Uninformed reporter - please read

Yes, people are entitled to their opinions, but they should do their research first! Please Read Ms. Blizzards Article at http://torontosun.canoe.ca/News/Columnists/Blizzard_Christina/2005/07/20/1139190.html I am so ticked about this article I can't even put the cute little wave guy in by my name.

My reponse: Please ignore my last email. I wasn't clear. Seriously.. you should educate yourself on this subject. Your stomach (pouch) will NEVER grow back to it's original size, with today's surgeries. Years ago, with the older version, it didn't grow back.. it was never transected, just sectioned off with a staple line. That staple line would sometimes rupture, giving people the entire use of their stomach back... therefore allowing them to overeat and gain weight back It's now completely seperated.. we start out with 1 oz. over 18 months, it will gently stretch to about 5 oz. No way will a 1 oz stomach ever grow back to it's normal size. 5 oz's, allowing it to be filled to 10 whilst eating? Yes. If I overeat, I puke. Period. All people with today's version of the RNY do. You're right, some of us couldn't help the weight gain. But all of us, myself included, dieted and used the treadmill. In the US, one of the qualifications for surgery is a 6 month to one year supervised diet under a Dr's care. No matter what diet I used, my Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome drove me up to 410 lbs. I could stick a diet to the T, and still not gain. With this surgery, I lost 215 lbs and I got my life back. Seriously.. please educate yourself on this subject.

OMG - I'm FUMING!!!! Stupid people say stupid things. I did send a NASTY e-mail. I wouldnt dare paste it in here - some of the comments I made were NOT for the faint hearted..... she's a female PIG!

i also sent a " colorfull informative" email. for lack of nicer words. that post should go on main forum page also.boyyy would she retrace some steps!

OH BOY!! Well, I just stepped down off my soapbox in an email to Ms. Blizzard. My cheeks are red, and I am grinding my teeth, a sure sign that I am very irritated. I don't expect everyone to agree with what I wrote to her, but for what it's worth, here's my response: (it's long..I'm guilty of being overly "wordy") Dear Ms. Blizzard, You have shown your ignorance regarding gastric bypass, as you have obviously not done your research properly. To make the statement, "You might need only a small amount of food to fill you up for a few weeks, but what about after that? If you return to your old ways, pretty soon, your stomach will have grown back to its original size. " ... ...clearly indicates you have NOT researched your subject matter. I am now over a year out, and while, yes, I can eat 2 more ounces at a sitting, than I was able to eat initially, I am NOT able to return to my old lifestyle without making myself VIOLENTLY ill. I support your OPINION, but when you put things like this in a newpaper, people confuse your erroneous statement with FACT. There is a website called Obesityhelp.com . You should visit there and research your subject matter. While you are at it, why don't you stop by the Main Message board, and take a poll of the some 275,000 members of this website, and ask how many of them are able to eat as much as they did in their "old ways" at a year, two years, three years, some as many as 10-12 yrs out from their surgery date. I think you will find the reaction quite different than your "opinion". Additionally, when you indicate: "I can speak from some experience here. While I wasn't obese, I have lost a lot of weight over the past year. What I know is that there is no magic bullet. The only way to lose weight is -- surprise! -- eat less. I also joined a gym and started working out and that helped as well. " Ms. Blizzard, I'm still trying to figure out how you can speak "from experience" about obesity, when you clearly state "...I wasn't obese". The experience you are speaking from, is from someone who was a little overweight. Until you have walked a mile, or actually, a few steps in the body of a "super morbidly obese" person, as I was, please do not tell me you are speaking from experience. I challenge you to find a fat suit that would let you walk around in the 340 pounds I was carrying, and see that the experience you speak from is non existant. If you don't think, that practically EVERY SINGLE PERSON that has had the weight loss surgery, has not tried COUNTLESS diets, exercise regimes, etc., you would be sadly mistaken. If you don't think that practically EVERY SINGLE PERSON came to this surgery as a last resort, with the FULL KNOWLEDGE that they may not live through the process, and accept that consequence as a hurdle towards the chance to live a more normal life, again, you would be sadly mistaken. Society seems to feel it their place to let an obese person know that they are different from the rest of the world, and I do NOT simply refer to the recent rash of makeover shows, I refer to the kids in the classroom that taunt the "fat kid". I refer to the men who howl and bark or moo at an overweight woman as she walks by, I refer to the people who find themselves in an argument with an overweight person, and can no longer carry the argument, so they resort to the incredibly mature response, "Shut up FATSO". THESE are the things an obese person puts up with on a DAILY basis. And then people wonder why they seclude themselves to their homes and do nothing but sit around and eat. Well let me tell ya, that food never calls you Fatso, it doesn't bark or howl at you and it doesn't stand in the corner and point and laugh at you. Then it is a vicious cycle. You WANT to break free from the evil food, but it is ALSO the one thing that offers the most comfort. Another statement you make, "SURGERIES TO CURE OBESITY". Ms. Blizzard, this surgery does NOT cure obesity. It is a tool for those of us who have spent lifetimes trying to lose weight, to better handle our food intake and absorption. However, it does NOT cure the mental aspect of obesity. It does NOT cure the URGE, after having a very stressful day, to want to go crawl up on the couch and knock back an entire bag of chips. However, with the tool, of a reduced stomach, the ABILITY to fulfill this urge is greatly diminished. Additionally, the statement, "Stomach stapling reduces the size of the stomach so the patient feels fuller more quickly when they eat." is not altogether accurate either. Yes, the patient FEELS fuller, because they ARE fuller. The stomach size is reduced drastically, therefore the individual is able to eat only very small portions of food at at time. Additionally, the shortened digestive tract prevents the calories that ARE introduced from being fully absorbed. This surgery restricts intake and reduces absorption. That is much more than just making a person "feel full". A person who has had gastric bypass must begin a new lifestyle. Not only can that person not eat much at one sitting, but most find that foods rich in sugar or fat, causes illness. Additionally, large amounts of water must be consumed to avoid the risk of dehydration. The introduction of many vitamins (mostly of the chewable kind must be introduced, since not only is food malabsorbed, but pills, etc. are as well) must be taken, and this too, is a lifetime committment. For optimal results, it is recommended that a gastric bypass patient follow a balanced diet and regular exercise regime. After the loss of many many pounds, a typical gastric bypass patient is now ABLE to follow these instructions. Many prior to surgery, could not physically withstand the rigors of exercise. MANY were wheelchair bound until hundreds of pounds were lost allowing the GB patient the mobility and ability to exercise. So you see, it is not just as simple as eating less and exercising. Ms. Blizzard, I can certainly respect your OPINION if you disagree with weight loss surgery. Not everyone understands it, nor does everyone agree with it. THAT is a personal opinion, which everyone is entitled to. However, PLEASE do not print an article, presented as fact, and misrepresent a claim that you "speak from experience". Your claim "of experience" is the one statement that proves beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you have no idea what you are talking about.

Thank you Tami, Love, Barb

Tami, You spoke not only for yourself, but for all the AMOS members. You may think of yourself as being 'wordy', but your statements were so eloquently stated. Thank you. Norma

Tami, Youv'e gone ahead and done it now, I have tears streaming down my face! But don't worry it's a good thing. I am no longer angry at Ms. Blizzard now, because after reading your email to her, I am reminded how lucky I am to be a part of this group. I love my family and friends to death, YET, the most of them have no idea what it felt like and continues to feel like to be me, but you do, and Barb does, as well as Becky, Ginger,Dee Dee and so on.....The shame that we have felt and maybe continue to feel about our weight, does not show itself on this board. We may have such different lives, jobs, families, but we here are all linked together, knowing each others pains of living with obesity and our addiction to food. This is truly the greatest bunch of people that I have met, and knowing that we are all on this roller coaster ride together makes me feel so much better! Cathy

Amen to Cathy, Tami, and all the rest of you *****sponded. You know, if someone discovered a surgery that would help an alchoholic or drug addict get a handle on their problem, they would probably get the Nobel Prize, but I suspect that this woman is like many who consider morbid obesity a chosen way of life. I notice that she doesn't quote any medical sources, or any sources at all, but her own biased opinion. Would that she could walk in our shoes for a day or two! Thank God for this board and all its wonderful members. Barb in S. GA

Uh oh!! I didn't MEAN to make you cry!! You know...it's funny, while I was writing it, I was in a total other world I was so ticked!!! I usually never sit in a room in total silence...need a radio or tv to offer a distraction, and when I finished, I realized I was sitting here in the office, in COMPLETE silence... I was GONE! LOL! Yes. I was discussing my life now vs. last year with a spouse of a WLS-er that has had some difficulties. I shared with her, how, before I had the surgery, my weekends were spent at home...alone... practically DARING anyone to even CALL me and disrupt my peace..AND my time alone with the GARGANTUAN pot of mac & cheese I would make, and gnosh on all weekend long, while doing my best to slug on my couch, for fear it just MIGHT get up and run off! LOL! NOW... My weekends are spent with my honey...THAT's something I never expected again..OR visiting with my gals and guys from the website laughing and cutting up. Or going to Six Flags or something with my kids. Each evening, I chat with anywhere from 2-5 folks from the boards here. My life has been forever changed by the amazing group of people who are a daily positive influence in my life. I love you all.