Protein fun!

Today has been a productive day! I was told to begin my MEGA protein intake 1 week after my surgery...well, that would be today! I can not even believe that I am already one week post op! Craziness! Anyways, I started the protein adventure today. Before surgery, I had bought protein powder to make shakes because I knew I would not be eating enough food to even come close to my 60-75mg of daily requirement. I didn't open it or smell it because I was told that there was a great possibility that something I liked beforehand, I would be disgusted by afterwards. I opened the container today to make my first shake. My first mistake would be that I used the blender. This produced a disgusting whipped sensation. My pouch hates things that are full of air...so whipped protein goo did NOT agree with it. I decided to persevere because after all, this protein powder came from Walmart! I tried it again without the blender, just mixing it with water. This fared slighly better, but still tasted not so grand. I finished it (cause I didn't want to waste!) so I could get that 23g of protein in, but decided that until I can drink 6-8oz of milk, this powder is not going to work for me. Mixing it with water is disgusting. So, the only other solution was to reach out to the GB message board, which has become so helpful the last week, for a solution. One person recommended these 3oz protein bullets. They have 42g of protein! YIKES! They come in multiple flavors and are sold at GNC. I bought a few at GNC today and am loving them already! These are really going to be helpful until I can get to the milk drinking point.

Other than that, I've walked to the mailbox (yes, I can hear the sarcastic ooh's and aah's), read a book, and written this blog! Pretty good for someone who had abdominal surgery a week ago! I am very surprised how good I feel. I did not expect that! My purpose this week is to get my endurance up to work a full day. Next week should be interesting. Not only am I getting thrown back into work, but I'll also be on donor call too...what a welcome! It will be SO much fun getting my fluids in if I'm in a transplant! :)

Okay. I think I've probably bored you enough with my protein fiasco. Enjoy your day! It's BEAUTIFUL here! :)

Recovery

Things here in the recovery ward are going quite well. I am still very exhausted most of the time, but I am able to drink more and more each day and I feel less sore as the days go by! I am still only able to drink about 40oz a day, which doesn't seem like much compared to what I used to be able to put away! I am doing my very best to stay hydrated, which is pretty much the only goal of the 1st week! Next week, I'll start my protein extravaganza. I have to have 60-75 grams of protein every day! YIKES! It's too bad they don't make a shot for that. I'd invest in that one, if I could!

Mom left this morning, much to the sadness of Liberty, who proceeded to cry at the door for 1/2 an hour. She's already safe at home and that makes me sad, although I didn't choose to weep at the door like my dog! I am SO very thankful she was here, I would NEVER have been able to go through the week without her!

I'm off to watching a Jane Austen fest this afternoon. I have Sense and Sensibility, Becoming Jane, and The Jane Austen Book Club. I'm excited! :)

I'm home!

I left my house at 4:30am yesterday! ICK! I had to stop at the hospital lab first to ensure I wasn't pregnant! :) Next came day surgery, where I signed in and waiting until they took me to pre-op. I got an IV and met the anesthesia doctor. My surgeon also came to say hello. I think I was in surgery for about an hour and a half. I woke up in the recovery room, and it was a MUCH nicer wake up than my last surgery. I stayed in recovery for about 5 hours and then went up to my room.

I had a pain pump filled with Morphine so I didn't worry too much the first couple hours. I got up and walked twice yesterday evening. I took some meds to help me sleep and went off to la la land. And that's when all the noise began! There was something waking me up about every two hours or so. Vitals, IV bag changes, Checking the morphine pump, MORE vital signs (I guess they didn't like that my BP was 74/39 and my oxygen levels were 90). These techs did not learn how to be quiet. They pretty much wanted to have a conversation while I was sleeping! I was already crabby from lack of sleep...they should have known better!

Ah well, my night of torture is over. I was discharged this morning and am happily at home to finish recovering! I am still very VERY sore and feel like I was hit by a train, but hopefully this will not last for too long.

Thanks to everyone who lifted me up in prayer, they were much appreciated! I still have a long way to go...

Sixth Sense

Liberty Grace has a sixth sense. She has the innate ability to sense change. She despises change, and loves to act out in response to it. She's been quite the character the last 12 hours. Thank goodness for camera phones that have allowed me to document this ridiculous behavior!
uer Last night, I was folding an insane amount of clothes. I was putting away towels when she pulled this maneuver...



This morning, I went and bought food for both her and Oliver. Since I'm not supposed to lift more than 20lbs for the first month or so, I knew I needed to get the food situation under control before surgery. To keep the food fresh, I transfer it to a big rubbermaid bin. After the transfer, Liberty decided she needed to help finish off the crumbs INSIDE the bag. Retard!

Desperate times...

...call for very desperate measures. I just mixed pickle juice with chicken broth so I could actually have something that was flavored and NOT bland. It sounds gross, but it was SO SO good! I've been especially crabby this week...mostly just hungry! Perhaps that's why I simply cracked and needed to put pickle juice in my broth. I'm so random.

It seems unreal that I'm having surgery in two days. I have so many people wishing me well, it makes it much easier to go!

Oliver and Liberty seem unphased, with the exception of being pitiful because there's no dropped food.

This weekend brings a LOT of cleaning. I'd rather not recover in a pigsty. Here's my list...since everyone blogging around me seems to list their chores:

~Finish the kitchen (have to run a load of dishes and put them away)
~LAUNDRY (#1 priority...I have lots of piles of clean clothes that need to be folded!)
~Wash all my sheets
~vacuum (this must be done after Oliver leaves...or else the shredding will continue)
~Declutter the kitchen table
~PACK! (I have never been overnight in a hospital before...so I have no idea what to bring!)

Let's see how much I can get done tonight! :)

YAWN.

I'm sleepy. I got home around 4:45AM from a transplant. It went very well, but I am so exhausted. I woke up from a "nap" about 30 minutes ago with a splitting caffeine withdrawl headache. I'm hoping the tylenol and the chocolate slimfast shake will help soon.

I've been told the second day is the worst. I would have to agree, although I think I have extenuating circumstances with the transplant last night. My body has completely rebelled and all I wanted on the way home yesterday was a cheeseburger! I know this will be worth it in the long run, but I'm not happy about it. Perhaps it's a good thing that I'm not going to work today...I'm pretty crabby!

So I will sit here. With my sweet puppies who are feeling abandoned from yesterday. And we will snuggle and NOT think about cheeseburgers. :)

I'm a disgrace!

I was in Boston for five days and took TWO pictures. TWO! I am the QUEEN of pictures, and I took TWO. There's just no excuse for that. Now I'll have to go back!


Boston Public Library

Trinity Church, Copley Place

Again, sorry for the LACK of pictures...but I'm sure you didn't want pictures of the conference rooms. Even I didn't want to see those~

I'm currently enjoying my last Diet Dr Pepper. It's bittersweet, but exciting for all the things to come! :)

Boston 2008

Word to the wise: if you ever have the opportunity to go to a beautiful and historic city like Boston for a conference, make sure you either come early or stay late. I am very frustrated that I have not been able to experience Boston the way I would have liked too, but I have still been exposed to some wonderful things! I got here on Tuesday, on a MD80, two flights before American shut them all down! I guess it pays to take the earlier than early flight. I took the “T” from the airport down to the area where my hotel was. It was very reminiscent of Washington DC where you come off a giant escalator into the most beautiful surroundings! I was instantly blown away by the Boston Public Library, the oldest library in America and Trinity Church. I’ll have to download pictures off my camera when I’m not sitting in the airport without the cords! I hiked the block and a half to my hotel, lugging my enormous suitcase behind me. I stayed in the Copley Place Marriot, which was gigantic and fabulous!  I had a really long and boring meeting that afternoon which was only made better by the chocolate and sandwiches! After the meeting, I checked into the hotel, only to wait for all my co-workers whose planes had been affected by the massive American cancellations. Once my roommate Lisa got there, we went with the other transplant cardiologist to a delicious seafood restaurant for dinner! YUM! Legal Seafood is apparently a Boston staple and it was divine! Wednesday, the official conference began and our days were suddenly filled with meeting after meeting after meeting! For dinner, we went over to Harvard for a meeting of one of the research projects we are involved in. We also went to scope out Children’s of Boston. Thursday bought more meetings….I’m telling you, the highlights of my trip involve the fabulous food! Thursday, I went with Lisa, Kris (my favorite surgeon!), and another physician who had previously done transplant at my hospital to another delicious seafood restaurant that Kris knew about. She’s from Boston, so we figured she’d pretty much know where to go…and she did. That night, we went back to Legal Seafood for dinner and drinks with all the Dallas gang. Friday…can you guess? More meetings! Friday was a great day for several reasons…first of all, I went absolutely crazy for free stuff in the exhibit hall. Let’s just say I have my fair share (and probably some other people’s too) of drug pens. Kris, Lisa, and I did sushi for lunch…which I fall more in love with every time I eat it! Lisa presented a research poster we had all worked on in the afternoon, which was really exciting because we were able to get into some lively debates with other hospital groups! Afterwards, the conference was throwing a “gala” at the Boston Public Library which involved an open bar (which was WAY fun to watch people enjoy!), lots of finger foods, and beautiful, yet crowded surroundings. Lisa and I were starting to feel very claustrophobic, so we left and went up into the Prudential building, which has the most beautiful lounge on the 52nd floor! We drank wine and just fell in love with the buildings at night! Today, I’m headed back home. I haven’t been able to do much of the touristy things I wanted to do, but now that I know how beautiful this city is, I will absolutely be back. I also didn’t get very many pictures, but that can be remedied at another visit! Right now, I’m sitting in some airport restaurant, trying to pass the time. I’m sitting next to a guy who is eating the cloves right out of a bulb of roasted garlic. EW! I think that’s perfectly fine to do when you are at home…but right before you get on a plane? I think I should start praying now that he is not sitting next to me. On a different random restaurant note, the waiter just passed me and said “How’s my lady friend doing?” Weird. I now have big plans to go find my gate and listen to my iPod until the plane boards.

I have less than 48 hours until my eating habits will drastically change. Starting Monday, I’ll be doing only clear liquids and protein drinks until my surgery a week later. I also have to stop taking ibuprofen and get ready to start doing my blood thinner shots (EW!) Please keep me in your prayers as I go off caffeine completely and make do with only liquids. It’s gonna be worth it in the end, but I don’t want to make people crazy!

Beware of the white nastiness.

If anyone ever wants you to hhave an upper GI, please make sure it is for a VERY good reason. You might even want to ask for some anti-nausea medication first. I might have been okay...if I did not have to lay on a table and roll around so I can "coat my stomach". I'm still trying to work the barium out of my system...not a pleasing thought.

I also had a chest xray, labs, an EKG, an abdominal sonogram, and a leg ultrasound. According to the sonographer, I have no gallstones, a nice looking liver, clot free leg veins, and leg arteries that show that I've never smoked! (thank goodness for that!) It was a very busy morning. I had plans to go to work afterwards, but the overwhelming nausea was enough for me to say NOT in a million years.

Tomorrow, I am going to Boston! :) Hooray for trips!

The busyness of it all!

I do not protest to have the most busy life ever, but for the next few weeks, it's pretty crazy! Tomorrow, I have a nutrition class to attend. I can not wait to hear what I can and can not eat! My sister in law bought me a fabulous book for cooking after weight loss surgery, which is something I am absolutely committed to doing. Here's where I am going to need MAJOR prayer...I hate to cook. I despise it. I'm terrible at it. I am going to HAVE to start liking it. That's just all there is to it. I will no longer be focused on fast food because that is not a wise food choice for me.

I also have a morning long doctor's appointment on Monday. I have labs, chest xray, and an EKG starting at 7:30AM (EW!). Afterwards, I move on to a sonogram of my abdomen to look at all the structures they will be operating on. THEN, I have to go for an Upper GI test, where I drink barium and they watch on a screen to see if I reflux. Disgusting. It's gonna be an icky day. I don't think I'm going to work after that fiasco. :(

Tuesday, I leave for Boston at 6AM. EW! I would not normally go that early, but I have a meeting for a research project I am in charge of.....so I have to be there by 1pm. Just lovely. The absolute BEST part of the trip is that my roommate will be my fabulous friend Lisa! She's the new transplant attending MD and she and I are absolute kindred spirits! She's so much fun, and we're already planning fun times! Not to mention that Boston is my surgeon friend Kris' home town and she will no doubt need to show us the sights! Love it! :)

I get home from the conference on Saturday, the 12th. I will spend the next day and a half eating all the foods I will not be eating for awhile. Starting Monday, the 14th, I will have to start an all liquid diet...EW! I'll be allowed Slimfast....and anything clear and sugar free. Jello. Broth. Juice. EW! I'm not excited about it...but oh well.

For those of you who were wondering, I will be having the RNY gastric bypass on the 21st. I did major research on the RNY vs the lap band and found the RNY to be the better choice for me. I'll let you know more if you want, just ASK.

Okay. Bedtime calling.