Friday 29 August 2008

Slow & Steady Hasn't Won This Race

A few months ago I was running my band fairly tight, I wasn't eating a lot, and rarely hungry. I was having chuck ups though and my food regime was very limited. BUT I was loosing weight.

My gorgeous friend Trish at this time was having alot of troubles with her band and experiencing more and more pain every day (and this had been happening for a while with tests revealing nothing). It all came to a head with her having emergency surgery after her Dr realised that the band had slipped. He decided to do a readjustment leaving the band unclipped (to wait for the swelling to subside) rather that a full replacement or removal(as he threatened). 6 or 8 weeks later Trish had another op to clip the band up and after a few dramas here and there she is thankfully back on track.

When this all happened I freaked out, her Dr had accused her of bringing this on herself from vomiting and wanting too much too fast (which was horse shit in her circumstance). This is where I judged myself as being. I was too restricted and wanting desperately to loose weight FAST. So with a bit of a wake up call at the expense of poor Trish, I had 1ml taken out of my band. This allowed me to eat more, which I sorely craved..... and this also stopped the weight loss.

For the last few months I have eaten lots of my favourite foods (except bread) and enjoyed way too many alcoholic beverages... but boy I have enjoyed it.

Now.... I want to get back on track. The days are getting warmed, the jumpers aren't so thick and I want to be a size 14......actually I want to be a size 12, but I will settle for a 14 in the mean time.

Size 14 shorts..... size 14 sleeveless tank top ........ size 14 undies..... and size 14 bra.

This is my short term goal before summer starts.

I went to see Dr Fill (I love you Dr Fill)on Tuesday and had another 0.3mls put into the band, this brings me up to 5.8mls. I wasn't sure it had made too much of a difference until I went out to dinner tonight, 3 mouthfuls in and I was full...... that was it... so it was a doggy bag for Tarnya. So now it starts, hopefully I am restricted enough to cut down on my intake and with the exercise I have promised myself to do (god help me) those scales are going down baby.... way down.

See ya when I am lighter

Cheers Tarn xxx

Thursday 28 August 2008

The Return of The Absent Blogger

I can't believe it's been 3 months since I last posted.... But I have reappeared...Here is my excuse.

I have 2 boys aged 10 and 11 who are gorgeous, feral, active and I absolutely adore them. I also had a baby boy 15 years ago, I was newly married and very young. I started suffering with pre-eclampsia at 24 weeks pregnant and by 26 weeks had gone into Kidney and Liver failure, so the decision was made to have an emergency Caesar to save my life. Mitchell David Haines was born at 7.10pm on 10th July 1993 weighing 900g and breathed his only struggled breaths for 30 minutes before passing away in my husbands arms whilst I was struggling with my own life in ICU.

Dealing with your own near death experience can be a dramatic thing, afterwards you feel enlightened, uplifted and ready to make the big decisions to change ones life for the better. I had honestly thought I was going to die, I had Drs discussing my percentage chances of survival, with me in the same room, My last thoughts before going under anaesthetic was "how will my husband live through loosing me and the baby". So to come out the other side was truly a bonus.

I then shut out my emotions of loosing my baby, I agreed to nurse him during those early hours in ICU but don't remember anything more than the shape and the colour of the blanket, I was 22 and too scared to look at this poor, tiny, perfectly formed baby, so don't have that visual/emotional memory of him . All I have is a photo, footprint, hand print and a shaving of his blond hair.

Afterwards it was hard to get a grip on my emotions, I was thrilled to be alive and have a second chance with the love of my life, but felt guilty about feeling this way when I had just lost my baby. Looking back I don't think I ever really dealt with my emotions and started a rather large trend of "It's Ok I can cope"

4 years later I felt strong enough to try again, and after a barrage of test on every part of my anatomy was told that the possibility of it happening again with the same partner was VERY rare. I fell pregnant with Adam and was in pregnancy heaven (amongst vomiting every day for 26 weeks) until 30 weeks when the symptoms started again. High blood pressure, protein in my urine , reduced urinary output and general unwell. Adam was born on 15th August, 9 weeks premature weighting 1830g (3lb 10oz) and the sight of him was just amazing. I had never felt so scared as when they said I was going to have him so early. I had envisioned empty arms again. But thankfully blessed with this little angel (ppft I can't believe he was ever so tiny, hopeless and not the monster he can be now at times).

He was in NICU for 4 weeks and those were 4 very hard empty armed weeks for a new mother, pining for her long awaited baby. Emotionally I coped alright with this, as I had a goal of this tiny perfect baby at the end of the long wait. I travelled 40min every day to see him and stayed at the hospital from 7 am till 4pm feed. I would then go home make dinner and my husband and I would go back to the hospital to do last feed at night. But it's what I had to do and I got my baby home in the end.

6 months later after feeling shocking for 2 weeks the Dr gave me the delightful news that I was pregnant again (to my horror). I was told that there is NO WAY pre-eclampsia could happen AGAIN. Well it did. Cameron was born 5th August at 3o weeks weighing 1800g (3lb 9oz) after me being hospitalized and away from my 10 month old baby for 3 weeks. There were no available neonatal beds at JHH and I was sent over 2 hrs away to Liverpool hospital for Cam to be born.

I was away from my baby, family, friends, and for a lot of the time my husband(who I sent home to look after Adam) It was the worst hospital I have ever been to, filled with the rudest, most uncaring staff members I have ever met. I did not have a phone to be contacted on and was not forwarded any messages from anybody who tried to contact me. When I cried about my situation I was told they were too busy and that the payphone was in the foyer. I was told to make my own way to NICU which was 2 flights up and on the other side of the hospital, with 1 day old Caesar scar and a recently dysfunctioning liver and kidney mind you.

The emotions that I had sucked up and tucked away from my previous experiences came to a head and I ended up with post natal depression. 2 babies under the age of 1 and fear of telling people I wasn't coping brought me to meltdown when Cam was 4 months old. I was basically a mess, having anxiety attacks and the whole time being in denial of what was happening. With counselling and a lot of hard work I dragged my way through and have been a fairly good mum.

NOW...... the reason I just unloaded this was to give you some incite to my mental instability...lol...no really... I mean I wanted to let you know that I have suffered anxiety and depression in the past and for 8 years have had only minor hiccups but coped fairly well.

Until May...

I started to take on too much at work, became secretary for the footy club and President for the P&C, was struggling a little with my band and all of a sudden I had a meltdown. I had anxiety attacks (which I hadn't had for many many years) and basically disliked everybody (except immediate family). I couldn't cope with talking to anybody on the phone, and if asked a question that needed an answer I was a blob of jelly.

So for the last few months I have been on the mend, trying to take it easy and learn to say NO... It's funny, you don't realise how much people expect of you until you pull back. I basically didn't put myself out there for anybody except David and my boys and some people (the takers in our lives) really resented it.

I feel great now. I took the boys away to the Gold Coast in July for a holiday while my husband went fishing in Darwin. He flew in and met us on his way home and we had a few days together before driving home. I really needed it. To get away from everything and just ENJOY your kids for a change is wonderful. The boys were protective and helpful(under instruction from Dad) and treated me like a queen...God I love em !!!!

SO...I am back... I will try and be more regular with my posts, and will try and catch you up on how my banding experience is going.

Hope I haven't bored you to tears

Cheers Tarn xxxx