My Journey: Positive Outlook For 2013

Oh Mandy I'm sorry to hear Dewey got worse :( Hope the meds work and he is looking better come Saturday. At the same time good for you being a responsible pet owner and thinking of Dewey's suffering rather than your need/want to not let him go. I couldn't imagine having to make a decision to let a pet go and I sure hope it does not come to that for you!

As for the exercise and weight loss - it's a back burner thing right now. It's great you are still eating healthy but don't worry about the exercise, there's more important things to concern yourself with right now. With that said I hope you manage to get that Taebo session in like you are hoping to. Sending good healing vibes Dewey's way! Keep us updated when you can. :grouphug:
 
Hey, Mandy, I am sending thoughts to you and Dewey that he gets well.

Taebo was great, and it kicked my butt. I did the basic workout and lasted only 18 minutes of floundering around and trying to keep up, but it definitely got the heart rate up and was lots of fun. I will be doing it at least a couple times a week I think. Hope you were able to get your session in, as well.
 
Hi.
First I wanted to say I'm sorry your pet Dewey is not doing well. It's so hard to go through things like that.
Secondly, jsut took a brief look at your diary and your doing great! 55 pounds lost is incredible! I'll try to keep up to date on your diary!
 
Thanks to everyone who offered well wishes and encouragement regarding Dewey. Unfortunately, I did let him go yesterday morning. He was just going downhill so fast and I couldn’t handle watch him suffer any longer. Even on the medications he was still having seizures. He was showing other weird bodily signs too that something was just very wrong. Not only that but he had 3 nights, his last 3 nights, where he didn’t sleep at all or very little at the most. I always stay with my pets until they pass on and I have to say that it made me feel better seeing how peaceful he looked when he had passed. His eyes were closed and it looked like he had just gone off into a deep sleep. Something he really needed. I miss him terribly, especially today considering it was my first full day without having him in my routine, but I’m happy he’s not in any pain anymore.

As for my weight, yesterday I did have my lowest weigh in at 193.8lb, but I think that’s because I haven’t been drinking water like I should be. I tried to do better with water through the day yesterday and as a result I was back up to 195lb this morning. Tomorrow I’m expecting to be up again because I ordered out for dinner (Dominos pizza). I haven’t splurged on food like that in a while so I treated myself to all I wanted.

I’m hoping to get back on track over the weekend. We’ll see…

For now, here’s one of the last pictures I took of my Dewey. He usually loved his bath time, but he’d been so sick and weak he just laid there and hung onto my hand. This picture has a special place in my heart already.

View attachment 21576
 
I'm so sorry you lost Dewey, but it sounds like you did the best thing for him. I work in an animal related field and sometimes I see people hanging onto their old or sick pets for far too long, and it's the animals that suffer. Good job on taking the responsible and caring step.
 
Dear Mandy, my heart goes out to you ( sweet Dewey)....I had to read your post quickly as I was starting to cry,
as pet are so sweet and I hope your dogs give you comfort.

Loved the photo...lots of kind regards, mrs woods.
 
Oh, Mandy... I am sooo sorry to hear about Dewey!! I know what its like to have to put an animal down to end their suffering. I know its so bitter sweet! You miss him so much, but you're happy that he isnt in pain or suffering anymore! I'm sorry that you are having to deal with this, especially around the holidays!! Our pets are our family! And no one wants to lose family this time of year! I hope you are doing okay! I hope you can get through this with minimal suffering, yourself. And just hold on to the good memories you had with him! Good luck, girl!
 
Mandy,

I'm very sorry to hear about Dewey. In that picture I like the way he is holding your hand. I am closer to my dogs than I am to most people, so I do understand the bond that can develop with those non-human lovely creatures who come in to our world.
 
I'm sorry about Dewey. You did everything you could. Nice work on keeping your weight loss successes coming.
 
Thanks for the condolences everyone. It’s been a rough few days of trying to adjust to life without Dewey. I keep saying it over and over how special that little lizard was to me. I never would’ve thought I could get so attached to a lizard, but man he had me wrapped! Towards the end he needed a lot of extra care (syringe feeding, giving meds, extra baths, etc) which I think only strengthens ones bond with their pet. It’s been difficult adjusting to not having all of that as part of my routine now. I miss him terribly.

I have decided that after my trip to the Dominican in March I’m going to get another one. It’ll in no way take Dewey’s place, but it’ll help to fill the void. In the meantime I’m going to give the cage a new paint job and make some new caves to put in. Dewey’s home was Dewey’s home. His things were his things and his things only. The new beardie will have his own things too. I haven’t started yet, but when I’m ready the first thing I’m going to do is strip the paint off the interior and repaint it different colors. I have all kinds of ideas floating around in my head.

Anyway, I decided to take the weekend off from worrying about food intake and exercise. I haven’t put in a full exercise routing since before our Thanks giving so it’s been a few weeks anyway. With that said, I ate pretty poorly, but I’m not mad or even regretful. I wanted and needed comfort food. Saturday’s weigh in was 195.2lb. I have not weighed in since. I’ve decided to try doing weekly weigh ins for a bit to see if I’d rather do that than daily weigh ins. We’ll see what the damage is next Saturday.

I had another pretty bad food intake day today (lots of chocolate… it’s everywhere). I’m aiming to do better tomorrow. I did finally get back to exercising today. I did a full hour of Taebo. I feel better so day by day I’m hoping to get back on track again.
 
I haven't been keeping up with diaries in my busy schedule and just read about Dewey. I am so sorry you had to go through that but also glad you made the right decision for Dewey. You did all you could rather than making a rash decision, but when the time came you did what you had to for him. And I love that picture!

I agree that his things were his things, and if you get a new lizard they should get some new things rather than just Dewey's old stuff. Plus it will help it feel less like you are trying to replace Dewey because that's not what you are doing.

Seems even with the poor eating (which I totally understand) and lack of exercise you aren't doing too badly. You have gained but not an enormous amount. Glad you felt better after the Taebo and hope you can keep it up and slowly get back into a routine again. :grouphug:
 
Mandy, I'm so sorry about Dewey. I understand how difficult it is to make that decision, but yes, he is in a better place now without pain. Be well.
 
Hi Mandy, I'm very sorry about Dewey too. I love lizards and am very lucky to live where I get to see them outside. Our older son has a real affinity with lizards and has always caught them, fed them & let them go, since he was about 6 or 7. Mostly we see skinks, but occasionally a blue-tongued lizard, which can give you a scare if you see them up close unexpectedly. I once grabbed one while pulling out weeds & boy, did I jump! Good for you letting him go. We will be facing that decision within the next year I think, with our older dog. Even in the heat she seems to be getting stiffer & stiffer. I think she's also quite deaf & going blind & at times is incontinent. Other than all those aliments, she's quite sprightly! :D The minute she's suffering I will have her put to sleep. We have had her now for well over 14 years & got her when she was over 2 years old from an animal rescue home. She had been beaten & kept on a chain before being rescued. She is now thoroughly spoiled & a big part of our family but when the time comes I hope I will be as brave as you sweetie xo Cate
 
Poor Dewey! I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that. It must have been a very difficult decision to make. You did the kind and unselfish thing though, good for you. That photo of him is so precious. Also well done trying to get back on track. Trust me, I can relate!! Keep up the good work!!
 
Alright, so I’m still alive and kicking. :)

I hope you all had a great Christmas. Things went well for my family although we did have our moments. Most of you know that we lost my aunt in April and then both grandparents in August. This is our first holiday season without them. It’s been rough on this side of my family (mom’s side). BUT, we’re getting through it together.

I made the conscious decision before the holidays came around to give up dieting until after Christmas. With everything going on I knew temptation was going to be way too much to handle so I decided to just let loose and eat whatever I wanted. I wanted to try to enjoy this holiday as much as possible. I know that probably sounds like a cop out, but honestly I do not regret that decision at all. In a weird way I feel as though I needed to do it. As a result however, my I’ve gained (obviously). This morning’s weigh in was 200.2lb. Granted since my dragon Dewey got sick (late Nov) I have only exercised twice so that’s not helping either. I will say that considering how I’ve been eating, I was actually happy with the 200.2lb reading. I’ve been eating like a total pig (let’s just say I discovered why I’m the designated cookie baker for holidays… sooooo delicious!) so I was expecting to be up much more.

With all that said, Christmas is over. The family gatherings are over. The baking is over. It’s time to get back on track. I intended to today, but I wasn’t successful. Tomorrow’s another day. I need to get refocused so I can tackle 2014!
 
Glad you are alive and had a good Christmas! I don't blame you for giving yourself a diet break over the holidays, it would have been tough to stick to it and you would have been so worried about that you would not have had a good time. Good for you for not regretting it! That's what I'm trying right now too - letting myself go a little with the chocolate eating and bad foods until the New Year. Though for the next few days I will try to eat healthy other than the chocolates knowing that New Years will be filled with alcohol and too much food.

With the holidays and family gatherings behind you I'm sure you will get back on track in the next day or so and be back to a good routine by New Years Eve. :)
 
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