4 Weeks On...

Tracking my weight loss to date, for those who, like me, love the facts and figures:

My heaviest weight: 115 kilos (253.5lbs) for about 2 years to around Jun/Jul 08
Pre Optifast diet 111.1 kilos (244.9lbs)
Day of Operation 105.2 kilos (231.9lbs)
4 weeks post op 100 kilos (220.5lbs)

So on my own I struggled to lose 4 kilos (nearly 9lbs) in 6 months, which isn't too bad and deserves a pat on the back. In this time I did go up and down however, losing and gaining the same 2 kilos several times over. But when I hit my surgeons office it gave me renewed hope and helped the process keep to a downwards direction. Then the Optifast diet gave me a huge kickstart in the 2 weeks prior to surgery. The weight loss has slowed down considerably, probably due to my body trying to adjust to the new food regime! I have put the scales away, so I'm not obsessively weighing everyday. I know the weight will come off.

My main focus at this point is to make sure I get all the liquids/water I need on a daily basis and get my protein requirements in. I have progressed onto 'mushy' food, and although that sounds disgusting it tastes like heaven after consuming only liquids for so long. I've gotten into cooking again, which is a novelty! I'm not working at present (damn this recession!), so my domestic skills are coming out of mothballs.

I am really enjoying flavours and my whole relationship with food has done a 180 degree turn. I am not consumed with the hunger I was before the op, although I do feel hunger. Its a different feeling. Pre op my hunger was like this: most of the day, unless I was distracted with work, a low level nagging feeling in my stomach and mouth. The mouth part was a craving for something nice to taste, the stomach bit was an empty feeling in the pit of my stomach. Then at around 11.30 (pre lunch) and 4.30 (pre dinner) I would get this intense craving coupled with a feeling of faintness, headache, dizziness and nausea. So by the time I ate I would INHALE the food, it never even touched the sides and I never felt full or satisfied. I did test my blood sugars from time to time to see if this was a symptom - but it wasn't. Now, post op, I have a feeling that perhaps I should eat something, bit of an empty feeling in the tummy - check the clock and lo and behold! its actually a mealtime! When I heard of this lack of hunger phenomenon to do with WLS I knew that if I had this one small thing, loss of the over the top appetite, that I could do it.

Small victories so far - have crossed my legs; had my photo taken without cringing; taken off the bra extender; can get out of bed without puffing and struggling; still of my diabetes meds as blood sugar levels are within normal range; skin looks great; and (according to reports) not snoring so much! I completely deny ever snoring in the first place, but I have been told it rattled the windows.