emergingbutterfly
New Member
Well, as to today is my three month surgerversary I thought I would post a general update on how I have found things so far, how things have changed and how I am feeling etc. It is quite a lot post so to make it more easier to read I have divided it into sections.
General happiness:
I can honestly say that I don’t think I have ever felt happier. The grip food had on me all my life was very wearing and it and the related weight were the one area of my life I could not control and that distressed me. Since surgery I have felt a weight lifted (no pun intended) as I no longer have to diet and no longer have the feeling of failure. My life was a constant obsession of food and what will I eat/what wont I eat and the guilty feelings when I overate and the extreme feelings of failure when I ate healthy and still didn’t lose weight. That is all gone. I am still a little obsessed with food (more later) but not with weight loss. I know now that it will come off. It is only lately I realise that and believe it as for all my life I never lost more than about two stone despite being on a diet for 27 years!!
Health.
I am diagnosed with diabetes in July 2009. It was then I decided to have weight loss surgery as I saw how diabetes affected my grandmother years ago and I was determined not to end up like that. Despite being told that I could control the diabetes with diet, in September 09 I was put on Metformin which I protested against and from then (in my opinion) till December 09 it did very little to reduce my sugar levels. I was convinced that when I returned to the clinic they would increase my dose and eventually I would have ended up in insulin. When I was discharged from Charing Cross after my surgery I was taken off the Metformin and have not needed it since. My levels are now 4. something or 5.something (for those of you that don’t know this is very normal). In short my diabetes is in remission.
Fitness
Six weeks after surgery I started a new contract in Central London which takes about 90 mins door to door and involves walking for 30 mins a day. The first three weeks of this nearly killed me. All I could do was get to work, come home, eat and sleep. Because I was so tired my social life during the week was non existent. My neighbour was banned from calling as I needed to get to bed at nine. I am now in my eight week of work after surgery and feel so much fitter and have way more energy. My social life is back to what it was before surgery (I have always been socialable) whilst I still go to bed early during the week I don’t need as much sleep as I did a few weeks ago. Also, I am sleeping much better than I have in years. I think that this is because there are less stimulates in my body, like caffine and chocolate.
Weight loss
I have today lost 100 pounds. I have many many more to lose but that will go in due course. I have a target I want to reach but three stone either side of it will be sufficient for me. I am very realistic. That said I don’t always feel comfortable about sharing my weight loss. I have always been extremely private about my weight battle and I find it strange telling people outside this site about how much I have lost. In fact apart from family and one or two others I haven’t told anyone. If someone asks me how much I have lost I tell them a couple of stone. If I was to analyse why I am like that I would say that I don’t want anyone calculating how big I was pre –op and also apart from those having surgery themselves I don’t want to be anyone’s case study. This has always been a private battle and I like to keep things private, whilst I may change my mind at a later stage I don’t think I am ever going to be one of those stories you read in a mag saying I lost X amount of stones.
Food.
I have been told by other post opers that I do everything by the book. And it is true. I stuck to the suggested timetable for sloppies, liquid, soft foods etc by the hospital. I am in fact a bit of a scary cat when it comes to trying new foods. The only fruit I have eaten so far is a banana for example. I try new things at home and yes I have been sick, probably on a weekly basis between week 6 and week 12 but it doesn’t bother me as I would rather be sick at home then try new things out. On more than one occasion I have dragged friends from one eating establishment to another and another until I find the place serving the safe jacket pot and beans but it is all about looking after myself and thankfully they don’t mind (well at least I hope they don’t) I stick religiously to the 30 min rule re food and liquid to the point that I time myself when I am eating. I have eaten out and ordered starters to eat whilst everyone else is having a main meal and not minded at all, especially when the bill arrives!! I tend to eat smaller snacky things frequently then full meals but that will change in time and at the moment I am happy with my progress. From day one of the surgery I have kept a food diary to keep track of mainly my protein but also my calories. It took me about six weeks to get up to 60g of protein a day but most days I do it and I try to keep to 1000 calories a day. Sometimes I go over but if I do I find it difficult to eat much the following day so it all evens itself out.
Relationships
Well I was always crap at these so I don’t expect that to change much lol. I have been on one or two dates since the op but at the moment I don’t want to be tied down to anyone, especially as I suspect I may change dramatically. If I do meet someone that rocks my world then so be it, but my motto is unless you are going to rock my world stay the feck out of it. lol
Friendships.
I have always been blessed with close friends and thanks to this site I have made a few more and I am grateful for that. There is something very special about having dinner (or picking at dinner) with other post opers who know how you feel and can share in the excitement of weight loss etc.
Family
As always, my family have been amazing. I intend to share as much of this experience with them as possible. They have watched me gain weight and worried about me so now I want to share all the new exciting things with them too.
Regrets.
Are you kidding me. Not one single one. Not for one second. This has been the best thing that has ever happened to me. If I ever achieve anything else in life I will die happy knowing that I have done this and achieved weight loss. When I was doing my research pre op I asked a lot of post opers if they had any regrets and the majority of them said their only regret was not doing this sooner. I cant say that, as I was not ready to have this op sooner. In reality I always thought it was for those super super sized wheel chair bound Americans (little did I know) and that I was not a candidate despite the fact that I would qualify for surgery at half this size. I would never had had this op if I was not diagnosed with diabetes so I guess every cloud has a silver lining.
Expectations
Hand on heart, everything post op has been much much easier than I thought. I am grateful for all the research I did and the horror stories I read, which prepared me for the worst. I am thankful that I have been one of the very lucky ones and put that down to a brilliant surgeon (Olbers at Charing Cross). I am very excited about the future.
Rewards
For every stone I have lost I buy a charm to wear on a charm bracelet. I also brought a leather handbag for my 50 pound lost and I am supposed to book a weekend in paris for my 5 stone loss and buy a laptop and ipod for my 100 pound mark but because it all happened a lot quicker than I expected I still haven’t booked my weekend away.
Clothes.
For years and years I kept clothes that were too small for me and now almost everything fits me and I am surrounded with clothes and need to have a major clear out. I have treated myself to one or two new things and whilst some may say that I shouldn’t when I have so much and will lose quickly I decided from day one that I would not deprive myself of anything and that I would treat myself regularly. I was worried about getting down and depressed and so far it hasn’t happened. If spending £15 on a new top keeps my spirits up then it is £15 well spent as far as I am concerned. Last Saturday I tried on a top in Ann Harvey and had to ask the assistant for a smaller size, I had to ring my mother after and tell her as that has never happened before in my life. I also have to spend more time getting my work clothes ready as a skirt that had fitted me two weeks ago may just fall off me this week.
Changes
I haven’t noticed that much of a change in my body except being smaller and more able to do things. I wont bore you with the details, I always thought that I was very mobile but it is only now I realise how much more mobile I am these days. Its all good. My shoes are much looser too and my rings are almost falling off. Whilst I don’t notice my weight loss that much, those close to me have noticed and say how good I look.
Looking ahead.
I am very excited about the future and what it can bring. I am keeping a journal and also a weight loss bucket list (a list of things I want to achieve when I have lost weight…including learning how to ride a motorbike….why, well, just because I can!) and look forward to making those things happen. I am very realistic about my body image and loose skin and I don’t worry about it. Yes, I wont be sleeping with Brad Pitt when my skin is hanging off but I will get it sorted in due course and between here and then I intend to make the most of life.
In short, life post op is much better than I expected. I was scared of the operation to the point that I wrote my will and letters of wishes. I am so proud of myself for taking the plunge and I am very grateful to Dr Torsten Olbers who did a brilliant job. I am also very pleased and proud to be part of this site and grateful for all the support I go and look forward to sharing my journey with you all in the future.
EB/X
General happiness:
I can honestly say that I don’t think I have ever felt happier. The grip food had on me all my life was very wearing and it and the related weight were the one area of my life I could not control and that distressed me. Since surgery I have felt a weight lifted (no pun intended) as I no longer have to diet and no longer have the feeling of failure. My life was a constant obsession of food and what will I eat/what wont I eat and the guilty feelings when I overate and the extreme feelings of failure when I ate healthy and still didn’t lose weight. That is all gone. I am still a little obsessed with food (more later) but not with weight loss. I know now that it will come off. It is only lately I realise that and believe it as for all my life I never lost more than about two stone despite being on a diet for 27 years!!
Health.
I am diagnosed with diabetes in July 2009. It was then I decided to have weight loss surgery as I saw how diabetes affected my grandmother years ago and I was determined not to end up like that. Despite being told that I could control the diabetes with diet, in September 09 I was put on Metformin which I protested against and from then (in my opinion) till December 09 it did very little to reduce my sugar levels. I was convinced that when I returned to the clinic they would increase my dose and eventually I would have ended up in insulin. When I was discharged from Charing Cross after my surgery I was taken off the Metformin and have not needed it since. My levels are now 4. something or 5.something (for those of you that don’t know this is very normal). In short my diabetes is in remission.
Fitness
Six weeks after surgery I started a new contract in Central London which takes about 90 mins door to door and involves walking for 30 mins a day. The first three weeks of this nearly killed me. All I could do was get to work, come home, eat and sleep. Because I was so tired my social life during the week was non existent. My neighbour was banned from calling as I needed to get to bed at nine. I am now in my eight week of work after surgery and feel so much fitter and have way more energy. My social life is back to what it was before surgery (I have always been socialable) whilst I still go to bed early during the week I don’t need as much sleep as I did a few weeks ago. Also, I am sleeping much better than I have in years. I think that this is because there are less stimulates in my body, like caffine and chocolate.
Weight loss
I have today lost 100 pounds. I have many many more to lose but that will go in due course. I have a target I want to reach but three stone either side of it will be sufficient for me. I am very realistic. That said I don’t always feel comfortable about sharing my weight loss. I have always been extremely private about my weight battle and I find it strange telling people outside this site about how much I have lost. In fact apart from family and one or two others I haven’t told anyone. If someone asks me how much I have lost I tell them a couple of stone. If I was to analyse why I am like that I would say that I don’t want anyone calculating how big I was pre –op and also apart from those having surgery themselves I don’t want to be anyone’s case study. This has always been a private battle and I like to keep things private, whilst I may change my mind at a later stage I don’t think I am ever going to be one of those stories you read in a mag saying I lost X amount of stones.
Food.
I have been told by other post opers that I do everything by the book. And it is true. I stuck to the suggested timetable for sloppies, liquid, soft foods etc by the hospital. I am in fact a bit of a scary cat when it comes to trying new foods. The only fruit I have eaten so far is a banana for example. I try new things at home and yes I have been sick, probably on a weekly basis between week 6 and week 12 but it doesn’t bother me as I would rather be sick at home then try new things out. On more than one occasion I have dragged friends from one eating establishment to another and another until I find the place serving the safe jacket pot and beans but it is all about looking after myself and thankfully they don’t mind (well at least I hope they don’t) I stick religiously to the 30 min rule re food and liquid to the point that I time myself when I am eating. I have eaten out and ordered starters to eat whilst everyone else is having a main meal and not minded at all, especially when the bill arrives!! I tend to eat smaller snacky things frequently then full meals but that will change in time and at the moment I am happy with my progress. From day one of the surgery I have kept a food diary to keep track of mainly my protein but also my calories. It took me about six weeks to get up to 60g of protein a day but most days I do it and I try to keep to 1000 calories a day. Sometimes I go over but if I do I find it difficult to eat much the following day so it all evens itself out.
Relationships
Well I was always crap at these so I don’t expect that to change much lol. I have been on one or two dates since the op but at the moment I don’t want to be tied down to anyone, especially as I suspect I may change dramatically. If I do meet someone that rocks my world then so be it, but my motto is unless you are going to rock my world stay the feck out of it. lol
Friendships.
I have always been blessed with close friends and thanks to this site I have made a few more and I am grateful for that. There is something very special about having dinner (or picking at dinner) with other post opers who know how you feel and can share in the excitement of weight loss etc.
Family
As always, my family have been amazing. I intend to share as much of this experience with them as possible. They have watched me gain weight and worried about me so now I want to share all the new exciting things with them too.
Regrets.
Are you kidding me. Not one single one. Not for one second. This has been the best thing that has ever happened to me. If I ever achieve anything else in life I will die happy knowing that I have done this and achieved weight loss. When I was doing my research pre op I asked a lot of post opers if they had any regrets and the majority of them said their only regret was not doing this sooner. I cant say that, as I was not ready to have this op sooner. In reality I always thought it was for those super super sized wheel chair bound Americans (little did I know) and that I was not a candidate despite the fact that I would qualify for surgery at half this size. I would never had had this op if I was not diagnosed with diabetes so I guess every cloud has a silver lining.
Expectations
Hand on heart, everything post op has been much much easier than I thought. I am grateful for all the research I did and the horror stories I read, which prepared me for the worst. I am thankful that I have been one of the very lucky ones and put that down to a brilliant surgeon (Olbers at Charing Cross). I am very excited about the future.
Rewards
For every stone I have lost I buy a charm to wear on a charm bracelet. I also brought a leather handbag for my 50 pound lost and I am supposed to book a weekend in paris for my 5 stone loss and buy a laptop and ipod for my 100 pound mark but because it all happened a lot quicker than I expected I still haven’t booked my weekend away.
Clothes.
For years and years I kept clothes that were too small for me and now almost everything fits me and I am surrounded with clothes and need to have a major clear out. I have treated myself to one or two new things and whilst some may say that I shouldn’t when I have so much and will lose quickly I decided from day one that I would not deprive myself of anything and that I would treat myself regularly. I was worried about getting down and depressed and so far it hasn’t happened. If spending £15 on a new top keeps my spirits up then it is £15 well spent as far as I am concerned. Last Saturday I tried on a top in Ann Harvey and had to ask the assistant for a smaller size, I had to ring my mother after and tell her as that has never happened before in my life. I also have to spend more time getting my work clothes ready as a skirt that had fitted me two weeks ago may just fall off me this week.
Changes
I haven’t noticed that much of a change in my body except being smaller and more able to do things. I wont bore you with the details, I always thought that I was very mobile but it is only now I realise how much more mobile I am these days. Its all good. My shoes are much looser too and my rings are almost falling off. Whilst I don’t notice my weight loss that much, those close to me have noticed and say how good I look.
Looking ahead.
I am very excited about the future and what it can bring. I am keeping a journal and also a weight loss bucket list (a list of things I want to achieve when I have lost weight…including learning how to ride a motorbike….why, well, just because I can!) and look forward to making those things happen. I am very realistic about my body image and loose skin and I don’t worry about it. Yes, I wont be sleeping with Brad Pitt when my skin is hanging off but I will get it sorted in due course and between here and then I intend to make the most of life.
In short, life post op is much better than I expected. I was scared of the operation to the point that I wrote my will and letters of wishes. I am so proud of myself for taking the plunge and I am very grateful to Dr Torsten Olbers who did a brilliant job. I am also very pleased and proud to be part of this site and grateful for all the support I go and look forward to sharing my journey with you all in the future.
EB/X
