Deanna's Guest Post

I never really had a problem being thinner when I was young. I did gymnastics, played field hockey, heck, I even worked as a trainer at a gym! Being 5'7", I was comfortable being between 140-150, and did it without much effort.
Then came cosmetology school. A place where the entire day revolved around food. What was for breakfast, what was for lunch. Even what were we gonna have for lunch tomorrow. A pound or two here or there...no biggie, right?
As a cosmetologist, you are constantly on your feet, which should translate into some exercise, right? Not when every meal is taken on the fly, and pot lucks are an almost weekly occurrence...another pound or two-ok, maybe a size or two...but I didn't mind being a bit curvy, and I was still pretty active, so still no problem, right?
Fast forward 10 years, and those little pounds have become 20, then 30...Yikes! But you know what? Like a lot of other people, I rationalized with myself-I'm still in "regular" sizes, I still get lots of dates...it can't be all that bad, right??? RIGHT???
And that's pretty much where I was when I got pregnant with my first son. I ate well, but I also walked a lot, and I managed to only gain 12 pounds in the first 6 months. Then I developed Pre-eclampsia, which is a condition where you develop extremely high blood pressure, and all of the side effects of that disease. Most pre-eclampsia can be managed with bed rest, sometimes medication. But within a couple weeks of my first high blood pressure reading, I was dumping protein in my urine, which meant my kidneys were failing. I was admitted to the hospital at 26 weeks, and delivered my son at 27. He weighed only 1 pound 12 ounces, and while for the most part he was healthy and only had to grow, he had a couple of touch and go moments...
In the beginning, I actually lost weight. After losing the 35 pounds of water weight I gained as a result of the pre-e and the drugs they had me on, my life revolved around the NICU, then caring for a still very small baby when he came home. In addition, since Connor was on a ventilator for an extended period, he was vulnerable to a lot of respiratory issues, and the doctors tell you to keep the babies away from people during cold and flu season for the first 2 years. I was even hesitant to take him outside for walks...add another 10 pounds. Geesh, these pants are getting tight-where are my sweats?
2 years later, same situation, but I manage to keep Cameron in an extra 3 weeks. He weighed in at 2 pounds 10 ounces, and pretty much breezes through NICU, and comes home by his due date. But once again, we have to keep to ourselves during cold and flu season. Gah-now my sweats are getting a bit tight. Count in all the things we moms tend to do-finishing that last bite of the kids lunch, not taking any time for ourselves...all of this adds up to being almost 200 pounds, a size 18/20, and a misery that perpetuates itself.
My biggest change during this last 8-9 weeks has been cutting out cokes. I have gone from drinking maybe 6 a day(need that caffeine!) to maybe having one, many days not. I drink a lot more water, and iced tea, ALMOST unsweetened, and I am just more conscious of what I eat. No more finishing the boys plates, no more seconds, managing portions, and eliminating nutritionally void snacks. The best part about all of this is that my kids enjoy the healthy snacks as much as they did the less healthy ones. We also go outside (in our backyard) more, running around, and we make time for a mid-afternoon "dance party" and shake our bootys all over the place for a good 20 minutes each day. My next goal is to go walking (by-myself-sigh!) at least 3 times a week...
I still have a ways to go before I reach my goal weight. I would like to be around 150-160 again, but I know it's an achievable goal. Thanks to the Sargeants for making this fairly painless and most of all fun!