redlucy

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  • BMI 23.7

Obesity & Me

Describe your behavioral and emotional battle with weight control before learning about bariatric surgery.

I struggled my entire life from age 10 on with obesity. When I was in my 20's I got control of it. When I was in my 30's I lost control. Growing up I was abused, mentally, emotionally, and sexually. I suffered from undiagnosed bipolar disorder. As I began to gain weight I became depressed. The more weight I gained the more depressed I became. There were some instances where I stopped gaining, mostly because of increased activity in the form of some sort of project.

What was (is) the worst thing about being overweight?

Not being able to move, or sit in a chair, or climb stairs or do anything regular sized people do.

If you have had weight loss surgery already, what things do you most enjoy doing now that you weren't able to do before?

Tying my shoes, and walking up and down stairs like normal people.

How did you first find out about bariatric surgery and what were your initial impressions of it?

Through the news media when the surgeries were first starting to be performed in the mi-1980's. I watched the evolution of it.

Describe your experience with getting insurance approval for surgery. What advice, if any, do you have for other people in this stage?

My insurance is through the military as a dependent. The approval process took over 1 year.

What was your stay in the hospital like? How long where you there? What things are most important to bring?

I had to stay about twice as long as other people, I stayed 5 days.

Did you have any complications from the surgery? If so, how did you deal with them?

Yes

In the weeks after you got your surgery date, how did you feel? How did you cope with any anxiety you might have felt?

Very tired.

Describe your first few weeks home from the hospital. What should people expect from this period?

Very shakey and scary.
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ARE YOU READY TO PAY IT FORWARD & SHARE YOUR JOURNEY? Your journey will help highlight the many ways weight loss surgery improves lives and makes a difference in our families, communities and world. EACH JOURNEY COUNTS as a voice towards greater awareness.

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