Steve C.

Before surgery, I was in denial about how big I was.  I never looked at myself in the mirror with disgust, and my wife and daughter always showed me love and affection.  As long as I had no problem doing what I wanted, I didn't think I had a problem.  Slowly, I stopped wanting to be in pictures, never agreeing with how I looked in the images.  I would give excuses like "The angle must be wrong" or "I just ate after that picture".  I started to have trouble getting in and out of my chairs and truck.  Clothes were starting to no longer fit, but I always blamed the washer or dryer shrinking my clothes.  I had previously tossed around the idea of getting weight loss surgery back in 2019, but money was the ultimate reason I decided to postpone, followed by the pandemic.  Finally, it all came to a head in March of 2023.  My family goes on an annual trip to Disney, and this time I was too big.  I needed a seat belt extender on the plane, on several rides, and was never comfortable in any chair at any of the restaurants.  The final straw was not fitting on a new roller coaster.  Being tall, I had always attributed my lack of ability to ride some rides to my legs and shoulders, but I found myself unable to fit on the new Guardians of the Galaxy coaster because of my stomach.  I basically won a lottery (virtual queue) to get a seat, stood in line by myself for an hour (my wife and daughter did not want to ride), and was turned away after attempting to get on the ride.  I'd had enough.  I wanted to be able to do what I wanted, I wanted to ride new theme park rides, and I wanted to fit in my clothes again.
I started after an annual physical reported I was 467 lbs.  I was in shock, how was I almost 500lbs?  I immediately jumped on a diet program to try to lose some pounds, while trying to get qualified for Wegovy.  When my insurance denied the weight loss drug, I was devastated, but I was also determined to fix myself, even if I didn't see my own Morbid Obesity in the face looking back at me.  I had failed on diets alone in past, so I resolved that I needed help.  My PCP was VERY supportive and referred me to the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Weight and Wellness Program in Lebanon, NH, and I joined the Bariatric Surgery Program in April 2023.  Over the next 4 months, I made huge strides working with my nutritionist.  Before joining the program, I had already lost 30 lbs, but I was not going to stop.  I started walking 1-2 miles a day, built up my stamina and made it 3 miles/day!  I had finally come to the conclusion that I was fighting for my life, and I was going to put in the hard work now while I was still healthy enough to fight.  When I finally made it to my surgery date, I had lost 130lbs on my own.  I'm still moving on the scale, and nothing will stop me now!