pretty-pink

big NSV - me posting these pictures
as DH posted pic - he looked at me and said "I don't remember you looking like that."
Either do i!!!! strange!!!
the times they are a changing
i feel like the happiest person in the world
I'm enjoying life to the fullest
what a great "thing" i did for myself, having WLS
DOS
12/15/11
235 lbs
5'3
3/30/13
130 lbs
GOAL
59 years young
still 5'3

Were do i start. Am I going to start. As many of you know I was sleeved on the 19th of Feb, the surgery went quite well, my Dr said my liver was lovely. The problems for me started after the surgery and boy did they start. They went to remove the intubation tube and then it started, vocal chords started to spasm, Fluid started to fill my lungs, throat begin to swell, the it shut down, clamped closed. I WASN'T BREATHING!!!!!!they were able to reintubate me breathing begin again. I guessed they tried again to remove the tube later and again I WASN'T BREATHING!!!!!!!!! (long pause, this is very emotional for me) after 2 attempts ti reintubate me to help to breathe I was placed on a vetilator, I COULD NO LONGER BREATHE ON MY OWN!!!!!! For 3 days I was on the lifesaving machine and in the ICU for 3 days. on that morning I was able to be moved to med/surg and on the floor for 5 more days. My blood sugar stayed in the medium 60's nothing they did would keep it elevated for more than 10 minutes at a time, we had to do something. In addition my blood pressure stayed dangerously low, heart rate seemed to race just because it was 2 o clock. My throat was very very sure and felt as if something was stuck there. Which was very very possible due to all the trauma it endure ...BUT I WAS ALIVE, I WAS ALIVE!!!!!!!!! It seemed has though one problem gets fixed another erupted. Drinking anything even sucking on ice chips was a major task not because of the sleeve but because of my throat, yes you guessed it I WAS DEHYDRATED, SEVERELY DEHYDRATED!!!!!!!! so what do you do increase IV fluids, that seemed to pose another problem within itself.....THE FLUID WAS NOT LEAVING!!!!!!!!!They really wanted me to take in fluid on my own, not possible I told them, I felt like something was stuck in my throat, I was feeling full up to my nose ok, FULL UP TO MY NOSE!!!!!! All I did was watch trays come and go come and go. My urine output was disgustingly low, no where near what it should have been for all the fluids I was taking in. I forgot to mention I hadn't had a bowel movement since the day before surgery. So nothing is MOVING NOT GOING ANYWHERE. but guess what I WAS BREATHING AND I WAS ALIVE BREATHING WITHOUT ANYHELP!!!!!!!! Despite those problems I m still thankful to be alive. I could barely walk for various reason , being lightheaded and dizzy due to low sugar and blood pressure, pain my entire abdominal region, my vision was effected also it sucked it sucked to be me........BUT MY GOD I WAS ALIVE!!!!!!!!!!! so what did I do I got up and walked when physical therapy came in. Could I walk on my own BUT OF COURSE NOT!!!!!!!!SHE CAME IN WITH A WALKER......OMG A WALKER.... But I kept pushing.......I WAS GOING TO SURVIVE AND SURVIVE VICTORIOUSLY. There was no way I was walking out of that hospital with a walker, a cane, or oxygen....I neglected to tell you my oxygen level keep dropping down in the eighties.........BUT PEOPLE PLEASE LISTEN TO ME I AM ALIVE TO TELL HOW I BECAME A MIRACLE!!!!! This got really long and I am sorry. SOLUTIONS: how do we control the sugar fluids with D5 to keep sugars stabilized ...yes working, Blood pressure....still stumped on this one, increase the fluids, ahhh but a problem it is not leaving.....it's not were it is supposed to be either because my blood pressure is still low. feeling full to my nose, ahh lets try a suppository, embarrassed because someone now has to place something in my bottom, nope and why you ask, I AM ALIVE AND I BREATHE ON MY OWN... but guess what it didnt work, so what do we do , lets try 2 suppositories then, okay guess what nothing i mean nothing, but I am walking a little further now, refused to use the walker, just me a nurse and the trusty IV pole. I notice something strange though as i increase my walking distance, nurses, hospital staff members whom all see to know me were happy to see me up and walking, and so happy for me and how they prayed for me. I was none as the nurse in the ICU that works in corrections...During my 5 days on the medsurg floor those miss days from my life slowly begin to get filled in. One nurse Natalie even told me she was complaining to me one day she knew i would understand because i was a nurse, i asked her what I said she said i shook my head in agreement and went back out....But to finish up before I put you all to sleep, things got better slowly, I had a moment one evening wasn't pleasant, there was lots of tears lots of crying from me my nursing caregivers...my emotional stability was on the verge of eternal decline. I was nausea extremely nauseated, once i started vomiting which amounted to almost nothing except fluids were coming from everywhere, the pain during this episode was incredible, i was embarrassed wishing i had never done the surgery, hating myself for putting myself through this torture But all that was endure during was my turn around, my breaking point so to speak, after 2 days and night sleeping in a chair because laying was to painful and uncomfortable, that wonderful nursing staff at St Joseph East Hospital cleaned me up, restarted my iv which gave up after 4 days of fluids meds and blood draws had to be redone, dressed me in a clean gown dabbed my head with cool towels, held my hands, hug me cried put me to bed and assured me all is going to be okay as i cried and sniffled they covered me up with a sheet and my afghan brought from home, told me they love me and try and get some rest.....(crying now),things begin to get better.........and eventually i came home this week and have been reflecting over the past fews days and the changes that are going to take place in my life. Surprising to some reflecting doesn't really include loosing weight, it's going to happen that's why I had the surgery, but because I had a life altering experience living as i did prior to 2/19 can not be the same and will not be, am i going to crazy and start wilding out HECK NO, to old for that.......but life now has become even more precious to me than before and I am going to treat it as such...........I went in for a sleeve and came out with a new lease on life....................................

It does get easier!

I do cardiac progressive care. Since I was restricted on how much I could lift for 6 weeks I took the full 8 weeks and it was great. It gave me a chance to cement new eating habits and I started working out with a trainer at 5 weeks. I went back to work refreshed & renewed. I am 4 months out and have lost 75 pounds!

Had a patient once who referred to the area as her "precious". Gave a whole new perspective when I saw "lord of the rings"!!

I do cardiac progressive care. Since I was restricted on how much I could lift for 6 weeks I took the full 8 weeks and it was great. It gave me a chance to cement new eating habits and I started working out with a trainer at 5 weeks. I went back to work refreshed & renewed. I am 4 months out and have lost 75 pounds!

I think thin bald girls are sexy

I scrub my deflated belly with a loofah-type sponge thing to get off the dead skin and then rub it with moisturizer. I am going for elasticity. I think it is helping but I can't trust me, I've fooled me before.

I am addicted to my flintstones gummy vitamins. I wish there was something small & chewy that was full of Protein & tasted good!

If you choose to share with others, that is fine. If you choose not to, that is fine as well. Everyone has their own personal reasons for choosing to share or not share. That is what is amazing about our bodies, it is the one thing we truly own and can choose to do with as we please. Your body, your choice. It is not my place to judge whether you choose to share you choice to have surgery with others, anymore than it is your place to judge me and whether I chose to share my choice. I also choose to be respectful of your choices, and not place labels upon you for those choices.

Some people are just more private than others.
Guess what? That's perfectly fine. Not everyone is just like you.
Thank goodness.

Even people on this board, who don't know you in "real life" are trying to make you justify your reasons for telling whomever you choose to tell, or not to tell. Here you can click off and walk away, it's not that simple in real life. Why does someone's decision to share or not share an intimate detail of their life matter to complete strangers? Do you. Don't criticize or try to guilt others with words like truth, lies, and liar. Everyone's truth is relative to their own journey. You can't judge how any one walks their path.

Umm, sure it is. We have already proven to ourselves (and everybody else) that we dont have what it takes to stick to the diet & exercise thing on our own. Many of us have tried every other gimmick under the sun to lose weight, and failed. We are food addicts (most of us anyhow). If there were a surgery that could cure alcohol, drug, gambling, or porn addictions would there be any objections to using those surgeries? I think not. We have a weakness when it comes to food. Therefore we NEED help. We need this to be as "easy" as it can be. And let me tell you, after over 6 months with my sleeve, when your stomachs capacity is 6-8oz total, it's pretty damn easy to not eat a 16oz steak, or a whole pizza, or 4 slices of cheesecake.
When someone makes the remark "that's the easy way" I have to agree. Last I checked we are always searching out easier ways of doing almost everything.
Cars are so much easier than bicycles
The Internet is easier than encyclopedias
Tractors are easier than a horse & plow
Debit cards are easier than writing checks or carrying cash
Pre prepared foods are easier than scratch cooking
Since when is making something easier a bad thing?

What is mine is mine, and this surgery was mine. I decided that I was ready for it, I picked the doctor, and I constantly massage the staples in my stomach. If I choose to share with someone, that decision will be MINE as well. This is a tool, right, not a guarantee to a size six. I'm still going to have to work harder, longer, more than ever before to reach my goals; so if someone skinny comes up to me with a "you used to be fat," question, I will tell them about the hard work I have to endure to now be worthy of that question.
However, on the other side of the coin I also won't wander up to randomly overweight people and tell them either. I had it done to me, and its not the greatest feeling in the world. If they ask, absolutely I will tell them! But if I choose to. Because that choice is mine as well. I know some fat haters. To me it's like this, would I casually answer a question about how many people I've been with? No, and you would get a knuckle sandwich for asking, so why would I relay other intimate details of my life? This is as personal a choice as it gets, parting with a piece of yourself, when there are other alternatives (some would say) out there. WLS isn't one size fits all, so do what makes YOU comfortable. It's YOUR decision and YOUR life, you're not wrong for your choice.

I love curves, no men allowed and not a lot of skinny women. It's a great place to get started. If I have to do it at home I won't do it, I have to go somewhere to be accountable.

You can just get a bowl of black beans on the side, with or without rice. It's part of the new menu. Plus the people should have no problem modifying stuff to fit your diet. I work for taco Bell and we have no problem giving people a little bowl of chicken and beans for surgery patients.

PROTEIN:
chicken
Chicken breast, 3.5 oz - 30 grams Protein
Chicken thigh – 10 grams (for average size)
Drumstick – 11 grams
Wing – 6 grams
Chicken meat, cooked, 4 oz – 35 grams

Fish
Most fish fillets or steaks are about 22 grams of Protein for 3 ½ oz (100 grams) of cooked fish, or 6 grams per ounce
Tuna, 6 oz can - 40 grams of protein

Pork
Pork chop, average - 22 grams protein
Pork loin or tenderloin, 4 oz – 29 grams
Ham, 3 oz serving – 19 grams
Ground pork, 1 oz raw – 5 grams; 3 oz cooked – 22 grams
Bacon, 1 slice – 3 grams
Canadian-style bacon (back bacon), slice – 5 – 6 grams

eggs and Dairy
Egg, large - 6 grams protein
Milk, 1 cup - 8 grams
Cottage cheese, ½ cup - 15 grams
Yogurt, 1 cup – usually 8-12 grams, check label
Soft cheeses (Mozzarella, Brie, Camembert) – 6 grams per oz
Medium cheeses (Cheddar, Swiss) – 7 or 8 grams per oz
Hard cheeses (Parmesan) – 10 grams per oz

Beans (including soy)
Tofu, ½ cup 20 grams protein
Tofu, 1 oz, 2.3 grams
Soy milk, 1 cup - 6 -10 grams
Most Beans (black, pinto, lentils, etc) about 7-10 grams protein per half cup of cooked beans
Soy beans, ½ cup cooked – 14 grams protein
Split peas, ½ cup cooked – 8 grams

Nuts and Seeds
Peanut Butter, 2 Tablespoons - 8 grams protein
Almonds, ¼ cup – 8 grams
Peanuts, ¼ cup – 9 grams
Cashews, ¼ cup – 5 grams
Pecans, ¼ cup – 2.5 grams
Sunflower seeds, ¼ cup – 6 grams
pumpkin seeds, ¼ cup – 8 grams
Flax seeds – ¼ cup – 8 grams

Ok,a bit of tough love here.Take it,leave it,do with it what you want..(as they say in the movies)
Clearly you broke up for some reason which was not related to your weight.But clearly you want to be a thin,normal,healthy girl,right? Thats why you had surgery.
Why take a step back into the past now when you need to move forward,into a new life with a skinny body?
You want a fetish free man in your life girl..lol.People with a fetish will 100% be an enabler of bad habits.You dont need the distraction of past issues to derail the course of your life now.You've got a long way to go with the weight loss and this ex issue already made you cry.
Go see a therapist.Get closure.Lose weight get fit get healthy and then you will meet the love of your life,the one you will spend the rest of your new life with.
For now,focus on yourself for a while at least.

Oh booooobs.....I lost my man boobs too. They have been replaced by these things called pecs.

My books have gotten smaller every since I discovered kindle. Plus I feel like I'm helping the environment by not buying all that paper.

Walked 1.75 miles today with my daughter. There was lots of inclines on the path. My daughter commented after just a short ways that I WAS NOT huffing & puffing like I did prior to VSG!! great NSV!

I thought I was the only one too!! Even toothpaste left yucky taste for hours. I'm 7 1/2 weeks out and smells & tastes are still very off but not as bad the first month, thank goodness!

My cup size is a nice c!

I had to fart in public yesterday because something gave me extra gas. Prayed more than once, no SHARTS please! They were answered.

I'm wondering about the wrinkles I don't even know I have because they are all fluffed up and spread out with extra face fat. I'm afraid I'll look like a rumpled paper bag.