It’s our last Sunday here in little Hilo town and it’s been a week of Aloha and A Hui Hou with our friends here on the Big Island. We’re packed and ready to go to our next destination (we’ll be on Oahu and Maui in September before heading to Europe). When we got to the Big Island last March, I was 158 lbs; that was Week 23. Here I am at Week 45 and I’m at 144 lbs. So I’ve lost 14 lbs since I have been here and I am about 5 lbs from my goal weight. HAH! It still boggles my mind that I eat so little (1200-1400 calories per day) and exercise so much (an hour a day) and I am only losing a little more than a half a lb per week. No wonder I was so frustrated for so many years of dieting. I do love my sleeve, but like everything in life, it isn’t perfect.
MY TOP TEN LIST OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE SLEEVE: I was reading the forum this morning and saw a few posts by people who are nervous about their upcoming surgery, but most of the posts are positive (bordering on cute-puppy-excitement-ecstatic!). They are about how happy people are since surgery or they are encouraging others who are going through some rare, challenging times or giving good sage advice. But going through WLS isn’t perfect by any means (although, unlike other weight loss efforts, it has one big advantage: IT WORKS!). Still, I got to thinking about what I haven’t liked or been happy with in the last 10 months and this is my TOP TEN list:
- I miss pasta, garlic bread and wine. OK, I said it. It’s true, I
would love a plate of pesto pasta and shrimp with a nice glass of red wine and some garlic bread with lots of butter.
- Cooking isn’t as satisfying as it used to be and I throw more food away, which I feel bad about.
- Feeling sick or even throwing up if I have OBTM (one bite too many) or if I eat something my stomach doesn’t like, say as in one teeny grain of rice!
- My boobs are pitiful…sagging and deflated. Thank goodness I’m not a braless kinda girl….
- My scars are still there….so no bikinis for me!
- My knees and hip still hurt…(not as much, but the pain is not gone).
- I don’t like it when people ask me how much weight I’ve lost…it’s right up there with “How much money do you make?” I think it’s rude.
- I feel a little funny when I tell people how I lost the weight; I’m not lying when I tell them I eat very few carbs and I exercise every day, but still, I get a little twinge of guilt that I didn’t happen to mention I had major surgery. Sort of like talking about the Titanic and not mentioning that it sank!
- Taking my vitamins every day is tricky; I have to take them on a full stomach, but my stomach gets full so quickly with food, I don’t have room to drink enough water to get them down. So I stare at them on the counter for long periods of time…a dumb game I have to play every day.
- Going out to eat and seeing so much good food on other people’s plates knowing I will eat just a few bites of something much less exciting and know I won’t enjoy my meal as much as others do.
So, there it is. My TOP TEN list of things I’m not happy with; as you can see they are not exactly earth-shattering complaints. Plus, with each one of those items, I could have added a big ‘BUT‘ at the end of the statement and countered it with 10 positive things that I LOVE about the Sleeve. So they’re really little annoyances…that’s it. So for those of you who are out there pre-sleeve, keep reading, because one day in the next month I will do a post that lists my TOP ONE HUNDRED items I love!
Actually, all I have to do is look at before and after photos and I know I made the right decision. Here are two striking photos of my husband and me, 2 years apart. Am I happy I did this? Uh, is that a trick question?????
Like Rod Stewart sang: “every picture tells a story….don’t it”. We (and I do mean my husband and me, not just me) are much happier and healthier now than we were when I was heavy. So if that means I have to live without pesto pasta, well, I guess it’s a small (very small) price to pay!
So that’s it from little Hilo Town and the Big Island of Hawaii, where the lava from the volcano has been flowing continuously for almost 30 years. It’s a special island in so many ways and we have felt honored to be a part of it since 1999. We won’t come back to live, but we’ll be back to visit!
Have a great week everyone and check back for news from Honolulu next Sunday!
A HUI HOU,
QUEEN OF CROP
Joni
August 26, 2012I can relate to those top 10! I wish you well on your new adventure – how exciting!
Carla
August 27, 2012So glad to see it’s not just me who asks, “Will I ever be able to eat again??”
It’s really great reading your blog! Would that I could meet a man I could be in love and travel the world with… 🙂
queenofcrop
August 27, 2012Keep the faith Carla! I have a feeling your best years are yet to come!
Q of C
Becky
August 31, 2012loved reading your blog! I must admit i had a heck of a time figuring it out I am a first time blogger. lol my surgery date is sept. 7 . I live on Oahu but headed for the mainland 🙂 I’ll catch up with you after I return!
queenofcrop
September 1, 2012Thanks for replying Becky….be sure to drop me a note! I am only here until the end of September and would love to know how you are doing and meet you if you are feeling up to it. You are in for such an exciting year!!!! Best wishes for sailing through the process.
QofC