9 weeks and 2 days..

Today is 9 weeks and 2 days postop.  Its also incidentally my husband's birthday.  He's at home sick with an inner ear infection and I just happened to be off work today.  He's laying beside me resting and I decided to go ahead and post to let you guys know what's going on.  I am still struggling with getting my caloric intake/required protein and/or my fluids.  I tend to get one or the other; rarely do I get both.  I'm hanging in there.  I have met several people that have had the RNY since I had it and I am trying to help them with the process.  The first three weeks were the hardest for me pain-wise, but the last few weeks have been tough trying to get my intake.

Perseverance

per·se·ver·ance

   [pur-suh-veer-uhns]  Show IPA

–noun

1.

steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state,etc., especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles, ordiscouragement.

2.

Theology . continuance in a state of grace to the end,leading to eternal salvation.

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The last two years has been incredibly hard on me and my family.  We have all been through a lot of private, personal triumphs and have shed an endless amount of tears. 

I also acknowledge that the people around me have had problems too.  From having devastating heath issues, having loved ones with chronic illnesses, those who have lost loved ones, some who have children with drug problems, people having to do without and barely able to survive, living paycheck-to-paycheck, losing a parent, losing a brother, losing a friend, losing a lover. 

The beauty in life doesn't exist in the big picture - what job you have, what kind of car you drive or if your house is on a cul-de-sac.  What matters are the little things and knowing that when you are struggling that all you have to do is reach out and there are people there to help you.  I have learned that whoever is supposed to be there for that moment - will be.  I am trying to live my life that way.  To try to find my purpose and contribution to every situation.  If God puts me in communication with someone, that its for a reason and every encounter with another person is an opporturnity to change a life - either yours or theirs.  There are some you teach and some you learn from.  Be receptive to both, they are both necessary parts of a balanced life.

I must have a plan...

They have said all along that this surgery is not an end-all fix-all, but a tool that can help you if you make the effort, have a plan, and stick to it.

I have made the decision to make changes in my life.  I have the plan, am making the effort, and now I just have to stick to it.  I need to integrate exercise into my everyday life, get enough nutrition to be productive, and get all of my vitamins/nutrients so I don't lose my curly brown hair!

10 Day Sickie Challenge - Day Ten

One photo of me

10 Day Sickie Challenge - Day Nine

First of all, I must apologize for my post.  I tried for hours to get the recipes copied/pasted over from one blog to another and it kept giving me HTML script errors.  I finally got frustrated and just decided to just link the pages directly to the portions that I wanted specifically for each group (bariatrics/sickies). 

For Bariatric Patients - Please see the Recipes portion of my blog.

For Sickies - Please see my Cooking With Jennifer blog, particularly the No Bake Section. 

Also - Browse the Sinful area. I hope you enjoy this section of my most treasured and most popular recipes.  This is the list of things that people usually choose from when they ask me to bring something to work/family functions. 

For sweets, the biggest hits  are the Chocolate Lover's Dream Cake, Woody's Coconut Cream Pie and the various Cheesecakes. 

For breakfast, Homemade French Toast with maple roasted bacon is always a favorite. 

For dinners, I have several crowd pleasures, but my personal favorites are:

1.  Homemade Chicken Alfredo.

2.  Pizziti = a combination of Pizza and baked ziti  

Feel free to nose around the entire Cooking With Jennifer blog at your convenience. There is a hodge-podge of different recipes that I have collected since I started the blog. I am also writing a family cookbook in my spare time and am planning on adding my grandmother's recipes when I get a chance. 

10 Day Sickie Challenge - Day Eight

Three pretties
For Sickies:

Just because you have a broken wing, doesn't mean that you have lost your desire to fly - but it also doesn't mean that you'll never fly again.  

It was beautiful to me, to see the rose still blooming and still be as beautiful after the rain, even though it might have lost a petal or two along the way.

Life is hard, pain is real, and with a chronic illness, struggles are to be expected.  I don't know why we were chosen to bear the extra burden and heartache, but try to at least see the beauty in the storm. 

For Bariatric Patients:

The first glimpse of the beauty of a woman is seen in her spirit.

Know that you don't have to be thin for you to love yourself.  In fact, if you do decide to have weight loss surgery, the journey will be easier if you already established that you're doing it for you.  

If you do chose to make a change in your life, either through weight loss of traditional methods, surgery, or something else -- know that this part of life is a brand new adventure and you are not going through it alone.

10 Day Sickie Challenge - Day Seven

Four Tips For Sickies
1.  Write about how you are feeling - whether good, bad, sick, angry, whatever - either in a blog, a diary, or a forum.  We all understand the emotional, mental, and physical pain of the illness but don't forget to treat your spirit too. Take the time to let some of the pain, the anger, and the frustration out and let yourself at least begin to heal. 2.  Read other Sickie's blogs.  If you allow it, life through someone else's eyes can change your perspective and also give you a better perception of your own condition. You may even pick up some good tips/tricks/treatment methods that you've never heard before that might can make a difference for your own problems - who knows, you might even make a friend along the way. 3.  For those of you who are not allergic to animals, pets can be major therapy (i.e. dogs and cats).  They help with blood pressure, anxiety, can help boost immunity, and most importantly, they love you unconditionally and they don't judge you for any decision you make - sickie related or not.  Its been my experience that my animals know when a person doesn't feel well.  They can sense it.  Mine usually stay nearer to me whenever I am feeling less than okay.  They honestly try to give me as much support as they can.  4.  Make an extra effort to say thank you to your support system. Its just as important for a Sickie as it is for a bariatric patient, if not more so for Sickies to have a strong foundation on which to stand.  

Four Tips for Bariatric/Weight Loss Surgery Patients 
1.  Go to your local support group meetings if you have any available.  Some of the best support will come from other people who are experiencing the same thing and some of those bonds you form there can last a lifetime.2.  Its okay to mourn food and grieve the part of yourself that goes away with all of the changes. 3.  Make an extra effort to say thank you to your support system.  I know at times I am a bitch, hard to deal with and can be extremely moody. My hormones are changing because of the changes in my system and my depression level goes up and down.  I may cry, I may scream, and I may be silent.  Be good to the ones that are there for you during everything.  Try to remember, they may not quite understand what you're going through, but they are trying and they would do anything to help you but just may not know where to start. 4.  Love yourself - who you were, who you are, and who you are going to be.