Happy New Year

Hello world!! I'm thinking since I've got all the surgeries I can stand out of the way and my motivation back, now is as good a time as any to start blogging again. I can't promise I'll have lots to say, but actually using my blog to clear my mind is gonna relieve stress and get me back to losing weight.

Just a catch up:
April 6 - 227lbs, had a hysterectomy, luckily we had decided 2 kids was enough so it wasn't a shock or disappointment to make the decision. IMO, don't have your tubes tied, I had difficult periods before but damn-dammit, it all went to hell after the tubal. The surgery was laparoscopic but the swelling held on for months. Losing inches during the healing process was exciting.

August - went to the general surgeon because my lapband port was sore. Jackass says well we can just convert you to the sleeve. Umm, I didn't ask for conversion!! He sends me to ultrasound, they can't see the band, why the hell am I here? I immediately requested a 2nd opinion with a non-military doctor. Michael Blaney, I loves him!! He did my moms GB 3 years ago so I was super excited to see him. He ordered a barium swallow, scheduled for Sept 20. Could see it was too tight and then couldn't access the port. Damn thing was flipped over. 223 lbs

Oct 1, port replacement surgery. Low profile and moved it closer to my mid-line. It was flipped more than 120 degrees and the new position puts it on the naturally flatter part of the abdominal wall.

Nov 6, x-rays and barium swallow. Everything is great, 5cc total fill and I'm down to 218 :)

Finally we are in current times, I'm in a 16 jeans from Gap!! Say what?! When I was a 16 everywhere else, I couldn't wear a 16 @ Gap, I slipped right into those long and leans like they were made for me. AND they make my butt look great! Hubby will finally be back from the sandbox in a couple days, Thing 1 just turned 5 and Thing 2 will be 3 in March and somehow I've managed to keep all of us alive, clean and well fed during the ridiculousness 2012 brought our way.

Hubby and I have talked about jogging together once he's back and I'm excited to do it. I've purchased three pairs of sneakers in the past 3 months, can't wait to see how they road test.

As of today I weigh 216, that's exciting to me as well because how the hell does anybody manage to still lose 2lbs through the holidays? I ate really really well, whatever I wanted. All I can think is I really listened to my body and portion control came easy for once.

Til next time
~rah

hi

I really am sucking at this blogging thing. My 1 yr bandiversary has come and gone, my scale is hanging out at 218 and Friday I'm having major surgery. Life is a bitch right now :( Hubby is in the sandbox doing help-desk type work, the food is not that great so I've been sending all kinds of goodies. I've been really good about not keeping crap foods in the house, now to manage my night time eating. I'm still adjusting to him being gone and the kids were taking it really hard, 6 weeks has really made a difference for all of us. I can finally sleep more than 5 hours, our daughter doesn't think every time the laptop is on we're using Skype and our son is finally talking to me about his feelings. He said he's sad and misses Daddy, and he's mad that I said he had to go to work. It makes me think he thinks it's my fault daddy had to go. I hope time and skype and emails will help him realize that this is his work. Anywho, I'm still around, trying to prepare my house and kids for the surgery, my mom is here so we're not alone.

xoxo

~rah

New Year, New plan

So the past month has been filled with family friends and carbs BUT the last 5 or so months has been looking at the same number on my scale +/- 5 lbs. I'm frustrated with my band. I'm frustrated with the war, my band doc deployed in October. I'm frustrated with the timing of this move to GA. I'm REALLY frustrated with the amount of begging I feel like I'm having to do to get some friggin health care. Just to catch anyone up, Hubby is in the military, we were in TX when I was banded and since he is deploying again soon *tear* I decided to move back home to GA. Our son has food/seasonal allergies, eczema and asthma that was just diagnosed and our daughter has minor diary allergies. This past summer I was diagnosed with food allergies to ALL meats including fish and shellfish, most beans, dairy and soy and half the damn vegetables grown on the planet.

back to the present Ever since that point, my diet has been screwed and my weight stalled. It's really hard to get in enough protein without some type of reaction, nothing deadly just big discomfort for a few days. I can't say it's worth it to eat something I know my body will react so negatively to.  Ya know what, we're family and everyone else discusses everything under the sun, I will too. I get bloating/gas/constipation/loose stools/itching hands/feet/mouth/palms mean/angry/bitchy/nauseous or some combination of all of these. With everything I've tried has some reaction whether I notice it right away or not. 

I went to the nutritionist with my list of allergies and we tried to work out some things that I could eat to maintain protein but it's hard when NO ONE else in this damn house will eat those things. It's hard enough making 2 meals because the kids are picky but to throw in a 3rd is just out of the damn question. I'm starting to believe the band is not for me. A lot of the things we came up with are things that don't agree with my band. With that and the stalled weight loss in mind, I'm leaning toward a revision to the gastric sleeve, limits quantity but not as sensitive to texture as the band. I know everyone is different but I see a bigger benefit, eat the things I need to and lose the weight I want, or stay fat, itchy and angry with the lap band.

 

So now the trouble with health care, the military base is not at it's capacity for patients and since we have 100% coverage they're refusing to send me into the city for care. I asked for a referral to a bariatric doc and dammit to hell they have one, so I'm stuck there too. My appt with them is Jan 9, doesn't seem so bad considering it's 25 Dec but I went to the doc 9 Dec for the referral o_O, had it been over 30 days they'd have to send me out, but noooooo, they HAD to have one appointment left just for me. I went to that department to find out about a fill and if they do flouroscopy and numb the injection site, big fat NO to both. Are you kidding me? My port is tilted, has always been and I've seen Dr Acheson fight to get the damn needle in, uh, there's no way they can go at me without anesthesia. I guess I'll have to talk to the surgeon about that too. The referring doc made note of my concern to switch to sleeve so the surgeon is supposed to check that out too. Since they don't do flouro, I"ll be scheduled a separate appointment to have a swallow study done then go back to the surgeon to follow up. It feels like a lot of wasted time and gas driving up there for something that would have been done in one visit in TX AT the damn base hospital (((grrrrrrrr))) The resources here are definitely limited, it's a training base, they don't have many civilians to see for care. It's mostly retirees, or old people, they don't have the need for upgrades and things because they are so used to caring for soldiers or people who don't have young children and other shit to do than wait 3 hours for an appointment. I'm seriously considering changing to 80% care and paying the difference, it will get the kids seen a hell of a lot quicker even if I have to drive across town for it. I'll revisit that idea after March when they've both gotten physicals and are up to date on vaccinations LOL

Thanks for reading all this, I had to get it off my brain, it is really causing me distress. I'm gonna go cuddle with my hubby for the next 13 days.

~ttyl

Hello World!!

So what had happened was my laptop died early November. Knowing that the move was coming and there were other things to spend on, I went without a computer. My cell was enough for basic stuff but writing a blog post wasn't happening. Tonight hubby and I left the kids with my sister and went Christmas shopping for the kids. We stopped for dinner and he suggested we walk around Best Buy, he's a nerd so wanting to go there wasn't odd. Once we were there he said 'You have $700, pick a computer' straight to the point but not romantic at all ;-) 

My weight dropped 7lbs during the week leading to the move but all 7 came back, brought friends AND TOM, not happy about that but I know that it was probably dehydration coupled htwith not eating AT ALL for 4   days, I lived on coffee. Once I started drinking again and trying to eat more regularly and TOM of course, the weight came back. It's really time to do measurements, I think for as long as I've been stalled the inches are gonna be the biggest reflection of good habits.

The new house is beautiful, the realtor we're renting through is a real bitch but that will get worked out I'm sure. If not by me, then hubby.

Thanks for sticking around during my radio silence :) It's probably gonna take me some time to get in the blogging habit but I am here now 

~ttyl

Hello, anybody here?

I'm alive......just counting down the days til I get the hell outta Texas. Trying to do all the briefings we have to do with the Army to schedule movers and leave on post housing without too much incident or $. Not too much happening on the scale, I've been lucky to maintain at 222 despite the stress. I will be back, I promise.

~ttyl

a new month, no new season

Did Mother Nature miss a memo? Isn't Labor Day supposed to be the last weekend of summer? Why is it 106 degrees again? That broad is trippin' and I got suckered in to believing the cooler days from 10 days ago were here to stay. I'm not asking for much, 90-98 is fine with me, I wouldn't complain, for a few months at least.

Working out was going well, I had that week of total craziness and lost 6 lbs. I've committed to eating just what I need to be satisfied, not going overboard and if I think I want more, waiting 20-30 min before I make that move. Last week the organized working out was replaced by running around and primping for the Signal Ball. I should have the professional photo by the end of the week. Hubby looked so handsome in his dress uniform, I loves that man! My babies are still at Yai's house (grandma), they are having so much fun they don't even have time to talk to me :( I'm hoping to roll up to TN and kidnap my children back at the end of next week. 

Just wanted to give a quick update. 

~ttyl

working out

This morning I got up at 830 fixed a protein shake that rivals a Starbucks frappe and went to the gym. I walked the treadmill for 45 min at 3.2mph and 4.5 incline, that was crazy in an of it self but I needed to move my ass. Then I came home and did about 30 of the Insanity DVD's, that shit is INSANE!! I couldn't do all the moves or even last a minute on the ones I could do but I didn't stop moving. I had to sit for an hour before I showered because I was still sweating. Not damp shirt, bra, socks, I but having to mop my brow for new sweat beads before it gets into my eyes for a solid hour after I sat my ass still. IT FELT SO GOOD!!! I had heard about a Zumba-thon for an instructor that is leaving the area, it was at a gym in the city and would be free to the public. I did 2 hours of Zumba, on top of everything I did this morning, and I'm gonna do it again tomorrow. Maybe not the Zumba, although there is a class tomorrow night at my usual place, I think tomorrow will be the treadmill with a little jogging thrown in and then I'll come home and do pilates on Netflix.

The local weight loss group asked if we had any goals for September
1.  to go get my babies from grandma's house, I miss them sooooo much (it's been 3 weeks so far)
2.  to get back on track with eating
3. to continue exercising and hopefully start running, for real
4. to lose at least 15 lbs this month, REGARDLESS of TOM fluctuation I know I will gain 3-5lbs but it can go just as quickly as it came

I'm gonna beg hubby to massage my calves before we go to bed

xoxo
~ttyl