What my life is like today - 2 1/2 years post-op

Time flies!

Seems like just yesterday I was lurking on the Texas board, looking for RNY.

Then the usual surgery wars battles made me curious, I visited the bad, evil, DS board and decided I belonged here....on the Dark Side. *lightening crashes*

This place was amazing, and it took a further 3 years for me to get my surgery.

By then, I was so desperate (I was 311 pounds at 5'2" and it seems like the weight gain would just keep creeping up...I was around 180-200 lbs in my 20s, and I was adding 10 pounds per year...) that I turned off some of my common sense and took selective advice (in otherwords, heard what I wanted to hear) and went to the wrong doctor.

Not getting into the complications and recovery, that you can catch up on in my blog, but hey, I DID get fixed in the end.

Issues (once I was past the complication and on my way to healing and losing weight the healthy way):

-- I had horrid loose stools and diarhea for months. This was causing issues with a sore bottom.

-- I had uncontrollable gas - I mean, eat nothing but chicken with mayo all day and still had peel-the-wallpaper gas. This was causing issues at work.

-- I had severe iron-deficiency anemia (still do, actually) and no money or insurance to get an infusion. This was causing issues with exhaustion.

However, with the help of the people here, I tried many different solutions, and it did take a long, long, time to figure out what worked best for me, but I can say I have overcome all of the above!

-- I now have two main times a day me and the toilet have special time with my smart phone (lol) - upon immediately waking up, and around dinner time. It is soft-solid and no longer irritates my poor bottom. I still may go occassionally at other times or in the middle of the night, depending on what I ate.

-- I now how gas completely under control! I have learned what not to eat (white flour, lactose, fructose, etc) and what I can eat (corn! potatoes! rice and whole wheat in small doses!) and honestly maybe toot lighlty once or twice near the end of the day.

(Note both issues above were also fixed with a couple of rounds of flagyl, and taking probiotics. Once I knew my bacteria issues were under control, I really had the chance to test the foods I can and cannot tolerate with more precision.)

-- I'm taking two proferrins heme iron pills (split in half, one dose at breakfast, one at lunch) and 5 Vitalady tender irons (at bedtime), and I feel like it's raising my energy level to tolerable while I wait to get insurance again.

I've managed to get my full set of labs done at least once a year (when I briefly had insurance, first Obama's high risk insurance then my new husband's insurace before he got laid off), and have carefully crafted my vitamin and protein regimine with help from this amazing group. When I get my insurance back (both hubby and me are working, but only "contract" work with no benifits thus far, can't wait for Obamacare to kick in!) I will be getting them every 6 months (probably just the ones to watch mid year though, and a complete set at my annual physical).

I learned that I have issues with Vitamin A and K, and iron mostly. The iron was already an issue  pre-DS, though. I am doing fantastic with my protein, calcium and vitamin D levels. Everything else is normal, I even had to cut back on my B vitamins - I was ODing on B6 (be careful of that, people).

This is what my daily life is eating these days:

Morning commute: Protein coffee with 1 1/2 scoops of Syntrax Nectar protein
Breakfast: Scrambed eggs, cheese, sausage mixed up with salsa
Coffee treat: Once crunchy granola bar dipped in my coffee
Mid-morning snack: Cottage cheese mixed with a no-sugar added fruit cup
Lunch: Protein (meat) and the only sides allowed have to be made of corn (such as in a crunchy taco) or potatoes (such as fries or mashed) or veggies. I tend to love eating protein salads like chicken, tuna or seafood.
Post-lunch snack: Carb countdown yogurt
Mid-afternoon salad: Yes, this has it's own meal. Crunchy, wonderful mixed greens salad with protein on top (chicken or cold cuts or steak or whatever) slathered in dressing for a cruchy fill me up and keep me to dinner feeling.
Dinner: Whatever my family is having. I allow carbs here, although I'll fill up on the protein first and then have the carbs (even white ones).
After dinner snack: Sometimes I'm bad **** cream) sometimes I'm good (open faced sandwhich on toasted whole wheat sandwhich thins). Sometimes I don't have one.

To me, the key to keeping gas under control was to limit bad carbs to small amounts only at night so the consequences happen in my sleep. :) Although, I still cannot go wild and do too much or they will continue into the next day.

This is my vitamin regimine now, based on my needs:

Vitamins	Dose	Waking	Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner	Bedtime
Multivitamin	RDV	X			X
Vitamin A	25,000 IU	XX	XX	XX	XX
Vitamin D	50,000 IU				X
Vitamin E	400 IU			X
Vitamin K1	10,000 mcg					X
Vitamin K2	5 mg					X
Vitamin C	1000 mg		X
Calcium Citrate	300 mg	XX	XX	XX	XX
Magnesium	150 mg	X	X	X	X
Proferrin Heme Iron	12 mg	X		X
Tender Carbonyl Iron	60 mg					XXXXX
Copper	5 mg	X
Vitamin B12 Sublingual	5000 mcg	X*
Vitamin B12 & Folic Acid Sublingual	1000 mcg & 800 mcg	X*
Vitamin B1	100 mg			X
B Complex	B-50			X**
Zinc	50 mg					X
ProBiotics		X		X

* Alternate days
** Every 5 days

Mostly, I don't think of my DS much, I'm too busy living life, enjoying my new husband, working on my career, wishing to win the lottery for some plastics... :)

I am currently 140 pounds, and pretty happy at my weight - especially considering what I think I will look like post-platics.

OH yeah, and my hair is finally back to it's pre-op thinness instead of my nearly post-op bald thiness. I've read that iron deficiency anemia can cause thin hair in women, so I have great hope that it will recover even further if one day I manage to get my infusions!

Thank you for a great post! While you were enduring all your early problems, I never dreamed you would be such a DS success story. You sound and look so happy and healthy. I appreciate the details of your nutrician and vitamin regimin. After three years, I am still fine tuning mine, probably we always will...      Congratulations on your new life!

Larrisa, you look great.  Glad you got through all your problems and are now enjoying life on the other side of them.  Congrats.

After everything with your original surgery, and recovery from fixing you first surgery, and all of the negativity on this board you have endured.

YOU MADE IT THROUGH!!!!!!!

You have ENDURED, chickie!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The post is AWESOME, and INSPIRING!!!!!!!!!!

Love the pics of YOU LIVING LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for the post, Larissa. I know part of what you went through and I congratulate you on your strength and courage.....and your new life!

Thanks, guys.

Honestly, I don't wallow in the post-surgery regret anymore.

I'm too busy working in life now, making (hopefully) smart decisions NOW. :)

Mostly I wanted to share because I am no longer a daily participant here, and it's kind of sad, but kinda means I am living a normal life.

But I need to make sure I share that normal life, because other's sharing helped me so much.

My greatest joy was watching my son graduate high school and sending him off to college and not having him ashamed as he showed me off as his silly mom to everyone. I felt so...normal instead of like some huge blob trying desperately to shrink and look smaller.

I hear you on the shame. I saw my daughter off to college as a "huge blob" and felt ashamed and self conscious for both her and me. This year she will graduate and I won't think twice about how I look. The attention will be all hers.

Great post. As one with many complications I thank you! Terri

 Larissa,
I read your blog from 2010 to the final post. It drained my laptop battery from 70% down to 20%.  I was riveted. Thank you and your dad Pete for posting your story. I am so glad you are doing well.

There is a kinder gentler site on the pro boards. I'll  PM the link to that one to you. But I do think this one has gotten a bit better too. Having access to both has really been helpful to me. 

Please keep us updated.

Best
Whitney

Thanks for sharing this timely and inspiring information. Continued best wishes.