Ooooohhh . . . free stuff!

Sorry, but it's been like FOREVER since I last posted! lol. A lot has been going on. First and foremost: Shelly at The World According to Eggface is giving away 5 free prizes and the first one is a variety pack of Torani Sugar-free Syrups. I want these really bad. They are on my wishlist of things I want post surgery. Of course, *wink*, anything on my wishlist can be bought and shipped right to me. It won't show you my address, but it will ship to me directly and I do accept donations. lol. Anyways, as I was saying - Eggface rocks!!! I love her blog. There is so much useful information and I love her witty humor and attitude. You should check out her blog (if you haven't already - she's kinda a must read for anyone planning on having gastric bypass surgery). Even my surgeon's office lists her in their manual for the surgery and they tell all of us to read her blog. lol

***NEWS UPDATE***
I have a date for my surgery! My surgery will be on June 20. ***jumps up and down screeching and dancing*** I am sooooooo insanely excited. I start my liquid diet on Tuesday. I have my pre-op appointment on  Tuesday at 9am. On Saturday, June 18, I start my clear liquid diet. I will be in the hospital for 2 days. I will be off work for 2 weeks. I go back Tuesday, July 5. I have been having last supper syndrome this week. lol. Naughty, naughty. I had pizza twice this past week. I had super cheesy pasta friday. I had real granola cereal this morning. I had a salmon burger at Fuddruckers today. Okay, that one's not so bad, but I had some fries with it and ice tea with real sugar. lol. I am so hyper now because I'm not used to a lot of real sugar anymore since I went sugar-free. I'm back to my good, healthy eating tomorrow, then liquids after that. I'm not exactly sure what kind of liquids I can have and can't have yet. I do know that I can have 1 serving of fruit a day. I can either eat a piece of fruit or have it in a smoothie. I'm not too worried. I've done a liquid diet for a month before and it wasn't a problem.

Now for the emotional side . . . yay.

I think I'm feeling more emotional than I realize because I have been very snappy lately. I get angry or emotional much quicker than normal. I am very excited, but I am also nervous and a little scared. I guess it's natural to feel that way. I must push that all down pretty deep though because I have to really dig to sort out all the stuff I'm feeling after excitement. I think I am pushing it down to keep my courage high and make it easier to handle this. It reminds me of when I was pregnant with my daughter. Everyone tells you all the horror stories and everything they can to make you freak. I would just push it down and laugh it off and say how excited I was and that I wasn't really nervous or scared. Of course I was nervous and scared. But I realized that if I focus on that then I increased my chance of panicking and freaking out. There's no point in doing that. All that does is stress you out and make things worse.

So instead, I will plaster that brave face and laugh it off and wrap my courage around me like a shield. I am excited. I have been planning and preparing for this for a year now. I have read every article, blog, webpage, etc that I can. I still have a bunch of books I want to read (they're on my wishlist, hint, hint). I have (with the exception of this last week) changed my diet and lifestyle already for the better. I eat sugar-free. I minimized my carbs. I switched to whole grain. I increased my protein. I take all the vitamins that I will need after surgery. I still need to work on the exercising though. After surgery I plan to walk, walk, and walk some more.

I have a support system in place. I know some people will come visit me in the hospital. My dad is taking my daughter for two weeks. A friend of mine is going to "babysit" me during the day my first week home. My boyfriend will take off time to be with me. I'm trying to prepare myself mentally. I know it will be an emotional time. I'm sure I'll have some good cries. But sometimes that just what you need to release some stress and tension. I know that my hormones will be crazy. But I'm ready. I am ready to change my life. I'm ready to take the next big step in taking charge of my life and doing what I need to do for myself for my own happiness and longevity. I am saving my own life here.

This surgery isn't just some "easy way" to lose some weight. It's not easy at all. This is a tool I am using to change my life forever - for the better. I will lose this extra fat. I will become healthy and more fit. I will not let my weight become an obstacle in my life. I will NOT let it stop me from doing what I want to do in my life. I will be able to run around and play more with my daughter. I will be able to do more physical activities. To not be ashamed of the way I look. I will use this to help me be that proud, confident person that is hiding inside of me.

(Is this where I play "I am woman, here me roar"? LOL)

Peace!
Gastric Kitty