Tuesday, January 16, 2007

IT BEGINS

Yesterday was the beginning or end of an era...

Certainly the end of one and the beginning of another. I spent the whole day in Montreal yesterday between 2 clinics getting all my pre op tests done.

I had blood work, ECG heart monitor done, pressure checked by 4 diff ppl. I had a psych evaluation... and physical evaluation, did some treadmill, and excersises, while hooked up to heart monitor, I was in a 90 min consult with a diaticien.. then another doctor did an over all check up and we looked over all the bloodwork and heart results from that morning.

Oddly enough the most difficult test I had to do was a metabolic rate monitoring. I had to put my mouth on a tube and just calmly breath in and out....the hard part was , I had a thing pinching my nose so I could only breath threw my mouth...doesn't sound to bad does it...well, believe me it is not fun....it makes u uncomfortable, and u get the impression u may drown...or panic..hard to explain..and the worse is u have to stay that way for not 1 minute.....not 4 minutes....BUT 10 LONG ASS MINUTES!.....u have to make yourself calm down or u will rip it out of your mouth.

I met many very nice ppl ...in both clinics. We had to switch from one clinic to the next more then once, luckily they were across the street from eachother. But as much as winter wanted to take its time arriving , it just happened to want to show its face YESTERDAY... of all days....for me anyway. The highway into montreal was slow going...then we had blizzard snow pelting weather all day...had to sheild our faces and shake off all the snow acumulated just from crossing the street.

Anyway....I learned many things....some very daunting and scary...which I expected but still have to deal with. Some cool stuff too.

I have to say goodbye to all carbonated drinks....sodas notably...I love my diet coke...no more. EVER.
The carbonation makes gas, and gas will cause me alot of pain. The acid will only hurt my healing proccess anyway, so I must stay away from it. In a year if I MUST have a taste, I would have to defizz it completely yada yada...no sense in that. I have to mourn my soda.

No more sugar....or chocolate....u may thing for dietary reasons...well yes but mostly because it can cause what they call DUMPING...where sugar can cause the heart rate to rise very quickly, cause the sweats, cause problems...etc, Some who have tried ended up in ICU....I was advised to stay away from any of that for atleast a yr..and take baby steps after that with great caution.

Our body after surgery metabolizes things much faster...for instance...an alcoholic drink, will go STRAIGHT to my head...she said, in otherwords, I would be a very CHEAP DATE! lol...they warn u of that, especially for those who think they can have a small drink and then drive...NOT a good idea.

Reintroducing foods with texture will take some time...I will have to have 6 mini meals per day and take vitamins for the rest of my life.

Please, if u have had this surgery...and u have gotten away with eating what ever crap u can, or found tricks to do so.....I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT...honestly, I appreciate any comments of encouragement and good thoughts but I do intend to do exactly what I am told...even if its overkill, its for my own good anyway...

With one of the Doctors, while going through family history and such..he asked if I was alergic to anything. I told him, just one thing:
CHEEP JEWELRY
Then Chris pipes in, ....it's MY PROBLEM NOT HERS LOL
Doc says, ..well actually its a metabolic skin reaction to the nickle sulfate yada yada ...technical term.
I say...Yes, EXACTLY! (big shit eating grin on my face)
BUT...says Doc.....there is an easy solution....CLEAR NAILPOLISH...
at which I say....HEY DON'T TELL MY HUSBAND THAT!!
We all had a good laugh. He was very nice.

I knew that yesterday after all was done and we went out for supper, it would be my LAST MEAL... as I know it. The day before Chris didn't want me to put it in those terms, and the psych Doc kinda looked at me funny also, when I said that. I told them both the same thing. I needed to put it in those terms so that I could deal with the reality of it. It will be the LAST meal of what I have been used to eating all my life. I would certainly go to town with my last meal lol, and enjoy it to the fullest...but then close the door. I open a new door today by starting the liquid diet they gave me to start 2 weeks before the surgery.

What did I have for supper?...Well it was hard to choose.....but ended up being some gourmet pizza we like to eat sometimes. They aren't the pizza u get elsewhere, these are square, thin crust with awesome toppings...anyway, they taste different.....but first I had an entre of mushrooms stuffed with escargo's...garlic, cheese sauce..yummmm....then the main course...with a luscious chocolate moka with whipped cream topping cake...omg!!! it was good...and ofcourse I had a diet coke with that lol.

Today I started my optifast chocolate shakes....mixed with water..they arent bad actually but I have to learn to take it slowly.....after surgery I will have to eat very slow, and even drink very slow....No longer will I be able to guzzle a good cold glass of water...it will be like a funnel effect and fill up at the top. ...

I was not one to check my sugar levels often...just took my meds and kept things under control, but now...I have to check them 4 times a day.....write it down...make sure I don't go to low...have to gage wether I have to have my diabetis meds ajusted.

The great stuff about all this is that soon enough, I will be able to eliminate almost all my meds...granted I will have to take chewable vitamins but thats not the same. Everything will be healthier with me. Blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetis, apnea, and so on.

In the last yr...my urine has showed too much protein...this is a precurser to bigger kidney problems...and probably dialosis....all the doctors consulted said that I was making a very wise choice in doing this surgery....it will save my life.

As I stated before...it's been all about my bad health....that was getting worse. The added bonus will be looking better ...thats all, and the least of my concerns right now.

I am blessed that Chris is by my side. He was the one asking all the questions of the dieticien yesterday. Like he said, he is the cook...so he wants to make sure he makes the things in the future that are best for me. She was very impressed with him and his devotion...That man even wanted to do the liquid diet with me for these 2 weeks before surgery to make it easier on me by not eating real food infront of me. I refused to let him ...we have to feed the others in this house, and I will certainly see others eat all the time..but I don't know many ppl who would have been willing to do that just to be supportive. I am so blessed...He is my hero...always.

Well...as I sip on my water...and contemplate my future I have to start by taking one day at a time...it won't be easy...but I have family and some friends around who will be there for me...to help, or just put up with me through it all...whether it be by lending an ear or just understanding that some days will be harder then others.

I need all the encouragement I can get lol. Hugs to my friends

7 comments:

JustSue said...

Could totally relate to the "lat supper" comment ...I haven't a clue what I would choose to be honest.

Wishing you all the very best my friend, I will be thinking of you.

Anna said...

I can't even imagine how scary it must be to make a life change like this. I'm proud of you for having the courage and the strength.

I'm sure it will be a rough two weeks before surgery and you'll have some tough times after but you have a wonderful husband who adores you and friends who love you and we will all do our best to be as supportive as possible.

*hugs*

Anonymous said...

I am very proud of you..You are doing the most importent thing, you have to follow what the doctors tell you to do. You are going to be fine...My friend had the surgary and is doing great, but she isn't doing the diet like she should. My prayers are with you. Can't wait to see the Pictures. Take care, Fran

kenju said...

Moon, thanks for the visit and comment. I had put you into an inactive file and didn't know you were posting again. Glad to have you back. I didn't know you were going to have the surgery; I wish you the best of luck. It looks as though you are going into it with your eyes wide open, and with good support, so I know you will be fine.

Bess said...

So glad to read your strong, positive words. It sounds like you're off to a good start. I'm sure there will be some really rough times after the surgery, but like we say in my family, you're pretty tough. :) I hope you keep us posted!

And thanks for your good wishes for my car -- I'm happy to say that it's back from the shop, with a minimal bill. Turns out it was just a loose connection! Hopefully that'll be the end of that saga.

lab munkay said...

Good luck and stay strong you brave lady. Soon you will not even miss the diet pop. Please write again soon and let us know how it is going for you.

cindy wilson said...

Hope everything turns out goos for you. Just hang in there. I am sure the outcome will be well worth it. I am facing radiation therapy myself for my acoutic neruoma, it won't be as intense as your surgery,but has to be done. All the best to you.

With Love
Cindy