RODCAR48

My surgery is tomorrow (Dec. 16th). My surgeon is Dr. William Richards of Mobile, Alabama. The surgery will be at the University of Alabama Medical Center. Dr. Richards has been in Mobile for about 18 months and prior to that was with Vanderbilt University. He has excellent credentials and reviews.

So, a little about me to let you know my background. I am a 56 year old retired Navy Seabee. I have had a weight problem my entire life. When I joined the Navy at 17, I weighed 272 pounds. They didn't have much in the way height weight requirements so I was allowed to enlist and lost a large amount of weight during boot camp (go figure). After boot camp the weight returned but in the 70's the only time you had to worry about making weight was upon reenlistment. So whenever I came up for reenlistment, I would sign a 2 year extension which did not require the physical exam. When I needed to actually reenlist I would go on a starvation diet to lose enough to qualify and reenlist for 6 years at a time.

At one point in the early 70's I was assigned to a Seabee unit in Diego Garcia, which is a tiny horseshoe shaped island in the middle of the Indian Ocean. It is a British Territory and was formerly a leper colony and a copra plantation before all the residents were eventually relocated to allow the U.S. to begin building a base there. During my stay there I went on a dangerous, but effective, diet. Every third day I would go to the galley during midrats (a meal served at midnight for the folks who worked night shift) and eat a meal consisting only of meat. Upon leaving the galley, my next stop would be the outhouse. When I started I weighed 264 pounds, after 3 1/2 months I weighed 212 pounds. Of course this was short lived and I had soon regained the weight.

In the late 70's / early 80's I was stationed in San Diego, California and weighed about 260 pounds. I went to a weight loss clinic and I ate prepared meals and got a shot, of lord knows what, in the butt each day. Within about 6-8 months I had lost down to 198 pounds! The only time I ever remember being under 200 pounds. Of course this weight loss was short lived also.

A couple of years later I was stationed in Sasebo, Japan. About this time the Navy came out with new height / weight standards and also the JFK physical fitness test! This spelled trouble for me as I never exercised and was always overweight. For the first time I was placed on the Navy's FatBoy program! This meant I had to sign in and participate in an exercise program with a fitness coordinator each morning before working hours and I had regular weigh-ins at medical. This was a constant cat and mouse game, I would lose weight and get released from the fat boy program, regain the weight and go back on the program.

In the mid 80's the Navy came out with mandatory physical fitness training 3 times a week and twice a year physical fitness tests and weigh-in and measurements. This meant that I was forced to diet and exercise for a month or so before the tests so I could pass and then regain after the test. I found that it was getting more and more difficult to get ready for the tests as I got older. This actually played a big part in my determination to retire from the Navy in 1992. During my retirement physical I was diagnosed as diabetic and started on meds.

After retirement, I refused to do another push-up, sit-up or run but I was generally able to keep my weight around 240 - 250. In 2005 I had my first heart attack and had 6 stents put in. I recovered pretty well, but about 7 months later I had my second heart attack. This time I had to have a triple bypass, one more stent and a pacemaker / defibrillator. I had significant heart muscle loss and by this time was also having a lot of neuropathy pain in my feet. As a result I am unable to do any significant work or exercise. I am 100% disabled through the Veterans Association and 100% disabled through Social Security.

I now weigh 323 pounds and feel I am losing my mobility. I have rotton genetics in my family! I have been researching my family history and found that the oldest surviving male in my family was 58 years old. I'm now 56! Hows that for motivation?

So I am ready for my adventure to begin tomorrow with the dream that I can set a new standard in my family and be able to watch my grandson, who I adore, graduate from college and get married.

That's my story, keep me in you prayers and good thoughts.