Before & After RNY with Bill!
November 10, 2015Celebrating Bill's RNY Journey!
Things were not going well for me. I was not in good shape, literally and figuratively. I was 350 lbs, and I had been for the past 20 years. I was diabetic, maxed out on oral meds, and not under control. I was about to turn 39, and I knew that I had to make a major change. But even with all of this, I didn’t make a change until I hit my own momentous moment. I had taken my 5 year old daughter to an indoor waterpark. We were waiting in line for the waterslide. Eventually we went up the two flights of stairs and were at the top. And then I saw the sign: Weight Limit 250 lbs. We had to turn around and walk back through the crowd to get back to the bottom. My wife had to take my daughter on the slide, and I was in a really dark place. But now, as I look back, I’m glad I went through this, because it motivated me to finally make a change.
Obesity Help Member: Bill Daniels, wcdaniels
Weight Loss Total: 155 lbs
Surgery Type: RNY (10/06/14)
Bariatric Surgeon: Dr. Michael Kia
I visited my surgeon a couple of weeks after my 39th birthday. After speaking with him, it was recommended that I have the RNY. He told me that I could expect to get down to 250 lbs and see a major improvement with my diabetes. I then started my pre-op classes. As the summer passed, I wasn’t seeing improvements on the scale, but the education was really worthwhile. Finally, we got to October, and I had the surgery.
Right from the beginning after surgery, I followed my surgeon’s instructions pretty strictly, because I figured this was my last chance. I didn’t go through surgery, permanently changing my physiology, and spending all this money to not make it work. So I worked my butt off (literally!). I followed the meal plan exactly as I was supposed to. After 8 weeks, I started going to the gym, and ended up going 4-5 days a week on average. And I was rewarded with pretty consistent weight loss. I blew past my surgeon’s goal of 250, I surpassed my personal goal of 230, and I even went past my high school low weight of 210 lbs. At about my 11 month mark, I made it under 200 lbs. I never thought I would weigh under 200 again, and I did it! I’ve been able to maintain this for over a month and a half now, and I’m determined to keep the weight off.
My Milestones & Non-Scale Victories:
I’ve had a lot of non-scale victories since surgery, but I think one of my most significant milestones was when I took my daughter to Disneyworld. The last time I tried to go on a roller coaster 16 years ago, I was kicked off because I was too big, and I’ve never tried to go back again. This summer, I was able to ride very single one without any worries! And perhaps most importantly, I was able to go on water slides! I was able to walk all day long without any problems, I looked good, and most importantly, I was able to provide my daughter with an amazing day that she’ll remember forever. And so will I.
The other is that my changes have helped my whole family to get more healthy. My wife has lost 85 lbs herself, and our daughter is slimmer and more active as a result of my changes. I’m very proud of them, and I’m so glad we did it together as a family.
How has ObesityHelp.com been a part of your journey: ObesityHelp.com has been an invaluable resource for me during my journey. The support I’ve received has been amazing. It’s fun to share my victories with everyone, but more importantly, there are some really dedicated vets on here who aren’t afraid to give me a kick in the pants when I need it. The fact that the website is here 24/7, and I never have to wait long before getting a response, means that I would consider this to be my #1 resource that I have at my disposal. I wouldn’t have been as successful as I have without this website and all of the great people here.
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