This makes intuitive sense, but it's a well-written article about why eating high-glycemic foods might drive food cravings. Thank you NY Times.
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/27/how-carbs-can-trigger-food-cravings/?src=me&ref=general
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Sunday, June 23, 2013
6 months
So I am about 6 months post op. My weight loss hovers between 40 and 43 lbs. I feel like I should have lost a bit more by now, even though this is how I have always lost weight, and it is more than I had lost by this time with the band...It's hard to let go of this idea. I think I am doing okay. Sometimes it is easier to realize this than others.
So where do I stand? How am I doing with the rules of WLS? Let's see. These might not all be "official" rules but they are what I try to stick to.
No drinking with meals: I usually adhere to this. Eating out is when this is hardest, because I usually have a beverage in front of me, whereas at home I just don't have one there. The other exception is if I am trying to eat and get some coffee into me in a short time, or if I eat but I also need to take medication, which doesn't happen too often. This one I do pretty well with.
Eat protein first: Yes, I am good with this one. I still mostly eat protein, mainly because of this rule.
Eat only when hungry: This is much harder than it used to be, for two reasons. First, when I am working I have no control over when my meals occur. In the operating room, I obviously have to remain with my anesthetized patient at all times, unless someone comes to relieve me for a break. Most of the time, you take a break when one is offered, because there are a lot of people who need breaks, and you may not get another chance if you turn one down. So even if I am not hungry, I need to eat or risk not getting another chance and getting too hungry. Second, my child. I am frequently preparing her dinner when I am not at all hungry. I feel badly not eating dinner when she eats; our family meals are weird enough as is. So sometimes I eat a bit when she is eating, but I often regret it.
No grazing: This one is hard, especially when eating with my family. I am the worst at picking at food in front of me after I am full but my family is still eating. This is especially bad when we are at a restaurant. If I (or my hubby) am thinking about it, I'll move the food out from in front of me, or pack up the remains in a box. But many a time I have stopped eating when full, then sabotaged myself with one or two bites too many after I had already decided I was full. This is probably the hardest.
Plan what you eat: I do this well when I am working and I pack all my food for the day. On the weekends I have a harder time. I don't routinely track all my food anymore. I did for 5 months, but didn't think I need to do it forever. There are differing opinions on this. Some believe you always have to track, forever. Others use it as a tool to stay or get back on track. I think the latter makes sense.
Those are the ones I can think of right now. There is room for improvement, but overall I am doing okay.
I think the biggest thing for me, overall, is eating slowly and not eating one bite too many. The two go together. I am a very fast eater, which has always worked against me. It takes a lot of effort to eat more slowly. I am noticing something interesting about satiety for me now that has changed since I was sleeved. If I pay attention, I can stop eating after a small portion of food and feel comfortably full. After about 10 minutes, I frequently feel quite full (assuming I haven't eaten anything more). In another 10 minutes I feel HUNGRY. Like stomach-growling, gnawing hunger. Not the worst hunger feeling, but a feeling that I have always made go away by eating. It seems like a hunger feeling, but if I eat anything at this point I will regret it. If, instead, I wait...the hungry feeling goes away fairly quickly, and I feel satiety. I didn't have this experience with the band, or before. And it's a trap! I can't even tell you how many times I have fallen into the trap, eaten something, and regretted it--either throwing something up, or feeling very uncomfortably full. It has taken an embarrassingly long time to realize this.
So there it is, the good, the bad, and the ugly. I can still reach my goal in the next 6 months. It will have to involve more exercise, though. Right now I am sticking to walks because I can easily fit them in with my daughter. I might try adding body-weight strength training at home for toning.
So where do I stand? How am I doing with the rules of WLS? Let's see. These might not all be "official" rules but they are what I try to stick to.
No drinking with meals: I usually adhere to this. Eating out is when this is hardest, because I usually have a beverage in front of me, whereas at home I just don't have one there. The other exception is if I am trying to eat and get some coffee into me in a short time, or if I eat but I also need to take medication, which doesn't happen too often. This one I do pretty well with.
Eat protein first: Yes, I am good with this one. I still mostly eat protein, mainly because of this rule.
Eat only when hungry: This is much harder than it used to be, for two reasons. First, when I am working I have no control over when my meals occur. In the operating room, I obviously have to remain with my anesthetized patient at all times, unless someone comes to relieve me for a break. Most of the time, you take a break when one is offered, because there are a lot of people who need breaks, and you may not get another chance if you turn one down. So even if I am not hungry, I need to eat or risk not getting another chance and getting too hungry. Second, my child. I am frequently preparing her dinner when I am not at all hungry. I feel badly not eating dinner when she eats; our family meals are weird enough as is. So sometimes I eat a bit when she is eating, but I often regret it.
No grazing: This one is hard, especially when eating with my family. I am the worst at picking at food in front of me after I am full but my family is still eating. This is especially bad when we are at a restaurant. If I (or my hubby) am thinking about it, I'll move the food out from in front of me, or pack up the remains in a box. But many a time I have stopped eating when full, then sabotaged myself with one or two bites too many after I had already decided I was full. This is probably the hardest.
Plan what you eat: I do this well when I am working and I pack all my food for the day. On the weekends I have a harder time. I don't routinely track all my food anymore. I did for 5 months, but didn't think I need to do it forever. There are differing opinions on this. Some believe you always have to track, forever. Others use it as a tool to stay or get back on track. I think the latter makes sense.
Those are the ones I can think of right now. There is room for improvement, but overall I am doing okay.
I think the biggest thing for me, overall, is eating slowly and not eating one bite too many. The two go together. I am a very fast eater, which has always worked against me. It takes a lot of effort to eat more slowly. I am noticing something interesting about satiety for me now that has changed since I was sleeved. If I pay attention, I can stop eating after a small portion of food and feel comfortably full. After about 10 minutes, I frequently feel quite full (assuming I haven't eaten anything more). In another 10 minutes I feel HUNGRY. Like stomach-growling, gnawing hunger. Not the worst hunger feeling, but a feeling that I have always made go away by eating. It seems like a hunger feeling, but if I eat anything at this point I will regret it. If, instead, I wait...the hungry feeling goes away fairly quickly, and I feel satiety. I didn't have this experience with the band, or before. And it's a trap! I can't even tell you how many times I have fallen into the trap, eaten something, and regretted it--either throwing something up, or feeling very uncomfortably full. It has taken an embarrassingly long time to realize this.
So there it is, the good, the bad, and the ugly. I can still reach my goal in the next 6 months. It will have to involve more exercise, though. Right now I am sticking to walks because I can easily fit them in with my daughter. I might try adding body-weight strength training at home for toning.
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Summertime
So maybe it goes without saying, but mostly protein diet + iron supplementation = unhappy intestines. Ugh. This wreaks havoc with the scale as well as the belly. I am actually playing around with the iron supplementation. I don't want to end up with IV iron again, because it is expensive and inconvenient. I was taking daily iron after the IV supplementation, then about a month ago I took a week off from the oral iron (lovely!). Now I am trying every other day. My ferratin levels are fine and my hematocrit is 40 (and feels much better than 30 did last summer), so maybe every other day will be easier on my intestines. Plus fiber.
Weight loss still happens in fits and starts. I'm still loving my Fitbit Flex (although it doesn't have an altimeter so doesn't track stairs, which I miss) and when I get lots of steps I still lose weight. It's time to add resistance training, as my body fat has not gone down very much, which means I am losing too much lean mass (story of my life). I've started my gym membership again but it just doesn't fit my crazy life like walking with Lucy in the stroller does. So I should experiment with body-weight training at home. Note I said "should". Ha ha.
Hubby is gone again...going to treatment for hopefully the recommended length of time this time, instead of being cut short like in previous attempts. Spring is the time for meltdowns. It's exhausting.
So it's just Lucy and I...but it is really much easier now that she is older. I still have the daycare shuffle in the mornings (plus the expense of that, which is huge) but otherwise, she's such an easygoing child. She does miss Daddy a lot, but she can talk with him on the phone and can understand simple explanations about where he is.
Summer is here early in Portland. We usually can't count on summer weather until after July 4, but we had a pretty hot May (as high as 90s) and it's been 60-80 degrees for most of June so far. I'm very excited about my garden this year. I'm doing a lot more on my patio this year, since it's generally the warmest part of the yard. I have half-whisky barrel planters with strawberries and cukes (first time growing either), another with lettuce, and my 3 tomato planters are doing well. I have a willow stump on the side of my patio that I had cut down when we first bought the house. That is covered with potted flowers: we can't dig it or grind it out because it will wreck the patio (and possibly the foundation), and the only way I could kill it, regretfully, was with Round Up; nothing else worked to keep it from sprouting the way willows do. So I can't plant anything there for at least a few years. I replanted the shady side of the yard this spring, and love my hostas, bleeding hearts and hellebores (my new hydrangeas will hopefully bloom this summer too). And I put in new raised beds in the back part of the yard, with carrots, pumpkins and sunflowers. The ugly retaining wall of doom has some peas and beans planted in front of it, hopefully those will take off and cover it. And finally, my herb garden is bursting, and I have put in some hardy fucshias, some rhubarb, lavender, and will plant zucchini in the last square feet left. (Zucchini grow like weeds in the NW, I am fairly confident they will do fine there.) Oh, and watermelons! I found a variety that was developed in northern Idaho that is supposed to be good in cooler, shorter growing seasons like ours. I think it will be a hot summer, so it should do fine in its hot corner. I made a new planter for it, out of a plastic Rubbermaid wheelbarrow whose axle broke. I think that will stay pretty warm.
I'm so pleased to finally have a space to garden in. This is our third summer in this house, and I am still learning what does well in different parts of the yard. We have a big, beautiful covered brick patio that is the centerpiece of the house, and we spend the whole summer out there, so it is really great to have so much gardening space to play with. And! My wonderful neighbor (the one who was our realtor for the purchase of the house) took the fence between our two back yards and made a fence out of old doors that she collected. She just did it at the end of the summer last year. It is just fantastic, very Pinterest. One of the doors slides open between our yards so our girls can play together (they are a little less than 2 years apart, and Lucy adores their daughter). I need to put up some planters and hangers on my side and grow stuff on it. It is fantastic! I just wish the other side was like that too, but I saw how much work it took her to do that, and I am pretty sure I don't have that in me. It's all I can do to keep up with my family and my garden.
I love summertime best of all. :)
Weight loss still happens in fits and starts. I'm still loving my Fitbit Flex (although it doesn't have an altimeter so doesn't track stairs, which I miss) and when I get lots of steps I still lose weight. It's time to add resistance training, as my body fat has not gone down very much, which means I am losing too much lean mass (story of my life). I've started my gym membership again but it just doesn't fit my crazy life like walking with Lucy in the stroller does. So I should experiment with body-weight training at home. Note I said "should". Ha ha.
Hubby is gone again...going to treatment for hopefully the recommended length of time this time, instead of being cut short like in previous attempts. Spring is the time for meltdowns. It's exhausting.
So it's just Lucy and I...but it is really much easier now that she is older. I still have the daycare shuffle in the mornings (plus the expense of that, which is huge) but otherwise, she's such an easygoing child. She does miss Daddy a lot, but she can talk with him on the phone and can understand simple explanations about where he is.
Summer is here early in Portland. We usually can't count on summer weather until after July 4, but we had a pretty hot May (as high as 90s) and it's been 60-80 degrees for most of June so far. I'm very excited about my garden this year. I'm doing a lot more on my patio this year, since it's generally the warmest part of the yard. I have half-whisky barrel planters with strawberries and cukes (first time growing either), another with lettuce, and my 3 tomato planters are doing well. I have a willow stump on the side of my patio that I had cut down when we first bought the house. That is covered with potted flowers: we can't dig it or grind it out because it will wreck the patio (and possibly the foundation), and the only way I could kill it, regretfully, was with Round Up; nothing else worked to keep it from sprouting the way willows do. So I can't plant anything there for at least a few years. I replanted the shady side of the yard this spring, and love my hostas, bleeding hearts and hellebores (my new hydrangeas will hopefully bloom this summer too). And I put in new raised beds in the back part of the yard, with carrots, pumpkins and sunflowers. The ugly retaining wall of doom has some peas and beans planted in front of it, hopefully those will take off and cover it. And finally, my herb garden is bursting, and I have put in some hardy fucshias, some rhubarb, lavender, and will plant zucchini in the last square feet left. (Zucchini grow like weeds in the NW, I am fairly confident they will do fine there.) Oh, and watermelons! I found a variety that was developed in northern Idaho that is supposed to be good in cooler, shorter growing seasons like ours. I think it will be a hot summer, so it should do fine in its hot corner. I made a new planter for it, out of a plastic Rubbermaid wheelbarrow whose axle broke. I think that will stay pretty warm.
I'm so pleased to finally have a space to garden in. This is our third summer in this house, and I am still learning what does well in different parts of the yard. We have a big, beautiful covered brick patio that is the centerpiece of the house, and we spend the whole summer out there, so it is really great to have so much gardening space to play with. And! My wonderful neighbor (the one who was our realtor for the purchase of the house) took the fence between our two back yards and made a fence out of old doors that she collected. She just did it at the end of the summer last year. It is just fantastic, very Pinterest. One of the doors slides open between our yards so our girls can play together (they are a little less than 2 years apart, and Lucy adores their daughter). I need to put up some planters and hangers on my side and grow stuff on it. It is fantastic! I just wish the other side was like that too, but I saw how much work it took her to do that, and I am pretty sure I don't have that in me. It's all I can do to keep up with my family and my garden.
I love summertime best of all. :)
Monday, May 27, 2013
Sushi time
This is about 2 months old, but I look about the same today, I guess about 10 lbs lighter.
It's Offiical
-40 lbs today! And officially at the weight I was when I met hubby.
It's funny how certain weights have significance, especially for people who have struggled with obesity and weight loss. Of course, there are the major milestones, like getting under 200 lbs (or 300 lbs, or more). And there are the nice round numbers of weight lost: 25 lbs, 50 lbs, 100 lbs. But the ones that really stick with me are weights that remind me of particular times in my life. This is one. I had just lost about 40 lbs on Weight Watchers when I met hubby, and it was the lowest my weight got before it started to go back up, on its inexorable path toward my lap band 2 1/2 years later. My next "significant" weight will be my pre-pregnancy weight: that's 7 lbs away. Then there is my lowest weight with the band, 15 more lbs. Anything lower than that is uncharted territory. My lowest band weight was 165, which was also my weight when I was 19, the first time that my weight really shocked me in my life. (Oh, if only I could tell my 19 year old self a thing or two...like how I would look back at that time and see a much more beautiful teenager than I ever thought at the time.) It wasn't that low again for another 17 years, nearly another lifetime for me then.
Losing 40 lbs in about 22 weeks is totally in reach for most people, without bariatric surgery. But for me it is pretty much right on track, proving that bariatric endocrinologist I saw right. He tested my metabolism and told me if I wanted to lose about 1 lb per week I would have to eat about 1000 cal a day. I have lost slightly more than that eating 900-1000 cal per day. I really need to do some resistance training to improve my fat loss, but it has been so difficult to even contemplate getting to the gym ever, much less on a regular basis. I could look into a self-resistance workout: pushups and dips and other things with nothing but my own body. Wouldn't that be a good idea?
But not right now. My hubby is back in the hospital, still struggling with the same issues of trauma, PTSD, debilitating depression and substance abuse. It's heartbreaking. He has been sinking for over a month, and has been asking for help the whole time, and trying to arrange treatment himself with appropriate facilities and our insurance company. Living with this disease is so much harder than anyone can imagine. He did really well for over 6 months, but then rather abruptly slid back into despair. It really is a matter of life and death. Without adequate treatment, he will be dead in just a few short years, without a doubt.
So for now it's me and Lucy time. Luckily, she's a good kid, and an easy kid. The single parent thing is not easy by any means. I still work 2 jobs (but rarely more than 40 hrs a week) and have to clean the house and feed us and take care of her, and take care of myself as well. But it's going fine for the most part. I'm just trying to lower my expectations of myself, not try to do everything perfectly all the time.
I hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday. It's raining like crazy here in Portland. But we had an early summer a few weeks ago, so I'm not complaining. I think it will be a hot summer. Be safe, all.
It's funny how certain weights have significance, especially for people who have struggled with obesity and weight loss. Of course, there are the major milestones, like getting under 200 lbs (or 300 lbs, or more). And there are the nice round numbers of weight lost: 25 lbs, 50 lbs, 100 lbs. But the ones that really stick with me are weights that remind me of particular times in my life. This is one. I had just lost about 40 lbs on Weight Watchers when I met hubby, and it was the lowest my weight got before it started to go back up, on its inexorable path toward my lap band 2 1/2 years later. My next "significant" weight will be my pre-pregnancy weight: that's 7 lbs away. Then there is my lowest weight with the band, 15 more lbs. Anything lower than that is uncharted territory. My lowest band weight was 165, which was also my weight when I was 19, the first time that my weight really shocked me in my life. (Oh, if only I could tell my 19 year old self a thing or two...like how I would look back at that time and see a much more beautiful teenager than I ever thought at the time.) It wasn't that low again for another 17 years, nearly another lifetime for me then.
Losing 40 lbs in about 22 weeks is totally in reach for most people, without bariatric surgery. But for me it is pretty much right on track, proving that bariatric endocrinologist I saw right. He tested my metabolism and told me if I wanted to lose about 1 lb per week I would have to eat about 1000 cal a day. I have lost slightly more than that eating 900-1000 cal per day. I really need to do some resistance training to improve my fat loss, but it has been so difficult to even contemplate getting to the gym ever, much less on a regular basis. I could look into a self-resistance workout: pushups and dips and other things with nothing but my own body. Wouldn't that be a good idea?
But not right now. My hubby is back in the hospital, still struggling with the same issues of trauma, PTSD, debilitating depression and substance abuse. It's heartbreaking. He has been sinking for over a month, and has been asking for help the whole time, and trying to arrange treatment himself with appropriate facilities and our insurance company. Living with this disease is so much harder than anyone can imagine. He did really well for over 6 months, but then rather abruptly slid back into despair. It really is a matter of life and death. Without adequate treatment, he will be dead in just a few short years, without a doubt.
So for now it's me and Lucy time. Luckily, she's a good kid, and an easy kid. The single parent thing is not easy by any means. I still work 2 jobs (but rarely more than 40 hrs a week) and have to clean the house and feed us and take care of her, and take care of myself as well. But it's going fine for the most part. I'm just trying to lower my expectations of myself, not try to do everything perfectly all the time.
I hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday. It's raining like crazy here in Portland. But we had an early summer a few weeks ago, so I'm not complaining. I think it will be a hot summer. Be safe, all.
Friday, May 17, 2013
Moving again
Okay...unstalled, but still not moving super quickly. April wasn't great for weight loss. I'm guessing that is mainly due to stress.
I am really really thatclose to 40 lbs lost. Any day now!
Today I got my new Fitbit Flex in the mail, at last. I preordered it, so I guess I'm one of the first to get it. It's pretty cool, but it doesn't track stairs climbed like the One does. I guess that's fine...it's just another thing to compete with myself over...but it was motivating. It looks very sleek, and I don't have to take it off my wrist to wash dishes or take a shower, which is nice. The silicone wrist band becomes body temp pretty quickly so I don't really notice it is there. I did like having the info right there on my tracker with the One. But I kept it clipped in my bra (easiest place not to lose it) and reaching in to look at it...is awkward. So, instead, I can look on my iPhone app at current info, which is something I'll get used to. It seems like there should be a watch feature or something...tell the time, maybe a HR monitor. But I think the point was just to have a very unobtrusive device that didn't have a lot of stuff displayed, esp since most of us carry a phone with us all the time that can give us that info. So far, I like it, but I am surprised that it does lose some of the functionality that the One has.
I am definitely fitting into smaller clothes and looking like I have lost weight. I have a long way to go, but most often if I get 10K steps a day and eat about 1000 kcal, I lose weight. So that's what I focus on.
I'm finding at this point that I don't have to run to stay active, which is good because finding kid-free, job-free time to run is quite difficult. Walking has been sufficient so far. We live in an area with a "high walk score", so we usually go for a walk in the evening somewhere in our neighborhood and that takes care of my exercise needs, plus keeps my mood tuned up.
Time for bed!
I am really really thatclose to 40 lbs lost. Any day now!
Today I got my new Fitbit Flex in the mail, at last. I preordered it, so I guess I'm one of the first to get it. It's pretty cool, but it doesn't track stairs climbed like the One does. I guess that's fine...it's just another thing to compete with myself over...but it was motivating. It looks very sleek, and I don't have to take it off my wrist to wash dishes or take a shower, which is nice. The silicone wrist band becomes body temp pretty quickly so I don't really notice it is there. I did like having the info right there on my tracker with the One. But I kept it clipped in my bra (easiest place not to lose it) and reaching in to look at it...is awkward. So, instead, I can look on my iPhone app at current info, which is something I'll get used to. It seems like there should be a watch feature or something...tell the time, maybe a HR monitor. But I think the point was just to have a very unobtrusive device that didn't have a lot of stuff displayed, esp since most of us carry a phone with us all the time that can give us that info. So far, I like it, but I am surprised that it does lose some of the functionality that the One has.
I am definitely fitting into smaller clothes and looking like I have lost weight. I have a long way to go, but most often if I get 10K steps a day and eat about 1000 kcal, I lose weight. So that's what I focus on.
I'm finding at this point that I don't have to run to stay active, which is good because finding kid-free, job-free time to run is quite difficult. Walking has been sufficient so far. We live in an area with a "high walk score", so we usually go for a walk in the evening somewhere in our neighborhood and that takes care of my exercise needs, plus keeps my mood tuned up.
Time for bed!
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Stalled...
I was losing well, then stall...for a few weeks now. A stall always feels like forever, like it has always been this way and I will never lose weight again. Silly, I know. But no one wants to see a stall. They suck, but they are part of weight loss.
I do well when I make sure I keep my daily steps high (>10,000) and generally the way to do that for me is a walk around the neighborhood in addition to my daily activity. That isn't hard to do, but doesn't always happen. I was planning on a walk this evening, but my hip has been hurting today so I didn't do it.
This weekend was lovely here, though, warm and sunny. I got a lot of gardening done this weekend. I've been almost manic about the yard in the past few weeks, actually. It started with just wanting to fix up the west side yard. It had been planted by the previous owners with sun-loving plants, but it is partial to full shade. The result was a few scraggly looking sticks that were supposed to be shrubs, and some leftover primroses that keep coming back. I ripped everything out and bought as many bleeding hearts, hostas and hellebores as I could afford, backed them up with a few new hydrangeas, and put them all in. Then I started to see everything else I could do...and so, many trips to the nursery later, it's looking good. I had to get new fuschia baskets for the patio because mine did not overwinter this year. I got some new patio planters, and I'm putting in new raised beds for veggies. It's fun, and we spend so much of the summer and early fall out on the patio that we really do want it as nice as possible out there.
So anyway, we've got some stressful stuff going on that I'd rather not air on here, and I'm trying to keep my mind on the moment by gardening and crafting and playing with my daughter rather than eating. Sometimes I win, sometimes I lose, and that probably explains at least some of my weight loss stall.
But you know, things can always be worse.
I do well when I make sure I keep my daily steps high (>10,000) and generally the way to do that for me is a walk around the neighborhood in addition to my daily activity. That isn't hard to do, but doesn't always happen. I was planning on a walk this evening, but my hip has been hurting today so I didn't do it.
This weekend was lovely here, though, warm and sunny. I got a lot of gardening done this weekend. I've been almost manic about the yard in the past few weeks, actually. It started with just wanting to fix up the west side yard. It had been planted by the previous owners with sun-loving plants, but it is partial to full shade. The result was a few scraggly looking sticks that were supposed to be shrubs, and some leftover primroses that keep coming back. I ripped everything out and bought as many bleeding hearts, hostas and hellebores as I could afford, backed them up with a few new hydrangeas, and put them all in. Then I started to see everything else I could do...and so, many trips to the nursery later, it's looking good. I had to get new fuschia baskets for the patio because mine did not overwinter this year. I got some new patio planters, and I'm putting in new raised beds for veggies. It's fun, and we spend so much of the summer and early fall out on the patio that we really do want it as nice as possible out there.
So anyway, we've got some stressful stuff going on that I'd rather not air on here, and I'm trying to keep my mind on the moment by gardening and crafting and playing with my daughter rather than eating. Sometimes I win, sometimes I lose, and that probably explains at least some of my weight loss stall.
But you know, things can always be worse.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Great News
I try not to share personal stuff about anyone but myself, as much as possible, but I do want to call out how proud I am of my hubby, without revealing too much. Yesterday my hubby had to travel to deal with some acrimonious legal dealings that have been stressing us out for a long time. The good news is that he handled himself perfectly, the other party showed their true (crazy) colors for everyone to see, and the result was the best news for him and our family that we have had in a long time.
The bad news is that as he was checking into his hotel the night before, he slipped on a loose piece of carpet and fell down a flight of stairs.
So after he got home from the trip (knowing the whole time that he had broken his arm, but not wanting to miss the hearing he was there for) I took him to the ER, where we found out he broke his wrist and will need surgery.
Sigh. Luckily I am recovered, but he is our daughter's primary caregiver while I am working, so this complicates things for us all. Poor guy. He's handling it all with a lot of grace, but it's difficult.
As for life with the sleeve, my weight loss is going great. I'm still losing a couple pounds a week, which I am super happy about. Right now I am at -32 lbs which is just over 10 lbs per month. I am finding that I am less hungry than I was a couple months ago, which seems opposite of a lot of people's experience with the sleeve. I am getting better at gauging how much to eat, but I still occasionally misjudge. The hardest thing for me is not nibbling as I sit with my family after I know I am done eating. I know the best thing would be to just get up, but I feel like our meals are abnormal enough, I want to be with my family when they eat. But my habit is to keep "picking" and those extra 1 or 2 bites are almost always my downfall.
I feel really good, and really hopeful about the future, which is something that is a long time in coming.
The bad news is that as he was checking into his hotel the night before, he slipped on a loose piece of carpet and fell down a flight of stairs.
So after he got home from the trip (knowing the whole time that he had broken his arm, but not wanting to miss the hearing he was there for) I took him to the ER, where we found out he broke his wrist and will need surgery.
Sigh. Luckily I am recovered, but he is our daughter's primary caregiver while I am working, so this complicates things for us all. Poor guy. He's handling it all with a lot of grace, but it's difficult.
As for life with the sleeve, my weight loss is going great. I'm still losing a couple pounds a week, which I am super happy about. Right now I am at -32 lbs which is just over 10 lbs per month. I am finding that I am less hungry than I was a couple months ago, which seems opposite of a lot of people's experience with the sleeve. I am getting better at gauging how much to eat, but I still occasionally misjudge. The hardest thing for me is not nibbling as I sit with my family after I know I am done eating. I know the best thing would be to just get up, but I feel like our meals are abnormal enough, I want to be with my family when they eat. But my habit is to keep "picking" and those extra 1 or 2 bites are almost always my downfall.
I feel really good, and really hopeful about the future, which is something that is a long time in coming.
Saturday, March 23, 2013
A-OK
Everything went fine, cyst is out, ovary intact. I'm a bit sore but nothing that ibuprofen hasn't been able to handle. I've just been taking it easy this weekend. It's strange that this is the only sort of "excuse" I give myself for slowing down and taking it easy...why can't I just relax without it involving something like surgery?
It went very smoothly and I was in and out pretty quickly. I was very happy to have an excellent team working with me. And no nausea post op, thanks to my CRNA friend and coworker.
Now I'm trying not to pick up my 2 1/2 year old, but that is nearly impossible. She is too young to understand any of my explanations. I try to keep it minimal, but it was the same when I had my sleeve surgery.
I'm holding off weighing for a few days, until the fluid from the swelling dissipates. I know most WLS people insist we shouldn't weigh daily, or even weekly. But I have always found that daily weighing keeps me in a rhythm, and keeps me on top of any potential gains. I've read that it is one thing that people who are successful long-term with weight loss do. So I do it...but not when I KNOW it is going to be a temporary gain that will only demoralize me, and will go away on its own.
I did a lot of projects in front of the TV last night and today...finished a baby quilt, cut out blocks for another, finished a dish towel with snaps for the oven, etc. Paid the bills. Stayed at home on the couch as much as possible, although I did get out in the back yard during a sunny spell, and when I did I couldn't avoid finishing planting my summer dahlias and peonies (and the spring bulbs that I never planted last fall, and are sending up shoots already...dunno if those will bloom or not). I just have to work in the garden if I have a chance. I just finished replanting the shady side of the yard with shade-loving perennials. The previous owners had "re-landscaped" the yard for an attempt at selling the house before we rented it, and had planted that side with things that were not appropriate for shade, and as a result there were a few straggly sticks with a few leaves hanging onto them, scattered around. Now there are hellebores, bleeding hearts, hostas, bear's breeches, primroses, and a backdrop of 3 hydrangeas to fill in the shady side. I'm excited to see them fill in over the next few years. (I'm not normally a big fan of primroses, but they were the only thing that survived from the previous planting, and they have been there for at least 3 years, so I added some more to keep them company.)
I guess it's obvious that I don't sit still very well.
It went very smoothly and I was in and out pretty quickly. I was very happy to have an excellent team working with me. And no nausea post op, thanks to my CRNA friend and coworker.
Now I'm trying not to pick up my 2 1/2 year old, but that is nearly impossible. She is too young to understand any of my explanations. I try to keep it minimal, but it was the same when I had my sleeve surgery.
I'm holding off weighing for a few days, until the fluid from the swelling dissipates. I know most WLS people insist we shouldn't weigh daily, or even weekly. But I have always found that daily weighing keeps me in a rhythm, and keeps me on top of any potential gains. I've read that it is one thing that people who are successful long-term with weight loss do. So I do it...but not when I KNOW it is going to be a temporary gain that will only demoralize me, and will go away on its own.
I did a lot of projects in front of the TV last night and today...finished a baby quilt, cut out blocks for another, finished a dish towel with snaps for the oven, etc. Paid the bills. Stayed at home on the couch as much as possible, although I did get out in the back yard during a sunny spell, and when I did I couldn't avoid finishing planting my summer dahlias and peonies (and the spring bulbs that I never planted last fall, and are sending up shoots already...dunno if those will bloom or not). I just have to work in the garden if I have a chance. I just finished replanting the shady side of the yard with shade-loving perennials. The previous owners had "re-landscaped" the yard for an attempt at selling the house before we rented it, and had planted that side with things that were not appropriate for shade, and as a result there were a few straggly sticks with a few leaves hanging onto them, scattered around. Now there are hellebores, bleeding hearts, hostas, bear's breeches, primroses, and a backdrop of 3 hydrangeas to fill in the shady side. I'm excited to see them fill in over the next few years. (I'm not normally a big fan of primroses, but they were the only thing that survived from the previous planting, and they have been there for at least 3 years, so I added some more to keep them company.)
I guess it's obvious that I don't sit still very well.
Friday, March 22, 2013
-30
Weight loss has been going well recently. I'm losing slowly but steadily, finally down 30 lbs--yay! I should take some more pictures. It's almost time for measurements as well--I do them at the beginning of the month.
I still have my moments when I wish I could eat more than 1/4 cup of food. But they are just moments. Mostly I am just grateful for my sleeve, which is helping me realize my health goals.
Today I don't have to worry about that for a while--I'm having my surgery on my ovary today. I have a friend and colleague providing my anesthesia, for which I am grateful. I'm happy to work in a department in which I would really trust anyone in it to provide anesthesia for me or my family. But it is nice to be able to choose, especially when I didn't really want any of my male coworkers in there. We are heading out as soon as hubby gets dressed. Lucy will spend the day at school, and I'll go home this afternoon.
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