My battle with disease & Old age!

Wow, where do I begin? In my 40's I was very active, working the Fire Dept and Ambulance a shift a week, and full time Island Transit. Doing all that I still got diabetes, diverticulitis, arthritis etc. I was 49 yrs old and was trying to hold on to my fun life but had to get to the truth. I am too old and getting diabled! DANGIT ALL!! I quit the Fire Dept as the Medical Program Coordinator. I let go of the ambulance shifts and settled to just the 40-60 hour job at Island Transit. During the years my diabetes got worse so I was put on insulin. I gained 100# the year I was on insulin, and felt horrid. I had a prayer group pray with me and I went off insulin and lost 80# a couple years later I was on metformin and got all puffy and rashy. I am allergic to metformon so I went back on insulin. Yep I gained another 100#. Back & forth, trying to lose weight and not able to. The embarrassment of being so obese is something I would not want ANYONE to go through. People see an obese person and think QUIT EATING FATSO! Hey folks, sometimes it just happens. The depression that follows is a deep pit. Fast forward to 2013. My retirement date for Island Transit is March 1st 2014. Back in October 2013 I got really sick with something like food poisoning (probably the noro virus) and was actually too sick to get dressed and call 911. I made it through the night and decided I better get to the doctor. I did and the doctor's PA wanted to give me an MRI etc. I went home and a week later spiked a fever and went back in. They sent me STAT to Everett Prov ER and I was there for about a week. I saw three specialists. One told me my gall bladder needed removed, which I have known for years, yes. the other said I needed a bowel resection temporarily to cut out the abcess I had in my lower bowel. Oky, then the third told me that the abcess went down my falloppian tube and I needed a hysterechtomy. Okay....Now I am in shock, because not one of the doctors wanted to touch me as I am high risk for any operation much less all three! So they asked me if I was agreeable to go see a specialsist at the Universary Hospital. I agreed, and I went to see the specialist. Well the specialist was maybe 22 yrs old, fresh out of college and NO personality!! He more or less told me He will do a re-section then IF it healed they will go on for the other two operations. He told me I probably will not heal from that so I walked out of his office in tears, vowing I will never let him touch me with that attitude!! I had strict orders from my doctor to stay away from germs and if I spiked another fever I was to go back to the ER. So I took sick leave until March 1st and retired. Last October 2014 I saw my doctor and told him my gall bladder is worse, and I am starting to have difficulties. He sent me to see the surgeon and between the surgeon and my Dr and a specialist, I was sent to Virginia Mason for a consult. During that consult I was told my best option would be a RNY Gastric Bypass. That would be taking two thirds of my stomach away and leave me with a small pouch for a stomach. The cut away part is stapled and left in the belly to produce digestive juices to help the pancreas digest foods and I would not need insulin. HUH???? There is a solution? WELL go for it! Okay...but...my insurance told me not Virginaia Mason, but to go to Overlake Hospital in Bellevue to their Bariatric surgeon, then I can go get the gall bladder removed. Well I am retired now and need to go where the insurance company lets me go to. It took months, and I was high priority, but my paperwork got lost in the shuffle. I had to start all over again, and FINALLY I got a date for a consult in September 2015. In May I was told that the head of the bariatric surgery dept was taking 7 patients and I am one of them. I was to lose 30# by August 24th to qualify. HARD work, tears and dedication got me there. Last Monday I went in for the operation and the surgeon did BOTH operations at once. He took out the gall bladder and did the RNY Gastric bypass. PRAISE GOD!! Two days before the operation I had only lost 23 pounds, but they said to come in anyway. Monday morning I got on the scales and WHAT???I lost 7 pounds in a day???? Thank You Lord!! As I checkin in, I had to sign a lot of greusome paperwork like advanced directives, who will say pull the plug, and do I want that done? I do not want to be kept alive on machines. No way! So, when I went into surgery I was accepting that this is all in God's hands. HE is to decide where I end up. It is all for Him! The operation could last about 4 hours and IF they did everything without complications, I will be in the hospital 4 days and be sent home. A few minutes later they were shaking me and I asked what happened. They said all is well. They took the gall bladder and did the bypass with few complications, and I am going to my room now. WHAT??? I SURVIVED IT?? REALLY??? DANG, now what?? The operation took about an hour and a half. Sherry was there by my side though it all Bless her heart. I love her SOOOOO much!! I was in the hospital Tuesday and was tolerating jello and juice, so they came in Wed and said go home and start the phase two diet! I am on that for two weeks and then I graduate to solid food. I drink premier protein shakes (4oz) three times a day and 4 oz of pureed split pea or lentil soup once a day and sip water. I took myself off Oxycodone, and now on liquid tylenol for the arthritis pain. Other than that, I have experienced hardly any pain what-so-ever. PRAISE GOD again!! OH!! Speaking of that, when I got home my weight was back up the seven pounds I lost to make the 30# mark. Hmmmmm, yep I am giving HIM that glory! Thank you!! I am now 34# down and will keep an update. Sorry, no selfies....I do not do selfies!