jenmartinthunderbay

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It's been a long while since my last post, which was not very positive. I've been out of touch because I've been so busy.

It turns out that having the surgery is the best decision I've ever made. I'm down 85 lbs now!!! OMG!! I still can't believe it. And the best part of all, I feel great!! I've been camping and travelling and spending lots of time outside with my son. I've taken up gardening, which I never had the energy for in the past. I've even just got a gym membership and itching to use it.

I still have some limitations on food but can eat most things, including some bread and rice!! Sugar content is my biggest challenge but I've found ways to satisfy my sweet tooth without giving myself dumping syndrome.

The best part of all is that my feelings about food have completely changed. Its no longer such an important part of my life. There are so many things that have replaced food on the priority list of my life.

So if anyone is feeling the way I was a few weeks after my surgery, then just hang in there. It will change. I promise.

I'm almost 3 weeks post-op now. I had my 2 week follow-up in Duluth on Thursday and it went very well. I'm down 10 lbs since surgery. A total of 31 lbs now. My nurse seemed to be very happy with my recovery.

Even though things seem to be going pretty well, I've been feeling quite depressed. I've been put on a soft diet now but not getting any satisfaction from food. Sometimes having difficulty eating anything at all. I guess food played such a huge role in my life and I just haven't figured out what to fill that void with yet.

Hopefully I figure it all out soon.

it's pretty late. 3 am here. I'm getting really edging and cabin fevered here. We're planning to go home tomorrow. Things look good. All my wounds are healing. No signs of infections. Got my fluid volumes up to 52 oz today. And am up and about doing things for myself. Still not able to walk the shopping mall yet but getting out for short walks throughout the day. And my very concerned paramedic husband has been watching my vital signs and they've been stable since I got out of the hospital. So he agrees that its time to make the venture home.
My little guy misses me almost as much as I miss him. It's not enough to just talk to him on the phone for a couple a minutes twice day. I think being away from him is starting to stress me out. Hence, why I'm up at 3 am blogging with you folks.
Its a long trek home so wish me luck. Normally its 4 hours to get home but the doc says I have to get out and walk around every 30 - 45 minutes. I figure its going to take about 6 hours. And going home always seems to feel longer than it really is. Talk to you all from home.

Feeling great this morning. Haven't taken any pain medication yet today. Last night was rough. Had an excessive amount bloating and pain. Meds weren't cutting it at first. Settled down after a few hours but had almost gone to the hospital. Hopefully today will go better. Later, I'll post a pic taken yestarday afternoon.

Doing pretty well today. Went for a walk and still feeling pretty good. Having a difficult time getting all the fluids in. My goal is 40 oz of fluid including my carnation instant breakfast. I managed to get 2 of the shakes in today but still haven't reached my 40oz. My On-Q pump with the local freezing has come out tonight. I'm not sure how things are going to go tomorrow without the pump in but I'm planning to try and venture outside for a short walk. I'll let everyone know how it goes.

Doing well. I had a bit of a rough night because I didn't get much sleep - couldn't get comfortable, pump kept going off, etc. But I just saw my surgeon - Dr. Pitt - who says I'm doing well enough that I get to leave the hospital today. He did say that I had to stay in Duluth for another 5 days but at lest I'll be in a quiet, comfortable place. Can't wait to get in the shower too!

I made it! They finally brought me to the floor today. I' ve been up walking around a little but its been difficult. I had a little complication during surgery. The found a huge hiatal hernia and had to repair it. I ended up being in surgery for 4.5 hours. Because of the hernia I have a little more pain that I was supposed to and have to stay in the hospital an extra day. I'm itching to get out of here.
On the upside, the nurses here are excellent. I've only had one issue with getting my pain meds on time and that was really pharmacy's fault. The hospital is really nice too. I'll keep you all up to date as I go on.

The time is finally here. It's almost 5 am here and we're about to head out to the hospital. I'm really nervous which is only made worse by the fact that I have barely slept. I'm actually looking forward to the anesthesia so I can have a rest!! Well, wish me luck and I'll update in a few days.

1 day left and I'm freaking out a little. We're heading down to Duluth from Thunder Bay today. Surgery is tomorrow morning at 8 am and I have to be at the hospital at 5:30 in the morning! So we're heading down to the hotel to make things a little easier.
I sent my son of to daycare this morning with a tearful goodbye - I was crying, not my son. In fact, he just ran in to start playing with his friends and didn't even give me a hug! Oh well, its better that he doesn't feel disrupted or upset through this. I guess the hardest part of this process is spending an entire week away from him. Thank God my mom is here to take care of him or I just couldn't bare it.
I'm off to take care of the last bit of packing. If I'm not on again tonight, everyone wish me luck tomorrow!

I'm now counting down. I can't believe it's so close! The liquid diet is still really diificult and I'm trying to get through each day without sneaking in a bite of cheese or a piece of baked fish. The good part of the diet is its a good distraction from thinking about the surgery.