A lighter me

Wow, I can't believe it has been since January that I have written. I am 9 months out of surgery and I have lost 90 lbs and I feel great. I took Hailey to Disney and she teased me that she was going to have to put a leash on me so that she could keep up.

Rob deployed 5 months ago so the stress and depression has been pretty high. I am sure when I go to the doctor this afternoon, I haven't lost alot of weight in the last three months since my last weigh in. I will admit that I have not been exercising like I should and I have been eating things I shouldn't. I know there is no excuse, but the stress of Rob being overseas has gotten the best of me this time. Anyway, he is home on Friday and things will be better. I just ordered some more Unjury protein and I need to start moving.

I will let you know what the doctor says this afternoon.

A HEAVY DOSE OF MOTIVATION

I have recently joined a gym and hired a personal trainer. I have now lost almost 70 lbs. The other day during a sweaty workout, I was doing triceps lifts when I noticed a 65lb dumbbell on the rack in front of me. I ask Dee my trainer if he could hand me the dumbbell. With a curious look on this face, I explained that I have lost 65+ lbs and I want to hold that dumbbell to get an idea of how much weight that is. Dee handed me the dumbbell and I couldn't believe how heavy it was. No wonder my feet had hurt all the time before my surgery. I held the weight with both hands and rested it against my thighs. The weight of it almost drug me down. I was amazed. I can't wait to lose another 65lbs. I wounder if they have a dumbbell that weighs 120. The motivation I took away from that weight session will last me for quite some time.

62 lbs, 13 Jan 2009

Happy New Year. I had a great check up with Dr. Blaney today. All of my lab work came back good. No problems with my iron, vitamin B's or sugar. I will have to tell you that I still feel great. I will have to say again that this was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I wish I had had the opportunity to do this years ago, but then again, I wouldn't have had Dr. Blaney and his great team at Trinity. I also wouldn't have had my great friends Sandie and Kim who had the surgery too. They have been there for me and I think we have been very good for each other. The Three Amigos. That is what the Dr. calls us. Ladies, Thanks for being there.

For all of my other friends and family who tune in to my blog regularly, I send you all a big hug. You have all given me the encouragement I need to hear. I know that I haven't said it often enough but you are all very dear to me. Without every single one of you, I wouldn't feel the love and support I have.

No it is time to get serious. I will admit that up until now, I haven't done a lot of exercising, but now I have to get on the ball. I need to start toning or the next 60 lbs won't come off as easy as this has. I am not going to lye when I say I am not looking forward to the grueling work outs I need to start cause I am NOT looking forward to them. I owe it to myself to finish this with even better results that I have had so far. I owe it to all of you who have been there for me.

You know, I told the doctor just yesterday that this surgery gave me the switch I needed to eat healthy life. I have always known how to eat right, now I have no choice. I have no appetite and I don't get hungry. I am sticking to the rules of what to eat and how often. I eat basically fat free, sugar free. No fried foods and no bread. I try my hardest to maintain my 60g of protein a day. I take my multi vitamin, calcium, Vitamin B and Prilosec daily My hair is thinning out a little, but not bad. That is to be expected when a person loses a lot of weight. This surgery has saved my life. I am so thankful that I have had this opportunity. I have lost from a 22 pants to a 16. A 22/24 shirt to a 14/16 and we won't even talk about the bra. If I could turn my breast inside out, I would have to great pockets on my chest. But then again, big boobs are always what they are cut out to be.

Anyway, HAPPY NEW YEAR FRIENDS AND FAMILY. I hope 2009 brings all of you all the love, success and happiness each of you deserve. Good luck and God bless each and everyone of you. Thank you all for being my support team.

55lbs down

12-24-08 Merry Christmas.

Alot of you have been after me to post a new picture. I am now 55lbs+ down and feeling wonderful. This picture is not the most flattering, but it will give you and idea. I have lost from a 22 to an 18 in pants and from a 22/24 in shirts to 14/16. The bra I have on is way too big and does nothing for me. Maybe Santa will bring me new bras. hehehehehe

I discovered something the other day that I haven't seen in a while. My kneecaps. Funny huh? I can also cross my legs when sitting down now too. That is something I haven't been able to do for a while.

This holiday season brings alot of joy to our household. After being lay-ed off from my job, I am starting a new career on Monday the 29th. I am going to work for MOSAIC Technologies at Ft. Gordon. I am so thankful for those of you who helped to forward my resume to my new company.

I wish all of you a wonderful Holiday Season.

Road Block

Friday had the be one of the worst days of my life.

I was extremely happy. I had just had a great check-up with the doctor on Tuesday. I am losing weight great. 35 lbs at that time. I thought nothing could be better.

I was right. I got the shock of my life at 2:15pm. I was layed-off from what I thought was the best job I have ever had. Needless to say happiness comes to an end very quickly.

Since the first time since my weight loss surgery I was so depressed that all I wanted to do was eat something I knew I couldn't have. Well as most of you may suspect, I couldn't. This just added to my depression.

I want to thank all my friends who have stepped up and given me words of encouragement. I know that God has a plan for everyone. When one door closes another one opens. I have to believe that everything happens for a reason.

Thank God, my depression is over. It only lasted for a few days. I spent the day looking at antiques with a very dear friend. It was very therapeutic.

I will keep my chin up and put my nose to the grind stone until I find something else. I know that there is something out there for me.

Trial and Error

It's been 5 weeks since surgery and I have lost 30lbs. I feel like a guinea pig sometimes when it comes to eating. I am trying new foods everyday. Some don't agree with me some do. It is all a big science experiment. The food your stomach digest easily might not necessarily digest well in the small intestine. I found this to be true with Sushi. I was extremely happy that I was able to eat 4 small pieces. I chewed very slowly and it tasted wonderful. But, within a couple of hours I was in the bathroom dumping. No stomach cramps or pain that would have come before with a bad case of diarrhea. It was just there. It didn't last long. I am sure it will be back as I experiment with what I can eat and what I can't.

I have found a new snack. Peanut butter. I ate a small peanut butter and honey sandwich on wheat bread for lunch today. I chewed very slowly and had no problems. I now know a few things I can tolerate and some I should wait awhile before I try them again. I look forward to this new experience. After all, weight loss surgery was one of the best decisions I have every made. I entend to make the most of this new life.

Where's the DRAINO?

I just knew it. I knew things were going so great that I would hit a brick wall at some point. I did that today. While eating a scrambled egg, I swallowed a bit without chewing really well. Needless to say, it got stuck. I was immediately uncomfortable. The feeling is equal to swallowing too big a sip of cold milkshake. Your esophagus hurts. This feeling lasted for quite a while. Your body immediately goes on the defense and creates more saliva to help wash everything down. This is not good. My pouch was already full. I had to throw-up to get rid of the excess saliva. After about 30 min, the pain subsided. I waited for at least 1 hour before I tried to take a drink. If only there was a quicker fix. All I could think about was drainer or liquid plumber. My advise after this morning, CHEW, CHEW, CHEW.