It's Done!

Well, here I am, back from the surgeon's knife!! Don't feel a lot different so far, and certainly don't feel like I have a blue band around the top of my stomach! Sorry no pictures this time, as the only ones I have are of the stab wounds in my tummy, and I think I'll keep those to myself.

Anyway, I won't bore you with the details of the operation, suffice it to say it all went well, and I made it out the other side, had my night in hospital, and now I'm home. I am a bit sore around the tummy, as you would expect, with five cuts here and there, and by the way the Dr. found a hiatus hernia whilst he was doing his work, and so fixed that up as well. Great job!

So......as far as food is concerned now, I am not allowed any!! Probably a bit harsher than before op. but now we have to be sure that the little stomach pocked doesn't stretch until it settles in, so it's back to liquids in small doses for a few weeks. I can have "anything that can fit through a straw". So today I have enjoyed some "Up and Go" milk drink, some pumpkin soup, a little drinking yoghurt, a glass of Berocca (for the vitamin content), and tonight I will try some more soup. Not too bad really. Everything in moderation at the moment. Sipping instead of guzzling.

I did have a moment's thought that perhaps I could blend up a baked dinner and see if it would suck up a straw, but sanity has prevailed, and I will wait! The stupid thing is I have sat through three cooking shows this afternoon (boredom and rain outside), which doesn't really help your mindset for liquids.

Pete is having meatloaf and baked sweet potato tonight, and I have kindly made him a Bread and Butter custard for his dessert,(why am I torturing myself!!) - as the poor fellow was losing weight on his own cooking! Never mind, tomorrow night he can have a big nosh up at the pub!!

So.....I haven't any weight loss to tell you this time, because I have so many winter clothes on that I would rather not go near the scales. But I have to say that maybe the Doctor was right, I really don't feel hungry at all. It is more a kind of memory thing, and a habit of thinking of food which is hard to lose. Still, so far so good, and I will keep trying to do just as I am told to.
Thanks for that advice, Trish!! (Trish is my friend in Port who had her lapband done some years ago, and lost 48 kg. She just told me to "do as I am told". So I am!)

Anyway, that's it for now. If anyone wants to know anything more about lapbanding or Dr. Peck, here is the link:

http://www.latitude31.com.au/node/296

I'm sure I will see you all around sometime - maybe you won't recognize me soon! Ha Ha! xx

2 sleeps to go!

Getting pretty close now. I would like to say I am calm and composed, but I guess the amount of times I think about Tuesday, and the lack of food comforts belie that! Won't have time to type anything tomorrow, and Tuesday is the day, so this is it for now.

Put these pictures up to remind me of the reason I am doing all this - here's Mali and Tess in Brisbane, and Daniel and Laine below, and I would just love to attend all their 21st birthdays.
Of course, not forgetting "Tai Chi Pete," who is giving me lots of support, and has been picking things up off the floor for me for ages, since I haven't been able to do it for myself.

















And I mustn't forget the littlest one, Ivy, who is now 3 months old in Brisbane. Looking forward to seeing them all soon.




Went to a Support group meeting a few weeks ago in Taree, and met six ladies who have been through the process themselves, with the same surgeon etc. The fact that they are all alive and well gives me a lot of hope! :-) But I found out an interesting fact: The surgeon does this operation with the patient in a sitting position - woah!! He literally operates standing between your legs. I really hope I don't flop forward and knock him over!! Must be a bit tough for the anaesthetist to keep all his stuff in place. ...... Okay, I won't even try to picture all that, I shall be peacefully sleeping. Forget it!! Forget it!!

Well, that's it for now. Think I will go and rustle up some lunch - mmmm! Strawberry jelly with a strawberry Optifast milkshake, about as good as it gets at the moment. I am hanging out for even the smallest portion of a Pub dinner in a few weeks' time. I'll continue post-op. Bye, xx

6 days to go!

Wow! Getting close now. Believe it or not, I have lost 6 kg. in the lead up to this operation. Well, why wouldn't I, existing on fasting sachets and vegies. And the occasional cuppa. I am getting used to it though, and the lo-cal jellies help a lot. Me and my sweet tooth!

Some people have suggested that maybe I won't need the operation now, as I am losing weight anyway. Yeah, sounds good, but I have lost this amount of weight countless times before - even more that 6 kg. It is just that it goes back on. So this time I am eliminating the risk of putting it back on by creating a back stop. It has been suggested that is a brave thing to do, but I sometimes think it is a cop out, and I'll accept a cop out if gives me a few extra years.

The above picture is us last weekend in Sydney at my brother's 60th party. Funny how critical I get about myself, but even in black, I reckon I look so big. Maybe it's because I am standing next to Mr. Skinny! Anyway, once again, it is the "old" me, so onward and upward - or inward!

So.......next Monday afternoon we have to travel to Port Macquarie Private Hospital, have a lengthy chat with an anaesthetist, see the surgeon and have another chat with him, and then come home. Back again the next morning for the big banding, then Pete back home, me staying in one night, Pete coming back on Wed. hopefully to pick me up and take me home, all being well.

Pete's Tai Chi classes are going really well, and he is thinking of doing another class at Upper Lansdowne, if there is enough interest. Maybe I could even join up when I can balance on one foot, and concentrate on one thing at a time! Bye for now, I'll blog again before the big day.

Counting Down!

Hi everyone.

Here's a photo of my food intake for the next 2 weeks. 42 sachets of Optifast! Just add water!
Not sure how this is going to go, but I will give it a big try. At least there is some variety in there, vegie soup, chicken soup, my favourite lemon wafer dessert, chocolate dessert, some shakes - coffee, chocolate, vanilla, strawberry. After all, it is only for 2 weeks before, and 2 weeks after. Just a month out of my life - nothing really.

But what I have found this week is that if you don't eat, and don't focus too much on food, you have huge amounts of time to kill!! Never realised how much time in the day was spent on food - cups of tea and a book, working out meals, eating meals, clearing up after meals, social eating, etc. I need to find more things to fill my days.

As I rode around on my bike on a chilly morning this week, (trying in vain to increase fitness levels for the upcoming operation), I couldn't believe what I wrote in the last blog! Did I actually tell all and sundry that I weighed 120 kg??? Yep, I think I did. I was amazed at my audacity, because my weight has always been a well kept secret from everyone - even Peter. Why on earth would I do that? How embarrassing!!

The only answer I could come up with is that it no longer matters to me, because it is my PAST weight. It is never going to be that again, so I care not what people think I USED to weigh. Same with looking in the mirror - don't do it very often. Now I am, because I really WANT to see the differences which will happen.

So....here I am, in all my glory. Bum like a Kalahari bushman, and an 8 month pregnant stomach. Oh well, it is the old me. Just picture this when you see me next Christmas.

I actually went to an event yesterday where there was an array of afternoon tea, including lovely little cupcakes, scones with jam and cream, caramel slices, fresh sandwiches. I was able to turn my back on the food, and shake my head at the waitress. Yahoo!! Would never have done that before. I think I must be taking this seriously!

Mother's Day tomorrow. Happy Mother's day to all Mums out there!!! Hope you have a really lovely family day. We are celebrating a little today, and tomorrow going out in the little red boat on the beautiful Manning to see if we can catch some fish. No matter if we don't, it is just magic being out on the water hopefully in a bit of sunlight, enjoying the serenity.

By the way, I have lost 2 kg.!! Bye for now. xx

I'm on my way

Well, I thought someone may be interested in my progress as I head towards the Lap Band operation on 25th this month. It is very scary for me, but something that I now feel I have to do, to save my life.

I weigh 120 kg. and have a lot of problems with pain - neck, back, hip, knee. Also high blood pressure, a funny heartbeat, sleep apnea, and arthritis. Don't want to live like this. Have tried more than 20 different weight loss methods over the years, with little success. So I am taking it out of my hands now. And putting it in the hands of a lovely surgeon at Port Macquarie.

For those who aren't familiar with Lap Band surgery, it is becoming more popular in Australia to combat obesity (which is now the #1 health problem in our country.) It involves the surgeon cutting 3 holes in your skin below your ribs, and using laperopscopic surgery, placing a band around the top part of your stomach, connected to a small tube and a "port" which is inserted just under the skin at about waist level.

The port is used by the surgeon to inject saline solution into the surrounds of the lap band, to adjust the size so that not too much food can fit through. Food must be chewed well, so that it will pass through into the major part of your stomach. The saline may need adjustment until the right size of the opening is obtained. By the way, it is all reversible, if needed. Anyway, you can find details of this operation by Googling "Lap Band Surgery".

For two weeks up to the operation, and two weeks after, I need to have just a liquid diet, which consists of sachets of soups, desserts or drinks. This is to enable the liver to shrink, as the surgeon has to manoeuvre around it to get to the stomach.

So please don't invite me out for lunch over the next month or so!! Once I get this sorted, I will be able to eat as normal, except just small entree sized servings. I will be looking forward to getting back onto solid food.

I'll post a few thoughts ever now and again, if anyone is interested. Let you know how I feel, maybe a few photos, or details of weight loss. This is just a little starting point.

Bye for now. xx