I've come to a conclusion

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I've had it in my mind for the past few months that GBS may not be for me.

Some of my family feels very strongly against the surgery, no doubt in regards to the fact that it is major surgery.

With this in mind, I've been going full force with my 1800 ADA diet and exercise. My doctor wants me to lose at least 6 lbs before my next visit with her in May.


My blood sugar has been great not to mention my body acts as though it likes me better at the moment. Even though these positive things have happened....I still have not lost any weight. And I am seriously giving this all I have!

It gets frustrating...just when I think I've got something that will work for me and help get this weight off...nothing happens!

Well, today I came to the realization that GBS is without a doubt a definite option for me. What helped me come to this conclusion, aside from the constant prayer about it, is a book called Before and After: Living and eating well after weight loss surgery, by Susan Maria Leach.

The author of this book describes in vivid detail her experience before, during and after her surgery. As she describes herself before the surgery, I feel as though she wrote about the feelings/situations that I go through on a daily basis.
Could it be true that my body would respond well to the surgery?

Well, on the 27th of this month, I will have weigh-in #2. I cannot believe that I only have 4 more months until I turn in all of my paperwork for insurance approval. To some, 4 months sounds long and dreadful...but to me...four months is not very far away!
My doctor will have to write a letter of recommendation for the surgery and I will retake the dietary class in June...then all I'll have to do is submit all of this to the surgeon's office and they will send it off for insurance approval.

I can only dream about how good I will finally feel in my own skin one of these days. I can only dream of the confidence and energy!

In the mean time, I will continue to pray for peace and patience.

Until next time....

Doctor Visit # 2

So today was my second doctor's visit. As I knew well, my lab work was not very good. My triglycerides were high and my glucose tolerance test was too close for comfort. So what happened today you ask? Well knowing your health information, and hearing it from someone else are two different things... Although I knew what was coming...it was still a shock to hear my doctor say, "Amy, you have an impaired glucose tolerance...I want you to get a glucometer and check your blood sugar 3 times a day between now and May 15th." She told me that I am not diabetic YET...but that if I didn't make the dietary changes NOW...that I would quickly become a type 2 diabetic.

Amy was like....



The next topic was about my food journal. I have been keeping up with my eating for the past month on sparkpeople.com. I brought the printouts of the last 30 days to give to my doctor. She said she would review my food journal and give me feed back about it next time. In the mean time, my doctor put me on an 1800 ADA diet. She wants me to lose 6 lbs by my next appointment, May 15th.

I am slightly in shock...I guess it was the glucometer part...and hearing that I'm officially on an 1800 ADA diet that really got me.

As for the GBS stuff, I had weigh in # 1 (last time was my baseline weight). Even though my next appointment is in May, I have weigh in #2 next month on the 27th.

Shew....I'm going to get off of here and gather myself...I'm still all weirded out by everything.

Until next time.....

Health concerns and changes

First of all I am happy to say that I am now officially Amy, RN!!! Passing state boards has taken a lot of pressure off of me and now I feel as though I can live my life again.




Let's see, I got a call from my new doctor a couple weeks ago about some of my blood work...let's just say it wasn't very good. In a nutshell, my triglycerides were through the roof and my glucose tolerance test results were at the absolute cut off...a little too close to the 'impaired glucose' side. The same day they got my results back, the doctor called in a prescription for a cholesterol medicine called Tricor. This medicine helps reduce cholesterol and triglycerides along with diet and exercise. Needless to say this whole ordeal was a nice wake-up call for me.

My doctor also wanted me to start a food journal, in which I track the food I eat, when I eat it, how much and the fat/caloric/sugar contents of them. I've been tracking my food on http://www.sparkpeople.com/ and hopefully I can find a way to print out my daily log of food for the past few weeks. I can't say that I've been 100% faithful in tracking my food, as I missed 3 days over the past 3 weeks. These days, however have been when I've worked 2 and 3 twelve hour shifts in a row...and I was completely exhausted.

As for exercise, I've taken my time starting a program. I have done around 1-3 days of exercise per week. This usually includes doing a Walk Away the Pounds dvd, going to the gym at my apartment complex and hopping on the elliptical/treadmill and a little weight lifting. I plan on being more dedicated to my exercising in the coming week. I wanted to start of slow and work my way up, instead of going 'balls to the wall' and completely getting burned out after the first couple of weeks. *as I am use to doing*

On the topic of surgery, I called my surgeon's office and spoke with the woman in charge of insurance issues. I explained to her all that has happened within the last few months with having to find a new doctor and do the weigh-in's over again. She informed me that the first weigh in would not count, as it would be a baseline. My next weigh in, March 31st will be weigh-in #1. The lady also informed me that as far as requirements are concerned, I only have to redo the nutrition class and weigh-in's. Praise God! For the next 5 months I will be weighing in at my doctor's office as well as continue with my food journal and exercise rountine. If I lose 65 pounds between now and the end of August, I will NOT have gastric bypass surgery. I have faith that what ever the Lord wants to happen...will happen. Either way, I look forward to the coming months.

I will post again after my next doctor's appointment on the 31st.

Until then, take care everyone!



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Back from hiatus

Sorry it's been so long since my last post on here, but I've had a LOT going on lately. Also, I finally saw my new primary care doctor yesterday.
The appointment went well and boy am I blessed with a wonderful doctor! Praise God!
She has already looked at my health history and is ready to support my decision for gastric bypass! We started my weigh in's yesterday. (only 5 more to go)
She is also checking to see what all I have to re-do as far as requirements go for the surgery.
In the mean time, she is happy with me trying to get off as much weight as I can on my own. So far I've been blessed to lose 11 pounds since December!
I told her that if I get below 220, between now and July then I will not have the surgery.

I had some lab work done yesterday a CMP (comprehensive panel) and CBC (complete blood count). Also tomorrow (Friday) I will be doing a glucose tolerance test in which I will have to drink some nasty stuff and have my blood taken 3 times in 3 hours to see how my body reacts to a large dose of suger.

Anyhow, I will keep you all updated on the latest news.

I must get off of here now. I am driving 30-ish minutes to the testing center to take state boards for nursing! wooo hoo!
By the grace of God, next time I post I will be Amy RN!!

Updates

Well, so God being awesome and all....blessed me with an amazing new doctor.
This doctor comes highly recommended AND knows what it's like being a 'big girl'.
The earliest I could get in to see her was towards the end of next month, so I must wait until then to start thinking about my requirements for gastric bypass surgery...again.

I'm not sure how long my requirements will be good for, that's something I will have to call and talk to the surgeon's office about. After having the EGD / Psych eval / writing a letter / getting my doctor to write a letter / going to support group meetings / and a nutrition class...it feels a bit overwhelming to think about having to do ALL of that over again.
One thing's for certain though...it will be at least another 6 months until I can even think about having the surgery.... wow...thats like July-ish.
*sigh*


Anyhow, I am currently going through a tinge of pms and have not done as well as I was previously with my protein eating and exercising.
I guess I'm having a hard time getting motivated after the whole 'shooting down' of my hopes for surgery around March.

I am thankful that God knows what needs to happen...even though things seem slightly crappy with my health at the present...He knows ...and that's all that really matters.

Down...down....down...

Okay, so today is around day 10 of my high protein, no starch eating PLUS going to the gym. I am now down 8 lbs and I have a TON of energy. The 12 hour shifts at work are not as draining as they use to be *although my feet feel every bit of the 12 hours still*
Seriously though, I am amazed at the energy and clarity I have in my mind now.
I am uber...CRAZY happy about it all! God is so good.

I see the silver lining!

Okay, so after all of the disappointing stuff that has happened since Friday, something good has finally happened!
Mom and I have dedicated ourselves to eating high protein foods, veggies and fruits. *Minus starchy stuff...white foods* Much like my cousin Kelly
Today is day 3 and as much as I have loathed the scale for many months now, I decided to hop on and see where I am starting from. To my utter amazement, I have indeed lost 4 pounds since last I was weighed 2 weeks ago at a doctor's office visit.
Needless to say, I now have more incentive to keep going. Not to mention I have actually been satisfied with the yummy foods I have been able to eat.
I've also started a little exercising in the form of calisthenics and walking.

As far as WLS is concerned, I am still looking for a new primary care physician as my current one is having to close her office. As soon as God provides me with a new and awesome doctor, I will begin to finish what is left to be done for surgery...that is if God still wants me to have it.

Anyhow, I am currently waiting on a yummy protein filled cassarole to finish baking for dinner.
Until next time!!