blechy saturday

I wrote recently about getting to 10,000 steps every day... well yesterday was not one of those days. It was a rainy Saturday and I only got 4,292 steps in...BLECH!

So today I vowed to do better. So I got up early (for me on a weekend) and took my dog Millie for a nice long walk. Total steps for the walk...5,290. Not a bad start to the day.

Now only 4,710 more to go today.

Ten Things Thursday...yes I know it's Friday, see #1.

1. I’m a procrastinator…hence TTT on Friday.
2. I had my (hopefully) last appointment prior to surgery yesterday.  All pre-op testing was ok, except for low Vitamin D levels.
3. Still don’t have a surgery date.  I was told yesterday the office would call me in the next week or so to give me the date. They weren’t able to tell me if it would be in May or not.
4. I’m impatient… if you’ve been ready along you will already know this.
5. I had the second anniversary of my 38^th birthday in March. 
6. My hubby and I just celebrated our 7^th wedding anniversary this month.  However we celebrated the 13^th anniversary of our first date in February of this year.
7. We went to Ireland for our honeymoon, and I want to go back soon.  It’s such a beautiful country.
8. Coming up with 10 things is hard for me.
9. I’m currently obsessed with the Decorah Bald Eagles.  It’s amazing to see how much the eaglets change from day to day.
10. I’m involved in dog rescue, and will be helping with a transport of two dogs going from Missouri to New Hampshire. I’m only doing 1 leg of a multi-leg, and multi day journey.  It’s amazing what a group of volunteers can do when they put their minds to something.

The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step...

So one of the things I started even before making the final decision to get banded was to count my steps and try to get the recommended 10,000 steps a day.  When I started about 5 months ago I was only walking about 3,000.  I upped that slowly and when I went to my first consult in March I was doing about 6,000.  At that point I made the decision to try to increase again.  Now I'm trying to actually get to 10,000.  Most days I get close, sometimes even go over, weekends are actually harder than work days.

Today I calculated how much I've walked in the last month and a half. Amazingly it was...wait for it... 141 miles!!!  Can you believe it?  I didn't, I had to do the calculations a couple of times before I was sure it was right.

When I went to my first support group I had lost about 6 pounds since my initial consultation.  I can't wait to see what the scale says says when I go back next week. Every little bit helps. and the more I can take off before surgery the better.

Pre-Op testing done...now more waiting

So I went in for all my pre-op testing this morning.  Bright and early, had to be there at 7.  On the drive in all I could think about was soon I would be driving there one morning for my surgery and I was so nervous/excited.

So here's the list of everything I had today:

• Vital signs
• 10 tubes of blood drawn 
• chest x-rays
• Upper GI (aka barium swallow)
• EKG
• Pulmonary function tests
• met with the nurse to review my med history

Nothing too horrible,  except the barium.  BLECH!  Taste wasn't so bad, but the consistency was horrible.  Felt like I was drinking chalk mixed with liquid paste.  I also felt like I was on an amusement ride. They have you stand upright on the machine   First they give you what looks and feels like pop-rocks, and drink that down with a tiny bit of water.( I read about this on another blog, so I was prepared)   Then the thick barium, a big glass full.  The they tip back the table while you are on it until you are lying flat.  The you have to roll over a couple of times to get the barium to get coated on your stomach. OF course the pop rocks release gas and makes you want to belch, but you aren't supposed to, they want to keep all that gas in the stomach for the pics.

The they start taking the pictures, on your back, on your side, half way between back and side.  Then had to drink the thin barium, luckily just to large sips.  More pics and then it was done.  YIPPEE.  I asked the tech how many people vomit during all that moving and she just laughed.

I have an appointment with the hospitalist (MD) next week.  They'll have reviewed all the test and Ill find out if there's any reason why I can't have the surgery.  If everything is ok, then I'll get put on the surgery schedule.  The nurse today said it could be up to 2 weeks until I hear back from the office to schedule.  She thinks my dr is still scheduling in May, but isn't sure.  She said one of the other drs in the practice is already booked into June!

PLEASE, PLEASE don't be that far away!!!!!!

Frustration

Have I mentioned that I am impatient? I hate waiting. Once I make a decision I want to get going. I'm the type of person who doesn't cut her hair for years then one day just decides it's time and helds to the nearest salon and takes whoever is available(not the smartest idea, trust me...)

Yes, I have my pre-op testing scheduled, so why am I frustrated? I don't have a surgery date...argh. They won't schedule surgery until after all the testing is done, and I have a physical exam. The exam is schedule for the 26th, so I won't get a date until after that. As part of the process I also have to go to an all day nutrition class, I just called the center and they won't schedule that until I have a surgery date. I asked how long is it usually is between when people take the class and there surgery and she said 2-3 weeks... double argh.

So I won't even know the date of surgery until May, and then it may not be till the end of may or june. How can I have pre-op testing in April and surgery a month or more later? If you are reading along can you tell me how long was it between your pre-op testing and surgery?

I know it really isn't that long to wait, but have I mentioned I'm impatient?  I just want a date.  Ok pity party over for today.

Updates

On the band front things are going well. I have pre-op testing on 4/18 and a pre-surgery physical on 4/26. Still don't have a surgery date yet, but I'm planning for May. I still haven't told my boss yet, need to do that soon. I'm sure she'll be fine with me taking time off. My company has great time off policies. What I would like to do it take 1 week off and then work 1 week from home.

I also went to my first lap band support group. It was great! There were two other people there (plus the dietitian). One guy was banded in January and has lost 40 pounds and one woman was banded in Feb and has lost 30 pounds. It was great to hear their stories, the good the bad and the ugly. One of the reasons I chose the center I did was all of the support groups they have. I found out they even have an exercise group and a water aerobics group, just for bariatric patients. I want to work out, but going to the gym is hard for me at this size.

On a not so great note, we had to put down our 14 year old boxer Emma. She's been sick for awhile and it was time. She was the best dog, and I'm devastated that she is gone.

This is Emma a few weeks ago enjoying her frozen custard.

Pre-op testing scheduled

I love these two week waits that turn into less than a week! The scheduler called today and my pre-op testing will be April 18th. They wont give me a surgery date until after the doctor reviews all the results. She did say there's a chance the Dr will review that day. Fingers crossed that everything goes ok with the testing.