COVID Chronicles & 3 Months Post-Op

Whew!  A lot has happened since my last post.  Allow me to recap....

On April 15th, I was laid off from my job due to COVID-19.  Talk about a gut punch. I loved my job and I was sad to see things end so abruptly in a way that was out of everyone's control. Thankfully I qualified for unemployment and received some severance that has gotten me through financially.

April 18th, I traveled to Morganton, NC to spend some time with my sister and her family. They were in the process of listing their house for sale, so I was able to help them get a few things packed up, stage the house for listing photos, and help entertain the kids during multiple showings.  I ended up staying for 2 weeks, and loved every 👏single 👏last 👏second 👏of it!  While I'm glad I could help them with the logistical side of selling their home, the best part was getting 2 whole weeks with my nieces.  I had missed my family and those girlies SO much during quarantine, and it was a huge blessing to be able to spend that much time with them.

While I originally thought that may be all the time I'd get with them for a bit, we ended up getting to spend even more time together as they traveled back and forth between Morganton and Durham to view houses for sale.  So basically, the entire last month has been spent with my nieces and I'm totally here for it!!  I have gotten completely spoiled rotten seeing those girls almost every day, and I cannot wait for them to move back to Durham! Being an aunt has been one of the greatest joys in my life!  Here are a few photos of our time together the last month!

 Lots of walks on the greenway.

 Mema was able to join one weekend as well!

 Mother's Day 2020

Sister time

 Kinsley was sleeping SO good on this walk! I got a good arm workout in too haha!

Loved all of the baby snuggles and smiles!

Chloe Grace, you are an absolute joy and I love every single second with you!

I tagged along to quite a few of the house showings with Erin & Stephen in Durham, and through some conversations I connected with their realtor who offered me a position with her company!  She needed help with staging properties for sale and was also looking for someone to assist with administrative items to help grow her business.  Talk about a complete God moment connecting us that day, and to be presented with an opportunity that would use my background and skill set.  Blessed and grateful don't quite explain how I feel about this role.  I'm starting as part time for now, but there is an opportunity for it to grow full time.  Truly so very thankful for this position, especially during a time where so many people are desperate for jobs.  Thank you Lord for looking out for me!

On May 6th, I officially hit 3 months post-op! Let me first say how impressed I have been with my Duke medical team during these times.  My team kept me up to date on how appointments were being adjusted due to COVID-19, and they remained available via telehealth calls/messaging each day should any issues arise.  My official 3 month post-op appointment was moved to a telehealth call, and took place on May 14th.  At that call, I was able to meet with my original dietician who I started this journey with (she had been on maternity leave for a few months), so it was so nice to see her on the other end of this journey and to be doing so well!  So to wrap this post up, here are a few updates on my surgery journey and a few more before/after photos!

• As of yesterday, May 17th, I have officially 🎉lost 80 pounds 🎉from my highest weight (December '19), 61 of those pounds are since surgery in February!!!! So stinkin' excited!  That 100 lb loss mark is within my sights now and I'm pressing on to keep up the good work!

• My current weight loss numbers mean that I've lost 42% of my excess weight since surgery.  I'm expected to lose 80-100% of that excess weight, so I'm ahead of the curve and my medical team is very pleased! Oh, I'm also down 3 pant sizes as well!!

• I have hardly any clothes that fit me now.  I cleaned my closet out yesterday and donated over 4 large bags worth of clothing that were too big.  I'm down to 1 pair of jeans, 1 work pant, and a handful of shirts that fit.  In other words, I need to go clothes shopping ASAP, or I'll be wearing yoga pants & t-shirts to work everyday. Anyone want to donate to my clothing fund?! 😂

• All diet restrictions are now lifted and I can try/eat pretty much anything my body will tolerate.  This stage removed texture restrictions as well, so I can begin eating fruits with skins, peanut butter, protein bars, more veggies, etc.  I had already advanced my diet before this meeting, so this wasn't much of a change for me.

• So far, I still have not experienced any major negative effects to food other than fullness and occasional diarrhea.  I'm careful to abide by the rule of 10 when it comes to sugar and fat (less than 10g each per serving).  I find that I'm a little more sensitive to sugar if I go over that number, but no immediate dumping syndrome so far.  If something doesn't sit well it doesn't hit me until the following day, so it can be difficult to pinpoint the exact cause.  It's definitely a game of trial and error, but I've found that including carbs at each meal helps keep things regular and my team is 100% on board with that. I also get the hiccups whenever I'm full now, which is weird/funny, but a great indicator of when to stop eating.

• They have now increased my calorie intake goal to 1000 calories/day.  I had been sitting around 700-800 calories per day, so this should be pretty easy to hit with slightly more volume introduced.

• I can now eat about 1/2 - 3/4 cup of food per meal.  The goal is to be at 3/4 cup per meal regularly by the 6 month mark, and moving towards 1-1 1/2 cups by the 1 year mark.  They said most people cap out around the 1 -1 1/2 C volume, but it is good and normal to be increasing to that range.

• One goal they gave me is to increase my protein intake to 80-90g/day.  They would like to see me at the 100-120g/day by the 6 month mark.  I've been getting about 60-80g/day up to now, so hopefully with more volume and protein bars I can meet this goal.

• I have started experiencing hair loss due to the surgery.  This is something they warned us about from day 1, and is almost always seen in the 3-6 month post-op stage for patients.  I'm taking biotin and collagen to help with this, as well as using a collage/biotin shampoo.  I also make sure to get my multivitamin in each day, and increasing my protein should help as well.  Thankfully I have thick hair, so I can't see or feel the loss by looking at my hair.  But, it's definitely obvious by how much falls out when I wash, brush, or style my hair.  I had hoped to avoid this side effect, but no such luck. This should go away on it's own over the next few months and then they said most people see quite a bit of regrowth after the loss stops.  Fingers crossed this stage passes quickly!

80 pounds and 3 pant sizes down! Feeling so good!

I just want to end this by sharing my sincere appreciation to every single one of you that has prayed for me recently.  I can definitely see and feel God working in my life and a huge part of that is because of all of your prayers.  I cannot thank you enough, and I ask that you would please continue to keep me, this weight loss journey, & my career path in your prayers. While God has blessed me with a lot the last few weeks, it has also been a very difficult and trying time in my life.  I still have quite a bit to figure out in the coming weeks/months, and would appreciate any/all prayers.  Thank you all 🖤!