As you all know I have but one grandchild--a one-year old girl by the name of Katya. She is the apple of my eye--and we should not forget Opa--he thinks the sun rises and sets on her. Anyway her parents decided to head for Carstairs on Saturday, for a jam session with friends, and got Katya to ask if she could sleep over. These little one-year olds have a very special way of asking if they can sleep over. So Saturday morning she arrived.
Between reading books with her and playing all her games, going for walks, climbing countless stairs we survived the day. On Sunday Rudy (Opa) put up a child's swing for Katya on our deck. The cutest thing you will ever see. When her Mom and Dad came to pick her up we put Katya in the swing. She laughed and laughed and loved it. Now you know why Omas and Opas are very special people. They have time to play, to read, to feed, to walk, to climb stairs, to sing, to cuddle, to give baths, maybe go shopping, etc.
A new store opened on Saturday in Medicine Hat. It is called Giant Tiger (although Green Giant always comes into my head). We took her there for the grand opening. We were joined by close to a thousand other people who also came out for the store opening. Needless to say we did a lot of looking and no buying.
She now has three teeth which is good as she is almost 14 months old.
Monday, August 21, 2006
TWO & ONE HALF WEEKS LATER
How am I doing. Just fine. I have gotten myself into a routine that is quite easy to follow. I have lost 17 pounds now. I keep checking my closet to find those nice clothes I used to get into years ago and I found some. What a surprise when I tried a few on and they fit. But I have started a box with clothes in it that are too big for me. The more boxes I fill the better. Rudy is really great about cooking for himself.
This week I have added into my liquid diet 3 fruits per day--apples, peaches, melons--anything that can be mushed up. In actuality I do not swallow the apples--just chew them and suck all the juice out of them. I have not had any trouble with eating anything yet.
Today I went for lunch with Anita and Curtis and I had some cauliflower soup. Boy did it taste wonderful. So I tried a bit of soup for supper and no problem either. I can have a small yogurt each day so that is very tasty, too.
Since I blogged last time I have received a phone call from Rob Renner's office--he is our MLA. Apparently there is a bariatric clinic in Edmonton at the Royal Alexandra Hospital where they do lapband surgery and it is completely covered by medicare. How about that for the best kept secret in Alberta--probably only one of many. None of my three doctors had even heard of it. I also received an e-mail from our other MLA--Len Mitzel. He personally (on my behalf) talked to Iris Evans--the Minister of Health and Wellness for Alberta about my surgery and that I would like some financial help. That was very nice of him to do that for me. A few days later I received an e-mail from Iris Evans saying that the only cost that could be reinbursed to me would be the cost of the visit with the physician because this surgery could be done here in Alberta.
Knowing that this can be done in Edmonton really helps me because when I need a fill for my lapband I know where I can go to get it done. I should get a fill eight weeks after the surgery. Now for the great part--there is a waiting list of two years for this surgery. If anyone is interested in pursuing this go under the Capital Health Unit and find bariatric surgery--not that there is much information given, but it does give you a form you can print and take to your doctor to be filled in and sent to Edmonton.
I am still very happy with how my surgery went. Mexico was great and I do not begrudge the money spent. My blood sugar readings are all normal--between 4-6. I will make an appointment the second week into September to see my doctor.
This week I have added into my liquid diet 3 fruits per day--apples, peaches, melons--anything that can be mushed up. In actuality I do not swallow the apples--just chew them and suck all the juice out of them. I have not had any trouble with eating anything yet.
Today I went for lunch with Anita and Curtis and I had some cauliflower soup. Boy did it taste wonderful. So I tried a bit of soup for supper and no problem either. I can have a small yogurt each day so that is very tasty, too.
Since I blogged last time I have received a phone call from Rob Renner's office--he is our MLA. Apparently there is a bariatric clinic in Edmonton at the Royal Alexandra Hospital where they do lapband surgery and it is completely covered by medicare. How about that for the best kept secret in Alberta--probably only one of many. None of my three doctors had even heard of it. I also received an e-mail from our other MLA--Len Mitzel. He personally (on my behalf) talked to Iris Evans--the Minister of Health and Wellness for Alberta about my surgery and that I would like some financial help. That was very nice of him to do that for me. A few days later I received an e-mail from Iris Evans saying that the only cost that could be reinbursed to me would be the cost of the visit with the physician because this surgery could be done here in Alberta.
Knowing that this can be done in Edmonton really helps me because when I need a fill for my lapband I know where I can go to get it done. I should get a fill eight weeks after the surgery. Now for the great part--there is a waiting list of two years for this surgery. If anyone is interested in pursuing this go under the Capital Health Unit and find bariatric surgery--not that there is much information given, but it does give you a form you can print and take to your doctor to be filled in and sent to Edmonton.
I am still very happy with how my surgery went. Mexico was great and I do not begrudge the money spent. My blood sugar readings are all normal--between 4-6. I will make an appointment the second week into September to see my doctor.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
FEELING BETTER
Yes, it has been a week since my operation and I am feeling better every day. I have been doing some walking around the neighbourhood, too. What am I eating? Actually I don't know if you call this eating--but I will not argue about the definition of eating. I drink about two liters a day of liquids. I make myself a pot of tea in the morning and drink from it all day. I am choosing teas like pomegranate, orange spice etc, which have a distinct flavour rather than regular tea. I also drink at least one cup of gatorade a day. This has electrolytes in it which your body needs. I have discovered Knorr (Bovril) chicken soup pouches (the individual ones) and this sure helps because it is very tasty and satisfying. I eat diet Jello every day. Katya has learned to like it, too, so I don't get as much as I used to. She just can't figure jello out. When she tries to pick it up it separates and then she can't get hold of it to eat it.
I also mix a small jar of baby prune juice with 3/4 litres of water and drink from this all day, too. So you can see that I get lots of liquids. The healing of the band around my stomach is coming along. I used to feel all the food (liquid) when it entered my stomach and left it. It has settled down now so I don't feel that anymore. I have never had to throw up or had any trouble with anything I eat. Tomorrow I start week two and it is still liquids. I may add the occasional protein drink. I am not complaining about this restrictive diet. The clinic in Mexico gave me an 8-week eating schedule. It clearly lists all the foods you can eat each week. New foods are added every week, too. By the end of week 8 I should be back on every day food. This is a process I have to follow to be successful.
Rudy took me to Tim Horton's tonight and he had a coffee (I was very envious) and I had a decaf tea. This was the first time that I have gone out since getting home. Felt really good. I have lost 8 pounds and have found a 'diet tracker' on Yahoo to keep track of my weight loss. I put in my original weight, put in 52 weeks (one year), the weight I want to end up at, and the date. Then every time I weight myself and have lost weight I reenter the tracker and put down my new weight. It creates a graph of your weight loss, which tells you the % of weight you have lost, and tells you how many weeks you have left to meet your goal. It is really neat and creates a visual log of your progress.
I finally told Rudy's family what I had done and they were very supportive. They had lots of questions, too.
I will wait a few week before going to see my diabetic doctor.
I find that my eye sight is changing a lot. Some days I see better than others. But I will tell you all that if this surgery is what it takes to get my health back then it is worth all I am doing--which isn't too much--just drinking, laying around and taking the occasional walk.
So far, so good!!!
I also mix a small jar of baby prune juice with 3/4 litres of water and drink from this all day, too. So you can see that I get lots of liquids. The healing of the band around my stomach is coming along. I used to feel all the food (liquid) when it entered my stomach and left it. It has settled down now so I don't feel that anymore. I have never had to throw up or had any trouble with anything I eat. Tomorrow I start week two and it is still liquids. I may add the occasional protein drink. I am not complaining about this restrictive diet. The clinic in Mexico gave me an 8-week eating schedule. It clearly lists all the foods you can eat each week. New foods are added every week, too. By the end of week 8 I should be back on every day food. This is a process I have to follow to be successful.
Rudy took me to Tim Horton's tonight and he had a coffee (I was very envious) and I had a decaf tea. This was the first time that I have gone out since getting home. Felt really good. I have lost 8 pounds and have found a 'diet tracker' on Yahoo to keep track of my weight loss. I put in my original weight, put in 52 weeks (one year), the weight I want to end up at, and the date. Then every time I weight myself and have lost weight I reenter the tracker and put down my new weight. It creates a graph of your weight loss, which tells you the % of weight you have lost, and tells you how many weeks you have left to meet your goal. It is really neat and creates a visual log of your progress.
I finally told Rudy's family what I had done and they were very supportive. They had lots of questions, too.
I will wait a few week before going to see my diabetic doctor.
I find that my eye sight is changing a lot. Some days I see better than others. But I will tell you all that if this surgery is what it takes to get my health back then it is worth all I am doing--which isn't too much--just drinking, laying around and taking the occasional walk.
So far, so good!!!
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
I'M BACK!!!!
Well it has been a long time since I sat here blogging. Many things have been happening in my life lately I really do not know where to start.
LAP-BAND SURGERY
This process started well over a month ago. Lots of researching was done, talking to many people (and doctors) about the pros and cons of doing this. I finally made up my mind to get the surgery done. The day I decided, I e-mailed a lap-band (bariatric) clinic in Mexicali, Mexico. The town is right on the border with the USA. We set a date for August 3rd, and so the real planning began. I went on line to get our plane tickets. Never having done this before was a learning experience for me. Finally after booking our flights and then realizing I had made a mistake with the time we would be leaving Calgary I had to call and get it changed. They had not had enough time to put the original tickets through so there was no cost for the change.
My girls were all behind me in this. They were and are very supportive. I told very few people about what I was planning so I would not get any negative remarks.
We had to catch the plane in Calgary at 6:45 am Wednesday morning. This meant that we had a short sleep after supper and then got ready to drive to Calgary. We got there about 2:00 am and stopped at the Husky on Barlow Trail for something to eat. I remember years ago stopping there to eat. It really hasn't changed much. That was my last meal for quite awhile.
We then drove to 'Park and Jet' and took the shuttle to the airport. They were very accommodating there. We got to the airport around 4:00 and AmericanWest opened their ticket stall so we basically were the first ones through. Once through security, etc we found a couch to lay and to rest. By the time we got on the plane we were both very tired. I knew that I could not have anything to eat--of course they don't serve anything on the plane anyway. We tried to get some sleep but the plane was so small and cramped I could hardly believe what a tiny space we had to sit in. The seats were very hard, but the steward told us they do float if we landed in the water. Nice thought.
When we got to Las Vegas we had to get off the plane, wait awhile, then get back in line to get back on the same plane. Thankfully our luggage got to San Diego with us. Ernesto, from the clinic, was there waiting for Rudy and I. He had a big sign with my name on it. Sure was glad to see him. There was another lady, Kim, who was going to have this surgery, already in the van--she was from Seattle. The ride from San Diego took a bit over two hours. Wow, what a different country. I was blown away by the huge rocks and the mountains made out of rocks. Rudy and I both said that this is probably where the early westerns were filmed. You could just barely make out John Wayne waiting, with his horse, behind one of those big boulders for the bad guy to come along.
We arrived in Mexicali about 1:30. It was well over 100 degrees. Just like walking into a furnace. The clinic (hospital) was very nice and very cool. We were met by Nina, our coordinator for our stay. She was the person who took care of everything and I mean everything. She took me away quickly to have a blood test, a chest x-ray, an ecg, and a urine sample. Very professional people. Most did not speak English but it did not seem too much of a barrier. Nina told us to go out and have a nice supper--anything we wanted. Ernesto drove us to our hotel (which was paid for). Very good air conditioning. After supper I was so tired by 6:30 I thought I might get sick so I took my sleeping pill and went to bed. I had forgot that at 7:30 that night I was to meet with Dr. Acevas (the surgeon) and Dr. Campo (the anesthesiologist). They both told Rudy that they would talk to me in the morning before the operation.
Ernesto came to pick Rudy, Kim and myself up at 7:00 am to take us to the clinic. Already it was very hot. I was assigned room 24--a very nice room. Everything about the clinic was very nice and clean and lots of staff to look after you. Both doctors came to see me and explain what was going to happen and about the band--showed me one and explained how it was put in, how it worked, etc. Very thorough--very professional. They both said the main thing I have to keep in mind is to make the decision to eat properly after the surgery. The surgery will help with losing weight but the important decisions were mine as to whether I would follow their guidelines on how to eat or not. Even my nurse, (a nice looking young man) by the name of Carlo, emphasized that a commitment needed to be made about how we wanted to live with the lap-band and what we ate. This was a theme that was repeated many times.
Kim had her operation first. I had my operation about 1:00. It took 55 minutes. All done laparoscopically. I spend a few hours in the recovery room and then was taken back to my room. Rudy was waiting for me. I was very happy to see him. The recovery was quite remarkable in that there was very little pain and no after effect from the anesthesia. I slept on and off the rest of the day. I received two pain killers in my IV so maybe that was why I did not feel any pain. They made a bed for Rudy to sleep on in my room. I gave him a sleeping pill and he had a good night sleep. That was very nice of them because we did not have to pay for a hotel room for him for two nights--he just stayed with me. He did some wandering around Mexicali while I was 'out' but found it almost too hot to stay out very long. The day after the surgery was much the same. I did a lot of walking. Kim and Rudy and I and another girl Tina, who had the operation the same day we did, hired a taxi to take us to a big mall. There were probably 100 stores in there and at least 15 shoe stores. We looked around and bought a pair of runners for Katya, which she will have to grow into, that light up when you walk in them. Just too cute. So we spent $10 on the shoes and that was that.
The next morning we got up around 7:00 and Ernesto drove us back to San Diego. Kim was with us and a young fellow who had the procedure done, too. I have no idea how many people have this operation per day. All I know is that the doctor visited me many times, Nina took lots of time with us to make sure we were happy about everything, and everyone was extremely nice. I would recommend this place to anyone who wanted this procedure done.
If any of you, who read this, is interested in this clinic go to www.mexicolapband.com. You can read their website and get lots of information.
I have lost 7.5 pounds since the surgery and am doing well. Rudy is really wonderful. This surgery may not be for everyone but I am sure that it will add many years to my life. My diabetes was getting out of control and I really did not feel well. There were two reasons why I had this done. Number one is that I have been told by the clinic there and my own doctor that if I lose my weight I will most likely not have to take insulin anymore, and number two is that I needed to lose weight. I have already cut my insulin in half and my readings are all between 4 and 6. They say "4 to 7 go to heaven". I am counting on it.
Will keep you posted with my progress. As of right now I am doing great. Tomorrow I will venture out to do some much needed shopping--but not too much. I have also started walking around the block 2 times a day--a beginning.
KATYA
It was so nice to see her when we got home. She looks like she has grown a few inches. She has one tooth now. It took her 13 months to get that tooth so we are very proud of it.
Take care.
LAP-BAND SURGERY
This process started well over a month ago. Lots of researching was done, talking to many people (and doctors) about the pros and cons of doing this. I finally made up my mind to get the surgery done. The day I decided, I e-mailed a lap-band (bariatric) clinic in Mexicali, Mexico. The town is right on the border with the USA. We set a date for August 3rd, and so the real planning began. I went on line to get our plane tickets. Never having done this before was a learning experience for me. Finally after booking our flights and then realizing I had made a mistake with the time we would be leaving Calgary I had to call and get it changed. They had not had enough time to put the original tickets through so there was no cost for the change.
My girls were all behind me in this. They were and are very supportive. I told very few people about what I was planning so I would not get any negative remarks.
We had to catch the plane in Calgary at 6:45 am Wednesday morning. This meant that we had a short sleep after supper and then got ready to drive to Calgary. We got there about 2:00 am and stopped at the Husky on Barlow Trail for something to eat. I remember years ago stopping there to eat. It really hasn't changed much. That was my last meal for quite awhile.
We then drove to 'Park and Jet' and took the shuttle to the airport. They were very accommodating there. We got to the airport around 4:00 and AmericanWest opened their ticket stall so we basically were the first ones through. Once through security, etc we found a couch to lay and to rest. By the time we got on the plane we were both very tired. I knew that I could not have anything to eat--of course they don't serve anything on the plane anyway. We tried to get some sleep but the plane was so small and cramped I could hardly believe what a tiny space we had to sit in. The seats were very hard, but the steward told us they do float if we landed in the water. Nice thought.
When we got to Las Vegas we had to get off the plane, wait awhile, then get back in line to get back on the same plane. Thankfully our luggage got to San Diego with us. Ernesto, from the clinic, was there waiting for Rudy and I. He had a big sign with my name on it. Sure was glad to see him. There was another lady, Kim, who was going to have this surgery, already in the van--she was from Seattle. The ride from San Diego took a bit over two hours. Wow, what a different country. I was blown away by the huge rocks and the mountains made out of rocks. Rudy and I both said that this is probably where the early westerns were filmed. You could just barely make out John Wayne waiting, with his horse, behind one of those big boulders for the bad guy to come along.
We arrived in Mexicali about 1:30. It was well over 100 degrees. Just like walking into a furnace. The clinic (hospital) was very nice and very cool. We were met by Nina, our coordinator for our stay. She was the person who took care of everything and I mean everything. She took me away quickly to have a blood test, a chest x-ray, an ecg, and a urine sample. Very professional people. Most did not speak English but it did not seem too much of a barrier. Nina told us to go out and have a nice supper--anything we wanted. Ernesto drove us to our hotel (which was paid for). Very good air conditioning. After supper I was so tired by 6:30 I thought I might get sick so I took my sleeping pill and went to bed. I had forgot that at 7:30 that night I was to meet with Dr. Acevas (the surgeon) and Dr. Campo (the anesthesiologist). They both told Rudy that they would talk to me in the morning before the operation.
Ernesto came to pick Rudy, Kim and myself up at 7:00 am to take us to the clinic. Already it was very hot. I was assigned room 24--a very nice room. Everything about the clinic was very nice and clean and lots of staff to look after you. Both doctors came to see me and explain what was going to happen and about the band--showed me one and explained how it was put in, how it worked, etc. Very thorough--very professional. They both said the main thing I have to keep in mind is to make the decision to eat properly after the surgery. The surgery will help with losing weight but the important decisions were mine as to whether I would follow their guidelines on how to eat or not. Even my nurse, (a nice looking young man) by the name of Carlo, emphasized that a commitment needed to be made about how we wanted to live with the lap-band and what we ate. This was a theme that was repeated many times.
Kim had her operation first. I had my operation about 1:00. It took 55 minutes. All done laparoscopically. I spend a few hours in the recovery room and then was taken back to my room. Rudy was waiting for me. I was very happy to see him. The recovery was quite remarkable in that there was very little pain and no after effect from the anesthesia. I slept on and off the rest of the day. I received two pain killers in my IV so maybe that was why I did not feel any pain. They made a bed for Rudy to sleep on in my room. I gave him a sleeping pill and he had a good night sleep. That was very nice of them because we did not have to pay for a hotel room for him for two nights--he just stayed with me. He did some wandering around Mexicali while I was 'out' but found it almost too hot to stay out very long. The day after the surgery was much the same. I did a lot of walking. Kim and Rudy and I and another girl Tina, who had the operation the same day we did, hired a taxi to take us to a big mall. There were probably 100 stores in there and at least 15 shoe stores. We looked around and bought a pair of runners for Katya, which she will have to grow into, that light up when you walk in them. Just too cute. So we spent $10 on the shoes and that was that.
The next morning we got up around 7:00 and Ernesto drove us back to San Diego. Kim was with us and a young fellow who had the procedure done, too. I have no idea how many people have this operation per day. All I know is that the doctor visited me many times, Nina took lots of time with us to make sure we were happy about everything, and everyone was extremely nice. I would recommend this place to anyone who wanted this procedure done.
If any of you, who read this, is interested in this clinic go to www.mexicolapband.com. You can read their website and get lots of information.
I have lost 7.5 pounds since the surgery and am doing well. Rudy is really wonderful. This surgery may not be for everyone but I am sure that it will add many years to my life. My diabetes was getting out of control and I really did not feel well. There were two reasons why I had this done. Number one is that I have been told by the clinic there and my own doctor that if I lose my weight I will most likely not have to take insulin anymore, and number two is that I needed to lose weight. I have already cut my insulin in half and my readings are all between 4 and 6. They say "4 to 7 go to heaven". I am counting on it.
Will keep you posted with my progress. As of right now I am doing great. Tomorrow I will venture out to do some much needed shopping--but not too much. I have also started walking around the block 2 times a day--a beginning.
KATYA
It was so nice to see her when we got home. She looks like she has grown a few inches. She has one tooth now. It took her 13 months to get that tooth so we are very proud of it.
Take care.
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