I have recently received some emails from people who are considering lapband surgery. I am more than happy to answer questions that anyone has about the surgery and life post-op. I was very fortunate that I met a wonderful and incredibly kind woman, Rhonda, during the begining stages. I discovered that she actually lives about 5 minutes from me. She was a saving grace for me because she was able to answer my questions because she had already been through the process. We would meet at the beach to walk and she listen to me every step of the way. We continue to stay in touch, go to support group meetings together, and are currently planning to start walking again.
My point is that it's sometimes helpful to talk to someone who has been where you are today. Whether you are in the very beginning stage of just considering the surgery and doing the research or you're further along, talking to someone else might help. Everyone's experience is going to be differant but if I can answer any questions, I'm happy to do so. Simply email me and we'll go from there!
Jenn jenncore@comcast.net
Saturday, August 30, 2008
One Year Ago...
One year ago I attended my first support group meeting. I was scared, anxious, excited, nervous, motivated, and every other emotion you can imagine. My husband came with me and was incredibly supportive. I remember looking around the room at all of the other people and wondering what their story was. After all, we all have a story. I remember leaving the support group full of hope and questions. I knew, however, that this is what I needed to do.
I attended last weeks support group. Since I am now 8 months post-op I was actually able to attend both groups. The first group was small with less than 20 of us. It was nice to be able to hear about people's successes and challenges. I remember thinking that it must be so easy once you hit the 8 month point but I have discovered that challenges still exist. I knew this to be true for myself but didn't realize that it happens for other people as well. This discovery has made me feel more human. I do have a great friend that I met last summer through an online support group. She has also had some difficulties but I figured we were the exception in all of this. I guess my point in all of this is that this is a very long and sometimes emotional process. Going to the support groups beyond the required 2 is incredibly helpful. It provides an opportunity to talk to other people who are experiencing the same challenges.
The Second group is the regular pre/post-op support group. It seems to have more than doubled in size since last year. I wonder if more people are realizing the long term benefits of having weightloss surgery. At last Monday's group there was a guest speaker addressing depression. I think I went through a different kind of depression than what the Doctor was describing. The first few weeks after surgery went well for me. Other then feeling tired and a little uncomfortable, I feel great. It was when I starting to increase my food intake that things changed a little for me. I was transitioning from one food stage to the next when I began to feel sad. I couldn't quite explain my sadness with words but it was almost as though I was missing something. I also couldn't look at my incisions without getting upset. It's not that my incisions were gross or anything but they kind of made me feel like a failure. After about a week of felling like this it finally clicked, I was mourning food!!!
I had depended on food for everything for so many years that I really missed it. I missed eating large quantities of whatever I wanted. I missed the full feeling I got after, the feeling that comforted me for so many years. It all made sense to me, perfect sense. I had to find something else that made feel good, something thing that brought comfort and a sense of security. I began to feel better about my incisions as well. They weren't a sign of weakness or failure, they are a part of me and my story. This helped me decide to get my real estate license. I put everthing into going to class and passing the test. I am so happy with this choice and have found something that I truely love to do!!!
As I continue to move forward in this journey I have had a lot of self discovery. I have faced challenges but through it all have become a much stronger person. I'm learning to not sweat the small stuff and to celebrate even the tiniest of achievements. I no longer dread social situations and I walk into a room with my head held high. I admit part of this is due to weightloss but it's more than that. I'm still the same person on the inside. I have always considered myself to be kind, caring, and giving. I just struggled with my self confidence. Not anymore! I will not let the opinions or judements of others get in my way.
I have gone on long enough. I wish you all a happy and healthy holiday weekend. This can be stressful time since most of us are dealing with back to school with the kids.
Warmly,
Jenn
I attended last weeks support group. Since I am now 8 months post-op I was actually able to attend both groups. The first group was small with less than 20 of us. It was nice to be able to hear about people's successes and challenges. I remember thinking that it must be so easy once you hit the 8 month point but I have discovered that challenges still exist. I knew this to be true for myself but didn't realize that it happens for other people as well. This discovery has made me feel more human. I do have a great friend that I met last summer through an online support group. She has also had some difficulties but I figured we were the exception in all of this. I guess my point in all of this is that this is a very long and sometimes emotional process. Going to the support groups beyond the required 2 is incredibly helpful. It provides an opportunity to talk to other people who are experiencing the same challenges.
The Second group is the regular pre/post-op support group. It seems to have more than doubled in size since last year. I wonder if more people are realizing the long term benefits of having weightloss surgery. At last Monday's group there was a guest speaker addressing depression. I think I went through a different kind of depression than what the Doctor was describing. The first few weeks after surgery went well for me. Other then feeling tired and a little uncomfortable, I feel great. It was when I starting to increase my food intake that things changed a little for me. I was transitioning from one food stage to the next when I began to feel sad. I couldn't quite explain my sadness with words but it was almost as though I was missing something. I also couldn't look at my incisions without getting upset. It's not that my incisions were gross or anything but they kind of made me feel like a failure. After about a week of felling like this it finally clicked, I was mourning food!!!
I had depended on food for everything for so many years that I really missed it. I missed eating large quantities of whatever I wanted. I missed the full feeling I got after, the feeling that comforted me for so many years. It all made sense to me, perfect sense. I had to find something else that made feel good, something thing that brought comfort and a sense of security. I began to feel better about my incisions as well. They weren't a sign of weakness or failure, they are a part of me and my story. This helped me decide to get my real estate license. I put everthing into going to class and passing the test. I am so happy with this choice and have found something that I truely love to do!!!
As I continue to move forward in this journey I have had a lot of self discovery. I have faced challenges but through it all have become a much stronger person. I'm learning to not sweat the small stuff and to celebrate even the tiniest of achievements. I no longer dread social situations and I walk into a room with my head held high. I admit part of this is due to weightloss but it's more than that. I'm still the same person on the inside. I have always considered myself to be kind, caring, and giving. I just struggled with my self confidence. Not anymore! I will not let the opinions or judements of others get in my way.
I have gone on long enough. I wish you all a happy and healthy holiday weekend. This can be stressful time since most of us are dealing with back to school with the kids.
Warmly,
Jenn
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Where do I begin????
Things have been so crazy for me lately that I haven't had a chance to slow down. Okay, first things first. I had my appointment with Dr. K about 2 weeks ago to go over the results of my upper G.I. He said that everything looked great and the band was right where it was suppose to be. That made me feel much better. We both agreed that I'm sensitive to fills so I may have to learn to live with 1 1/2 cc's in my band. I'm okay with that because I can't take the chance of not being able to tolerate food or liquid for an extended period of time. I currently have 1 1/2 cc's in my band and I'm doing okay. I do feel restricted most of the time and that keeps me in line. My weightloss have been very slow lately but I know why, I haven't been exercising very much. I need to make that a priority in my life and I'm working on that.
Everything else has been going great. I started my new career in real estate in late March and I have really taken off. One of my clients is closing on her first house on Monday and I have two other buyers who both just put offers on houses. I can't begin to tell you how much I love what I'm doing. I believe that my wieghtloss has really helped boost my self esteem. I'm still the same person I'm just getting myself out there more. I'm not so worried about what other people think of me. I'm really getting to a good place.
I am looking forward to Monday night's meeting. I really miss my friends and can't wait to see them!! It was exactly one year ago when I went to my first informational/support group meeting. My life has changed so much in one year, it's incredible. I am finally ready to post some updated photos and I will do so in next entry. I wish you all health and happiness!!!!
Jenn
Everything else has been going great. I started my new career in real estate in late March and I have really taken off. One of my clients is closing on her first house on Monday and I have two other buyers who both just put offers on houses. I can't begin to tell you how much I love what I'm doing. I believe that my wieghtloss has really helped boost my self esteem. I'm still the same person I'm just getting myself out there more. I'm not so worried about what other people think of me. I'm really getting to a good place.
I am looking forward to Monday night's meeting. I really miss my friends and can't wait to see them!! It was exactly one year ago when I went to my first informational/support group meeting. My life has changed so much in one year, it's incredible. I am finally ready to post some updated photos and I will do so in next entry. I wish you all health and happiness!!!!
Jenn
Monday, August 4, 2008
The Last Lecture....
I'm sure most of you have heard about Randy Pausch, the professor who recently passed away from cancer of the pancreas. I purchased his book a few weeks ago, "The Last Lecture", and didn't put it down until I finished reading it. This book was incredible and really helped me look at my life through different eyes. I think we all tend to take things for granted sometimes and Randy's story reminded me that life is so unpredictable. He lived his life until the very end and never complained about the fact that he was going to die. I complain about almost everything, subconsciously of course! I complain when it's too hot, the line is too long at the store, traffic is backed up and so on. I'm so blessed that I can enjoy the weather, go into a store, or get in my car and drive. I have decided to make a conscious effort to appreciate all that I have everyday whether good or bad. I don't want have regrets and miss out on the things that bring me joy. "Life is too short".
Randy includes many incredible quotes in his book. I have printed a few of them and placed them in my office. There's one I really like, "Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted". That makes so much sense to me and all that I have experienced in my own life.
If you're looking for an inspirational story that will make you laugh and cry, I encourage you to read this book. If nothing else, it will help put your own life into perspective and will remind you to enjoy life!
Until next time,
Jenn
Randy includes many incredible quotes in his book. I have printed a few of them and placed them in my office. There's one I really like, "Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted". That makes so much sense to me and all that I have experienced in my own life.
If you're looking for an inspirational story that will make you laugh and cry, I encourage you to read this book. If nothing else, it will help put your own life into perspective and will remind you to enjoy life!
Until next time,
Jenn
Sunday, August 3, 2008
UPDATE......
Alot has happened since my last entry. I'm sorry for not posting sooner. So, in my last post I expressed my frustration with my band and not feeling restricted. A few days after my post I got another fill with Dr. K. Everything was great for the first few days and then I couldn't keep anything down. It was just like the last time when I ended up in the emergency room. This time I didn't wait, I called Dr. K and went in immediately for a complete unfill. This wasn't what I really wanted to do but I was getting ready to go on vacation for a week and the last thing I needed was to be in the emergency room far from home. Anyway I felt relief immediately after being unfilled. Believe it or not I wasn't upset about it this time. It's more important for me to be healthy than to be restricted to the point of not being able to hold down fluids.
Dr. K was concerned that there could be something else going on so he made an appointment for me to have an upper G.I a few days later. I was a little nervous because I didn't know what to expect but the staff at Salem Hospital were awesome!!! They explained everything that was going to happen and answered all of my questions. The Dr. that performed my upper G.I was so adorable (yes, I'm married, but he was really cute!). He said everything looked pretty good but that I definately have acid reflux. I told him that I don't feel any of the symptoms so I was kind of surprised. I have an appointment with Dr. K on Thursday to go over the results in detail.
Overall I would say I'm feeling pretty good. I just got back from a week on the Cape so I'm very relaxed and tan. I didn't have any restriction while away but I did my best not to stress or obsess about it. I ate what I wanted but certainly was cautious not to over do it. I am not going to weigh myself until after I get a fill on Thursday because I don't want to get caught up in the cycle.
I am disappointed because I haven't been able to go to the last 2 support groups. I miss checking in with everyone and hearing about the progress and challenges that other people are facing. I can't wait for the next meeting because I can actually start going to the 8 month support group as well as the other group. I have to tell you what an amazing woman Pat Basile O'Hearn is. After reading my last post she emailed me because she was concerned about how I was feeling. The fact that she took the time out of her crazy busy schedule meant the world to me. She made me feel so important and I know she would and does do the same for everyone. This is really what makes the program at Salem stand out from all of the rest....
Fondly,
Jenn
P.S If I could just add one final thing, please be patient if you have to go into the office to see Dr. K or Dr. Buckley. At my last appointment I had to wait for quite some time. Some of the other patients were complaining. Believe me, it's not the Dr's fault. They don't make us wait on purpose, unfortunately they get called away for an unexpected emergency from time to time. The office staff is great and they do their best to let us know how long we can expect to wait.
Dr. K was concerned that there could be something else going on so he made an appointment for me to have an upper G.I a few days later. I was a little nervous because I didn't know what to expect but the staff at Salem Hospital were awesome!!! They explained everything that was going to happen and answered all of my questions. The Dr. that performed my upper G.I was so adorable (yes, I'm married, but he was really cute!). He said everything looked pretty good but that I definately have acid reflux. I told him that I don't feel any of the symptoms so I was kind of surprised. I have an appointment with Dr. K on Thursday to go over the results in detail.
Overall I would say I'm feeling pretty good. I just got back from a week on the Cape so I'm very relaxed and tan. I didn't have any restriction while away but I did my best not to stress or obsess about it. I ate what I wanted but certainly was cautious not to over do it. I am not going to weigh myself until after I get a fill on Thursday because I don't want to get caught up in the cycle.
I am disappointed because I haven't been able to go to the last 2 support groups. I miss checking in with everyone and hearing about the progress and challenges that other people are facing. I can't wait for the next meeting because I can actually start going to the 8 month support group as well as the other group. I have to tell you what an amazing woman Pat Basile O'Hearn is. After reading my last post she emailed me because she was concerned about how I was feeling. The fact that she took the time out of her crazy busy schedule meant the world to me. She made me feel so important and I know she would and does do the same for everyone. This is really what makes the program at Salem stand out from all of the rest....
Fondly,
Jenn
P.S If I could just add one final thing, please be patient if you have to go into the office to see Dr. K or Dr. Buckley. At my last appointment I had to wait for quite some time. Some of the other patients were complaining. Believe me, it's not the Dr's fault. They don't make us wait on purpose, unfortunately they get called away for an unexpected emergency from time to time. The office staff is great and they do their best to let us know how long we can expect to wait.
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