The Beginning

I have three more sleeps until my surgery. I spent the day with a friend. We got pedicures. We watched a movie. I took a nap during the movie. I have been really tired the last few days. I am on day 8 of a 10 day liquid fast. My brain is dragging a bit. Several times today I caught myself saying the wrong word in the middle of a sentence, as if I were tipsy.

Yesterday was my last day of work. It was the Friday before Labor Day and didn't come a day too soon. This surgery will allow me a much needed break. Immediately after work I had a massage. This little luxury, is one I could not do without. I fantasize about being rich and famous and having a massage therapist on the payroll...ready at my beck and call.

I decided to blog about my experience and gastric bypass or Roux-En-Y surgery for two reasons. 1. I think is will be very therapeutic for me. 2. I image that there are other peeps out there who have questions that I may be able to answer.

My journey began almost a year ago when I attend a bariatric seminar hosted by a local surgeon. We met at the Boys & Girls Club of Tacoma on a Wednesday night in December. I had no idea what was in store for me, or how that night would potentially change my life forever. There were about 15 or 16 in the audience and we all sat silently, listening to bariatric patients give their testimony...one after another. Everyone had a different story, a different experience and different reasons for having the surgery. The stories were different and so were the types of surgeries they had. The two things in common, were that they all had the same surgeon and they all were successful, because they were dedicated to the life long changes that need to be made.

My reasons for having this surgery are simple. I want to live to see 60. Both of my parents battled with adult obesity. Both of my parents died from heart disease in their 50's. My father was 56 and my mother was 59. I struggled with the idea that I had this knowledge and yet I was still not able to consistently make good food choices and I over ate. Each year my weight went up.

It's my opinion that an obese person must own the fact that it's not all genetics. People don't get fat unless they consistently over eat and make wrong food choices. For an obese person to get better, with surgery or without, acknowledgement of these facts is essential.