The Next Chapter in 2010

There are many chapters in a lifetime - clear delineations from when life was one way and then irrevocably changed to something else - the day I met my ex husband, my pregnancies and the births of my sons, my divorce. Those are the places where one would find a SKIP TO SCENE button if you were to see a DVD of my life. Learning about my poor heath and the start of my pill regime is one such demarcation. Every morning I wake up and take pills that are supposed to keep me running normally. There is a pill for my blood pressure (recently increased 10mg), my hypothyroidism, and to regulate my menstrual cycle. There used to be more pills. I used to take pills to lower my blood sugar and to stimulate insulin sensitivity, and one upon a time, a subcutaneous shot of synthetic gila monster saliva (Byetta) to also lower blood sugar that had the wonderful side effect of weight loss. I decided the Byetta was not for me. For one, it was not covered by my insurance and was very expensive, and two, I already disliked testing my blood sugar with finger pricks every day... a shot was not something I wanted to do on top of that. Through changes in my diet, I have since resolved my Type II diabetes and thus have cut some of the pills out of my life.

Before the start of taking medications, I never went to the doctor. I went to the obstetrician during my pregnancies, but never went for my general health. If you know the stories of my pregnancies, you would know that I didn't really trust doctors after I almost lost my life and the life of my younger son due to a doctor's ineptitude. It was only in 2004, after feeling lethargic and out of sorts for a long time that I decided to go to the doctor. I was diagnosed with hypertension, hypothyroidism, and Type II diabetes. It was a blow and it made me regret not taking better care of myself. Instead of a yearly physical like most people, I was stuck going to the doctor every three months for blood tests.

Now, in 2010, I'm coming up on the next chapter in my life. This chapter will be about my weight loss surgery, and the changes that the surgery will bring. Here's a timeline of how this process started:

November 25, 2009: Spoke with Dr. Leo regarding the lap band and how it could help me lose weight. He submitted an authorization to my insurance company.

December 7, 2009: Received authorization from ARTA for New Patient Class.

December 18, 2009: I attended the New Patient Class for the Lab Band, and set up all the appointments for my insurance requisites for receiving the insurance. I knew my boys were going to be out of town the following week, so I decided to set up as many of the appointments the following week as possible. I was able to make them all!

December 21, 2009: Surgical Weight Loss Support Group Meeting: I learned a lot of information from previous patients of both the gastric bypass surgery and the lap band surgery.

December 22, 2009: Nutritional Class: A wealth of information gained regarding the foods I could eat. Tips for eating and permanent changes that should be made to ensure success.

December 22, 2009: Doctor Talk: Dr. Chin spoke to lap band patients as a group regarding the complications and other medical aspects of the surgery

December 23, 2009: I had a psychological evaluation with Dr. Boliver. There is a lot to say about the visit, but that shall be for another blog.

For now, waking up means taking my pills and even when I lose weight, I will always take the thyroid pill, but hopefully my weight loss will make my health better.