Monday - Just Barely.....

Happy Just Barely Monday Ladies!

It's 12:29 a.m. here in Massachusetts.  I got into bed around 10:30, because I was feeling tired, and hoped I'd have a good night's sleep.  I had some hot cocoa, took my meds, fixed my pillows, turned off the lights, tv and computer, had my final pee, and got into bed thinking how great it would be to have a good night.  Had to re-adjust the pillows because my shoulder was bothering me, but got comfortable and fell right off to sleep......until 11:55.  Tossed and turned, but gave up on sleeping in bed - I'll try the recliner.  I seem to have the best luck there.  For years, I hold two old single beds in the bedroom - I had gotten the mattresses, boxsprings and frames used, from a friend when I was pregnant with Maura, who will be 28 on January 20th.  Finally, this past July I got a new "barely used" queen-sized mattress set and frame from a couple who had just bought them, then decided to move to California.  They were selling everything to avoid the expense of moving all their furniture cross-country.  Jim loved it, and I thought I would too - but it really hasn't helped me the way I thought it would.  I've tried and tried, but thinking maybe I should look for a "deluxe" recliner that would allow me to lay almost flat, but with support for my legs and back.  I love hospital beds, and I see them on Craig's list - so I'm tossing that thought around too.  

I've got an early appointment for therapy for my shoulder, but I'm not sure of the time..I picked up the phone when a recorded reminder call came in, all I got was Mary.....and nothing else. Somewhere is a paper with a list of my appointments, but can't find it.  Guess I'll be looking for that next, because I know some of my appointments were around 7:00.

Thursday the hospital is starting a new format for their support group.  It's at 4:00 which is not a great time for people who work, and I'm sure they'd have a better turn-out if they moved the time back to 5:00.  They are adding a feature of focusing on menu planning and recipes too, so I'm looking forward to that.

I bought a wig a few weeks ago.  It's sized Large, but I'll have to get my hair cut because the wig doesn't "sit right".  I had ordered a stocking top to hold my own hair in place, but it's just not working.  I'm going to look for a website that carries extra-large size, but haven't had luck yet.  I'm sure I"ll find something.

Well, I've gone on and on, haven't I??!  

Hope you all have a good day - special prayers and good wishes to all.

Mary

Mary,

before I had WLS, I couldn't sleep in a bed to save my life. When I began trying to qualify for WLS, I had already lost from over 500 pounds to 350 but then I stopped losing and was even gaining so that is why I sought out WLS. After I lost below 300 pounds, the pressure on my shoulders and neck lessened so I could actually sleep in a flat bed. I had a hospital bed because of the same reasons and I slept in a recliner for years. I hope you find a temporary solution because I believe as you lose more and more weight, you will find you are able to do more things that now you have trouble with such as lying flat in bed or sitting in a booth.  We used to do posts every once in a while about what can do now that we couldn't do before and it might be time for us to walk down that memory lane. Most of us had booth phobia because we couldn't fit in the booths. I couldn't even wear clothes from speciality shops for heavy women...I used to joke that I got my clothes from Omar the tent maker (now that seems a little racists), but really, I made my own oversized moo moos. Wearing jeans that snapped and I remember the traveling pants that left Oregon when one of our sisters lost enough weight to buy them and then she lost more weight and sent them to CA for another gal and from there to Florida and then MO and maybe to the east coast and then finally to me. I remember those jeans hanging in my closet and every couple of months I tried them on and no go and I thought, I'll never be able to wear these damn jeans...One day, I was feeling extra small and pulled those suckers out and not only did they fit but they were too big so they got shipped to TX to another sister who was losing weight pretty quickly. There are so many things that we all can do now that we couldn't do.  I love that I'm not the largest person in my family, in my town, in WalMart, or any other place that I go.  I remember the stares from people....oh my.  I think we all need to do another what we can do post. 

Hang in there....your hair should come back. Did I tell you that I lost all my hair on the top...then I went on some antibiotics and lost the rest...I was bald for about six months.  I always had very thick hair and when it came back, it came back with a couple of thin spots and one bald spot remains but hey, I throw on a hat when I'm feeling insecure.  

I hope you are able to catch up on your sleep. 

Have a good day today. 

Hello sistas (she said, waving weakly  from her sick bed),

Holy cow.  Have I ever been sick.  So sick I can barely shuffle around the house this morning.  But I just can't lie in bed anymore for awhile.  So I'm up and sitting at the computer.  

I think I must have had food poisoning.  But I don't know how/why I got it and Carrie and the boys did not.  We all pretty much ate the same things all weekend.  Whatever caused it, I'm glad no one else got it.  You know, I can count on one hand the number of times I've thrown up since having RNY.  Is it really even possible to throw up with RNY?  OMG.  I heaved and gagged and heaved some more, but there was nothing in my stomach to come up.  It was very painful.

Well, there's no point in reliving the whole experience today.  Suffice it to say I was one very miserable human being yesterday.  

I'm up this morning and wouldn't you know it, my right eye feels "sticky".  Oh, great.  That will be the next thing.  I'll get Carrie's pink eye.  I can't remember if I told it here or on FB, but Carrie woke up at the hotel in Nacogdoches on Friday morning with horrendous pink eye.  Her poor eye was the size of a golf ball, and it looked like someone had sealed it shut with gobs of Elmer's glue.  OMG.  We went straight to the ER.  We got her meds and I took her back to the hotel and there she stayed.  She didn't even get to go to the Poe Family Christmas party at all. It's so contagious and besides she felt miserable.  

So the boys and I went to my SIL's house for Poe Family and I started crying almost from the moment we arrived.  I tried not to, but there were all of Butch's brothers and sisters and I just lost it.  At least the boys had a good time.  It was really their first time to get to play with all their little cousins, and they loved it.  This is what I promised Butch.  I promised that the boys would grow up knowing and being close to their Poe relatives.  But honestly, I just don't know if I can make that trip back to Nacogdoches again anytime soon.  It was a helacious trip, and six hours in the car is just too much for the boys.  But I'll worry about that later.  For now, I've kept my promise and it won't come up again for awhile.

At least I was able to get some business done while I was in Nac.  I met with a forester and I can finally sell some timber off the farm in Martinsville.  I had to wait until 2016 for tax purposes, but now we can go forward with it.  Ronald (who is kin to one of my SIL's and I know I can trust him) said he should have it all cut and hauled to the saw mills by the end of Feb.  This is very good.  I hope to get enough income for the next couple of years.  I'm doing everything I can not to touch our investments until I have to.  I hope NEVER to touch the principal, but I know eventually I'll have to start pulling some of the interest to live on.  Anyway, the sale of the timber will give me a nice big stretch of breathing room.  Now I just have to get the lake house at Canyon Lake sold and I'll be out from under almost all my debt.  

Well, as soon as I am recovered, I have much to do the next three weeks.  I have business matters to deal with and sewing to do for the new baby and I need to make arrangements to go and live in Waco for several weeks.  Carrie has her first baby shower this weekend in Houston, and I need to make hotel reservations and buy presents, etc.  Mom and Chris and I are all going, of course, but Chris is going to stay with her best friend rather than in the hotel with us.  Not sure if Carrie is going to stay at the hostess' house or stay in the hotel with us.  Either way, I have to get a room with two queen beds--one for Mom and one for me.  

I think I have to go lie down again.  My head is still hurting.  Dammit.  I just really don't have time for this.  My friend, Martha Ann, says that I got sick because I have worn myself ragged taking care of everyone else.  Well, maybe so, but what else is there to do?  I'm the mom and the grandma and the daughter.  And they all lean on me.  I don't know how to change that dynamic. Mind you, some days I would love to change it.  I would love to just have ME to take care of.  But that's not how it works.  

I still haven't read all the New Year's Resolutions posts.  I will get to it.  I would like to lose this 30 pounds I've regained.  Puking my guts out is one way to do it, huh?  I haven't had any solid food since Saturday.  Maybe I'll just continue on that way for a couple of days.  

Okay, my head is pounding.  I'm going back to bed.  Love you all!

Hi Vickie,

I just wanted to tell you that these are the symptoms I had when my small intestine was blocked. The doctor said food poisoning at first, but a week later I was still puking every bit of food that I ate. I was not keeping down liquids well either. After a week of this and seventeen pounds lost they put me in the hospital. I was so dehydrated it was dangerous and because my weight loss surgeon was on disability I was stuck with doctors that were nit well informed on RNY and they were trying to keep me alive while they experimented with things that would not require surgery. Four days in I got a bariatric surgeon that said surgery us the only way to fix this...I was miserable for almost two weeks... So here is my advice...if this keeps on get to your bariatric surgeon. Mine was scar tissue that totally closed off my small intestine. The surgery was not bad at all...I did have a back to basics diet afterwards that was hard, but necessary. I suffered a lot longer than I needed to because I didn't want to believe that I had a surgery complication...if I was to have it happen again that would be my first thought. And I would insist on a bariatric surgeon to evaluate me quickly. 

Julia

Thanks Julia.  I remember when that happened to you.  However I seem to be on the mend today.  I think it really was a case of food poisoning.  But yours is a cautionary tale that we would all do well to remember.  We never know when a complication might occur.  Hope you are feeling better now that the holidays are finally behind us!

I'm so glad you are getting better! Whew! 

Hi Vickie,

I'm glad you are feeling better than yesterday.  I had not vomited since my WLS, till last year or so when I had a horrendous bug where I was sick in bed for almost two days.  Even when I had nothing in my pouch, I'd wretch, and feel physical pain all over my abdomen.  Before my gall bladder surgery, I'd get some mild dry heaves during a flare, but never completely vomit.  Now, if I make the mistake of eating something rich in fat, I get that same symptom.  I don't do that often, because I regret it big time.

I sure hope you don't have pink eye.  That just sucks.

I totally understand your situation being sandwiched between caring for your Mom, the girls and the boys.  Unfortunately, IF you don't find a way to take care of your physical, mental and spiritual health, you won't be capable of helping anyone else.  I was reminded of that on my flights to and from PA.  The flight attendants tell you to put your own oxygen mask on first, before helping a child.  Your self-care has to be top priority, so you can be at your best to help everyone else.

My suggestion is to try to plan a regular day, weekly or every other week, when you could go out, and shop, get a pedicure, go to a tea room, and just read.  Have your phone on vibrate, and make it clear to everyone that you are only available for true emergencies.  Plus, if your weather permits, try to take a daily walk with the dogs.  The exercise would be so therapeutic, and the dogs will love it.  

Also, I don't know if you already have a church family, but I know I have wonderful friends at mine.  We have a ladies Bible study, where many of my friends are our age, with aging parents, kids and grandkids, who need us, or drain us, emotionally.  It helps to talk with them, and encourage each other, like we do here, but with real, in person hugs.

I'm not suggesting running away, just finding ways to put Vickie first.  I hope you don't think I'm being pushy.  I love you, and hate how hard things have been for you the past couple years.  I wish we all lived closer, so we could help each other out when the going gets tough.  I'd be there in a heartbeat.

Hugs,

Trish

Hi Mary and my OFF family:

I haven't even had a chance to read the posts lately. I've been so busy at work. Our new tasks are keeping up hopping. Saturday was especially taxing. Last night was the first night my one coworker had to design his own front page. He was doing OK but then we had problems uploading photos so at 11 p.m. we had to *****nd use a wire story as the centerpiece (this is 15 minutes before deadline) and pull wire photos, redesign the front, design the jump page (I did that)... amazingly, we were only a minute late.

Gary got home Saturday with stories about his grandsons. Gee, I want to meet them. They sound so cute. Maybe this Christmas.

I'm up early to go to the Y. My knees hurt, but I'm pushing myself to go. I'm really tired, but I'm going to go. 

Mary, I had really thick hair and had just minor thinning after surgery, and vitamins helped a lot. As for the bed, I wouldn't buy a used bed, but that's me ... my dad was always against buying a used mattress for fear of bed bugs and disease. 

Vickie, hope you are feeling better today, or at least a little better. Could it be just a lot of stress from the gathering with some food you ate that didn't agree with you? The holidays put you under a lot of stress. 

Anyway, if I'm going to start the new year off right, I should get my butt off the recliner and get ready to go to the Y. I'll feel better after I get in the pool, but right now I just feel tired.

Have a good day.

I would have loved to buy a new bed....Maura and Joe picked it up and I told her to examine it with a fine toothed comb and to check out the appearance of the apartment in general.  She said the apartment was spotless, as was the mattress set - it was like new.  I figured it would be no worse than sleeping on a hotel bed.  I also bought a mattress cover.

Mary, have you tried one of those memory foam mattress toppers?  I bought one for our king sized bed and it was worth every penny!  I only bought a 2 inch one, and wish I had bought a 3 inch, but you do have to account for the extra depth when buying sheets.  Made our bed very very comfortable and luxurious.  Highly recommend.  

Also, I don't know if it would help you relax, but a heated mattress pad is the best thing ever!  Unlike an electric blanket, the mattress pad just radiates a real low gentle heat up around your body.  The blankets catch the heat and form a lovely pocket of warmth.  It is so much easier to relax in a warm bed rather than a cold one!

Anyway, I hope you are able to get some rest in your own bed soon.