Getting Back Down

Right after the bariatric surgeries, I lost weight right along with the rest of the family -- not as quickly, and not as extreme, but still...


And then, what with everything else, I've slowly put weight back on. A lot of that has been absolutely my fault. I've experienced a real sense of loss and deprivation as the family just quit eating, and more to the point, quit caring about eating. I've joked, many times over the months, that I was going to go onto some sort of dating site and look for a "food buddy." In my mind, a "food buddy" wouldn't want anything more than to share a pleasant dinner and a decent bottle of wine now and then -- just someone who could eat a grownup meal without the potential for puking... In the absence of a "food buddy," I've tended to compensate with fast food burgers, and so I've gained about 20 pounds.

At the peak, I was up to about 198 pounds. That was just enough to kick me into determined mode, and I've been slowly losing weight over the last 6-8 weeks. So, as of this morning, I am down by 7 pounds to 191. That's not great, but it is movement in the right direction.

I feel like I'm a very long way from my ideal weight, but I'm working on it and seeing progress, so maybe that is good.

swan

One Year Later

It is late.
We've had a hell of a week, month, year...
We're tired and stressed out and sad and scared and ...
But ... this is a date that ought to be noted before it passes.
One year ago today, Master and T embarked, with great bravery on a path that would forever change their lives -- we hoped for the better.  It has not been an easy path.  There has been pain and suffering and a very great deal of adjusting as both of them have worked to learn to live with their very significantly altered digestive systems.  With all of that, between them they've lost some 222 pounds.  That's notable, and I want it noted here in this place -- before we all move on. 

I am awfully proud of the two of them.  I am thrilled for the new and healthier lives that they have ahead of them because of this choice.  Some few, sour souls have insinuated that there was a lack of discipline that set all of this in motion -- made it necessary.  That's just pure, ignorant nonsense.  There are real medical reasons why some people cannot successfully control their weight, and there are weight driven morbidity issues that make finding a way to conquer the issue a critical life decision.  Choosing the path of bariatric surgery is not a simple decision, and anyone who believes it somehow provides an easy fix is just an uninformed fool.  The surgery gave my Master and my T the tools they needed to get control of their weight issues.  It was not any sort of magic.  They have done the work, made the changes, and won the battle.  Today, in the midst of everything else happening in our lives, I want to shout from the housetops that this is a "birthday" of sorts and deserves its own celebration.

swan

Valentine's Day -- A Year Later

One year ago, we took some pictures of Master and T on Valentine's day. They were glowing and wonderful, and so clearly in love -- but they were also, clearly, two people who had lost the battle with obesity...

Then, on March 23, 2009, they both had bariatric surgery for weight loss. Master had rouen y gastric bypass, and T had sleeve gastrectomy. They each recovered -- T quickly and easily, and Master with great difficulty and terrible pain. We learned our way along the path to a brand new relationship with food and eating and exercise and a whole host of new body-image issues and understandings. We went through an enormous pile of discarded, too-big clothes. Master joked that He was renting clothes from Goodwill as we purchased and then donated back bags and bags and more bags of garments.

As we moved through the year, Master lost 142 pounds and T lost 80 pounds. They are, today, both much lighter and much healthier.

And so, we come around the year to another Valentine's day, 2010. So, we got out the camera and took some more pictures -- and here they are. My lighter, but and even more beautiful Valentines... swan

Cheering Section

Our walks take us out and through and around our neighborhood. We walk six laps -- around and around and around. It isn't a big neighborhood, and we spend an hour and a half each day (or at least most days). We've been at it since April, and we've reached the status of a regular event with those who live around us.

The changes in that time are dramatic, as those who read here are aware, and it has reached the point where our walking is often interrupted by neighbors who drive by and roll down their car window and comment and cheer for the obvious progress. Just yesterday, one lady who lives up the street from us, commented on the weight loss, and when He reported his now 121 pound loss, she said, "WOW! I'm proud of You!"

That sort of response is so genuine and so heart felt, and it comes from people that we mostly know by sight but not by name. It is really amazing and a little bit stunning. It reminds us that people do see us and do pay attention, and that the change in our lives is one that has, in some small way, changed the world around us.

swan

That was Then, This is Now

I am continually fascinated by the incredible changes that have come about as we've progressed through this process. Just the other day, Master had occasion to "dress up" for a photo shoot at His office. We got Him all gussied up and on His way, and as it turned out, the photo ended up being a really good one. Then we got to talking about the event that we attended last October -- another one of those "dress up" occasions. We took some photos then, too. Just in case you were wondering, this is a really good illustration of the benefits of bariatric weight loss surgery...

This was October, 2008:And this is August, 2009:

Pictues at Four Months.

It has been four months since the surgery. Here are pictures, taken today. On the left, are pictures that we took in the days just before the surgery -- for comparison with the newest photos on the right...

Alien?

I want to mostly talk about the hernia that Tom has developed at the site of the main incision from His bariatric surgery, but before I get to that, I wanted to give you another look at how significant the physical changes that we are seeing really are. Three months ago, on Sunday, April 5, we took some pictures of the, then pretty new, belly wounds. Of course, you cannot take pictures of "belly wounds" without also taking a picture of the belly. Back in April, the belly was something to behold...

Today, the belly is much smaller. Take a look...

But, as slim as He is getting, there is this hernia that is beginning to look like something right out of a science fiction movie. Our primary care doctors do not seem to think that this "critter" is presenting any immediate medical problem, but it really does seem to be getting bigger day by day, and He is beginning to talk about consulting with the surgeon who did the stomach bypass about correcting this...

We are Ten Weeks Today!

Here are some photo "collages" that give a sense of where we are with this process. Today, Master and Teresa are ten weeks post-operative. These picture sets show them at 4 weeks, 6 weeks, and 10 weeks.

swan

Living in the Closet

About three years ago, I spent a chunk of my summer vacation time sorting out all of the accumulated clothing that Master had accumulated as His weight fluctuated up and down ... shorts, shirts, pants, sweaters, and jackets ranging from size 38 to size 50. By the time I was done I had four gigantic Rubbermaid bins full to the very top. The bins are equipped with wheels which is a good thing because when the bins are full, they are too heavy for me to move.

As we've gone through the rapid weight loss of the last couple of months, I've begun to drag the giant bins back in from the garage, and start wading through them and restocking His closet with clothes that fit. From 52's to 50's to 48's to 46's, His pant size has steadily dropped. That has also been true with shirts as He's come down from 3X and 19-1/2 inch neck sizes to 2x and size 18 necks. This weekend, once again, I've been in the closet, pulling out all the things that are too big, and replacing them with things that do fit. I've removed every pair of pants larger than size 48, and all the shirts that are larger than an 18" neck. I have 13 trash bags full of items to haul to the local Goodwill donation center -- and there's more to do!

They never told us that we'd spend the first year after surgery living in the damn closet!

swan

Weight Loss Graphs

Photos are one thing, but I have a bent toward the mathematical. Master keeps a daily log of His weight and blood sugar. T has been keeping hers too. When that data is put into graphs, it shows exactly the kind of change that is occuring...

swan

One Month Photos

We began this journey on March 9, when the pre-surgical diet started. On that day, Master weighed 301 pounds and T weighed 268 pounds.

We are now one month into all of this, and almst three weeks post-surgery. As of this morning, Master has lost 42 pounds and T has lost 32.

We took pictures at the beginning, and it is our plan to keep taking photos at intervals as we go along, so here are photos at this one month milestone --

Friday Evening Update

It is Friday evening, and I have been here at the hospital with Master since about 12:30 this afternoon. When I arrived this afternoon, He was miserable. He complained of more or less continuous "regurgitation" of liquid into His throat in quantities that would certainly cause choking if He were not constantly swallowing and/or spitting it into a basin. The coughing and throat clearing and gagging attendant upon all of that was making His already tender belly very sore and achy. On top of that, He hadn't slept (except in brief snatches of a few minutes here and there) in well over 24 hours. Now, some 6 hours later, He is freshly showered and installed in bed, resting comfortably for the first time in about a day and a half.


The working diagnosis, at this point, is that Master has a post-operative ileus -- a temporary paralysis of a part of the intestine, causing food and liquids to back up rather than flowing through as they should. This is apparently a fairly common complication after abdominal surgery. The doctors do not seem to be terribly concerned, and are basically telling us that the treatment of choice is to "rest" the


I've been in regular contact with T, who remains at home, and she continues to do well and feel good. She has reduced her pain medication, and feels really well. We've discussed it, and as it stands right now, I'll likely spend the night here at the hospital with Master. If T needs me, a phone call can take me to her side in about 25 minutes.

One really good piece of news in all of this confusion and worry -- As of this morning, four days out from surgery, Teresa has lost a total of 21 pounds. How kewl is that?

swan

Day 1

We made it through the first day of the liquid protein regimen.
None of us felt terrific. We had headaches and nausea and just a general lack of energy and vitality most of the day.
Still, we made it, and this morning?
Weight loss for all of us -- a family total of 10 pounds. Master's blood sugar numbers are excellent this morning.
In general, we all seem to be feeling better this morning, and we have encouraging early results.
So... on to day two.

swan