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My Bariatric Journey

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Personal Statement for Requesting Bariatric Surgery

This is my first entry here on BariatricPal, and I want to begin with the "personal statement" I wrote as part of the surgeon's program requirements.     August 4, 2016   I remember those extra 15 pounds that lingered after the birth of my first child in 1988. At the time, weighing a whooping 135 pounds, I felt like a whale. Oh what I would give to be that whale-size again!   My struggle with weigh has been gradual over the decades. Pregnancy and working the night shift (leading to poor sleep and limited time to exercise) were contributing influences in my younger years. However, in later years the instances where my weigh gain increased dramatically, emotions and personal trauma were the precipitating factors. Until around 2005 I was able to keep the gain under control and lose weight effectively when I put my mind to it. After my Hashimoto’s Hypothyroidism diagnosis in 2008, losing weight even with the best diet strategies became nearly impossible.   I confess that my last, serious effort to lose weight was in 2012 with Jenny Craig and Xingular. After 7 months and a huge financial burden, the approximately 35 pounds I lost (205 down to 170) in the first 5 months of the program seemed to be the best I could manage. I was able to keep the weight off for close to a year, but the stress of moving from CA to KY, physical therapy for severe “frozen shoulder” and bursitis, a severe personal and emotional trauma, and then the plunge into menopause sent me over the edge. For a long while I simply did not care about my weight, or much of anything else.   With the latter problem under control — praises to the maker of hormone replacement therapy — I find myself hovering at 250 pounds, a diabetic with sleep apnea, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure, and utterly miserable. I’m only 53 years old, want to enjoy our retired life in Kentucky, and be able to play with the grandchildren who will be coming along in the next couple of years. I will not be able to do any of this when I can barely walk up the stairs without gasping for air. As I told my personal physician, it may sound dramatic but I sincerely do believe that if I don’t do something drastic, and do it quick, I won’t be alive in five years.   I know many friends who have had successful bariatric surgeries. All of them have improved their lives dramatically, and those I have contacted have universally said to DO IT!   My reasons for requesting bariatric surgery: I do not look at the surgery as a “cure all” but rather consider it a “jump start” to get the weight loss going in a significant way. Instead of struggling for months or a year to barely lose enough weight to begin to feel better physically, I will accomplish the preliminary goal sooner. This will be a HUGE encouragement and incentive to work harder and lose the rest…. and to keep it off forever.
I need to be forced to change how I eat. Between hunger, habits ingrained by a lifetime, and admittedly poor self-control, consistent and long term alterations are impossible. Or at least that is how I see it. The surgery will give me no choice but to eat far less, and the radical nature of the surgery will be a turning point in my life. I am already thinking of it as a dating method: BBS (Before Bariatric Surgery) and ABS (After Bariatric Surgery).
I truly do want to start exercising again. I’ve never been super athletic, but I did once enjoy aerobics and weight lifting. Beyond an actual disciplined routine of exercise, I want to go fishing on our boat and walking through the neighborhood and riding the bikes we intend to buy without being winded and exhausted.
I DO NOT want to go the rest of my life with diabetes and sleep apnea! I hope to eliminate both problems, decrease the number of medications I take on a daily basis, and prevent further physical medical issues before they get started. I may not completely attain this goal, but will certainly improve my overall health, probably in more ways than I imagine.
  I am very thankful to have a husband and daughter who are wholly supportive of my decision for bariatric surgery. I am fortunate that my general practitioner is in agreement of this course as the best option for me. And I am VERY happy to discover an excellent Weight Loss Center right here in Bardstown!
KYSharon

KYSharon

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Where I am right now on August 14

Today I spent hours going through the binder of information given to me by the bariatric team. I am one of those super organized, Type A personalities, so it was necessary for my peace of mind to have dividers and tabs and plastic sheaths for the important papers. Kinda crazy, I suppose, but that's me! Next I went through all my diabetic magazines and clipped the yummiest sounding recipes. :-)   So far on this journey toward surgery--   1. I established the insurance requirements (a complicated story I may share at another time) and got the preliminary clearance. That was a relief!   2. I discussed my desire with my personal physician, a fabulous doctor and man I respect greatly who has been my GP since moving to KY 3 years ago. His approval and support was not a deal breaker, necessarily, as I was 80-90% sure surgery was my best course, but it was important to me for him to be on board. It was a relief when he not only didn't disagree but also confirmed the positive reports I had read about the local surgeon and bariatric program.   3. I (and my husband) attended the informational seminar offered by the Bariatric Weight Loss Program here in my home town. The surgeon was at the meeting, as well as others on the team, and the info was very thorough. So far nothing to give me pause! I filled out the request form, then waited....   4. The wait wasn't too long. Gayle, the program coordinator, called me about a week later to set up my first appointment with the surgeon Dr. Farrell.   5. August 4 was my appointment with Dr. Farrell. Before meeting him I also had brief meetings with the dietician and again with Gayle. A binder containing detailed information about the pre-approval process and appointments, the surgery itself and surgery prep, diet pre- and post-op, possible complications, exercise, recipes, and much more. VERY thorough! I even got a few samples of protein powder and shakes.   6. August 11 was my appointment with a cardiologist for "surgical clearance." I had seen this doctor just over a year ago, before my diagnosis of sleep apnea, to rule out any cardiac issues. Nothing had shown up at that time, and as a prior patient I was able to get in to see him quickly. Unfortunately, I have been very sick with bronchiolitis and possible pneumonia, on strong cough medicine and steroids. The latter (I'm convinced) is why my heart rate was high, and of course my chest wasn't as clear as it should have been. For this reason the doctor recommended a follow up ECHO and treadmill test to be sure all was well before surgery. As an RN, I could not argue the logic even if it adds more to the process. Better safe than sorry!   7. Gayle called the next day to give me dates for all the various appointments: Psych Eval, Support Group meetings, endoscopy, Nutritional Eval, Exercise Eval, and a Healthy Lifestyle Class. These, along with the cardio followup, are scheduled over the next month, beginning tomorrow.     No set surgery date as yet. The initial estimate was early November, but it seems to me mid to late October makes more sense. My birthday is on October 26, and while it doesn't sound like too much fun to spend one's birthday in the hospital, in pain, and unable to eat at least a small piece of cake, I am willing to make the sacrifice if it means getting the rest of my better-health-and-skinnier-life started!   I'm ready!
KYSharon

KYSharon

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