Diets and Sickness and Stress Oh My!

I have been very bad at posting lately but in my defense I have been sick and spending every moment not sleeping spending time with my niece and nephew before they fly back to America and I don't see them for another 3 years or so.

So last we left off on our pre op tails I had picked up my optifast and was ready to dive headfirst into the preop diet. And I did, the same day my brother, sister-in-law, niece and nephew arrived from America I started the optifast diet as outlined by my dietitian. Shakes, soups, a whole lot of veggies and a little protein, this is what I am to survive on until my surgery day.

Starting out I felt confident and sure of my ability to stick with it without too much fuss, afterall I'd done shake diets before they were fine for 3 weeks easy... yep famous last words. The last 2 weeks on the diet have been a challenge!! What I wasn't prepared for was the complete lack of carbohydrates and the havoc the withdrawal and craving for those would truly be, add to that the fact that we have been out at social gatherings more often than not and my self control has been put through it's paces well and truly. Seriously I'd happily walk through a forest filled with lions and tigers and bears oh my! Just for some mashed potatoes mmmm potatoe...

Honestly though the first week wasn't too hard food wise because I was sick as dog, fever, congestion, aches and pains everywhere, so I was grateful to the shakes, 1 for breakfast and 1 for dinner so I could have my antibiotics and that was pretty much all I was having, so I lost a whopping 7kg in a week. However now that I'm feeling mostly better... we will get to the mostly later, the dreaded hunger and cravings have kicked into what feels like overdrive to make up for my lack of food earlier in the piece.

I'm doing better now, i still have a sore throat, a little congestion and to add to it conjunctivitis in both eyes is a fun new thing to deal with. And my family and friends have been amazing putting up with me while I sulked and complained and tried to put on a happy face everytime I got offered food I couldn't have, which included a yummy looking fruit salad my husband brought me on our trip to the zoo, yep I'm not allowed fruit either.

My husband esspecially has been an amazing support offering me alternatives and running to the shops to get them when I start winging. For instance the other night I really wanted baked beans on toast, so simple, so delicious, so not allowed. So he went and got me a piece of fresh salmon and some asparagus so I could have that with veggies instead. Today I really wanted some corn chips and dip, he went and got me carrots, capsicum, celery and salsa.

Now I admit I haven't been a saint, there have been times I've caved and allowed myself a piece of toast with my scrambled eggs, or a powerade because I needed to feel like I was getting hydrated and I wasn't drinking enough water because the blandness of it had me sulking. However if it wasn't for my best friend in Tassie, my mum and esspecially my husband I would have caved into so many more temptations by now. Which just goes to show no matter how weak you feel, the right support system can make you stronger then you ever thought you could be.

Now you might be wondering where the stress comes into this post... money... isn't money always the biggest stress in life? So my surgery as you know of being funded from my super, unfortunately due to my name not being the same on my super account as it is now there have been some insane delays in processing payment. My name only just got changed on the 2nd despite me having all my paperwork in and recieved on the 26th. Today the anaesthetist and surgeon needed to be paid, yet they still haven't processed my claim. Thankfully for me my mum once again proved how amazing she is, stepping up and making the payments now so I can pay her back as soon as my money comes through, which fingers crossed should be within 24-48hrs.

So there you have it my last 2 weeks in a nutshell, omitting the fun and joy of getting to know my niece and nephew which has helped make all of this much easier to cope with, they are so precious and amazing, love them to pieces!!! So we are 1 week out from surgery fingers crossed we get the money and I get this throat of mine under control so everything can move ahead, stay happy and enjoy those carbohydrates on my behalf.

xx Sarah