The Last Hurdle

I cleared the last remaining hurdle today. Both insurance companies have signed off and approved my surgery. Thank goodness. So I am now really in the home stretch. I have a couple of more appointments with Dr. Brader and his team this week. Theses are the final steps before my surgery in 14 days. Tomorrow I have my last nutrition class where I get my post op diet.  Thursday I meet with Dr. Brader and get my pre-op blood work. Work has approved my LOA so I am about as ready as I can get.

I am doing well with my diet and exercise this week, down a couple of more pounds even with my bucket list. Oh, I didn't mention my bucket list? Well, it is somewhat silly. Since I will be on a  VERY restrictive diet, and some food will be off my menu for a long time if not permanently, I have a bucket list of last dinners and activities I want to have and do. 

Now I know that all you armchair psychologist out there are thinking that this is not the proper mindset and if I were more serious about this process, I would simply stick with the plan. To that I would say you are probably right. But it is more about celebrating with my friends; like having a farewell party before you leave on a journey. My journey is weight loss surgery and health life style change. Plus my "bucket list" is fairly tame.

• Breakfast at my favorite diner - Alice's - Tom's Atomic Bomb

• Dinner - Sushi at Wasabi Thanks Ed and Leah

• Weekend in Atlantic City with the Guy

• Pub Crawl with my friends

The nervousness I had been feeling has been replaced with a feeling of excitement and anticipation to start seeing BIG (ahem) smaller results and start a whole new chapter of eating healthy and activities I have been missing out on - Can't wait !

The Verdict

The verdict is in and I am now scheduled to have my surgery on April 14th.  So the count down has begun.  19 days and counting.  Really only 19 days?  After thinking about this for 12 months and working toward it since September, that seems so soon.  My wife asked me if I was excited and for many reasons I am very excited.  But mostly I just want to get through this part.  I have to be honest in that I am REALLY NOT looking forward to the surgery part.  The first couple of days post-op are going to be tough I am sure.  Followed by several weeks of liquids and pureed foods.  What I need to focus on is the change that the surgery will help me accomplish.  A healthier and more active lifestyle.  After all, who would want to have surgery except if you need to.  I have a good surgeon and will be in good hands, so I should take a deep breath and relax.  This is going to be a very good thing for me.

Panic on the Bridge

Well tomorrow should be the day I find out if I am having my surgery next month. I did have a panicky moment while driving over the Burlington-Bristol bridge this afternoon. I was thinking about my surgery hoping I don't wake up and realize I have made a huge mistake. That I will be in tremendous pain and feel like I just ruined my life. Plus being stopped at the top of the bridge add a bit of panic of it's own. Luckily, as I was descending the bridge my anxiety also decreased. I know it will be very hard and a huge adjustment, but that is exactly why I am doing this. I can't keep doing the same things and expecting different results. So I am keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that I hear good news. I really am SO READY for this.

Meeting with Dr. Brader's team

Today was my final one on one meeting with Lindsay and Kevin. Lindsay put me through a rigorous series of physical fitness tests. Well not exactly rigorous. I needed to walk a flight of stairs, get out of bed, pick up a box, and walk for 6 minutes. It was not difficult, but I certainly understand why they do this. It made me feel a little better knowing that I have the exercise part down. Needless to say I cleared this hurdle.

Next I met with Kevin. This is definitely the hard part. The diet. The good news is that I am doing better controlling my portions, and limiting my snacks. But the really hard part will be no liquids with meals. It is because you can get more food into your "pouch" if you drink while you eat and that will decrease your weight loss. So I have committed to begin that tomorrow. Stay tuned.

So with that I have met all my pre-surgical requirements:

• 6 Month Medically Supervised Diet with a 10 pound weight loss
• Attend a support group meeting
• Attend numerous group and individual fitness and nutrition meetings
• Begin an exercise program
• Pass a physiological evaluation (how I don't know)
• Blood work
• Lastly today's physical evaluation.

Dr. Brader and his team will review my case on Friday. I should find out then when my surgery will occur. I am really hoping it is some time in April. Keeping my finger crossed that everything comes together.

The Begining

This is it. The beginning. Well, not really the beginning, but the start of my blog about my journey to transform my life by losing 170 pounds. I began my journey six months ago when I decided to consider weight loss surgery. At that time I weighed in at 350 pounds. Very stout by anyone's standards. I was both excited and depressed when I learned I was a good candidate for the procedure. So here are my rants, raves, pictures, and progress as I make this journey to a healthier, more fit and yes smaller me. Ready, Set, Begin.