With apologies to Bridget Jones' Diary

Shrinking Sister: Carol

Date: July 28, 2010

Weight: 123 kilos (quick, do the conversion)

Location: St. Mary's Hospital (and St. Mary's scale)

Why: Spinal surgery to remove 2 severely herniated disks and fuse C5-C7 vertebrae together

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Fast forward 6 weeks of at-home recuperation which, for me consisted of sleeping, eating pain pills, walking 10 minutes per day (my gait was affected by the surgery), sleeping some more, waking up every 2-3 hours to take more pills or adjust my comfy spot.

Six weeks of becoming one with the bed.  The Tempur-Pedic mattress that adjusts to my every lump, bump and bulge, AND whose head and feet move up and down with a beautiful remote control.  I was in heaven.

The doctor told my employer that I, for an undetermined time (between 4-12 weeks) would be "TTD" Temporary Totally Disabled.  Music to my ears, as I hadn't had a true restful vacation from work in I can't remember how long. I expected to enjoy my rehab lounging about, catching up with Oprah (Hi, Oprah!), and my old friends from Days of Our Lives, perhaps learn a foreign language or really take advantage of that free 30-day trial from Netflix.   What I encountered was pain, lethargy and a severe case of cabin fever. I also gained 6 pounds during my convalescence.

My last trip to the neurosurgeon brought me good news, and that aforementioned kick in the reality. Doc cleared me to return to work part-time and once again gave me the "you need to lose weight" talk. SHOCKING!  I didn't go to a neurosurgeon to lose weight. I went to get my neck fixed.

What came next was my call to action... and I quote Dr. Snarky Pants:

"You have to have bariatric surgery, you need to see a bariatric surgeon to get your weight down.  I'm going to write it in the notes so that your primary physician will have it in your chart so it will be deemed medically necessary."

Did my mother put him up to this? Doesn't he know I am morally opposed to surgical intervention on something I know I have (and had) control over?

I had an hour-long drive home to celebrate the fact that I could return to work (albeit part-time) and then became incensed that Doc went "there."

Speed-dial to Shrinking Sister Gail, with the "what the what" talk. I was released to low-impact exercise and told to seek surgical intervention.  Exercise, yes.  Rewiring my stomach, NO.

"Which diet shall I do?" I asked Gail.  I need to lose a good amount of weight in the next 3 months before my next follow-up with Doc to prove to him that I CAN LOSE WEIGHT WITHOUT SURGICAL INTERVENTION.  

So, I open it up to you, Shrinking Sisters fans.  I have the opportunity right now to chose a plan that will drop the pounds and change the mind of a highly skilled neurosurgeon. 

Which plan brought you the most success?