Goodbye Gallbladder

Tomorrow I am going in to have my gallbladder taken out, as it has started to cause problems.

I recommend that if you are considering sleeve surgery that you also budget in gallbladder removal as, most people i know have had to have it out as rapid weight loss can cause gall stones.

Gallbladder pain is crazy and should not be taken lightly as it could also be a number of other health problems. However i recommend going to a private hospital over than public as i went to a public hospital via ambulance and got a doctor who was anti gallbladder removal and refused to test for it, and a week later after seeing a gp and my surgeon, it needs to come out as its inflamed and started to cause problems to my liver.

I can not eat a subway 6inch wrap - over two sittings, so i break it in half and then eat from the middle. The ends for the wrap are usually just wrap and i just throw them out.

Tuna and biscuits are still a favour snack and once i have no gallbladder i shouldnt have any problems eating anything.

97.9

Yay :)

36.something kilos to go :)

Waiting to get under 100kg! Should happen very soon :)

I still can't work out what I look like, but I guess that will take some more time.

Picture is of dinner when out, that's what's left after I ate!
But that's ok most places let you take away the left overs.

Yay

Under 105kg !!!!!!

Breakfast

Yay!

110 Kg :)

20 kilos down!!!!!

and still going!

Food Photos Update

Fish- barramundi eaten over hours
Zucchini slice muffin
Cruskits with Philly and sundries tomatoes - only ate two
Two angus beef mini patties
One angus beef pattie with Chinese cabbage salad - before and after.

About A Month Out

Well we have established that  i am not very good at keeping a blog, i do think about posting often, but i never seem to get around to it.

Anyway I am just per a month out from surgery, and i think i am doing really well, i have lost 14kg and drop a few sizes, i am buying Mediums from city chic and not XL, and i can fit into a size 18 dress at target, but it would still be too tight for me to wear in public, but some would.

I am really really hoping that early October that i fit into a designer size 12-14, but i will have to wait and see.

I am still debating if an when to cut my hair, maybe August lol.

As far as eating is going,  i am really just eating anything, but still trying to keep to softer things.

My normal day goes a bit like:

• 90g of Yogurt - these are little baby sized ones, i can't seem to eat more than that in the morning.
• 2 light cruskits with tuna - I like the flavoured ones or i have little light philadelphia cheese with sun dried tomatoes or mersey valley spreadable cheese. I have also been trying out sayo crackers as well can just eat 2.
• small handful of trail mix - has raisins, cranberries, almonds, mango, pawpaw, etc
• I use a rice bowl for dinner, and I've been having stew or something pot cooked where everything goes soft.
• If i don't have that i have soup, and i have 1 large coffee mug full.
• i normally have 1 cup of tea or ovaltine before bed and 2 prunes.

I've also been eating:

•  1 boiled egg with half a piece of helgas thins bread or half a bit of normal toast with no crust.
• Sushi roll- soft middles, i normal can eat half of one and then over time i slowly eat the other half - i have managed 2 in one day, but it took most of the day.
• avocado & ham sandwich - no crust or butter - cut into 4 strips i can eat 2 strips.
• ice blocks - if i can't get anything in or can't rink i have a ice block that I've made from fruit or yogurt, i also keep hydratlite ones for when I'm really thirsty.
• fish cakes 1 can eat one.
• omelettes - very small amount.
• zucchini slice muffins - i hade heaps and froze them - used a mini muffin try and one is enough to keep me going - good way to get veggies down.
• KFC potato and gravy - sometimes your out and about and you need to eat something and there might not be anything else suitable.
• Porridge - can eat most of a serve
• fish
• i nibble on ham sometimes

I can not eat chicken, I've tried 3 times and have vomited it back up, i think its too dry and when it hits the stomach, it produces too much stuff to break it down which overfill it and hence it comes back up.

Vomiting wasn't as bad as i though it would be, i tried to hold it down but there was no way, if you think your going to vomit, you are. and you better get to a bathroom fast because its like you mouth fills with saliva and its just yuk, but you do feel much better after.

I am must more sensitive to smells and tastes now, i can drink apple juice, but i can't stand to eat apples in any form.

I have moment where everything smell horrid and i can't eat, i don't know why this happens and its something i am going to talk to my surgeon about when i see him next week.

I did have a infection in one of my cuts, and had puss, it wasn't healing because a internal stitch was poking thru, and i tried to get it out but couldn't, so it got infected. but the stitch broke down and i pulled it out, and now the cut has healed up - so maybe keep a eye on that, if your newly sleeved.

I still get very tired and sometimes i just have to lay down and rest, i also find that sometimes i need to have some sugar, so a boiled lolly here and there can help.

I haven't started exercising yet, but its something i do intend to do, i will start off with the wii fit and xbox dance games, and then move on to maybe going to classes or something, i will be walking a lot more when i start study in a couple of months.

I highly recommend meeting up with out people who have had this operation, its great to be able to talk about and see how everyones going, they understand when you say that your tired or that you think you ate too much. 

I find it good because very few people know that i have had this operation and i want it too stay that way.

I had attempted previously to talk about it with friends, however they just did not understand as they mostly thin, i did tell a very overweight friend - who is at least twice the size of me and got told i was doing something too extreme - go figure.

I would not change my decision to do this at all, i wish i had it done sooner.

Yes I've had days where I've thought "what the hell have i done?" or i can't believe I've had most of my stomach removed, however i need to get my active lifestyle back and stop missing out on things because of my weight.

At home - about the op

I got to go home last night - one night early, as i was unable to be picked up until late afternoon and the hospital didn't want me to be waiting in the lounge area and being uncomfortable.

The ride home took forever, due to heavy rain and traffic and it made me feel quite tense and sick, but i had a pillow on my tummy and that helped with road bumps.

Waiting for surgery seemed to take forever as i have to be at the hospital at 6:30am but didn't have the op until 11am.
The waiting room was freezing and being fasting i felt really thirsty.
At about 10am  i was taken to be weighted and had to put on a gown and paper knickers, some horrible socks, and a hat. The best part was being given a warm blanket.
I then had to say goodbye to my hubby and was wheeled into a room that led on to the op theatre, and it was still cold, i was thinking at one stage, that i didn't care what they did just as long as i could feel warmer it didn't matter.

I then had to drink a shot of some stuff that makes the acid in your tummy settle, and my surgeon ( dr greenslade) came to visit and went over what was going on and then the anaesthetist ( Dr peter Cook) came to visit and get me ready, i didn't even feel the needle in my arm and he did it first try, so i was fairly calm.

When i woke up i was in the ICU and remember a lot of people gathered around me and struggling to breath, i can remember pointing at my throat and being told it was due to the gas, however i was shaking my head no and a doctor told some one to give me a mask and then i was ok.
I had no concept of time and when i woke again the nurse was still with me and explained i had been having breathing problems, but they were under control now and that it was like 4pm and did i want her to contact my husband!
My poor hubby had been waiting since 11am for me to come back, for what he thought would have been an hour op! so he was well relieved to see me be wheeled in to the ward.

I did not have a pain relief button, i was just given shots into my thighs - some for blood clots, some morphine and some anti sick medication.
my drip had panadol and fluid to keep me going.

The first night i was feeling ok and feeling like i done the right thing and even spoke to my family on the phone.

The second night however i feel extremely sick and nauseous, i couldn't get comfortable and needed to go to the toilet the all the time and did not get very much rest.

The 3rd day i had some sleep in the early hours of the morning and woke to find i had gotten my period, which i believe was the main cause for the nausea, so as if my tummy couldn't feel any more sore, i now am also dealing with that.

Today i have been by myself and not too bad, muscle are stiff and i have done a few laps of the house to keep my blood flowing.

I have had some apple juice and some protein shake, and then some Banana drinking yogurt and about 60gs of heinz organic baby food - which contains 1/2 cup of veg and 3 teaspoons of beef - all very pureed.

I didn't mind the taste and aim to have some more later, while trying to continue to keep sipping juice all day.

overall i think I'm doing ok, and I'm still very tired and will try to have afternoon nap.

Surgery day

Just a quick update, all going well a few little problems, but pain is well under control and I am feeling positive :)

Opti

Today I had:
-  an opti chocolate bar
- Opti vegetable soup
- Grilled asparagus with tomato, onion & capsicum sauce
- 1 cup of tomato soup - you need to check its all natural with no thickners
-1 opti chocolate bar

and I'm not hungry :)

yay!

I would recommend mixing the opti products.

I went and got all the stuff for after surgery -

• soups
• drinking yogurt
• protein shakes
• fibre
• sugarless energy drinks
• vegatable juice
• pureed apple and fruits

so i should be ok!

Stressing out a little bit... a lot!

Food Funerals

Ok, I went to the dietician and she said i should eat while i can, so i did.

I did have a freakout about never being able to eat huge meals again, but i have gotten over it, its just food and i need to be able to have experiences, not sit and eat all the time.

I have had many food funerals, but now I'm back on the opti and i have 7 days to go which is scary, but i am looking forward to the change.

Eating

Eating subway salad win for overcoming cravings and not caving into temptation :)

Have done really well today, a little dizzy, but much better than yesterday.

I even got to do some drawing.

I ate:
3 shakes
2 sugar free lollies
1 cup of cooked, onion,tomato,chives,zucchini,mushrooms & bok coy for lunch
1cup of cauliflower soup for dinner
a small bowl of diet weight watchers jelly
one cup of tea


hoping the time will go quickly :)

Pre Diet

So yesterday I started the Optifast Pre - surgery diet, which is mainly to help shrink your liver so the surgeon doesn't have to deal with it too much.

I am allowed 3 shakes per day, with 2 cups of vegetables from the allowed list, and need to drink a heap of water.

So to start with i got a new shaker :

It's Zyliss brand and cost about $11.00 and works well on the shakes!

I also got a new drink bottle to encourage me to drink more water:

It's Bobble brand and holds just under a litre, was $10.00

Yesterday I had: 

3 shakes, one for each meal

vegetable stock cube in hot water  X2- to simulate soup - wasn't that bad.

1 cup of grapes - I'm not meant to have fruit, but i broke and now have grape guilt.

1 cup of mushroom,spinach,bok coy,tomato brussel sprouts fried in a teaspoon of oil. - i could eat two but was full!!!!

and 3 sugar free lollies to keep me alive.

I had 4 drink bottles of water yesterday.

I was really hungry to start with but am doing much better today - having the same thing as yesterday, however I had 1 cup of veggies at lunch and should be ok until diner.

With the optifast, i like the chocolate and coffee, vanilla was ok, and I'm not so keep on the strawberry, it was more lumpy than the others and i don't like the smell.

I have started a multi vitamin and added fibre dust to the veggies.

I had a major headache this morning and have been going to the loo a lot - too much info? - think its the water intake.

Im actually feeling ok, but yesterday was hard, i was so hungry that i couldn't concentrate and was grumpy.

I think it made this very real and its hard to let go of those feelings of just wanting to eat a bag of M&M's.

Bring on tomorrow!

It Starts...

I have been putting off writing this, but it has to start somewhere...

I am not very good at writing, yet I need somewhere to record all these feelings I am having and emotions I am going through.

All my life I have had problems with my weight, for a great period of time growing up I was underweight, which looking at me now is hard to imagine.

I have the usual sad sack story and to keep it short...I ran away from home at a young age and gave everything away, fell in love with an older man, had my heart broken, was abused and didn't leave, wasn't allowed to leave, got pregnant and lost my baby when he attacked me one last time, Suffered depression and tried to kill myself with codeine, have a love hate relationship with my gambling addicted mother, who continually tells me to be thin and has admitted in the past that she purposely made me thin as a child...I have a estranged evil father who I have met a handful of times and now have nothing to do with because I told him what I really though of him. (He was never there and was abusive to my mother and nearly killed her more than once), had crap relationships, been to a lot of family funerals, mended my broken heart with drugs and alcohol and all before I was twenty.


So by the end of all that I was about a size sixteen, and didn't have a lot of confidence, mainly because my mother continually told me I was too fat to do things.

Once I got myself back on track, I met my now husband who is totally different from any previous people I have dated and is totally supportive of anything I do or want to do, which is great except he makes me a little too comfortable with myself and I have I continue to gain weight and go up in size every year.

I used to emotional eat, and while I do that’s from time to time I think I mostly just do it out of habit, I also sometimes have very chronic insomnia which doesn't help with regular eating.

I spent so much of my life dancing, ballroom, jazz, tap, etc and I stopped doing it because my mother made me thing I was too big to do it, and at the time is wasn't. This stopped me from being active and while I know I can't blame others for my overeating, I know this didn't help.

Anyway my point is I'm overweight, morbidly obese in fact and things need to change I need my life back.

I have tried so many diets, programs, gyms and tablets, but nothing really works. I don't even eat a lot of junk; it’s just the amount I eat when I eat.

So on the 20th of March 2012, I am changing that, and I am undergoing weight loss surgery and having a gastric sleeve.

This is not a spare of the moment thing, I have been thinking about it and researching it for a long time and have come to the conclusion that, yes there is a risk of surgery, however the positives out way the negatives, statistics are on my side and id rather die trying to fix my problem then sit around and let my weight kill me slowly.

I am currently 128.8kg and 5'3 and have a BMI of 50 and I hope that one day I can be healthy and be 65kg.