Good Morning. Do you ever wonder "what if I hadn't had WLS"

Welcome back Lee.  We have missed you!!  Hope you had a great time on your trip and your visit with Zach.
Linda

Oh, I don't even want to think about where I would be now.  I'm sure since it is January, I would be starting some kind of diet that would not last very long to try and drop some weight again.  It was so exciting this year not to have to worry about that.  All the commercials selling their weight loss methods and I thought I am so thankful that I don't have to do this again.

I'm off all my prescriptions except hormones(nothing to do with weight).    I no longer use my CPAP.  I can sleep on one pillow-I used to take my 2 pillows with me everywhere I went. 

I love that I can get in the floor to play with my granddaughters.  If I did that before, I had to crawl to a chair or couch before i could get back up.  Now I can get down and back up by myself-no crawling.

It is one of the best things I ever did for myself and am thankful for it everyday!!

Linda

With me I guess my story is a little different than the others that I have read.  I wasn't depressed, I didn't hide from friends, and I didn't have any medical problems that I am aware of.

Yes, I joined WW every single year but it was more for friends that wanted me to go with them than for myself because I never took it seriously. 

My DD#3 mentioned WLS to me a few times but I didn't give it a second thought. The jewelry store that I worked in for 18 years closed and I did panic a little when I thought about going for interviews.  Until that point I did'nt even realize that my confidence was a little shaky.  

During my time off from work, I was spending a lot more time helping my DD with her Cheer Program and I noticed one of our parents had lost a lot of weight over the "non competitive' period and she was looking Great!  I asked her how she did it and she told me she had the RNY and she mentioned that there were 5 other Moms who had it done too. 7 Months later was being wheeled in for surgery.....A major changing point in my life!!!

I didn't even realize what I was missing out on until I started losing and had a lot more energy.  I no longer sit and watch while everyone else has fun.  I can run and keep up with my grandchildren.  I can get down on the floor and play with building blocks and cars.  I wish now I would have been able to enjoy my DD's like I am my grandchildren.

The most shocking thing for me is looking at my fat pictures.  I honestly never realized I was so FAT!  I should have been depressed and I should have been ashamed!!!

Good Morning,
Yes, the WLS was a last resort for me too.  I had tried to lose weight for so long.  I have been thinking about this since the beginning of the New Year.  This time last year I was taking 2 insulin shots and metformin for diabetes and taking 2 blood pressure meds and sleeping with a cpap machine.  Now, I take nothing for diabetes or blood pressure and I think I could come off my cpap, but I just haven't wanted to give it up yet.  Even tho I have survived breast cancer this year, I am healthier than I have been in many years.  2011 is going to be a fantastic year for all of us! 

Linda W.

"I didn't even realize what I was missing out on until I started losing and had a lot more energy."

Yes, this was my situation. I would tell anyone that I didn't let my weight stop me and I honestly thought I wasn't. I went for WLS when I finally noticed my weight effecting me. But when I lost the weight, I realized that my weight had been effecting me much more than I realized.

As for where I'd be, I have actually spent some time wondering what my life would have been like if I had taken up triathlon in the 80s when I first heard about it. I wasn't MO then or even obese. I was overweight and my weight was climbing. Would I have staved off further weight gain or would I have just taken longer to get to my highest weight? I guess we'll never know.

I do know that my life has changed dramatically because of WLS and I wouldn't change anything about it, even the bad!

It's so great to see you posting...miss you!!

I never really "saw" myself as fat, except when I looked at pictures (so I rarely let people take my picture). I had accepted that this was just how I was. I didn't let it keep me from going out and being social and active in my community. However, in the past few years the health problems started creeping in. I have been taking medication for depression for a long time (and one of those meds contributed to part of my weight gain). Last year, I was diagnosed with sleep apnea. My cholesterol level was out of whack. Both of my parents were diagnosed with diabetes in recent years, and I was pre-diabetic. I have arthritis.  I did not have a lot of energy and I hurt a lot. The final straw for me was last May when my podiatrist told me I should wear an ankle brace all of the time due to joint problems I was having. I went the next day to a surgery seminar.

I am only 8 weeks out from surgery, but I don't regret it a bit. I already see an improvement in my energy. I look forward to being able to do the things on my nephew's list of goals for me. He made a list for when I get "skinny" including roller skating, riding a bike, and kayaking!.

Tonia

I don't even like to think about where I would be at this point if I had not had WLS. My dear sister was morbidly obese and even though she was a RN she did not seem to be able to break the cycle of her eating, To make a long story short , she died 6 years ago from complications of her obesity.Even that didn't wake me up. It wasn't until the summer of 2009 when my daughter got married that I had my reality check. And the rest is an ongoing chapter of my new life. No more B/P meds, cholesterol meds, joint pain,etc.
I truly do not like to think of where I would be healthwise if not for my WLS
Brenda

I knew where I was headed if I didn't have WLS.  I would be on insulin like my dad and brother.  I would eventually have heart disease .  My Left ventrical was enlarged and I had developed a soft murmur.

When I got my pictures back from my DS wedding in December of 2007, I knew I had to do something.  I finally saw myself as fat as I had become.  I thought about WLS, but it was about 9 mos before I realized   I qualified for surgery as a lightweight d/t my health issues.  The first MD office never got back to me, even after 3 calls to them.   I would not give up. I went on line and did some research and found my surgeon.  In March of 2009 I had surgery.

I am so grateful for my surgery.  My Left ventrical is no longer enlarged and I no longer have diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol.  The health issues were a big issue for me.  It was only after losing that I realized how much being small also meant to me

morning Ginaaaa,
i was depressed, i hated myself, i was so miserable i hated to get dressed .it was bad in my homeeeeeee
nowww i am no longer depressed i fell in love with myself all over again and i loveeeeeeee getting dressed and my home is a happier and better place now that the mother of the household is happier

yesss , i have more to go but im very happy where i am as i continue to move closer and closer to my goal 2011 here i comeeeeeeeee