September 6th Video Update
09 Monday Sep 2024
Posted in bariatric-surgery, Cancer, Diabetic, Leukemia, VLog, Weight Loss
Tag Archives: Weight loss
Four Month Post Op
24 Saturday Aug 2024
Posted in bariatric-surgery, Diabetic, diet, Disability, Leukemia, Retirement, Weight Loss
Lost ten pounds this month. Everything is progressing nicely. The doctor wants me to lose thirty more pounds. If this keeps going the way they have, that should take another three months. I’m in no hurry. Just as long as I lose what I need to lose to get my BMI to a healthy range.
I go to my orthopedic Dr on Monday. I should know more when I get this boot off and in a regular shoe. Hope it will be in the next six weeks or so. The first thing I’m going to do is get my kayak out and go fishing.
Happy Birthday To Me!!
16 Friday Aug 2024
Posted in Diabetic, diet, Weight Loss
I turned 61 years old yesterday, August 15th. Several years ago, I would have never guessed I’d live to this age. With all the health issues that I had plus being nearly 200 lbs overweight, I didn’t have a lot going for me health-wise. Now that I’ve lost nearly 150 lbs and increased my lifespan by several years, I hope.
I saw my surgeon last week and she’s impressed with the weight loss. She wants me to lose another thirty pounds and then we’ll start talking about maintaining the weight. I’ve slowed down on the weight loss, about a pound a week. I still weigh myself every day and sometimes it gets discouraging but I know I’m losing inches as well. My wife bought me a new belt. The old one wrapped around me about halfway. I’m going to keep it to remind myself never to turn back.
I saw my primary care doctor and we talked about my last labwork. My A1c went from 8.2 to 5.5. My Creatinine levels continue to drop, now at 1.52. I’m no longer in the danger zone of kidney failure. I’m still at stage 3a kidney failure but they’re no longer talking dialisys. All my cholesterol levels are good. There were more green on this last report than red. I haven’t seen these numbers in quite some time.
Three Month Post Surgery Update
25 Thursday Jul 2024
Posted in bariatric-surgery, Diabetic, diet, Disability, Weight Loss
Tags
It’s now been three months since my gastric bypass. Since April, I’ve lost 35 pounds. Since the first picture was taken in 2003, 135 pounds. I’m now on 7.5mg of Mounjaro which has been a big help in losing weight. It’s also been a big help with controlling my blood sugar. My sugar still spikes but it comes down without having to take any insulin. I go to my GP in two weeks and I’ll do the blood work to see how good it’s been. I haven’t had a soda in three months, or sweets in four months and to be honest, I don’t really miss either one.
I’m still in my boot and I hope, according to my orthopedic doctor, in three months I’ll be able to get rid of it and go to a regular shoe with special inserts. There will be a list of do’s and don’ts that I’ll have to follow and I will follow that list to a T.
Update: Post-Op Day 6
30 Tuesday Apr 2024
Posted in bariatric-surgery, Weight Loss
Tags
bariatric-surgery, cast, crow boot, gallbladder, gastric bypass, health, Hospital, Life, News, Sick, Surgery, Weight loss
The day of the surgery started off on a bad foot and it didn’t end there. First of all, I was told to be at the hospital at 5am with a surgery time of 9am. At 5am it’s dark and my wife can’t see to drive in the dark so I asked if we could move the surgery time to a later time. 7am was the latest that I could get there and still have the surgery. We arrived at 6:30am and were told that I was way early and my surgery wasn’t scheduled until 1pm. There was nothing to do but wait.
A little after noon, I was finally called back. My wife and I were sent to a pre-op room where they tried three times before they were able to start an IV. I was asked several questions regarding my meds and my health. I was given a gown and told to undress and slip on the hospital gown. I was allowed to say my goodbyes to my wife and was rolled out of that room into the surgery room where I met at least three more nurses who introduced themselves and I don’t remember anything after that.
I was awakened by one of my nurses yelling my name telling me to wake up. I remember them saying that my oxygen was low and they were trying to get my bi-pap working. They were having a hard time because the had the hose hooked up backwards. In my drunken state, I had to try to tell them they had it hooked up wrong. Why they didn’t put me on oxygen I’ll never know.
One of the things I had asked the surgeon to look at while she was in my belly was a hernia. She informed me that her main goal was to do the gastric bypass and if she had time she would look at it. Well, that changed. Once she got into my belly, she found that my gallbladder was about to explode. It was full of inflammation and was bleeding. It was surprising that I hadn’t had any symptoms. The first step was to remove my gallbladder. With the gallbladder removed she noticed that my stomach had risen up into my esophagus. She then had to fix the stomach issue. Once she did that she fixed the hernia then she proceeded to do the gastric bypass. The surgeon told my wife that I was one sick puppy.
During surgery, they had to run a tube down my throat. I’m still coughing from that. My incisions are still a little sore, all five of them. I’m still in the liquid stage of my diet and I should start to be able to eat pureed food on Thursday. I’m so looking forward to that. I can’t tell if I’m losing weight because of the cast. I just had a new one put on yesterday and it feels heavier than the others. The orthopedic doctor fitted me with a Crow Boot yesterday so hopefully, I’ll graduate from a cast in a couple of weeks to a month. At least in a Crow Boot I’ll be able to walk some and climb stairs better than I am now.
Update: April 2nd
02 Tuesday Apr 2024
Posted in Photography
Tags
bariatric-surgery, cast, Doctor, foot, gastric bypass, health, liquid diet, liver shrink, Surgery, Weight loss
It’s been a while I know. A lot has been going on so hold on to your hat.
Monday, April 1st marks the 10th week that I’ve either been in a splint or a cast. This is my third hard cast since I was put in one. I have a problem with either the cast getting wet, broke or both. I’ve had several x-rays and I’ve been told each time that my foot is healing but has a long way to go. My foot is still swollen a little and it looks like a lizard with all that dead skin just hanging there. I did speak to the doctor and if everything continues as it has, I should be able to be put in a Crow Boot in about two months. At least with a Crow Boot I should be able to walk on it some.
It’s like I’m a prisoner in my own home. I live in a split foyer home. When you walk in the front door you must either go up or go downstairs. Seven of them to be exact. Going downstairs is not a problem. I simply grab ahold of the banister and the handrail and hop down the stairs. Going up is another issue. Right now, the solution is to use a walker with the front legs adjusted to the step above and hop up the stairs. I’m exhausted by the time I make it up the stairs. This is the reason I don’t go anywhere other than for doctor appointments.
My gastric bypass surgery has been approved and my surgery is scheduled for the 17th of April. I have to start my liver shrink diet on the 10th and my 2-day liquid diet starts on the 15th. If I told you th.at I wasn’t worried I’d be lying. There’s a lot to consider even after the surgery. Just my doctors and my immediate family know about it. None of my friends or even my parents don’t know about it. The reason? I have a couple of family members that have had this surgery and they are bigger now than before they had the surgery. Simply put, they gave up on themselves. I have a point to make. I’ll eventually tell them after I lose about 100 lbs.
Another reason I’m doing the surgery is my health. If everything goes well, I will no longer be a diabetic and I will no longer have to use a Bipap machine to sleep. The money I’ll save no longer using insulin will more than pay for the vitamins that I’ll have to take.
Stay tuned for updates after the surgery.
January 8th, 2024
08 Monday Jan 2024
Posted in Photography
I had a colonoscopy last Friday. I’ve had one previously done about five years ago. This one was different. I woke up during the procedure. That’s something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. I was too droggy to say anything but by the way I was groaning, I think the doctor knew I was away. Nothing was said or done, he just kept going until the procedure was done. Tomorrow, my wife and I have a dietary/fitness class which is required by my Bariatric surgeon. It’s a four-hour class starting at 11:30 am and should end around 3:30 pm.
‘The diet is going good but the weight is fluctuating like a rollercoaster. I have never understood how I can eat like a bird and still gain weight the next day. Go figure.’The diet is going good but the weight is fluctuating like a rollercoaster. I have never understood how I can eat like a bird and still gain weight the next day. Go figure.
Today’s weight: 278.4 lbs
Total Loss: 2.4 lbs
This month’s goal: 275 lbs
January 2nd.
02 Tuesday Jan 2024
Posted in Photography
No, I’m not going to post every day. It’s just this week is full of doctor appointments.
Today I saw my nephrologist. My numbers were up a little since my last visit four months ago. Not to worry she says because we had to deal with two holidays with food involved but I’m really going to have to buckle down before my next appointment. Tomorrow is another doctor visit. This one will be with my primary care doctor and the first of three visits required by Medicare for my weight loss surgery. On Friday will be my colonoscopy What fun.
Today’s weight 281.6 Gained 1.2 lbs
January 1st. Happy New Year!
01 Monday Jan 2024
Posted in Photography
New year, new beginnings. I’ve said this before in the previous New Year, but it will be different this year. Why? Because this year I’m in the process of getting approved for weight loss surgery. Why now? That’s the same thing my wife asked. It’s because I’m tired of being fat. I’m tired of this rollercoaster I’m on and want off. I turned sixty years old this past year and don’t want to live the rest of my life out of shape. I have a colonoscopy planned on Friday so this should give me a boost to my weight loss journy.
Morning weight: 280.4
Goal weight: 275
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”. Today, I took my first step.
New Year equals New Beginnings
22 Friday Dec 2023
Posted in Weight Loss
Tags
I had to wait until I got paid this month before I was able to but I signed my wife and myself up to the required class for the bariatric surgery. I also called my primary doctor and I’ve set up the first of three appointments that are also a requirement for the surgery. These appointments are to monitor how well I’m doing to adjust to my new lifestyle. The doctor will have to fill out paperwork to be turned in to the surgen after the three months. I still have no clue as to what my cost will be.
I had a visit with my phuminologist the other day and the nurse that did my trioge mentioned to me that she had the surgery about a year ago and she had lost over sixty pounds. I would be extremely happy with sixty pounds. As just so happens, my daughter worked at the same school that she did so they know each other. My daughter told me she looked huge. She still has some weight to lose but she doesn’t look nothing like she did sixty pounds ago.
I suspect April or May if I’m approved. That’s my goal.
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