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!