It's Sunday...

It's Sunday so it must be blog day! I look forward to this day and think about what I will write about all week. Today's blog will be about pure honesty! This past week I finally had my 18 month surgery follow-up appointment...I said finally because it actually was closer to a 20 month follow, working in an appointment can be tough! Anyway I got to the appointment and found out I am not absorbing enough iron...my red blood cell count was low...bring on the iron pills. However, that is not the honesty I wanted to share.

What I will share I actually brought to the appointment to talk about with my surgeon. I have used the term "the honeymoon is over" before and with that in mind the hard work has started. I have been struggling with my relationship with food. Some of my old demons are coming back. I have been stress eating, eating when not hungry, and eating too much. I have also been adding back food that I shouldn't be eating such as desserts (sugar...which always make me sick to my stomach) and too many carbs (carbs aren't bad, I just shouldn't be eating all that I have). The scale has been fluctuating...up a few pounds...down a few pounds...back up again, you get the picture.

So I had this discussion with my doctor. He told me that what I was experiencing was not unusual, many patients go through it. He did say, the fact that I am aware of it and talking about it, is a step in the right direction to getting it under control. Once again he shared with me that the surgery he performed was a tool, not a fix. And he agreed with me, the honeymoon is over and now I had to work! He was happy that my workouts are going well and that exercise is such a staple/routine in my life. However, he agreed we need to get a handle on the emotional eating and facing my food demons head on.

We arranged to schedule an appointment with the nutritionist ( in 3 1/2 weeks) and then we discussed going back to a counselor/therapist. I saw one before the surgery, which all bariatric surgery candidates have to do prior to surgery. However, they extended my sessions because I had issues and fears with exact thing that I am struggling with right now. The feared my food issues would return. Almost 20 months post surgery and it is a struggle every day!

Since the new year I have been trying to write/journal every day. I don't write about anything specific, whatever comes to mind. I usually write first thing in the morning so it helps to get my mind working. This morning's entry was quite long and turned into a project. I decided to write about the food struggle I have been having...I set a few goals for myself...I used words and pictures to visualize what I wanted...I even did a WOOP exercise to lay my goals out for the next 20 weeks.. Why 20 weeks...that is the length of time until my 2 year anniversary from the surgery.

(On a side note...if you have never done a WOOP exercise it is helpful. It helps you lay out your goals and see if you really can accomplish them. A good friend of mine shared the exercise with me and I use it quite often.

I don't want to go back to what I was prior to the surgery...I have come too far. My only option is to work hard and accomplish my goals!! Below is a glimpse into my journal entry project for today...Just keep Moving!