Post Surgery Bucket List (Pre and Post OPs welcome :D)

[conceit]

okay so kirmy's update made me think of all the exciting things i'd like to return to or begin post op- things we haven't been able to do or had to discontinue. a lot of our pre-op time is spend on planning, worrying, freaking out, researching, so this would be a nice and welcome break .

here's my list:-

1) getting a certification in teaching pilates
2) learning dance (ballroom, cultural danceforms i've always wanted to learn)

3) hiking, camping and swimming regularly
4) traveling and being a physically active and adventurous traveler as i had once been
5) getting a fitness training certification for some part time work while in school
6 having a sexy photoshoot for and with my partner
7) reveling in the bewildered reactions of my asshole relatives when they see me next

i'd love to see yours . i'd also love love love..to hear from post Ops who were able to do fun/creative/physical or whatever you like, things post bariartric surgery they were unable to do before the surgery.

 

[Munchkin]

What I did after surgery...

Kayaked the Amazon, learned how to rappel, rode zip lines, rode a horse across Mexico. Also had my first really physical job. Ran 8 miles.

Travel wise I was no slouch before surgery either. One thing I would love to do again is visit Tahiti as a normal woman.

 

[DianaCox]

What I have done:
1) Traveled in Europe with my daughter and my husband, without being the one who needed to stop (climbed to the top of the Vatican in 95+ degree temps and 200% humidity without dying; hiked in Arches National Park during August ~ 105 "but a 'dry' heat")
2) Zip-lined in Colorado and Costa Rica
3) Roller skated (OK, I fell and broke my arm a little, but at least I did it!)
4) Riding a bike again
5) Glamping

What I still want to do - MORE TRAVEL! (More of a time and money thing than any limitations on my physical abilities now)

I have no desire to jump out of a perfectly good airplane, or go up in a helicopter for any reason. Don't want to climb any mountains, hike the Sahara, run a marathon or anything like that. I'm not interested in physical challenges, just continuing to be able to do fun things that normal people can do.

And live to be 120, without regretting still being alive.

 

[Munchkin]

Just thinking about this.... I would also LOVE to see some of my asshole relatives who made my life miserable from about 2 on. But they are all dead and I'm not so I won in the end anyway.

 

[conceit]

wow! you guys! this is amazing! you give me soo much hope. i am excited. with the right planning, and when in good health, it looks like DS'ers can engage in all kinds of adventures. a DS'er on PB recently ran a marathon and was, IIRC, planning on a triathlon. i am not much of an endurance athlete myself, but i love it that we are not limited by our bodies..that the DS imposes a "routine" on us but not limitations.

please keep these posts coming!

@Munchkin

yes. you definitely won by outliving those asshole relatives. i am sorry that they ever mistreated you, though i am happy that you are such a strong and resilient woman. they had nothing on you!

family is supposed to be loving or, at least, respectful. but usually, it's people closest to us that hurt and humiliate the most, using their proximity to hurt rather than love. i can barely wait to snub mine!

 

[hilary1617]

What a wonderful list!

I've got a reservation for indoor skydiving for the first time ever January 19. Season, weather and time-permitting, I ride horses and bikes, walk all over the place instead of taking cabs, ski, sail, travel *comfortably* and often, shop where I want to shop, dance without restrain, and find myself on playground equipment and amusement park rides with my kids.

 

[brooklyngirl]

Ok, so I haven't don't anything very exciting YET, but considering I was at a point where I could not walk a half a block without crippling nerve pain in my back that made me feel like I was going to collapse, and even when I did walk that half a block, I couldn't breathe afterward. I also couldn't walk up a short flight of stairs without using my arms to haul myself up using the bannister, and again, once I got to the top I was bright red, dripping with sweat, my heart feeling like it was going to explode and out of breath for a few mins at least.
Well, I walked 2 5ks in November, and while my knees are shot so they hurt a bunch, I barely broke a sweat and didn't feel like I was going to collapse.
I also regularly swing on a swing set and slide down slides (with my special needs students) neither of which are exactly meant for adults. That blows my mind. I plan on lots more to come

 

[robs477]

GREAT idea for a thread! I will post my "pre-op bucket wish list" when I get a minute, i'm long winded you know .

 

[more2adore]

I've been wanting to make an "NSV Wishlist" of my own sometime... so I just started it. I'm sure I'll think of tons more:

Get knocked up/have a mini-me

Be able to comfortably take a long walk on the beach

Be able to lie on the sand and get back up again easily

Be able to swim in the ocean

Go sailing with hubby

Scuba dive on the Great Barrier reef

Go parasailing

Go paragliding

Go kitesurfing

Learn to surf

Jetski

Clean myself post-toileting sans implements

Clean myself post-toileting the way everyone else does

On top.

Be in better shape for my 10 year college reunion

Be able to shop in a brick-and-mortar plus size store and have something I try on be too big

Sit in a booth at a restaurant

Sit in non-handicapped seating on public transport

Be able to buy clothes from a retailer in Australia instead of having to import from the US

Go back to Disney World and ride EVERYTHING

Go to Luna Park here

Go to a fair

Go to the Botanical Gardens here

Use the regular turnstiles at train stations

Walk into a restaurant with hubby and not worry about what the seating will be like first

See a movie at a place with normal seating (instead of fold-up arm rests) and be comfortable

Lose the CPAP (may not be possible)

Lose the asthma meds (may not be possible)

Have the majority of tourists and children walk past me without stopping, staring, pointing and taking pictures

Be able to sit comfortably in a normal office chair

Find that all my belts are too big

Be able to fit behind the wheel of hubby’s car safely and comfortably

Stop having to have compression stockings custom made

Edited to add:

Have a bath in a regular-sized bathtub!
Buckle a seatbelt
Cross my legs
Be able to wear boots

 

[Elizabeth N.]

A lot of my first-year items involved health goals. I had a bucket list type post somewhere that I saved....drawing a blank on where to find it at the moment. A lot of the next tier of goals involved being able to return to my beloved Montana and enjoy life at high altitude, which was something I'd been told I'd never do again because of my heart and lung problems.

Becoming able to (re)enter everyday life was full of WIN moments for me. Still is, but they are rather different in quality nowadays.

 

[Munchkin]

@more2adore I love your list! Been to Tahiti a few times and it's similar. You will be blown away!

Tomorrow I am going to CES and I will be walking all day long. And I'm looking forward to it! Then I have a meeting to attend followed by a free buffet at the Orleans.

@conceit I think most of us are capable of ANYTHING post DS. Life without limits!

 

[southernlady]

My main goal was to live life without being tied to an insulin pump...

 

[JackieOnLine]

as I recall, I wanted to date...but when I tried I really was bad at it. since then I have never been sure if I should try again or if I really don't want to.

I wanted to have only one chin, I know that for sure.

 

[Jen-2]

Here's the start of my list:

Run some 5Ks and 10Ks w my daughter

Complete a triathlon

Travel more

Lead a more active lifestyle

Have a photographer take a family photo that includes me and not just the kids

Same w sending a Xmas card that has the whole family on it.

Buy a cute bathing suit and actually get in the pool on vacations

Shop for a new wardrobe

...

 

[robs477]

Ok. When one starts pondering this, it really can get slightly compounded, expounded and more involved. So…I had to break this down in to 3 separate categories. 1st one being the simple things I’m looking forward too, the normal everyday things that thin people can do, don’t think about and take for granted. 2nd category being the things I’m not looking forward too, i.e., going to miss, things I actually like about my size. 3rd category being things I want to do that I can’t or won’t do now because of my size. The BIG things, the real important reasons why. Due to the large postings, I will post the 3 different categories in 3 separate posts.
Top 10 Simple things I’m looking forward too:

1. Lying out on the beach without having to worry about “Animal Rescue” coming over to try to roll me back in to the water.
2. Buy one tube of sunscreen instead of the “Family size”.
3. Be able to see my penis again without having to use a mirror.
4. Be able to eat breakfast and lunch in front of my office mate. He eats in our office every day and I don’t ever eat breakfast or lunch and have had to see and smell his GD food TWICE every F*#&in work day for over the last EIGHT years!!!
5. Lose the “Man boobs” or at least get them down to a more manly “A” cup.
6. Be able to jam my fat ass into an airplane seat without using a pry bar and turning purple for the entire flight.
7. I would LOVE to have to use a float to stay afloat in my pool. Fat people float and don’t sink you know. It really sucks when I need to scrub stains or algae spots in the deep end. I’ve even tied a set of weights to my fat ass and nothing works!..lol
8. Being weighed at the Dr’s office and also NOT needing the double size blood pressure cuff that they NEVER have and always have to go “look for” which brings even more attention to your rotundness!! I think they must teach them all that in Med school to shame obese people in to dieting!
9. Be able to fart like a normal person! For some reason, I NEVER fart. I have hypothesized that is because my body absorbs EVERY flippin thing, and won’t even release gas. My daughter farts on me all the time and I can’t wait to get her back!! She even asks me why I never fart and knows it’s not normal.
10. I would love to be able to walk outside in a light rain, a drizzle and not come back in SOAKED and wet!!!