Face Pics - Had to share

Before --> <--2 weeks after

Okay, it's been a little over 2 weeks, and I thought I'd share a before and after shot of my face! I can tell there's weight loss all over, but I'm not ready to share those "before" shots!! LOL! But this should give you a little bit of an idea of how things are going!!! :) I was hoping to see results in my face/neck area very soon as I was really self-consious about how round it had become and the double chin issue!

As for the rest of me... clothes are getting VERY loose, probably going to need a different size real soon! :)

So exciting!!

Still at 21 lbs.... body is catching up again, I suppose! :) I'm not worried!

2 weeks!

Well.. it's the official 2 week mark since surgery!

I'm amazed at how much healing a body can do in two weeks! I don't have pain anymore, just little "twinges" that remind me that I'm still healing! (no big deal) And my incisions are now scars... hopfully they'll become less noticable with time (Vitamin E!)... but no more open wounds or scabs! Yeahoo!

I can do pretty much anything these days, I just tire easily still... I guess that's probably normal!

And here's the exciting part:

20 POUNDS, BABY! :)

(doin the dance)

Inches

Update on things lost.. so far :)

19 lbs lost
13 inches lost

WOW!!

So excited!!

Plateau?

I'll start off on a positive note, I'm back to losing... I've lost 18 total now. :) (in about 2 weeks)

BUT ... I was a little discouraged the last couple days, because 2 days I stayed the same, and then 1 day I went UP 2 lbs! Oh my.. how could this be???? <--- This question was being replayed in my head over and over all day yesterday!!!

I'm guessing that 17 lbs put my body into a bit of a whirlwind for 1 weeks worth of loss! LOL... and it must have decided to stop and re-evaluate! OR my body was taking some time to analize this new "mush" diet... either way, both Friday and Saturday - I lost nothing. Then on Sunday morning I woke up to 2 extra lbs!!! So scary!!

But today, I woke up and weighed (with dread of what the scale would mock me with today).. and I was down THREE lbs!! Yipee!! I was so excited!! I don't know what I expected, because I'm not doing anything wrong.. but it was still scary!!

So on to another positive week! :) :) This weight loss stuff is fun! :)

Day 2 of Mush Diet

I, of course won't write about this every day... but since it's still new.. it's the important subject of the hour! :)

I'm doing great on the "mush" stage. I feel great, more energized (duh.. no more broth), walking everyday (3 laps around my street), and I'm not having trouble with anything I've tried so far! Except GUM...

I finally analized that I have never had a problem swallowing gum before.. so I thought.. I'll try it! I LOVE GUM! Yeah... not anymore.. it puts so much air into the little pouch... you feel like you gulped a big amount of something, but you can tell it's air!! NO FUN! Buh-bye gum! I think I'll go for a sugar free hard candy of some sort instead.

Other than that, not much to write about today.

I lost another pound! 17 total! :) I'm on a roll!

Day 1 of Mush Diet!

Today started off very energized and pain-free.. Yea!!

I woke up, did my devotion time, then immediately went out to walk (Nathan and Sydney go with me, too) and increased the number of laps around my street this time to 3!! Felt great and accomplished, considering this is the 1 week mark from surgery day! WOW!

Then I cooked some cream of wheat (plain) and added 1 tsp of margerine, and some salt. I measured me out 2 tbsp which was just right. Tasted heavenly.... though I'm not naive...after 8 days of broth... anything tastes good! :) The cream of wheat was tolerated JUST FINE! :)

By this time I was a little in need of a break (did alot in an hour, endurance is still an issue).... so I laid down for a little nap... not so bad!

Then for lunch, I took Nathan through the drive thru of Taco Bell... ordered him tacos, and ordered myself Pinto's and Cheese.. YUM! And I just ate my 2 tbsp of that and am tolerating that just fine too!! :) YEAHOO! I was a little worried about the beans, since they are heavy, but it was just fine, I just ate very slow!

I was looking forward to this day, but also fearful (to be honest), because I was afraid that I would find I couldn't tolerate actual food, and that when introduced, I would be sick! But all is well... and I feel good about this next 2 weeks! Oh the posibilities of MUSH! :) LOL!!!

Mush = anything you want, put into a blender and made into baby-food consistency. (Staying away from bread, pasta, rice, etc for 2-3 months, they gum up...Also staying away from high fat, high sugar foods... blended or not)

Lost another pound today.. total: 16

1 week Post-op appointment

Well.. today it's been almost a week.

I think about what this day was like for me last week.... (seems like so long ago), I was starving... having been on liquid diet for going on 2 days, my head hurt, I was just not having that much fun. But I was excited for surgery the next day, lots of anticipation, last minute though-processes, etc. They called that night and rescheduled me for a later time which was a let down of sorts, because I really wanted to just get it done! :) But, as we know, it all worked out just fine! :)

Now this week... post-surgery... I'm still on the same diet.. and other than being tired of liquid and broth and needing to "Chew" something... I really am not hungry hardly at all... this little pouch is amazing! I know it grows a little in the healing process and you become a little more hungry... but for right now ..that's where I'm at!

So back to today, I had to be a the doctor at 8:00 am and I drove myself! Yipee!! :) I got there, and they weighed me and then showed me into a room. I was dreading this part to tell you the truth... staple removal .... I was so scared... I was praying! :) But you know what?? It wasn't that bad! It burned and stung a little bit, but she was fast at removing them and next thing I know... all done! (Thank you GOD!)

Then I attended a Nutrition class again, and got my orders for the next 2 weeks... all so much clearer to me than the first time I went... I'm guessing because it's REAL now.. :) I took lots of notes on what gets stuck, what causes dumping, what will make me vomit, etc... So hopefully when I start eating puree' foods tomorrow, I'll make the right choices! One interesting thing I learned was that my opening from stomach to intestins is the size of a drinking straw! Interesting fact!!!

My friend tells me that Taco-Bell Pinto's and cheese was one of her first "meals"... I think that sounds yummy for me too! Beans are a good source of protein, and Taco-Bell's are the right consistency (they must be thin and more runny.. not the type that "plop" on the plate).. So I look forward to that.. wish me luck. I'll try (for the sake of the journey) to post foods that work ... though not all foods are the same for all people.. but I'm blogging MY journey.. so it works for this blog! :)

I saw Dr. Felix after the class, he gave me a good clean bill of health, reminded me about liquid intake, vitamins, care of wounds, etc.... and then told me to come back in 3 weeks! The nutrition instructor told me I'd be on puree for 2 weeks before I graduated to regular eating... but I'm not sure if I'm allowed to go to any new stages unless Dr. Felix clears me to do so.(And I don't see him again for 3 weeks) If I can't get clarification, I'm gonna take the safe route. He said that this stage is to get me used to food, but also to test out my opening and make sure I don't develop "stenosis" which is the closing of your opening from stomach to intestines, due to scaring.

So all is well... tomorrow I get to start a new phase of my diet.. so glad to be done with broth! :)

Total Pounds Lost: 15

(I'll try to do inches again soon)