Introducing Me.

Hello! If you've found my blog, you probably know me IRL and don't need this introduction. But, I'm gonna do it anyway.

I'm Lissa and I live in South Florida. My family moved here when I was 12, so I'm almost a native by now, right?

I was a normal weight until I had my first child, then couldn't figure out how to take the weight off. I did get back down to within 10 pounds of my pre-pregnancy weight before I got pregnant with number two. While pregnant with him, I did some major damage to my knee and I couldn't walk well for nearly two years after his birth. I never resorted to a wheelchair, but I probably should have used a cane. Oh well, hindsight is 20/20.

Over the years since number two was born, I gained weight, slowly, but it was still a gain. I tried Atkins, weight watchers, counting calories, etc. But, I just couldn't take off much. In early 2011, I had pneumonia that put me in the hospital for six days. Then I developed deep vein thrombosis and that threw two pulmonary emboli into my lungs. A doctor had the "come to Jesus" conversation with me and told me that it was either lose weight or die.

That's when I started researching WLS. Originally, I thought I wanted the Lap Band. I did tons of research on it and went to a doctor at Strax Rejuvenation in Fort Lauderdale who told me that they would do the lap band on me, no problem. Something about the place didn't fit with my personality, though, so I kept researching. 

I finally asked a friend who is a nurse what she thought about WLS. She first asked me "For whom?" and when I told her that I was considering the idea, she just about jumped through the phone with joy. Then she told me about a wonderful WLS surgeon at her hospital and suggested I check him out. I WILL post more about him later, but I went to his seminar and was highly impressed.

He talked about the Lap Band and about VSG (Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy) and said a few things that made me really think that VSG was probably the right way to go for me. I made an appointment for a consultation immediately.

On August 30, 2011, I underwent surgery to have 85% of my stomach removed (VSG). I think it's the best thing I've ever done for myself.

I'll post later about what the last 3 months have been like, including details about the pre and post-op diets and about what it is like to be ME today versus me 3 months ago. I also plan to detail my journey from here on out in pictures and in words for those who know and love me (all three of you!) and for those who may be thinking about following in my footsteps.

The picture above will change as I continue on my journey, but I will keep past pictures in my gallery for reference.