254

Paula Dixon
Aug 23, 2017 · 2 min read

Today is my last day with my big stomach. I have surgery tomorrow at 10 am. I’m ready!

The day before surgery it is clear liquids only. For some unknown reason, some people have to do a bowel prep and some people don’t. I, of course, am one of the lucky ones who do, but other than gurgles nothing is going on in that department. I hope that means that I’m just already empty.

I haven’t had anything to eat since a salad last night for dinner, over 24 hours ago. I’m hungry and my mother made herself some frozen egg rolls that smell like heaven.

I’m happy. I’m excited. I feel like I have earned this, that I am being rewarded for a job well done. If I didn’t have to go back to work MONDAY instead of three weeks from now I would be over the moon. I have a lot of concerns about surgery being so close to school starting, but I’ll get through it. I have a lot of faith in my ability to do things deemed impossible by mere mortals, so there’s that. The Big Guy is on my side so I’ll be ok (God, not Rick).

My words of wisdom for those thinking of bariatric surgery at this particular moment in time would be:

Get everything lined up and done earlier than you think you need to in case your doctor goes on vacation, you change insurance companies, or your primary care doctor cancels an appointment for a conference and you have to start over (all three happened to me). You can always have the surgery date set back for your convenience. All the other stuff in life is harder to reschedule.

Tomorrow is the first day of the rest of my life!

)
Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade