No longer obese - what a wonderful day - warning long post.
Today is a wonderful day. Today, for the first time in over 30 years, the bmi that I calculated after stepping on the scale this morning did not have the word 'obese' in it. What a glorious feeling. If I were in work today, at lunch I would be running up the art museum steps just like Rocky did.
My journey started over 10 years ago initiated by a single question asked by my family doctor - Dr. Peter Gross. Answering that question caused my life to change direction radically. Answering that question and helping me gain control of my health required a team of very talented people. I found those people in the University of Pennsylvania health system.
It was at that time that I found out that I carried the brca1 gene mutation. How appropriate that yesterday was the 10 year anniversary of the first surgery to deal with my gene mutation. I met Dr. Barbara Robinson (now Henley) at my PCPs office. She offered to follow me through the process - she was wonderful, she went to my appointments with me and was in the OR when I had my surgery. She was there for me whenever I needed her. My surgeon was Dr. Thomas Randall - a gynecological oncologist - he was wonderful.
The next thing to deal with was my weight. I found a wonderful team of people at Penn Bariatrics at Pennsylvania Hospital. I still attend support meetings there on a regular basis and am grateful to the coordinators, dieticians, and psych fellows that have helped me through this process. Some of the folks that have helped me along the way: Vince Benchino, Nicole Giguere, Mili Thomas, Linda Gallagher. I also get support from a great bunch of other bariatric patients who I have come to depend on to be there for me.
Next was my risk of breast cancer. In 2011, I met a new team of doctors at Penn to help me get through this next step. My breast surgeon was Dr. Dahlia Sataloff and the plastic surgeon was Dr. Joseph Serletti. In less than a year they led me through a prophylactic mastectomy and the reconstruction of my chest. I remember the day of surgery - I was a bundle of nerves. Drs Sataloff and Serletti were so calm and confident that they managed to calm me down some even before the anesthesiologists knocked me out. But the day I remember even more vividly was a few days later when Dr. Sataloff visited me in my room and told me that the pathology on what was removed came back all clear. I feel much the same today as I did that day. I knew that my risk of breast cancer was as close to zero as I could get it.
Having lost about 95 pounds, I had a bunch of other things that I wanted to fix. Enter the next wonderfully skilled doctor - Dr. Stephen Kovach. My first interaction with him was an interesting experience. It was a light hearted discussion of what I would like to have done. He then took one look at me and his demeanor changed dramatically as he determined that I had a rather large hernia. His level of concern was clearly visible on his face. In less than two weeks, he had that all repaired and we were back to fixing other stuff. He is a wonderful, skilled, caring doctor. We have come to know one another quite well. He has been there for me when my only other alternative was to go to an ER even though I did not need that level of care. He is always willing to listen to me about my aches and pains and offer insight into dealing with it rather than just push me off on another doctor. He has been there for me morning, noon, and night.
Along the way, I got a fitbit and became obsessed. Since getting the fitbit, I have taken off another 25 pounds. I have walked over 4 million steps - about 2000 miles. Hard to believe given that prior to all of this I could barely walk 3 blocks without stopping to rest. That brings us to today, with a bmi in the 'overweight' category. What a wonderful feeling. And what did I do to celebrate? I went out for a 5 mile walk - how about that. I didn't even think of celebrating with food. What a change!!! Just like you can only eat that elephant one bite at a time, you can only lose that elephant one pound at a time. This has been a long gradual process, one goal at a time. I would highly recommend any of the folks that I have mentioned in this post. They are all very talented at what they do and are surrounded by a wonderful support staff.
that is wonderful news. Congratulations!
Remember - there was a day where I was right in the same spot as you. Just take it slow and keep moving forward. There will be a few bumps but nothing you can't get over if you put your mind to it. There will be days where you say what the heck did I do to myself but so many more days where you are feeling wonderful. If you should slip, don't let it begin a downward spiral. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off and move forward.
