About my third month into my new diet and my preparations for applying for the surgery, I had a setback. It was the night of the Oscars and I had just enjoyed watching the red carpet, when I started having a horrible pain in my chest. I thought maybe I tore something or was just gassy, so, I took a pain reliever and gas relief pills hoping that would do the trick. As the night progressed, the pain only got worse. My husband offered to take me to the hospital, but I thought that the pain would eventually subside, so I stubbornly declined.
Eleven o'clock came and I was heading to bed. I did everything I could to get comfortable, but no matter what position I laid in, the pain only seemed to worsen. I finally gave in and asked my husband to bring me to the ER. After dropping our son off with my parents, we made our way to what I was sure was going to be a very long night.
I was seen almost immediately and brought quickly to have an ultrasound done on my abdomen. Based on the pain I was having, the doctor was pretty sure he knew what was wrong with me. He turned out to be right. I had severe gall stones and my gall bladder needed to come out. I went home that night groggy from the pain medicine and angry that I was going to have to have another surgery. I met with the surgeon several days later and scheduled my procedure. The biggest setback was the fact that I could not stay on my diet. I was used to having a lot of meats and vegetables and fat content wasn't my biggest worry. Unfortunately, carbs had to become a big part of my life for almost a month.
I ended up gaining weight back during this time, and I don't think that I ever truly recovered from the diet set back. Sure, I was watching my carbs, but I began cheating more than I was supposed to and would make excuses for myself. It was a horrible decision that I regret, but I can't go back now.
During the last half of my 6 months, I made sure to get my psych evaluation, doctor's note, EKG, blood work, and even began exercising. Although I was making all of these efforts, I still found myself cheating and justifying it. Then I got the call I had been waiting for. The doctor's office had everything they needed to submit my case to the insurance company. They sent it out on August 17th. Now the insurance company technically had 30 days to make a decision, but the doctor's office said we usually hear something earlier than that.
My husband rarely checks the mail. I have to bug him constantly to bring the mail home, cause you just never know what you are going to get. One day, he checked the mail after I annoyed him long enough, and there was a letter from the insurance company. I opened it not understanding why they would be writing to me directly as my husband is the primary on our plan. When I looked, there it was. My surgery was AUTHORIZED! After all of this time, I was approved and I was going to be able to have the surgery.
I immediately scheduled my surgery, and my pre-op visits. Even though I knew my surgery is coming up, I still cheated several times. The day for my pre-op came and I had gained back 8 pounds. I was devastated. But all was not lost. My surgery is still on schedule and I have to adhere to the special one week prior diet. Before I can go to the hospital I have to go and get weighed in and make sure I haven't gained any weight. That would cause the doctor to call off the surgery.
The reason the doctor wants us to make sure we are losing weight is because of our liver. When you eat a meal that is high in carbs, your liver swells to 5 or 6 times its normal size. In addition, the consistency of the liver itself changes and becomes gelatinous. This causes a lot of complications in surgery as the doctor has to move the liver out of the way in order to access the part of the stomach that the band goes around. So, to see that you have gained weight tells the doctor you have been eating carbs, therefore your liver is not ready for surgery.
I have been following the week long preparation diet to the T. I am not taking any chances in not being able to have my surgery. I have worked hard and waited months for this moment, and I don't want to screw it up. My surgery is scheduled for this Thursday the 23rd. Starting tomorrow, I am on a strictly liquid no sugar diet for two days. I know it is going to be tough, but in the scheme of things, two days of feeling hungry is not very much, and is not a huge sacrifice when I think about what it will mean to me.
I will write tomorrow and let you know how the first day with NO food went! Thanks for listening and I will see you all tomorrow!
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