So guess who has set a date for surgery #2? Yea, its me. Shabam! I was so excited I almost crapped my bag. This is far more exciting than setting a wedding date…though faaar more terrifying. You think committing yourself to someone for the rest of your life is terrifying…try letting someone cut you open and mess with your poop chute.
Happy cows come from Michigan...and are named Jackie
So while this new surgery date is awesomely excitingly rad…its also SUPER depressing. The reality has set in that I’m wicked fat.
Now whenever I state this painfully obvious fact to people, they always say “Its the steroids”. And while I can acknowledge that over a year of straight steroids probably has
mmm burger
NOT helped my case in the fatty mcfatterson department…its not totally to blame. Lets throw on a side of not being able to be even remotely active for a year…and the GIGANTIC appetite ive developed after steroids…and its safe to say that…I’ve got A LOT of work to do before my surgery. I need to lose like 30 el-bees before August 24th. Hey huge daunting task, how are you? Good news is I’m FINALLY off steroids…bad news is I think I might have to start taking them again probably just 1mg a day or so because I’m having some very slight withdrawls. Which again…is DUMB. More bad news is I’m really fat. Ugh. I’m tired of being fat. Fat is not fun.
So other than just bitching about being fat, I am very slowly (and I do mean slowly) starting to get off my bedonkedonk and move.
Le Pooch
I’ve taken a few walks which I’m sure my dog really appreciates.
Though hes far from fat…in fact he could kick all of our asses if he only had thumbs. Anyway, so I’ve taken a few walks and today I cut my grass. While I would love to say that I cut my grass because I’m super pumped about my new love for exercise…I’d be lying. I totally got a violation notice from the city about my…weeds? I dont really understand because my grass was no longer than anyone elses and my dandelions were no where near the 9 inches that require a violation. But whatevs. The big giant red notice on my door was enough to get me off my ass.
Anyhoo… Long story short..Im fat…I gotta get skinny in 4 months…and I’m delusional to think that walking around the block will be enough to do that….we’ll see. You know I’ll be keeping you posted. In the mean time, I’ll just be here…walkin’ it out…DJ UNK style….except minus the naked chicks, rappers, gold, 40s and replace the music with the Glee soundtrack. Its basically the same thing.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KutcjLkH3-o]
Just out of curiosity, what happens if you don’t lose all that weight?
You can do it! My surgeon told me that I had to lose 100 (yes, ONE HUNDRED) pounds before he would do Step 2 of 3 on me, and 1 year and 4 moths later I was on the table for it, 100 pounds lighter. It’s amazing how well I could focus when I wanted to be ostomy-free (and when I was off the steroids after 4 1/2 years straight, many at 90mg per day)!
Good luck!
Hey Russ, If I dont lose the weight…I dont get the surgery. Its like a mean trick. Boo. Hopefully I can get off my fat ass.
Nicole…wow thats pretty amazing. I need to lose about 30lbs in 4 months…which I know is totally do able but it just feels pretty impossible considering just walking around the block gets me all kinds of winded. Its amazing how out of shape you get when you can’t be mobile for a long period of time. Were you as stationary as I am/was? What did you do? I’m especially frustrated with the no veggies/fruits thing. Ugh.
I was very out of shape, and even walking a block was an issue. I started out by doing the one mile Walk Away the Pounds DVD in the privacy of my own home, and I could not even make it through 5 minutes at first. But I kept on doing as much as I could until I could complete it, and I went on to longer ones.
As far as fruits and veggies, once I had my ostomy I ate anything and everything that I wanted, so I was able to eat them and it certainly did help me lose the weight. The only issue that I ever had was when I ate too many strawberries once and my bag literally got pushed off from the thick output in the middle of the night!
I followed the Weight Watchers program to wrap my arms around portion control. It’s not for everyone, but it worked for me. Also, both http://www.sparkpeople.com and http://www.livestrong.com have good (free!) online calorie counting tools if you are interested!
You ate anything you wanted with the ostomy? Really? Weren’t you afraid of blockages?
So I was WAY fat from steroids too. I always joked I was the only one with terrible UC who was fat! All the other people I knew were SO skinny! But all the steroids kept adding to me. I mean after surgery one (i’m lucky and just have to get 2) the ostomy nurse said “looks like you have been able to put weight on.” when in reality I had lost 30! All that to say. When all is said and done the real you will be back and you can totally loose your weight by August! I know you can rock it this fatty could 🙂
Taylor,
THATS WHAT I ALWAYS SAY! How is it that everyone else got deathly skinny and here I am rockin the pounds like they are goin’ out of style. If this was an ice age, I would out live everyone with my fat reserves. Seriously, for once in my life I get the “skinny disease” and I get fat? What the crap?!
Jackie, I spent 4 1/2 years unable to eat salad, so one I had the ostomy I was all over it… blockages be damned!
I only had a partial blockage once in the 1 1/2 years I had the ostomy, and that was from too many nuts, I think. It resolved on its own with lots of warm tea.
I just chewed everything really well. For the first few months. Then I got lazy. With my j-pouch, I still eat anything and everything (heck, I ate A POUND of brussel sprouts for lunch today, seriously!), and most days I forget that I even have a j-pouch.
I loves me some food (even though I am 120 lighter now than when I went in for Step 1)!
Nicole, Wow so daring! Seriously I’m so scared of a dang blockage and having to go BACK to the hospital. Especially because I’m afraid I won’t know that I have one. I’m seriously terrified. BUUT I think since I’m 6 weeks out, I might start eating more stuff like that. I really gotta drop these pounds. Well and my boss was so “nice” to move my parking spot about 6+blocks from my office so thats at least 12 blocks a day! That should help…perhaps I should thank her….perhaps..
Hows was the jpouch for you in the beginning? I’ve heard so much about it feeling like UC again, and wearing depends, and leaking and accidents….and I never thought I’d say this, but the bag sounds pretty dang secure and reliable right now. Having an unpredictable butt again scares the crap outta me…literally.
PS thanks for being a return commenter. I really appreciate it.Especially because you’re positive. I was just talking with the Vickster about this the other day, about how SO much on the internet about ostomies and jpouchs is so negative it scares a lot of people.
Also..where did you have your surgeries?
I had them at the University of Chicago (Dr. Roger Hurst, a god in my book). Surgery is never easy, and a j-pouch is never like a colon, but I do consider myself one of the lucky ones. I have had the pouch since December 2005, and have had pouchitis 3 times (cleared right up with Cipro). I have had fewer accidents than I can count on one hand (and I would characterize them more like big leaks). Although Tylenol P.M. seems to be a culprit for me!
I do post on jpouch.org sometimes, but do not want to seem like I am bragging. I know that many experience complications, and seriously I feel terrible for them. 4 1/2 years of active UC, no remission, made me want to jump so I get it. But I had no choice. Got pancreatitis from both Asacol and Imuran, so I could not try Remicade or anything else. It had to come out. I was sooooo scared.
Besides the vanity and yuck factor of the ostomy, I felt like a million bucks after my colon was yanked. But I wanted to give the pouch a try and am so glad that I did. I have my life back now.
I was scheduled for a 3 step, but they ended up doing Step 2 & 3 unexpectedly (in addition to a huge incisional hernia repair at my stoma site). A 7 hour surgery. The roughest recovery hospital stay by far, almost 10 days there. But once I got home it was all good and I just had to get my strength back.
As for knowing that it was a blockage… I felt backed up and had NO OUTPUT from my stoma. It was very uncomfortable. There was no doubt it was a blockage. But you need to do what makes you feel comfortable. Maybe try some cooked veggies and fruit?
Glad to see you on FB!
I agree with Nicole. It feels like a million bucks to have no colon. Even on bad days when things don’t stick or work it is so worth it. I am on step one of two. But life will be good and is 🙂 I don’t know what I would have done without my friend who has an ostomy for life and is so positive…it is amazing how she could be joyful with my worst fear as her reality.