We did make it to the Black Hills of South Dakota in April and have been there since. We don't really have a long-term game plan anymore. If we learned one thing on that trip, it's to not plan too far ahead. We've been busy though. I've been working full time for a finance company and really enjoying it. I have a great team with some great coworkers. He worked for part of the summer and then took some time off to get the exterior of the motorhome done. If it was going to be outside in a South Dakota winter, it needed a lot of work to survive!! He and Dad had already spent a lot of the summer doing some major bodywork - even rebuilding some spots! They removed almost all of the old paint and we all helped give her a new coat - my brother, sister-in-law, and 2 nephews included! Here are some before/after pictures of her:
It's like an entirely different vehicle!! This winter we'll be spending a lot of time gutting the interior completely and redoing it to meet our needs. I'm looking forward to sharing more as we go along! Where we're staying we have slow internet and a data cap so I'm looking at ways to post regularly because not only are we going to be working on our Skoolie, I'm going to be working on me.
My weight has become an issue lately. It's gotten to a point where walking up a flight of stairs leaves me winded. And yesterday, for the first time ever, I didn't fit in the seat at the theater. (Thankfully, the arm rest went up and that was really all I needed but still - very hard on the self psyche!!) I'd been looking at having the LapBand procedure done when we got to the Pacific Northwest because I know that I need more help than I can give myself now. With my 2 past surgeries, I'm fairly certain a lot of hormonal issues were going on - and really, when one has an ovarian cyst the size of a gallon of milk, it would be kind of silly to think otherwise. But after doing a lot of thinking, some of which was misinformed, I decided I really wasn't looking forward to another surgery, even an outpatient one. I had been reading that my health insurance provided required a year of medically supervised weight loss attempt before they would approve the surgery and so why not try that route? I went to the local hospital's site and started reading about a non-surgical weight loss program; Optifast. The more I read, the more intrigued I became. It's not just a VLCD (Very Low Calorie Diet). It's also a form of counseling - you have group and one-on-one sessions. It's medically supervised. I'll also be meeting with a physical trainer and a nutritionist. So, even though I did find out my health insurance does cover LapBand after only 3 months of medically supervised weight loss, I'm going to put that thought on the back burner. I don't want something that simply physically restricts me from eating a lot. I need something that basically re-teaches me how to eat for fuel. There's some mental blocks going on and this program will help with those.
I considered creating a new blog for this. One blogger I had read said she was treating her weight loss like a cancer - 5 years before she considers herself in full remission, so to speak. And that's my plan - 5 years of treating myself holistically. I decided to keep this blog going instead and there will be many changes coming up. My goal is to set up a plan for regular updates. The good, the bad, and the ugly. And from everything I read, there will be ugly. But I have a wonderful partner who is prepared to help me through those moments. I have a great team of coworkers who are already supportive of this plan. I got the call on Friday and I see the doctor on October 19th and start. I'm going to start at the beginning of the biggest feasting holidays of the year...what a wild ride this well be!!! I can't wait to share it with you!
~~Heather
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