Update about my first Appointment.

I had my first appointment with Dr. Kellum on Thursday at noon. They told me to expect to be there for 3 to 4 hours. I didn't know how long it would take me to get to Richmond so I left about 10:45am and got there at 11:40am. They took me back pretty quick and I met with a nurse and then a nutritionist. Then they had 2 students ask me about being part of two research studies, which I had to decline because of the time involved. Finally I was taken to another room and a female doctor came in and introduced herself and was asking me some questions and then Dr. Kellum poked his head in the door and I'm not sure what happened, but he came in and she left. He then sat down and talked with my friend and I for what seemed like a long time. I was really impressed with the time he spent and as somebody told me once you get him going he is really funny and smiles alot and that was very true. I felt so much more comfortable with him than I did Dr. Schirmer who spent maybe 3 minutes with me and seemed like he was in a hurry and then for some reason kept closing his eyes while he talked to me like he was trying to take a nap. I told him that due to logistics with my life that if I got approval I would much rather wait until June to have the surgery so my kids could go to their dad's and I would have been at my job for at least 6 months before taking time off...etc... He was fine with that. Now the hard part is I have to quit smoking completely, but I knew that and even though it is very hard I am ready to do that. The other was that he wanted me to lose 40 pounds by June. MY BRAIN SAID OMG! I'm not sure how I am going to do that, but he suggested a full liquid diet from now until June so I started Slim Fast yesterday. By the time I got home from work yesterday I was starving and ended up eating a few cheddar cheese cubes and then I made a tuna fish sandwich for my youngest and ate what was left of the tuna (just tuna and mayo) and later in the evening ate a bean burrito with some cheddar cheese on top and a small bowl of raisin bran crunch cereal. I think I made some good choices, but I'm not sure. How do you go from eating regular meals to only liquids? I didn't even had time to prepare for it. Now I am trying to desperatly think of things I can eat that have almost no calories, but will make me feel somewhat full. The other thing is that he wants me to have another psych evaluation even though I already had one last year. I sure hope the insurance will pay for it. I think I'm going to have a terrible time of it the next few months and hopefully I will get close enough to the goal that he will go ahead with the surgery. Well that is how my appointment went. I'm feeling pretty stressed out, but optimistic too. Andrea

I know it sounds weird, but if you want to lose weight in a hurry, eat lots and lots of protein and as few carbohydrates as you can. (try for 70g of protein and 30g of carbohydrates) I had my initial consult myself only a week ago, but I only have until April 18 to lose 40lbs. (though I think he might let me slide with 30-35). So for the past week, I have been having a protein shake for breakfast, 4 1/2 liter bottles of water between breakfast and lunch (then a half hour break with no fluids) a salad for lunch (which has basically consisted of lots of lettuce (you can eat a whole bag of lettuce if you want, it is only 15 calories) with cheese and some other vegetable if I'm creative (cucumbers, broccoli, etc. NO CARROTS, they have carbs), and some salad dressing (not low fat or whatever, they replace the fat with sugar! Check your labels). Then a half hour after that is done, 4 more bottles of water (the point being try to get in at least 128 oz a day, I'm hovering around 128-135. Yes, this makes you GO ALL the time, but apparently water flushes out the fat, as people here on the board have been so kind to point out to me. [pay it forward and all that. ] ) and some string cheese as a snack. Then a meat and a non-carb vegetable (like green beans) for dinner. And more water after dinner. A week ago I thought a diet like this was INSANE. But I stopped by my surgeon's office yesterday to weigh in, and lo and behold, I had LOST 9 pounds. I had to get on the scale twice to believe it for myself. So my suggestion would be to avoid the raisin bran (and maybe the Slim Fast, too, doesn't that have a lot of sugar??), drink as much water as you can stand (they have sugar free flavorings out there if you don't like the taste of water) and eat lots of protein. The reason for losing weight BEFORE surgery is not to prove your dedication (well maybe for some Dr's it is) but it is to shrink your liver so they can lift it up easier to get at your digestive parts without nicking it during surgery, and apparently the only way to shrink it is to eat as few carbs as possible. Also, walk as much as you can. I have noticed that walking on a treadmill is much much easier on my back than walking around outside and when you get too tired you don't have to wonder how you're going to get back to where you started! Plus, a treadmill tells you how much you walked, and how long you've been walking. This weekend though I might go outside anyhow because of the crazy good weather. Good luck to you!

Hey Special J! Can I say Wow? Can I borrow some of your willpower? You are doing great. I have not stuck one thing carby in my mouth since last Friday. I am drinking lots and lots of water at work (no more coffee) and I at first started out with 1 Slim-Fast each for breakfast and lunch and then changed it to Slim-Fast low carb in the morning...lunch is lettuce, sliced chicken, sprinkle of shredded cheddar cheese and Walden Farms dressing which has no calories, no fat, no sugar. I thought really it would be air in a bottle with some coloring, but it isn't bad actually. then I have slim-fast low car at night with a couple almonds as a snack and if I am really hungry a couple cheese cubes. I really need to start exercising though. I think I am going to start going to my mom's house (she lives in a gate community 30 seconds from where I work) and go out walking with her. I am also going to check in to Water Aerobics. Thanks so much for the well wishes...they really mean a lot to me. Good Luck to you too!

Hey Andrea! I lost 34 pounds from Oct. 29 to January 25. You have about the same time. I didn't have to go full liquids either. The last two weeks were 5 protein shakes a day, per new order of Dr. Kellum. Agreeing with Special J, eat lots of protein and NO rice, potatoes, bread, pasta or any other grain product other than veggie burgers. That means no cereal. When you have to have something sweet get sf popsicles or no added sugar fudgesicles. When I had the munchies really badly and could afford the calories I would have a no added sugar Klondike bar. Also Power Crunch Bars satisfy the sweet tooth AND provide 14 g protein. I ate between 1000-1500 calories, usually closer to 1000 most days. Keep a food diary so you know what you can and cannot eat that day. Set your mind to it and DO it. You CAN!! Just remember how hard you have worked to get where you are today! (PS, At times when I had the munchies and could NOT afford many calories I would mix green beans and canned mushrooms and spray them with "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter". They would really fill up the hole and cost very few calories.) Good luck and positive thoughts are with you every day! Lois

Hey Lois I took your advise and went out and bought sugar free fudgesicles and man are they good when you have a sweet tooth. I have not tried a Power Crunch bar yet but I'm sure I will check that out. I loved your green beans and canned mushrooms idea. I will be doing that very very soon. Sounds yummy! I have not stepped on a scale yet, but it hasn't even been a week yet and I am scared that this will be like every other time. I will be so careful and then not lose a thing and get discouraged. I think I'm going to wait until about another two weeks before stepping on one. I hope you have a great day and thanks so much for the positive thoughts! Andrea