Surgery this Tuesday!

Said goodbye to my desk and hello to my recliner for the next month. I'm lucky enough to live 10 minutes away from Richmond Hospital and feeling incredibly grateful for everything and everyone who has had a role in my journey so far. I'm looking forward to a healthier, more active lifestyle and being able to wear my rings again!

Congrats! So exciting.

Good luck with everything and keep us posted!

Hi there, can you give us an update if you feel up for it?  How did it go, how are you feeling and what are you doing to keep yourself entertained?!

I'm just starting all my appointments with that Program.  I had my first Dietician appointment last week and will see the Occupational Therapist on October 24.  I would love to know how it went for you.

D

I can't even tell you how well everything has gone!

Surgery (the first time I've ever been in hospital to have something removed that I didn't get to take home with me) was not as scary as I thought. My stay in hospital was short and I was up taking little walks in the hallway early in the morning after surgery day. I was released late that afternoon. I've had minimal discomfort and stopped taking pain medication within a few days. My incisions, etc have all healed well and I haven't had any complications. My only real complaint involves my "process of elimination" (to put it delicately). This has started to resolve itself with the help of docusate sodium, diluted prune juice and the introduction of thin puréed fruit sauces. 

One thing that happened about two and a half weeks after surgery was that my blood pressure went down dramatically. Normal for me is about 128/84 (on medication). I was feeling a bit weak and light-headed one morning but luckily I happened to have an appointment with my family doctor that same day. When I mentioned it to him he took my BP and it was 89/53. The result is that I'm off blood pressure medication for the first time in about 15 years (pending monitoring). 

I'm just about to enter the puréed foods stage of the post-op diet, so I'm looking forward to being able to have a little more variety. I have to say that it has been a struggle to meet the 3 meals/3 snacks/3-4 cups of water plus meet the minimum protein requirement plus waiting half an hour between eating and drinking.   I always seem to be short one snack and a few grams of protein by the end of the day, no matter what I do. (I can't seem to get the plain whey powder to "disappear" in soups).  I'm a little worried about how this is all going to work out when I go back to work next week but just like everything thing else, I'm sure it's not as bad as I think it's going to be and I'll figure it out. 

I have lost almost 70 lbs (45 of it was before surgery, since entering the program) to date. I'm able to walk farther than I have in years without pain in my hips, knees, back, etc. I am sleeping better thanks to being on CPAP after a diagnosis of severe sleep apnea (which probably wouldn't have happened if not for the Bariatric Program). 

And my rings fit! 

Re: entertainment . . . Netflix, reading and knitting. Also, a dear friend gave me an adult colouring book and a box of 60 pencil crayons - my new happy place is at my kitchen table, colouring and listening to CBC radio.