Why Weight?

Three years ago this month I took a drastic step that would change my life. I had gastric bypass surgery. It was one of the best things I’ve ever done.

I was not overweight in my younger years. I was active. I cheered through high school and was on the dance team in college. The weight didn’t begin to pile on until after three pregnancies (two of those ending in miscarriages). I was two months shy of thirty when my daughter was born. I figure the greatest factor in my weight gain though was I became sedentary. After years and years of sitting behind a desk all day with a Mt. Dew in front of me at all times did not help. The weight just kind of creeped up. A few pounds a year, and before I knew it, I could barely walk up the stairs without gasping for breath. The weight became an embarrassment, not only to me but my family. My husband was never cruel about it but would subtly mention that I needed to do something. And with my family’s history of heart disease and diabetes I knew I had to do something.

Like so many people, I had tried every diet in the book. My drawer at work was full of diet pills. I went to the “fat doctor” for a few months and lost a considerable amount of weight. But the weight always came back. Then, I was inspired by a co-worker who had lapband surgery. He did wonderful with his surgery, and looked so good. I got his doctor’s name and number and was on my way.

It took some time for approval. There are criteria you must meet and tests you must endure. And the sleep tests are NOT fun. Who wants to go to sleep knowing someone is watching you? I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea. I had to get hooked up to a c-pap machine after that. What a pain.

I decided the Roux en Y gastric bypass surgery would be the best choice for me. Now this is major surgery but it went great without any glitches. Amazingly, there was minimal pain afterwards. Eating again was like starting over as a baby. You start out on soft, mushy foods, then gradually over weeks build up to solids. I drank gallons and gallons of water. Even though I’d always thought I’d like to be a vegetarian, the hardest part of recovery was going without meat for those first three months. It’s safe to say I will never be vegetarian!

After time, you learn how and what you can eat. I had a few bouts with nausea but not many. Today, I pretty much can eat whatever I like, just much smaller portions. Some things may make me queasy but I’ve learned what to watch out for.

Being one hundred and twenty one pounds lighter, I can definitely say my surgery was worth it. If anyone is considering the surgery, I say go for it. Of course, not everyone will recover as well as I did. Find a good doctor and talk it over with them.

Here’s my doctor’s website. It is a great source of info: www.whyweight.com