Just as a little bit of background before I jump into it, my husband's family with little exception all lives in a town in Southeast Texas. We've gotten out there about once a year since we started dating because we can see so much family in a single shot. Also, his grandmother (Meemaw from this point forward) had Lou Gehrig's Disease. She passed away on September 6, 2017.
If you have put a few pieces of this puzzle together, she passed away during a time of a natural disaster (Hurricane Harvey), and partially due to this the services had to take place nearly two weeks after she passed away.
When we got the sad news, we assumed things would happen quickly and the price of last-minute flights made it cost-prohibitive for both of us to go. A day later, we found out the service would be in about ten days, and we managed to find cheap airfare so both of us could go. After all, if Meemaw knew you, you were her grandchild and she loved you as such.
So today's story hits on two things, dealing with a high-stress situation, and traveling.
This was not my first post-operative trip, we went to Canada when I was eight weeks out. But, when we went to Canada, I was not cleared to eat all foods yet, so I found myself reverting to be safe as I didn't want to have an emergency so far from home.
At nearly 16 weeks out, I can eat practically anything, so the thought of what to eat for safety was no longer present which made some things easier, but also presented a danger for eating the wrong things.
I'm not going to sit here and write that I made every perfect decision and I would proudly present my food journal to my nutritionist or surgeon. The facts remain that I wrote everything down, and I did the best I could. A few key points made this possible:
1) I have a supportive husband who is willing to share plates. I'm going to start a new series of entries about my husband going through his own WLS journey (he starts in a few weeks from writing). So he understands where I'm coming from, and also that portions at restaurants are so huge, me having my three or four bites does not take anything away from his experience. Especially since the surgery, we haven't eaten out all that much. We would discuss what to order, then when it came to the table I had a small plate for my own serving. I know some hospitals give out cards to keep in your wallet that you have a medical necessity to order from the kid's menu. After this weekend, I am solid in my choice to not even ask for that card. The choices on the kids menu are generally less healthy than the main menu. They are there as usual kid crowd pleasers.
2) Planning planning planning. I have said in past posts that failing to plan is planning to fail. From the start of planning out our flights and our day of travel (we were landing at 3:30pm, getting lunch with my in-laws, who were on the same flight, and driving the 90 minutes to the destination) we planned out how we were going to get what we needed for a good trip. Before we even got on the plane, we made a list of things we would need at Walmart when we landed. This list included pre-made Premier Protein (a luxury to us), Cheerios, water flavoring, and fiber laxative. We stopped at Walmart and made our purchases, which carried us through the trip.
3) Think "protein" first. Every time I put something in my mouth, I thought "protein" first. I tried to keep my normal day for as long as possible every day, and no matter how the day ended, I restarted with the normal day the next morning. My normal day is my fiber laxative, protein shake, and a little later Cheerios (dry). At that point my days change as I mix up lunch and dinner. While the family was eating the food local organizations had so generously brought, I had my lunchbox. On the way in, I bought beef jerky from Buc-ee's. For non-Texas people, Buc-ee's is just a magical rest stop with the cleanest bathrooms you'll ever experience, along with fun food options. What caught my eye was the beef jerky bar, and we bought enough jerky to share with everyone. Also, beef jerky takes so long to chew, especially post-op that it would really keep me busy.
This wasn't the happiest of trips either. It was the first time I found myself in a situation where I would have eaten a lot from stress eating before the surgery. I was a little nervous going into it, but honestly I had no desire to overeat. I wonder how this will change in the future, but I had no issue saying no, and more importantly, no family pushing anything on me. This was the first time everyone had seen me since I lost any weight, so I was down 90 pounds since the last time I saw them.
This trip proved a lot to me about what I'm capable of and what level of planning it takes. The most important part is that as long as I am able, a Walmart should be my first stop, even before I get to a hotel. Research and preparation will allow anyone to have a successful trip.
Friday, September 22, 2017
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
My Own Decision
Some of the most common things I see on the various Facebook support groups I follow include what brands of vitamins to take to save money, and what finally made people decide that surgical weight loss was the way to go.
If you've ready my story, you know how I arrived here. For those of you that didn't read it, my size was defining physical limitations that were becoming more limiting by the day, so it was time to do something about it.
I thought about surgery from the start of physical therapy for a knee and hip injury in July 2016 and applied through Johns Hopkins in October 2016. I was still not convinced when I applied, but since that twelve-page application deemed me eligible, I decided it was something to really consider. Still, however, I told myself not to make up my mind until I saw the surgeon. Even after the appointment with the surgeon, I made the first couple of appointments, which were an EGD and my first appointment with my Primary Care Provider, I still wasn't convinced. Either way though I was going to lose a little weight. I don't know exactly when my mind was made up, but by the second month of my process, I knew that surgery was the right choice for me.
To oversimplify my thought process, I'm going to break this up into Pros and Cons.
Pros:
1. I will lose weight quickly: This one speaks for itself. No other program boasts up to a 75% excess weight loss in 18 months.
2. I am more likely to keep it off: Of course everyone I talk to has a cousin that has a friend that had the surgery and then gained it all back and then some. But, the numbers tell me that more people have greater long term success due to surgery. This surgery is altering how my body absorbs food, so as long as I'm not actively seeking out all of the loop holes, I will be successful.
3. All of the other pros of weight loss: More energy, less over all pain, better fertility. All the things that other programs can offer as well as weight loss surgery.
Cons:
1. Surgery is scary: Someone is knocking you out to the point where you can't even breathe on your own and rerouting your body. Yes, its scary. But I was deemed medically necessary by the surgical team as well as my insurance, so this must be a risk worth taking.
Counterpoint: My first surgery was when I was 28 years old. It was a tonsillectomy and I needed it. Like, my tonsils touched when I swallowed and were terribly infected so my quality of life was not too good. I was scared, but I knew I had to do it, otherwise every few months I would be sick for a week at a time, and each time I got sick, it got worse. Finally one day I realized that I'm one bad turn of the steering wheel or even one bad step, away from needing emergency surgery where I would have the time to go through my own existential crisis. That actually soothed me.
2. There are no guarantees it will work: Yes the surgery makes your stomach a lot smaller, but I can just change my eating habits and get it all in. There are ways for this to fail and the surgeon and your team are not with you all day helping with your choices. One side effect of the long pre-op is you have plenty of time to think and decide if this is really right for you.
3. Possible complications: Every surgery carries risk and unfortunately these risks are multiplied for those who are overweight/obese.
Counterpoint: See con 1. You never know when you need surgery. Also, if you follow the instructions to the letter, you decrease the chance of complications significantly.
If you've ready my story, you know how I arrived here. For those of you that didn't read it, my size was defining physical limitations that were becoming more limiting by the day, so it was time to do something about it.
I thought about surgery from the start of physical therapy for a knee and hip injury in July 2016 and applied through Johns Hopkins in October 2016. I was still not convinced when I applied, but since that twelve-page application deemed me eligible, I decided it was something to really consider. Still, however, I told myself not to make up my mind until I saw the surgeon. Even after the appointment with the surgeon, I made the first couple of appointments, which were an EGD and my first appointment with my Primary Care Provider, I still wasn't convinced. Either way though I was going to lose a little weight. I don't know exactly when my mind was made up, but by the second month of my process, I knew that surgery was the right choice for me.
To oversimplify my thought process, I'm going to break this up into Pros and Cons.
Pros:
1. I will lose weight quickly: This one speaks for itself. No other program boasts up to a 75% excess weight loss in 18 months.
2. I am more likely to keep it off: Of course everyone I talk to has a cousin that has a friend that had the surgery and then gained it all back and then some. But, the numbers tell me that more people have greater long term success due to surgery. This surgery is altering how my body absorbs food, so as long as I'm not actively seeking out all of the loop holes, I will be successful.
3. All of the other pros of weight loss: More energy, less over all pain, better fertility. All the things that other programs can offer as well as weight loss surgery.
Cons:
1. Surgery is scary: Someone is knocking you out to the point where you can't even breathe on your own and rerouting your body. Yes, its scary. But I was deemed medically necessary by the surgical team as well as my insurance, so this must be a risk worth taking.
Counterpoint: My first surgery was when I was 28 years old. It was a tonsillectomy and I needed it. Like, my tonsils touched when I swallowed and were terribly infected so my quality of life was not too good. I was scared, but I knew I had to do it, otherwise every few months I would be sick for a week at a time, and each time I got sick, it got worse. Finally one day I realized that I'm one bad turn of the steering wheel or even one bad step, away from needing emergency surgery where I would have the time to go through my own existential crisis. That actually soothed me.
2. There are no guarantees it will work: Yes the surgery makes your stomach a lot smaller, but I can just change my eating habits and get it all in. There are ways for this to fail and the surgeon and your team are not with you all day helping with your choices. One side effect of the long pre-op is you have plenty of time to think and decide if this is really right for you.
3. Possible complications: Every surgery carries risk and unfortunately these risks are multiplied for those who are overweight/obese.
Counterpoint: See con 1. You never know when you need surgery. Also, if you follow the instructions to the letter, you decrease the chance of complications significantly.
Tuesday, September 5, 2017
Presurgical Shopping List
I remember getting ready for my surgery and thinking to myself how different life was going to be as soon as I got home from the hospital. I was nervous, excited, anxious...so many emotions at once.
I was well prepared, the program at Johns Hopkins had gotten me ready and I was more excited than anything to get the petal to the metal. Hopkins even makes their guidelines available to the public, if anyone would like to read over the material.
The weekend before the surgery, I went shopping and got two sets of the below list. I got two because I was going to be spending nights at my house, but would be spending most days at my parents' apartment since my mom works from home and is an RN. This list was derived from the guidelines linked above:
The biggest key however is getting at least that 64 ounces of water in daily. Before discharge I got a water bottle from the hospital that had increments of 2 hours to get 8 ounces of water in. If I started at 7:00am, and I was consistent, I would get my 64 ounces in by 11:00pm. I still use the one from Hopkins, but I found inspiration here. But, even taking a standard 32oz Nalgene with a Sharpie would work, but you would have to remark it fairly regularly.
Finally, I made a paper chart with goals based on the timeline in the guidelines attachment. I would include all of my new vitamins and medications on this list as well. I don't have any copies of these left, but it looked something like this:
I was well prepared, the program at Johns Hopkins had gotten me ready and I was more excited than anything to get the petal to the metal. Hopkins even makes their guidelines available to the public, if anyone would like to read over the material.
The weekend before the surgery, I went shopping and got two sets of the below list. I got two because I was going to be spending nights at my house, but would be spending most days at my parents' apartment since my mom works from home and is an RN. This list was derived from the guidelines linked above:
- Protein powder
- Lowest fat cottage cheese
- Plain Greek Yogurt
- Dannon Triple Zero Oikos
- No sugar added pudding pops
- Sugar free popsicles
- Fairlife skim milk
- Ricotta Cheese (lowest fat)
- Pudding (powder)
- Jell-O
The biggest key however is getting at least that 64 ounces of water in daily. Before discharge I got a water bottle from the hospital that had increments of 2 hours to get 8 ounces of water in. If I started at 7:00am, and I was consistent, I would get my 64 ounces in by 11:00pm. I still use the one from Hopkins, but I found inspiration here. But, even taking a standard 32oz Nalgene with a Sharpie would work, but you would have to remark it fairly regularly.
Finally, I made a paper chart with goals based on the timeline in the guidelines attachment. I would include all of my new vitamins and medications on this list as well. I don't have any copies of these left, but it looked something like this:
- 7:00am: Protein Shake made with Fairlife and AM pills
- 8:00am: Water
- 9:00am: Greek Yogurt (make sure water goal is met), Lovenox shot
- 10:00am: Water
- 11:00am: Fudgepop (make sure water goal is met)
- 12:00n: Protein shake made with Fairlife and Noon pills
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)