index.php? forums.  Don't get me wrong, this place is a GREAT source of information, but eventually you start reading about other people's issues and it can scare you.  So I'm done for now.  I'll probably get back on sometime after surgery, but for now I'm getting my mind clear of all that stuff.  I had my final pre-op with Dr. Mason today.  My official "start" weight is 279.5, which is down from 293 at my first visit a month ago.  Made my 2 week post-op appointment.  It's almost here!!!!

7/9/2013 Data:

Weight:  277.2
Exercise:  Lots going on, didn't get it done.  :-(
Food diary: