My appointment at the Bariatrics center on Monday was very different from the last time I went for my psych evaluation. I was surprised when I came home from Florida and got the phone call to set up my appointment to meet with the surgeon so I assumed I must have passed the psych eval. I went to my therapy appointment yesterday morning and my therapist told me that she had gotten a chanced to talk to the center psychologist and made it clear to me that she would be here to support me in any way possible through therapy.
I weighed in for the official start of the program, had my blood pressure and pulse taken, then answered a bunch of questions about allergies and medications. One of the dieticians stopped in to talk over with me what I need to lose as a pre-op requirement as well as diet requirements. She gave me the Calorie King book and told me I needed to keep a food journal (ACK!). Food journals are the bane of my existence when it comes to weight loss. Two years ago, I kept track of all my food on SparkPeople and got so obsessive about it. Even without using a food journal, I know all the calories that go into my mouth. I tally them up in my head, but for some reason, writing them down or recording them online scares the crap out of me. I'm always afraid of hitting that wall when I get so obsessive and compulsive about recording everything that I end up feeling guilty about anything and everything I put in my mouth. I really do need to let go of the black and white. I tell myself this all the time and one of my therapists also tells me this every time I go to see her.
The dietician also talked about exercise and said that I need to get at least 150 minutes in each week. She asked what I love to do and walking was my answer. I do love to walk and bringing my dogs along makes me happy so I'm going to try to get out more often. This summer has been pretty brutal with heat and humidity but that's starting to break and cooler air is on the way. The kids will also be heading back to school at the end of the month and I always seem to be more motivated to go for a walk right after they get picked up by the bus.
Then I met with the surgeon. He was an absolute peach. He's an older middle-eastern man with a lovely accent and a bubbly personality. He made me feel right at ease and comfortable from the moment he walked in the door. I felt like he really understood where I was coming from. After we talked for a while, he ordered some tests for me.
So.....coming up at the end of the month, I go in to drink barium and have my insides checked out, as well as an ultra-sound. The day after Labor Day, I go in for an upper endoscopy. I still haven't decided whether or not I want to do the surgery, but I'm going to proceed with the program in case I do decide on it. It's a 6- month process until the surgery is done, so I want to proceed now and can always back out later if I decide to.