Some before pictures!! Have fun!!

I have to say that some of these make me wonder what the heck I was thinking!?!? How did this happen!?!?!?!

I think this is the #1 picture that makes me gasp. I think this was September, 2008.

This is a close second.... July 2008 - in the "thinking" stage for Lap-band. Had gone to the informational session but that is it... Thank GOD I realized this needed to happen!

Remember in the post before this - the halloween costume for this year? This is the 2008 halloween costume.... neat idea (I was a 50's housewife ;)...), MUCH larger body....

This was taken last December (2008) with some co-workers.

Christmas 2008 with my hubby. What a change!

Has it really been THAT long??

Yes, you are reading this right....... it is now November 8.... it has been months since my last entry and I am such a bad girl..... You know what's cool, though? As I sit here typing, my legs are crossed and that is not something I have been able to do for very long.... I love it! I promised pics and I am coming through with that promise finally! But first, an update:
Things are going great! I may not have lost a TON of weight since my last post, but I have made a TON of breakthroughs and that is so much more valuable toward the actual weightloss! I have fallen in love with Zumba and that is making quite the difference in my life all around! Since my last post, I have started taking Microbiology (can't help but think that just may be the reason for my absence lately! lol!!) toward my nursing degree and I can't believe it but I am actually getting a (gasp!!) B in the class! Those of you who know me, know that science is NOT one of my strengths and for that I am having to study MUCH more than the average nursing student. Though I am spending a great deal of time studying, I must say that the class is wonderful and I am learning SO much and I love what I am learning! I feel lucky, also that I have a professor that I think is a perfect match for me!
Now for a few updated pics!

This was taken August 9. No doubt, after a LONG day of working on the deck!

Looking at this picture now tells me how far I have come!!

One of THE hottest days of the summer at Fenway Park. Excuse the protruding boob...

Just a good pic to get what I looked like. This was August 21.

Same Red Sox game. August 21.

At a friend's wedding on August 29.

At my cousin Julia's wedding on September 5. I can see a difference in my face...

And this? This is my halloween costume for this year.... some of you may remember my costume from last year? I think you'll agree this is WAY cuter!! ;)

I am going to do another blog post right after this one with some more pictures - including my halloween costume from last year.... wait til you see this one!!!!

I really want to thank you all again for you unwaivering support! I don't know if I'll ever be able to thank each and every one of you enough!!!

"Dr. Fill", Take 2

I went in today for fill number two. Bumped me up to 5cc's.... I wanted 6cc's but she said I wouldn't be able to drink tomorrow if I had gotten 6. Guess I'll have to trust her..... anyway..... It was a nice long fishing trip she took in my abdomen.... like a 10 minute fishing trip.... including me putting my chin to my chest and acting like I was doing crunches... only in a constant contraction.... fun..... then the needle found my port!! I will go back in two weeks to be bumped up to 5.5 and then two weeks later to be bumped up to 6. We'll see if I want to get more after that. I would ideally like to end up with 7cc's but that's me being annoyed that I am hungry for more than I would like to be.... eh.... oh, well.....

Keeping good on a promise.

Okay, so I know I have been promising progress pics for a while now, so it's only fair to post them now. I go for my second fill this Tuesday, August 11 so we will see how the progress goes from there. I am down a total of 18 lbs. Would like to see more, but 18 is 18 and it isn't a gain.... now that would be a little concerning.... lol. So, here are my pics:

This was taken April 29, a little over a month pre-op
(Like the straight hair?)

Showing off my new purse April 30

Taken May 8 - Looking at this now makes me

realize just how much I have lost

This is Op-Day!! June 5, 2009 - my rebirth-day.

Day after my surgery.... June 6, 2009.

Taken June 22 - 17 days post-op
Starting to notice the change.


Taken July 3. About four weeks post-op


July 7 - this is the most up-to-date pic I have.


I will work on getting more pics taken of me! July 7 was a month ago so I know new pics are in order! I will get on that ASAP! Things are great on my end, sorry for the lag in updates, this summer has been busy to say the least with building our new deck and the various hiccups that have introduced themselves to us in the meantime (such as the existing deck, off of which Seth was taking the planks and the frame collapsed on him. So not only are we going to be re-doing the decking on our existing deck - which we had planned anyway - but now we have to reframe the whole thing! Or... the insulation under the breezeway that was exposed by the collapsed deck that showed us that a critter that had shredded the insulation to get warm in the winter so Seth got under there this AM and replaced the insulation and put ply-wood over it so no critters can get into it. No wonder why our breezeway gets so cold in the winter!!!) Long parenthesis, I know!! Peace out! :)

Went to see "Dr. Fill" yesterday!

Yesterday I went to see my surgeon - who wasn't expecting me - I had been told I had an appointment for 1:30PM but the Casco Bay Surgeons office didn't have me scheduled in..... great..... I had someone come into my work to cover for me while I went to see him? Anyway, I went to the other part of the appointment and that was at the Maine Bariatric Center - right next door. I saw a bunch of familiar faces that I hadn't seen since before my surgery so it was nice to catch up and they were all saying how much weight I have lost and how great I was looking. That was nice.... I'm not gonna lie..... So I went with the RN into the exam room and she felt around for the port and had to make sure she was in with the needle. She drew out whatever saline was in there - about 1.5cc and put it all back in and added 2.5cc for a total of 4cc that is in there now. I go back in three weeks for another fill. Let me tell you how WEIRD it was going in!!! It felt fluttery and I SWEAR I could feel it filling my band! So for 48 hours, I am to eat pureed foods again..... not too bad...I can move on to soft foods tomorrow! I have been eating yogurt, soft serve, and hummus..... not an horrible diet. Least it's not baby food! I promise I will add photos soon! I know I have been bad and not posted any but I will soon!!

I can't wait for my fill!!!

So, today, I am five weeks post op. The scale says I have only lost 10 pounds STILL! But people I work with and see me every few days tell me there is a noticeable difference! It is interesting and I think my body is just adjusting to the change in diet and I have been told that when I get my first fill on July 22, after that, I should see the weight drop from there. I hope so. I feel so good though and clearly, my body is looking better. It's all good.... I am still glad I did this and do not regret it for one second! I am so thankful for the opportunity! I made the decision that I will not buy any new clothes until I hit 25 pounds so that is some nice incentive!
On another note, for everyone in the northeast, how beautiful was the sun today??? What a gorgeous day!!! Bummed I have to work all weekend, but still, at least I was able to enjoy yesterday and today! Night all!!!

My new scrub top fits!!!!

The story?

We have the occasional scrub sales here at Maine Medical Center to benefit the Barbara Bush Children's Hospital and I like to go check out the various styles they have for the plus size variety. I often find really cute tops there and one time last year was not an exception. I had the luxury of working right next to where it was happening (or would that be considered a disadvantage? hmmm....) so I tried on a top I thought was adorable but literally looked like it was painted on.... one of my co-workers suggested I get it as incentive to lose weight - so I did..... yeah... if I had a penny for each item of clothing I purchased even though it was too small but keeping in mind that it would be good incentive to lose weight - I would not be working anymore! Don't know why I did that! Just depressed me more than I was before! Anyway......... so I bought this top thinking I would fit in it someday...... Fast forward a year and last night I had to do laundry and knew I needed scrubs to wear today. I thought to myself that I would just try it on and see where I am (I figured it would be still a little too tight - it was REALLY REALLY tight before). I slid it right on with room to spare and needless to say I am wearing said top as I write this post! I can't tell you how many compliments I have gotten on it and it feels so great to hear each and every single one of them!

A side note I would like to say to all of you: I really appreciate all of your posts and encouragement! It feels so nice to know there are so many people out there who care and support what I am doing. It makes this all so much more worthwhile!! I love you all!

Oh, my gosh... sorry it's been so long!

I had no idea it has been two weeks!! WOW!! Tomorrow will mark the three week bandiversary!! Things are great on this end! I am feeling wonderful and am eating alright! I still think my body might be going through starvation mode... I am not really eating more than 800-1000 calories and wonder if my body is storing whatever it is getting. I am stuck at 10 lbs after surgery and would be lying if I said it didn't bother me. I make sure I am eating healthy and the proper amounts and that's the best I can do, right? I feel amazing! That makes me happy! I think when I go for a fill, I might start seeing a difference. That will be on July 22.
In better news, the glue (yes, they used glue instead of stitches..) has finally all peeled away as well as the scabs!! Sorry if that is a bit TMI! My scars are forming quite nicely and I can really feel my port under my skin very well, I love to feel it, kinda weird, I know....
I went back to work about a week and a half ago and everything is great! I am definitely back to my normal self, that's for sure! Seth has taken some more recent pics of me so I will be posting those soon. It's late and I have to work in the AM! What a gorgeous day today was after SO many days of rain and crummy weather! Here's to more sun to come! Night all!

Five days post-op

Sorry for not posting in a while! Been laying low.... Last night five of my girlfriends (My CC girls!) came over for a going away shindig for one. She is moving to Boston to go to Law School! SO proud of her! Anyway, there were six of us - Jaime brought her little four month old daughter Taylor - so with Seth, that made 8 people in the house. There were five dogs playing in our newly fenced in back yard! Fenway was a little outnumbered... four of the five dogs were Chocolate Labs..... it was so much fun to watch, though! I could at least know where Fenway was at all times, though... She stuck out like a sore thumb! Whenever I get together with these girls, food and wine are always present, so I was interested to see how things would go for me. I still don't really have much of an appetite so that is nice. When everyone was in and settled and eating, I made sure to heat up my "Veal" babyfood and I plated up a very little bit of Guacamole, hummus and I had some of my yogurt. I was SO full.... 2 oz of "Veal", about .5 oz of hummus, about 1 oz of nacho cheese, about 1.5 oz Guacamole and about 4 oz of yogurt. I was supposed to have 8 oz of dairy, 4 oz. of veg and 2 oz of meat/protein. Funny thing is that I had less than they wanted me to have and I was SO full! Felt like I had been on a serious food binge!! It was so nice to see them all again, I haven't seen them in a while! Angie brought Rockstar (a game for Wii) and we hooked it up to the Wii and it is one of the coolest games I have ever played! I loved playing the drums! I will definitely be asking for that for Christmas! What a workout that was! I could tell I wasn't 100% but I have to appreciate that I am still five (was four yesterday for the party!) days post-op and realize that I am doing well with that. Today, I am going to take it easy and do nothing! It's weird, I feel like I am recovering from a rager of a party that went until about 4AM and not a simple little get together with my ladies that ended at about 9:30PM! So funny! But I wouldn't change a thing girls! Don't get that idea! I would do it again in a heartbeat! It was so much fun! Plus, Fenway is still sleeping and if I ask her to go out and go to the bathroom (How DARE I?) it's like I just asked her to walk across hot coals! So funny!

Day 2 Post-op

I am still here! I can't imagine that two days ago - this time, I was in the worst pain of my life! I am feeling so good, I almost don't believe it myself! I have been working so hard at being a good little patient (anyone who REALLY knows me, knows how stubborn I am and how hard that can be for me!) and not lifting things yet. I have been keeping on moving so I can get that last little bit of gas out and heal faster. I have managed to get some protein in my body, too! Guess what I had last night? I ate some baby food! I did it! Didn't get nauseous at all either! I am currently sipping (s.l.o.w.l.y) on a protein shake for my morning nutrition. Things are on the upswing here, I can't wait to see the progress! I'll upload a couple pics later!

I am now in "Life after the Lap Band procedure"!

Today started like any other. I woke up, got in the shower, we fed Fenway and left. Here's where it changes: we woke up at 4AM and instead of heading to our perspective places of work, we drove together to Maine Medical Center's Scarborough campus. Today was surgery day. We arrived a little early and were greeted and let into the building by Talky McTalkerson, the security guard. SUPER nice and informative, just obviously had about 178 cups of coffee throughout the night. The new campus at Scarborough is beautiful and the waiting room is wonderful! I had no doubt that Seth would be taken care of while I was away. The staff there were wonderful - with one exception... (I will talk about that in a little bit... wait for it... it's SO worth it!) My nurses were so kind and efficient and welcoming. I remember after being wheeled to the OR, they had me change over to the OR table and when the Nurse Anesthetist said that she was going to make me sleep I said "Thank you all." I remember them replying to that and then woke up feeling like I had just been attacked by all those people I had just thanked! I felt like I had been kicked in the abdomen about 25 times and couldn't breathe fully. As I was waking up and remembering that I had had surgery, she was telling me that they were going to give me more morphine in my IV. Did nothing... After 5mL of Fenergen and 8mL of Morphine, still NOTHING was doing anything for the pain! It was the worst pain of my life thus far, seriously. So, my recovery RN got an order for oral pain meds - Tylenol and Hydromorphone. Also gave me Dilaudid in my IV to try to act instantly while the Hydromorphone and Tylenol acted more slowly. Remember how I said there was one exception to how wonderful the staff was? Here it is.... As I was trying to catch a breath and focus on getting through the pain I was in, Oxygen mask on my face, I hear two ladies, RIGHT in my doorway - there were no doors, just curtains - bitching about a co worker or a boss or someone. Not using private talk voices. Regular voices that I am sure ANYONE could have heard in that hallway!! I came really close -and I should have said - to saying "SHUT UP!!!" Couldn't believe they were having that convo in a hallway where there were people recovering and in pain! So inappropriate! Anyway, I made it through the pain. Something I wasn't expecting was the discomfort from the gas they pumped into my abdomen! Once the pain from surgery was controlled, my chest felt SO tight and there was a terrible knot feeling on my right side. They said it is common to have that. The stomach is swollen and pushing against organs and the gas inside was pushing too. Good times! The hard part of that was that I just couldn't get comfortable, so I said as soon as I could, that I would like to get up and walk. I figured that would make me feel better. Got up and into a recovery chair and got my discharge instructions and they said I was free to go whenever! We got home at about noon and Seth made three trips to Shaws to get me various things and my scripts and had to make a trip in to city hall. He is now sleeping - I told him to! He was unbelieveable and a rock through this all and I just feel so lucky to be his wife! I just love him so darn much! Thankfully, that pressure went away for the most part at around 2PM so I am feeling MUCH better and like I can get comfortable. Feel free to call and visit anytime you like! Just give me a heads up if you are coming over! Love to you all and thanks so much for all your support! I couldn't have done this without the emotional backing and support of people like you.

Tomorrow!!!

I can't believe it's finally here! I can't believe I am getting this surgery tomorrow after all the planning and waiting! I felt like it was never going to happen and it was going to go by so slowly! Not at all!
Last time I ate anything solid was Tuesday evening - had so much of the protein shakes it will start coming out my ears soon!
Anyway, just wanted to let you all know I am doing alright and feeling good about tomorrow and just to keep me in your thoughts tomorrow AM early!
I'll blog as soon as I am home and settled to let you all know how I am doing!
Love you all! :)

T minus 4 days...

I have to say I never thought it would come this fast... I am starting to get the nervous feeling but more because of the unknown.... I am unsure of how I am going to recover - not physically, not scared of the operation, but I am so unsure of what I will be able to handle. Everyone is different and recovers differently and so there is no way of knowing for sure what I will be able to handle.
I am trying to make the decision of what to eat for my post-op diet. There are two choices: both equally un-desireable..... Option 1 is to drink five protein shakes a day - will be so sick of protein shakes that I am not sure I will be able to do five a day for 14 days...... Option 2 is to drink three protein shakes a day in addition to 2-2oz protein servings blended (no chunks - yes, that means in a blender.... ) 1-8 oz serving of dairy and one serving of fruit/vegetable/starch - ALL foods have to be blended with NO CHUNKS - can you imagine putting chicken in a blender? Do you have to do that with stock? Don't you need something to make it the consistency or something? What about cottage cheese in a blender? Tofu blended? Um..... not so sure about that... Dairy I can do.... fruit/vegetable/starch, I can do.... the protein I am not so sure about.... the samples and options they give you for proteins are:
2oz. Chicken
2oz. Ground Turkey
2oz. Fish/Tuna Fish
2oz. Cheese or Soy Cheese
2 Eggs or 4 Egg Whites or 1/2C. Egg Beaters
2oz. Deli Meat (No Roast Beef)
1/2C. Cottage Cheese (Small Curd)
1C. Tofu
Can't make much of anything work..... not sure I want to do any of these, thanks.... any ideas?

The cough is much better, thanks everyone for your concern. I was given cough syrup with codeine and have FINALLY slept like a baby the past two nights! He said it seemed viral, though understood the importance of staying healthy for the surgery, so he gave me a perscription for Azithromycin in case it turned into Bronchitis. I kept it and thought that if I wasn't better by today, I would fill it but I feel much better and so I didn't fill it. Just need to get my voice back to normal now and get rid of the residual cough and I will be perfect!

An ode to Chicken Broth! ....and Health

Seriously..... Here I was eating my meal, drinking my protein drinks and drinking a TON of water and literally felt like I was starving myself! Suddenly, at work, as I was dragging my body down the hall digging my fingernails into the floor to pull myself along, I had a 'DING' go off in my head! "I can have Broth!! I can have broth!!!!!" It is on my list of acceptable fluids to drink through out the day! Let me tell you, that styrofoam cup with hot water with a packet of powder that is Boullion, it was the best food I have ever had! I was so happy! I had forgotten that I could have fluids other than water!

On a side note, I have had a persistent cough since Monday and it is neither going nor coming. Not sure what is going on. The last thing I need is for my surgeon to tell me "Oh, your sick? Well, we're going to have to re-schedule...." No we are not.... so I am going to go to the Dr. tomorrow... he may just tell me that I just have a cough and give me something to make it go away.... but he may also tell me it is Bronchitis and give me a Z-pack and send me on my way, allowing for my cough to go away and surgery to happen on the scheduled day of June 5! I will keep you posted on what the Dr says! Hope you are all having a great day!!

This diet is great in the not great kinda way!

Yeah, I find myself wanting to beat people down for food... is this not a good thing? Yeah, okay, so it's not THAT bad, but I definitely feel hungry all the time, to be sure.... I know this will all be over in a week and I will have bigger fish to fry (mmmmm.... fried fish......), so I have to look in the horizon. There are so many things that make this starvation worth it. I can't wait to be healthy, I can't wait to be able to sit in a plane without feeling claustrophobic, I can't wait to have people look at me and don't think to themselves "Oh, that poor thing..." or even worse, "That fat lazy girl". Don't get me wrong, I'm not being a victim about it at all, I am a realist and I just know it happens. So, if you see me between now and the 5th of June, don't have any food.... if you do, at least make it be celery - then I will insist you keep it!

Pre-op diet = meh...

Most think that when the surgery happens, that is when you make the changes in your diet... one couldn't BE more wrong.... First of all, I have been losing weight since November and have lost 30 pounds, trying to instill a healthy style to my eating. But the other thing is that two weeks before the surgery, you start a special "pre-op" diet. This diet aims at shrinking your liver. It is common for obese people to have an elarged liver and - since your liver is right next to/on top of your stomach, an enlarged liver can make an otherwise simple procedure difficult. The diet is following:

Three high protein drinks per day (more if indicated) AND one meal

Meal components for freshly prepared meal:

Food Group Amount Some examples
Lean Meat 4 oz. Chicken, fish, turkey, cheese, tofu
Starch 1/2C. or 1 oz. Potato, rice, pasta, sweet potato
Vegetable 1C. cooked AND unlimited raw Broccoli, green beans, cauliflower
Fruit 1 Medium peice of fruit Apple, 4" Banana, Peach, Pear
Low Fat Milk 4 oz. Low Fat Milk, Low Fat yogurt
Fat 1tsp. regular or 1TBSP light Margarine, butter, oil, mayonnaise

My day starts out with a protein shake. I'll have another one mid morning. If I am working, I eat the meal for lunch so I can get the extra nutrition while I am running around and have the last shake after I get home. If I am not working, I wait til dinner, so I can eat with Seth, in which case I will have another protein shake mid afternoon. I have made enough components so that I am all set for it all the way through. This is what I am eating:


Chicken breast - 1/2 a breast
1/2C. cooked rice
1C. cooked broccoli
LOTS of raw carrots and soy beans
Orange
Fat free yogurt
a tab of margarine for the rice

It is actually a really tasty and REALLY filling meal! Not always able to finish it and always feel satisfied! I am also taking a multivitamin and a calcium suppliment.

You are also encouraged to consume 8 cups - 64 ounces - of non-carbonated liquid per day - including any protein shakes you have. So I have three 8oz shakes = 24oz. 40 more oz per day of the following:

Water, sugar-free popsicles, sugar-free jell-o, fat free/low fat broth/boullion, decaffeinated herbal tea, diet Snapple, Crystal light, Fruit2O, Propel, Milk (Skim or 2%)

The day before surgery, I am to have five shakes, no food at all.... Can't believe it is all happening so fast!

....and we are off!!

Hi there everyone! All two or three of you! My name is Skye and I am 10 days - yes... 10 days out from having the lab band placed on the outside of my stomach. Why would anyone ever do this to themselves?? I am obese... I feel like I should be saying "Hi, my name is Skye and I am obese", - then your line is "Hiiiii, Skyyyyyyye....." I know some people might think this is a personal thing to go through, and indeed it is. I know I am opening myself up to potential rude people, but I feel like this is the first step in my recovery. My profile picture is what I am considering my "Before" picture and I will wear the same t-shirt and take pictures as time goes on so you are able to see the difference the time makes!

I thought I should do an FYI post to start out. What is the LapBand system?

I will have a band placed on the outside of my stomach with the ability to fill with saline and tighten it. It has the capacity for 10cc's which is about equal to two teaspoons of saline. Doesn't seem like much, but it actually is. There will be a portal on the upper left side of my large intestine in which the nurse will fill the band with more saline or take saline out if there is too much. That's about it for now. I will post a separate post re. my wonderful pre-op diet.... that is such good times.... ;P