I'm getting so excited about getting banded. I wish it would be possible for me to get it sooner, but I can't. Boo on you, job.
Howeva, I have been working with my general dr. to begin to get off some of my pills, namely my Paxil. If anyone has ever taken any kind of medication that alters your mood / anxiety, you know how difficult it is to get off this stuff. I've been titrating down (decreasing my dosage) for several weeks now and still feel wierd. I call it "the zingers." I can feel my eyeballs moving in my head and it makes me nauseaus. I was supposed to 1/2 my 40 mg. pills for 2 weeks, but I'm almost at my 3rd week doing it just because I can't see myself going down to 10 mg just yet.
I'm so excited about tomorrow night...tennis starts back up! Our practices are on Wednesday nights and I absolutely love my team. I haven't been able to play since April due to a foot injury so I missed the Summer season (but I'm okay with that because it's hotter than hell here) so I get to see all my chicas and exercise in a fun way!
I've also been taking Manolo, my dog, on 40 min. power walks. We did one on Sunday and one tonight when I got home from work. She needs to get her sniffs in and I need to get my heart pumpin. I look like a cow walking, but that's okay, I know that I won't for long!
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Migraines...die! die! die!
Since last Monday, the 3rd, I've had a migraine. It was pretty dull all week, but came on really strong over the weekend. None of my medication was helping, really. It would help for a few hours, but soon, that sneaky little sucker would come creeping back into my head. I basically stayed in bed all weekend. My poor pup had to have been bored out of her mind!
So, I woke up in the middle of the night yesterday with it and took more meds (which are NOT CHEAP!) and went back to sleep. When my alarm went off, I felt surprisingly great! I was singing in the shower, dancing with Manolo (my dog) as I was getting ready, etc.
THEN. A few hours after being at work, I started sweating profusely. I mean, it looked like I had recently taken a shower, my hair was that wet, my headache started pounding again, and I was beginning to get vomitatious. The vomitatiousness came in waves, as did the heat flashes. It got to where I couldn't even concentrate on what I was doing at work.
I called my neuro, the office lady was a bitch and basically told me I had to go to the ER, there was no way they could fit me in. So, I called my hero of a dad and he offered to finish what he was doing at work and go get Manolo at my house in the city while I left my work to go to their house and have my mom take me to the ER. I <3 parents.
My mom was in the ER with me (which really didn't take all that long...2 hours maybe?) and drove me home after my shot of Dilaudid. I was really disappointed that it didn't knock me out. In fact, I felt decent. But I was VERY grateful for my headache breaking. It broke almost immediatly when the nurse injected it into my IV.
The only bad part was the meds they gave me for that night (b/c Dilaudid given by IV metabolizes really quickly) kept me up ALL NIGHT. It was as if they had given me speed! I finally passed out about 2:30 or 3 and then woke up at 5 to get back to my house to get ready for work.
I'm feeling groovy today, though. I just know the increase in my migraines is due to this weight and I will be so very very happy to get this bulk off and not have to deal with as many migraines anymore. It's so inhibiting and I just can't wait to live my life!
So, I woke up in the middle of the night yesterday with it and took more meds (which are NOT CHEAP!) and went back to sleep. When my alarm went off, I felt surprisingly great! I was singing in the shower, dancing with Manolo (my dog) as I was getting ready, etc.
THEN. A few hours after being at work, I started sweating profusely. I mean, it looked like I had recently taken a shower, my hair was that wet, my headache started pounding again, and I was beginning to get vomitatious. The vomitatiousness came in waves, as did the heat flashes. It got to where I couldn't even concentrate on what I was doing at work.
I called my neuro, the office lady was a bitch and basically told me I had to go to the ER, there was no way they could fit me in. So, I called my hero of a dad and he offered to finish what he was doing at work and go get Manolo at my house in the city while I left my work to go to their house and have my mom take me to the ER. I <3 parents.
My mom was in the ER with me (which really didn't take all that long...2 hours maybe?) and drove me home after my shot of Dilaudid. I was really disappointed that it didn't knock me out. In fact, I felt decent. But I was VERY grateful for my headache breaking. It broke almost immediatly when the nurse injected it into my IV.
The only bad part was the meds they gave me for that night (b/c Dilaudid given by IV metabolizes really quickly) kept me up ALL NIGHT. It was as if they had given me speed! I finally passed out about 2:30 or 3 and then woke up at 5 to get back to my house to get ready for work.
I'm feeling groovy today, though. I just know the increase in my migraines is due to this weight and I will be so very very happy to get this bulk off and not have to deal with as many migraines anymore. It's so inhibiting and I just can't wait to live my life!
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Nutritionist
I had my final hurdle last week, meeting with the nutritionist.
It was a great meeting. The nutritionist works with a lot of bariatric patients, specifically a lot of Lap-Band patients so I felt really comfortable. We spoke a lot about my history with food, the issues I have, how that will affect my progress with the Band, and what I can start doing about it now.
Basically, food and I have a really bad history. It's been an abusive relationship almost all my life and it's probably going to take some counseling in order for this Band to really work for me. I've researched ED counselors and I think I've found a good one not far from where I work.
Also, I found out that I am severely anemic. As in, I should be craving chalk, paper, and ice. Luckily, I don't have those symptoms, but I do have a few others and have had them for some time. I'm always very tired (now I understand why I'm so sleepy all the time), irritable, and slightly depressed. I've known that I've had low iron for years, but didn't know it was that low. Well, it was and it's contributed to my anemic state. Basically, a normal woman's hemoglobin level is anywhere between 12 & 15. Mine is 6. I really need it to be a 7 or 8 to have surgery. My surgeon will sign off at a 6, but that's dangerous. It could mean that I might need a blood transfusion (and I don't want that). So, I'm working on eating lots of iron rich foods and am taking iron supplements to help me absorb some of that iron. It's going to be a long process, but hopefully, I'll start feeling better soon!
It was a great meeting. The nutritionist works with a lot of bariatric patients, specifically a lot of Lap-Band patients so I felt really comfortable. We spoke a lot about my history with food, the issues I have, how that will affect my progress with the Band, and what I can start doing about it now.
Basically, food and I have a really bad history. It's been an abusive relationship almost all my life and it's probably going to take some counseling in order for this Band to really work for me. I've researched ED counselors and I think I've found a good one not far from where I work.
Also, I found out that I am severely anemic. As in, I should be craving chalk, paper, and ice. Luckily, I don't have those symptoms, but I do have a few others and have had them for some time. I'm always very tired (now I understand why I'm so sleepy all the time), irritable, and slightly depressed. I've known that I've had low iron for years, but didn't know it was that low. Well, it was and it's contributed to my anemic state. Basically, a normal woman's hemoglobin level is anywhere between 12 & 15. Mine is 6. I really need it to be a 7 or 8 to have surgery. My surgeon will sign off at a 6, but that's dangerous. It could mean that I might need a blood transfusion (and I don't want that). So, I'm working on eating lots of iron rich foods and am taking iron supplements to help me absorb some of that iron. It's going to be a long process, but hopefully, I'll start feeling better soon!