Survey for my Sociology Class

Hey Everyone.. I need your help so that I can do a short report on Gastric Bypass. My teacher said to pick a controversial topic, and I could not think of one that was better than this one. There is always so much negative stuff in the news about WLS. Anyway I would like for you all to help me out by replying with your answers to a few short survey questions. 1. Do you feel that you could have acheived the same results through diet and exercise? 2. Do you feel healthier now than you did prior to WLS? 3. Do you feel that WLS has helped or hurt your marriage/family life? 4. Would you recommend WLS to other people? 5. Do you feel support groups are important to your long term WLS Success, and why? 6. How do you feel about the negative publicity on the news about WLS? Thank you all so much for helping me with this. If you don't want to answer these questions on this site, you can email me with your answers at [email protected] Thanks again! Rhonda

1. Do you feel that you could have acheived the same results through diet and exercise? yes I do but I would have done like every diet that I lost at in the past and gained it back and not really learned anything about eating habits as this has taught me. 2. Do you feel healthier now than you did prior to WLS? omg yes 3. Do you feel that WLS has helped or hurt your marriage/family life? it has made my marriage even better only because we had such a great marriage before and I feel so much better about myself now I am able to go and do with him where as in the past I would make excuses to not go. 4. Would you recommend WLS to other people?well I would have to say yes at first glance of this question but this is such a personal decision I would have to just tell them about my experience and let them make their own mind up about it. 5. Do you feel support groups are important to your long term WLS Success, and why? yes. because it helps to hear that people are going through the same emotions and feelings and that you are not alone. 6. How do you feel about the negative publicity on the news about WLS? it really ****** me off cause it is prob some skinny reporter that knows nothing about being overweight or the actual surgery itself. Denise

Thank you Denise for such a speedy reply. I appreciate all the help I can get. This semester is tough, due to the hurricane, we have condensed 18 weeks into 9 weeks and still the same amount of work. Thanks again for your help. I hope to see you soon. Rhonda

1. no, i dont think that i could have lost anything without WLS i have no willpower, hence the reason i have only lost 63lbs!!! 2. Yes, i do feel much better! 3. Ha! Well now since you asked Sex is much better! Hubby is jelious now where that was never a problem before, but that may or may not be the results of the wt loss! I have more energy to play with my kids. 4.Yes, i would and i have but i did tell them that there are risks and its differant for everone. 5.Yes, i do much better when im involved in support groups and in contact with others who are going through and dealing with the samethings as me. 6.I don****ch t.v so i haven't heard anything negitive on the news.

Thank you Dawn for your quick response.. Quit being so hard on yourself. Do what I told you the other night, start measuring your foods and keep a journal of what you are eating. Increase your liquids and your proteins and you will start losing again. Hope to see you soon, I miss ya! Rhonda

1. Do you feel that you could have acheived the same results through diet and exercise? **NO** 2. Do you feel healthier now than you did prior to WLS? **HECK YEA** 3. Do you feel that WLS has helped or hurt your marriage/family life? **Hmmm... didnt hurt what wasnt already hurt - just made me more confident to do what I needed to do** 4. Would you recommend WLS to other people? **Yes, also explaining the risks** 5. Do you feel support groups are important to your long term WLS Success, and why? **Support groups are very vital to a good outcome. Its very hard to get off track and people need to be able to share their problems with other people who have been thru the same thing** 6. How do you feel about the negative publicity on the news about WLS? **More positive stuff out there -- they only focus on the negative**

Thank you sweetie for helping me out. I hope everything is going well for you! Good luck moving this weekend. miss ya! Rhonda

I could have achieved the same result only if I could stick to it. I do feel healthier since weight loss surgery becasue I am so much more active and can breathe better. Surgery and weight loss has helped my family life because I keep up with household chores better and I am also better organized because of the extra energy. I am able to keep up with my younger children also and do more with them. My marriage is better simply because I feel better physically and also because I have a better image of myself. Simply put, I have more stamina in everything I do. I would recommend surgery to other people but would emphasize that it is a personal decision. If something goes wrong or you regret your decision, it is only because YOU made it. Support groups are very important to WLS patients. Having something in common with a group of people and being able to discuss it is important. Most negative publicity does not come from true statistics. Sometimes there are negatives concerning this surgery because not everyone is going to have a perfect experience. Many people have to be talked to before a person can get a true feel to what WLS is all about. Personally I wanted to hear the good and the bad. Hope this helps Rhonda Jane

Thanks Jane. I sure hope this finds you doing better. We sure did miss you at the bash. Its about time for another Hattiesburg luncheon.. Rhonda

Hey Rhonda, 1. Do you feel that you could have acheived the same results through diet and exercise? My will power was gone. I do not think I would have ever lost the weight again. I lost and gained so many times that I had begun to fail at every diet I tried. 2. Do you feel healthier now than you did prior to WLS? I am healthier. I no longer have to take blood pressure medicine, fluid pills, sleeping pills and anti-anxiety meds. I feel great!!! 3. Do you feel that WLS has helped or hurt your marriage/family life? It has helped me feel more confident which makes me a happier person to be around. I would say that it has helped me to participate in activites with my family. We are making alot more memories now that I have more energy to play and go on adventures. 4. Would you recommend WLS to other people? Yes!!! I recommend the laproscopic RNY. The recovery time is very short with Lap RNY. 5. Do you feel support groups are important to your long term WLS Success, and why? Yes, I need the accountablity. Also, I get great information from other members. 6. How do you feel about the negative publicity on the news about WLS? I feel that it is an insurance scam to get people to be scared of surgery so that they will not have to pay out so much money for the surgeries. Sonya Sumrall