I like this one better... haha.

It's kinda funny, I don't think I look that goofy anymore when I smile. I guess I can start doing that for pictures. :)

2 Months Post-op Thoughs

So it's two months after surgery and things are still going well. At my last doctor's appointment which was a week and a half ago I was 315 lbs. I have not weight in the three-teens since 2002. It's a good feeling to know that in a few months I'll never see the three anything again.

The hardest thing for me since the surgery has been adjusting my social life. I never noticed how much people and social gatherings revolve around food. I am still adjusting to this change but I think over time it will not be so odd because my friends will know that I simply cannot eat in quantity and I won't have to explain to them why.

I'm still battling with the eating one bit too much thing. The chopsticks help tremendously with eating slow and taking smaller bites. Needless to say I have some mad chopstick skills now.

The last thing I've noticed lately is muscle aches are on the increase. Most notably in my back and groin area. I think my back is adjusting itself to not carrying around so much weight and my groin is sore because I'm sure my gait is different and I'm using muscles that I haven't used before.

But all said, I'm still happy I had the surgery and I do not regret it. Socially it's a pain in the butt but otherwise I'm very happy.

2 Months Post-op

1 Month Post-Op Photos

The Ups and the Downs

I want to end this on a positive note so I'll write about the bad first.

Really, I only have two complaints. They both revolve around food.

I'm three and a half weeks out and I'm still having issues with a lot of foods. I've had to purge myself four times in the past two weeks. I've discovered my stomach holds two tablespoons and not a drop more. I've vomited more in the last two weeks than I have in most of my adult life. It's not terrible but it's very discouraging.

Since I had such a terrible day yesterday I'm doing full-liquids today. I think that is a good policy.

And my second gripe, I'm still not able to figure out my portion size. Some days 1/3rd of a cup is just perfect, others it's excruciatingly too much food. I still think I'm eating too fast.

OK... now that that is over here is the good!

I've discovered Worldwide Pure Protein Shakes. It's so easy to get my daily protein. I have a shake for breakfast since I'm not much for food and I have a shake before I go to bed to give my body something to gnaw on while I sleep. The good part... 70g of protein is easy. I'm totally in love with the cookies and cream flavor. To me it tastes more like coconut than anything else. I also like the banana flavor.

My bowels are basically back to normal. This is very encouraging. The diarrhea was driving me nuts. I think they should warn patients pre-op that they will have rather significant diarrhea.

And my healing is still progressing rather well. Some days I have a slight twinge and others nothing at all. The bruising is 90% gone and my incisions are glue free.

But taking the bad in consideration with the good, I still do not regret what I have done. My habit is to consider the future is far more significant than the present and hopefully with enough time and "training" I will know my limits.

I do not regret this...

10-day check up

I forgot to post about my 10-day check up. The surgeon says I am progressing well and he removed the drain I had sticking out of my side. That was a rather weird experience. Not necessarily painful, just a very odd sensation.

I weighed 31 pounds lighter as well or better stated I have lost 11% of my excess body weight. My weight loss really didn't sink in until about a week later when I had a thought come to me as I was walking through Walgreens.

I will never gain those 31 pounds back again! That was a very good feeling.

Learning my limit

I'm 2.5 weeks out from surgery and things are going reasonably ok. I'm no longer sore from the surgery and my incisions are healing well.

On Tuesday I was able to progress to phase three of my diet which is "soft foods". I have been having a hell of a time with this phase. This may sound gross but I never knew I could make myself vomit until I tried to eat eggs. According to other WLS folks, eggs are notoriously hard to eat and it may take as many as five or six months before I can tolerate them well.

I'm having a difficult time learning the limits of my food intake. I'm constantly eating too much and it always seems like I'm eating one or two bites too many. I'm guessing I'm eating too fast and my stomach cannot tell my brain I'm full until things are literally backing up. So far I can eat about two or three tablespoons of food. Or it could be I'm eating the wrong foods. I'm not sure. I'm certainly not a fan of vomiting.

I ordered a food scale that should be arriving this week coming up. I'm really hoping this helps me measure my food intake and things.

Tomorrow's strategy: Measure out 3oz (1/3 cup) of food and see if that helps.