Week 1 - Getting Over the Hurdles

October 7th marks one week from the date of my surgery. It was a good week, but a good week with challenges. The day of surgery I weighed 220, when I came home I weighed 232, now I am 218; losing a total of 14 pounds within my first week after surgery.

For me week one had its emotional challenges; the weather was gloomy and rainy most of the week. I wasn’t able to leave the house much and although I was not hungry, I found myself thinking more and more about food, cooking and how to redesign my food choices for my new life style. There were times when I became fixated on the fact that I would be living off a liquid diet for the next 30 days and food; any type of food became the object of my desire. The same food commercials I’ve probably seen thousands of times and never paid too much attention to now had my undivided attention.


Week one provided a wake up call for me, because even being overweight with diabetes I didn’t realize how much FOOD played a major emotional part in my life until now. Crazy, but true. I am now in a position to evaluate my life from a different prospective.

I am very, very excited about my decision to have weight loss surgery; but with this decision come a multitude of choices and new decisions. I have been given a second chance to take control of my health and Do The Right Thing so to speak. My longing for the taste of foods as I once new them doesn’t have to change, as much as my decision to make healthier choices, because ultimately making poor choices will causes me discomfort and sickness from eating foods I should not be eating, and know I should not be eating.

So with these choices taste really becomes the focus more so than the food; if that makes sense.

I followed my doctor’s orders to the best of my ability making sure that I was doing my daily walks, breathing exercises, taking vitamins and again eating only the foods recommended.

In my research this week I found that one of the major side effects from this surgery is flatulence; gas. Man oh man; have I put new meaning into Blowing It Out. This is serious! There are chair pads for gastric bypass patients; Disposable Flatulence Deodorizer pads (http://www.flat-d.com/gastric-bypass1.html) for this reason alone. OMG!!!

Looking back; week one helped me to formulate new ideas, meet challenges and face fears. I believe I am blessed to have an opportunity to alter the way things were going with my health. God and science are responsible, and for this I am thankful to both God and science.

(This full body shot was taken last month; Labor Day weekend 2009.)