One Year Post Follow Up

I realize that last post was a little discouraging regarding the band. However, I feel like it is important to document my journey. My story goes to show you that it's not all rainbows & flowers. This is not a smooth road for every patient.

I went to my first support group last night. There weren't any in Atlanta and since I've been in NJ, I've been out of town for each meeting. Well, I made it last night. The actual group was a little pathetic. There were three of us there: a 60 year old man one month out, a bypass patient 6 months out, me, a dietician, and the guy who runs the floro. I told my story and mentioned the pain I experience when eating. The obvious follow up question is why don't I get it checked out? Well, in order to get it checked out up here in NJ (remember, I'm self pay), I have to pay the surgeon $400 and go across the hall to the adjustment center and pay them $200 for the floro and the surgeon tell me what he thinks. I don't have $600 lying around just asking to be spent.

So, the floro guy came to me and offered to do a free floro that night just to get an idea of what was going on. How cool is that? Obviously it was very hush hush. I couldn't tell anyone we did it. So, after the meeting, we went down and he did it. It wasn't good. Now, I understand he's not a bariatric surgeon, but he does run the floro several times a day and knows what the images should look like. I was tight. Super tight. You know how you can see your underwire from your bra when you get a floro? Well, the barium stream going through my band was about 1/3 of the width of my underwire. He was also concerned about the placement and thought there might be a possibility of slippage. He pretty much said I needed to get an emergency unfill asap and that an unfill could not wait until I went home to ATL for Christmas.

It concerned me. I didn't lose sleep over it because I knew I couldn't do anything about it until this morning, but I was def. worried. I don't really have the money to get this done. So, this morning the floro guy called me and said he spoke to one of the surgeons and he'd see me at 12:30 if I wanted. The floro guy also said he would work with me on the money situation and we could set up a payment plan. How awesome is that?!?!

So, I went in and this is probably the top bariatric surgeon in NJ. We did the floro and he said I def. was over restricted but that the band had perfect placement. In terms of restriction, I just get so frustrated because I feel like I'm either over or under restricted. I have no idea what a sweet spot is!! He said I may never get to a sweet spot, but should strive for a spot I can live with. This made me feel better. Anyway, fluid came out and I'm feeling better.

I'm also going to start tracking my weight via spreadsheet. I think this might be a useful tool. I'm treating today as a new start. I should be at optimum restriction and will strive to stop eating my slider foods and eat those that will satisfy me and will continue to help me drop the weight...but at a healthy pace :)

We take the good with the bad

I mentioned I had an unfill on the 28th.

The good:
-I'm able to eat things I haven't eaten since before getting the band.
-I'm eating solid protein, veggies, and drinking tons of water with ease!
-Reflux has subsided

The bad:
-I have ZERO restriction. My band is so open that food goes through like it did before I got it.
-I've gained weight...Oh yes, I have. I'm not going to say how much, because it's quite embarrassing to have gained this amount in 11 days. My goal is to get it off in the next 28 days, though.
-Because I can eat, I've been eating things I SHOULDN'T. Examples: pizza, pancakes, cereal (total trigger food), Nachos Bell Grande (total weakness), Cheetos etc.

I have to get this under control. I'm considering signing up for a month of Weight Watchers just so I can monitor points.

I'm completely aware that I've been eating things I shouldn't and that I should be using this month to learn to eat nutritious foods that I couldn't two weeks ago. I'd like to think that I'm just getting this out of my system, but I know better than that. It's just an excuse and I'm tired of making excuses. Excuses are what got me to where I was and why I needed the band. This last week and a half shows me why I needed the band and shows me that I still have issues with food.

Problems!!

I’m having serious problems when it comes to restriction…it’s gone. I haven’t lost a pound in 3 weeks! In fact, I’ve PUT ON 1.5lb. No good, let me tell you. I flirted with my sweet spot, but that’s all it was…flirtation.

I can now chug water (no good), eat cookies (no good), and am hungry at 8am (NO GOOD!). I’m not stupid or naïve. I know what my problems are now I just need to fix them.:

-Cadburry Eggs - I’ve probably eaten a good 20 this Easter. Since Easter is over, this is no longer a problem.

-Candy – specifically chocolate. This became a problem when the Cadburrys became a problem. Oh! And I found that if I was hungry and was too tight (b/c of a fill), I’d eat a chocolate bar and would let the pieces melt in my mouth.

-Tartar Sauce – I eat fish and when I eat fish, I eat Tartar Sauce. I am not going to buy anymore b/c the fat content is just way too high.

-String Cheese – I had been buying the non-low fat version b/c I was having a hard time getting fat and calories. This is no longer a problem. If I must eat string cheese, it’s going to be low-fat from now on.

So, now that restriction (aka sweet spot or green zone) is gone, I have to change a few nasty habits and increase the exercise. I’ve started with the exercise, now just to change those eating habits and I’ll be good, I hope!

In non-band related issues, I am so frustrated about work. I cannot stand the PMO of my current project. He’s not only a jerk to me, but has no filter when it comes to speaking to our client. He flipped out on me today and when that happens, I don’t react so well. If someone starts yelling at me, I yell right back. I can’t help it!

God, grant me patience PLEASE!!!