By Lynn Haraldson-Bering
Long-time readers of Refuse To Regain know about my Green House Philosophy in regard to weight maintenance. (If you’re new to our blog, welcome! You can click here to read about our Green House Philosophy.)
I named this philosophy after my very green house. The varieties of green that bedeck the siding and porch weren’t my idea. It looked like this when we moved in, and other repairs and remodeling have taken precedence over painting the house and stripping the porch.
My green house is like my body. Just as I care for my green house even though I’m not happy with the color, I accept my body, despite its flaws from years of being obese, and take care of it, flaws and all. That’s one of Refuse To Regain’s goals is to help you live comfortably and “care”fully in your own green house body.
A part of my green house body is getting some much needed repair when I undergo knee surgery tomorrow. My doctor will perform two procedures: one is a synovectomy to remove several bony growths, and the second is called a Magnuson debridement which will clean out some of the damage caused by osteoarthritis. His hope is that I’ll grow new cartilage. If, however, he determines that my knee is more damaged than the MRI showed, he will do a total knee replacement. Here’s hoping I wake up with all my original parts. But if not, I’ll deal with it.
In preparation for this buff n’ shine, I gave my actual green house some extra attention over the last few weeks. I scrubbed floors, dusted my long-neglected office, cleaned the basement, organized book shelves, rearranged furniture, vacuumed the porch carpet, cleaned bird poo off the siding, swept the deck and washed windows. I was feeding a nesting feeling, like the one you get a few weeks before giving birth, and nervous energy was my fuel.
I try not to think about all the things that could go wrong or dwell on the unknown by focusing on what I’ve done right. Exercise and losing weight has made me strong so rehab won’t be as difficult as it would have been at 300 pounds. My pre-surgical tests all came back normal because I’m no longer pre-diabetic or storing visceral fat. My arms will be better able to use crutches because I’m lighter (although I’m still going to take advantage of the mobility cart at WalMart!). I’m in the best shape of my life, despite my bum knees, and there’s no better gift I could give my body than good health.
I’m packing some of my non-perishable food favorites to take to the hospital. I may be having surgery, but that’s not an excuse to not feed my green house body well. The hospital is just up the street from a large grocery store and a Panera restaurant. My daughter said she’d buy me a Classic Café Salad (dressing on the side, of course!) and fruit cup when I wake up tomorrow. What a good kid.
I’m not sure I’d have gone through with surgery 170 pounds ago. Would you have? Or are you more attentive to or more aware of your overall health now in maintenance or on your way to maintenance than before? How are you taking care of your green house body?
I’ll post next week from my actual green house and let you know how the surgery went and if I’m partly bionic or not.