Ups and Downs

It's been eight days since my surgery and I am still recovering and not ready for much else.  I started driving yesterday and it was quite uncomfortable physically so I am going to stick close to home and only drive when necessary until my incisions are less sore.  I have 6 incisions and most of them feel ok most of the time but the one above my belly button really hurts, even when I am just sitting on the couch.  I don't think it's infected (the doctor gave me a handout on what to look out for and I don't have any of the signs of infection) but I am surprised that it hurts as much as it does.  I see my doctor tomorrow so they will check it and make sure everything's ok.  I also want to talk to the doc about pain management because I feel like they gave contradictory messages- take the heavy duty pain meds if you need it vs. try to wean yourself off the narcotics as soon as possible.  Um, which one is it?  I have stopped the narcotics except at bedtime but it the pain is definitely a bummer without them. Plain tylenol doesn't really help at all and I'm not allowed NSAIDs (advil, aleve, aspirin.)  In other news, as of this morning I have lost 8 pounds since my surgery.  I lost 10 before surgery so I am down 18 pounds total. Amazing!  I stay on a liquid diet for another 2 days and then I will be allowed to eat smooth purees- stage one or two baby food, soups, sugar-free yogurt, etc.

So how am I spending my time? Mostly watching lots of TV while slowly sipping on protein shakes and vitamin water zero.  My dvr is empty at this point so I've resorted to sitcom reruns: Roseanne, Will & Grace- currently watching a fun episode called The Unsinkable Mommy Adler, The People's Court (I want to be Judge Marilyn Milian in my next life),  and my newest guilty pleasure- Botched on E!, which is a reality show about a pair of plastic surgeons who fix patients' botched plastic surgeries by (you guessed it) more plastic surgeries.

5 Days Post-Op and Getting Better Bit by Bit

I can't believe it's already been five days since my surgery.  Overall it's really been an easier recovery than I expected.  I am quite sore in and around my incisions but the pain is getting easier to tolerate each day.  I'm on a liquid diet and tolerating protein shakes and diluted smooth soups pretty well as long as I go slow.  I came home from the hospital really swollen and actually didn't get back to my day of surgery weight until this morning because of all the IV fluids.  I can't drive yet so I am sticking close to home resting a lot, playing online and checking in with my June 30th surgery buddies on www.bariatricpal.com and watching season one of Veep, my newest favorite!

Makes Me Happy List

I've decided that trying to make a list of coping strategies may be overly ambitious and instead and I should start by making a list of activities that make me happy that I can refer to when I need to brighten my mood or distract myself.  Here's what I so far:

1. Discovering new TV shows I can binge watch online.  My new fave is Suits (big thanks to my brother for recommending it!) 
2. Doing Penn Press Logic Problem Puzzles. This is another one of those things I started doing as a kid and have always enjoyed.  
3. Reading novels (most recent fave was Where'd You Go, Bernadette), magazines (Health and More especially) or The New York Times.
4. Taking a hot bath and listening to music.
5. Online mock shopping.  I browse the websites of my favorite stores and put stuff in my online shopping cart (but then don't actually buy them.)  Sounds weird I know but I swear it's almost as fun as actual shopping and I don't feel guilty about spending money on stuff I don't need.

It's a start, right?  Tonight I'll be attending my first weight loss surgery support group meeting and then this Friday I'll be meeting with the pulmonary doc to find out the results of my sleep study. Surgery here I come!

Bummed about thumb

I woke up a few days ago with a weird pain in the base of my thumb.  It got worse all day long and soon I couldn't use my left hand at all without sharp pain shooting up my arm.  I tried wrapping it, I tried heat, I tried ice, I took Tylenol.  I felt sorry for myself because I couldn't take Advil or Aleve (surgeon's orders due to gastritis.)  The pain just got worse. I was in pain and it was frustrating and I felt helpless.  And soon the old pattern thoughts rolled in.  "Poor me! I hurt!  I deserve ice cream." and "Maybe I'll feel better if I treat myself to a hot soft pretzel" and "Are there still leftover jelly beans?  Where did I hide them?" Then I caught myself and I realized something- what if this happened just a few weeks after my surgery and turning to food wasn't an option? Yikes! So I tried some other guilty pleasures to cheer me up.  I downloaded a new song, "Sing" by Ed Sheeran.  I watched The People's Court and Family Feud, favorites of mine from childhood.  My thumb still hurt A LOT but I succeeded in lifting my grumpy mood.  The pain got worse overnight and so I went to urgent care in the morning.  Thanks to a cortisone shot and prescription steroids I am feeling much better- I can even type again for short periods!  How do you cheer yourself up or distract yourself when you're not feeling well?