Out from the fog...

Now that I no longer feel like a total zombie and have had a little time to process this, I feel much better about this whole thing than before. My initial thoughts upon hearing the initial results from the doctor was relief. I honestly thought there was something dire going on in my abdomen. H. Pylori (potentially) and an ulcer seem entirely treatable and manageable to me. My understanding is I will probably need to take the Protonix and a course of antibiotics to get rid of the H. Pylori and heal the ulcer. Once the antibiotics are done, I should just continue the Protonix, for how long, I don't know, but I suspect for a good while. The doctor did mention the S-word (surgery), specifically he said that if I did need surgery he wasn't sure that the doctor who has experience in my surgery would be willing to operate. I knew instantly who he was talking about, Dr. Dennis Smith, one of the top DS surgeons on the planet (and my initial first choice) is right here in GA, however he does not accept other doctor's patients, so that might leave me in a quandry if it ever came to that. I am hoping that it won't.

Again, I won't get the results back about the biopsy or confirmation that I do have H. Pylori or the final report until sometime next week, but this is the scenario that makes the most sense. I think the H. Pylori -> ulcer which is causing irritation and causing slow digestion. I have a ton of things I need to figure out. Like will I need to change my diet? If I do, for how long? Until the ulcer heals or forever? What changes to my diet do I need to make? Will proton pump inhibitors slow down my weight loss or improve it? I will be contacting Dr. Marchesini about all this as soon as I get everything in.

I took my first Protonix pill a few minutes ago and am hoping for the best. I am going to stay on a pretty mild diet for the next few days and will continue to drink at least 3 protein shakes. I won't get the calories in like I normally do, but the protein will certainly be there. This morning I weighed in at 307.0 lbs. That ain't gonna last! It'll probably rebound a bit after I've had a good solid day of nutrition -- but I'll take it! Yesterday, it was hard not eating or drinking anything and frankly, I am surprised I didn't pass out at any point considering.

Today, I feel okay, although I do feel a tad sluggish, like I could go back to sleep for a couple of hours although I did try, but just ended up laying there. My throat is much sorer than I thought so that's not fun. I am going to take it easy and just relax. Tomorrow I am meeting a bunch of post-op and at least one pre-op DSers for lunch and festivities for Anne (the pre-op). She traveled all the way to Marietta to have surgery with Dr. Smith. She's been here a day or so and has already met a few folks so tomorrow I get to meet her as well as a few others. Should be fun!