Watching Obese People, Wanting To Help, Knowing I Can't

[Catracks 865]

I'm going to be brutally honest here. I was in traffic court yesterday and there were these two very large women. One had a cane and the other a walker. They were in their 30s-40s. They had to sit down in the seats and they could only manage to turn sideways and somewhat sit on the edge of the seats. One young man in his 20s didn't even really fit through the gate to go see the commissioner.

I was considering my life and how it has changed dramatically in only 6 months. This past week I reached the summit of a 10,000 ft. peak.. Seven months ago, you couldn't get me to walk down the street. I was even starting to avoid friend's parties.

I wasn't rude and didn't stare, but I started looking at these people who have so much life ahead of them. Out in line 1 out of 10 people were probably morbidly or super morbidly obese.

I thanked God for my blessings and just went to work.

Man, I want to tell everyone about this. Eggface is going to be on Ricki Lake, but we need more info out there.

[kimmy*custis 276]

I do the same thing...all the time. I soooo want to talk to them and tell them about my surgery. I do tell EVERYONE that asks me about it tho...cant shut me up!

[Amanda 3.0 140]

I have wanted to suggest this path to a friend of mine. I know she is struggling, but I don't think she is open to surgery, or perhaps insurance will not cover it. I just keep it to myself. If she ever asked, I would love to tell her about my experience, but I like her too much to risk any alienation.

When I see strangers, it doesn't cross my mind so much, because I don't know their circumstances. It does make me grateful for my own progress though.

[SpecialK1960 252]

I wish I could wear a T-shirt that said somethinig like "I used to be so big I missed out on life..."

I wonder if it would get people to ask? If they were interested I would be happy to share my journey and I am only 1/2 way to goal. But I am 100% of the way torwards being happy.

[Tiffany Talbert Corbet 46]

OMG....I do this, and I haven't even had the procedure yet. According to insurance, 8/31, but I have not heard from the nurse practitioner for the exact date.

I liked your idea, SpecialK, and I was actually thinking that when I was reading the original post, and then I read yours. Instead of words though, I think I would just put a picture of my before and my after on the back and let people ask.

Maybe we can get our primaries to post our pictures and stories in their offices or waiting rooms so people will see them and give out info on how they can contact us if they want to talk about it. (??) I still can't get over my primary give me a fist bump the other day when I told him insurance approved the procedure.

[ProudGrammy 8,322]

1 out of 10 people were probably morbidly or super morbidly obese.

Catracks

it is very scary seeing all these young overweight kids, turn into "overweight" adults

kids use to play at the playground- run around, now they use those electronic games, or sit by the tv. then they continue this process as they get older.

as they say the only reservations i make are those to go out to dinner

What is this world coming to, as "they" say?

i remember when some lovely women would (on tv for ex) say how they are happy, and no problem with being over weight, in essence - leave me alone i'm fine. of course she has all those health problems that are never mentiond either

fast foods definitely don't help - i'm sure theres a statistic on that too.

food,food, food and then some more food, its all over the place - gigantic portions too

not only is it sad to see these overweight people, but its sad to realize i used to be one of them

on the bright side, i'm much healthier now - feel better, and can sit on any bench i want without a problem

to all newbies and others - all your hard work will pay off gradually, as it did for me - i still have more to lose, but as all of us we will get there

ps hope i'm not offending anyone - it takes time, but we'll all lose weight at different paces

good luck to all of us

kathy

[Escape_Pod 358]

I know just what you mean, and I admit the same thoughts go thru my head. But, I try to remind myself that not everyone who's obese is miserable, or even necessarily unhealthy. And I don't know anything about their life, what other challenges they may be in the process of conquering, or even if they're already on the journey, having lost 100 pounds to get where they're at now! And, for many people with insurance, myself included, there can be a complete exclusion for weight loss surgery. My insurance wouldn't have paid even if I'd been 600 pounds with a slew of co-morbidities. I'm very fortunate that self-pay was within my means.

I think all we can do is be as honest as we're comfortable with about our surgery, and be open to discussing it with others. I kind of like the idea of a bumper sticker - Weight Loss Surgery saved my life - ask me about it! (not sure how my husband would feel driving my car though!)

I'm also convinced this journey isn't easy, and you have to be ready and committed to the process. It is possible to fail at this, not to lose as much weight as hoped, or to regain a substantial amount. There's no way to help someone else be ready to make the necessary changes.

Really, I wish I'd learned years ago the things I've learned since surgery about nutrition - that alone would have helped me enormously, and perhaps I could have avoided surgery entirely. Blessings on those who are brave enough to be so publicly involved in the WLS community, spreading the word to those who may just not know it's an option!

[JDHenin 165]

Someone at my husbands job approached him about having the surgery himself and what it did for him. At the time my hubby was a bit irked by this, but he had never heard of the sleeve before. Long story short, my hubby and I both had sleeves because of him.

[MKinVA 20]

I don't think I would never have the nerve to approach a stranger, but would readily give information to anyone who asked! I am at the very beginning of my weight loss journey, so I hope I can inspire a few people along the way. I will point them to this forum first!

[Renea77 84]

It does change lives, I had never heard of the sleeve until January of this year and went I thinking about getting a lapband. I am so happy my surgeon suggested the sleeve and I was fortunate to be the second sleeve he ever performed. It has changed my life and opened me eyes. Feels like now since I eat so little, I notice how much food is apart of our everyday lives, it's everywhere and rampant. We no longer eat to live, we live to eat. I noticed that when watching tv there are so many food commercials, now since I among hungry I don't jump up and grab something to eat but I know before I probably did. This tool has been life changing for me,it forces me to be aware of what I consume and to make good choices.

[gustavo52974 369]

Remember though, the surgery isn't for everyone. Some people wouldn't be able to have it because of already existing medical problems. And you have to be psychologically ready for it, which some people clearly aren't. This has been very obvious to me as I have seen on this forum. I still can't believe the reckless behavior people admit on here. It's not a quick fix and people need to realize this before they commit to the process.

Don't get me wrong: I'm all for spreading awareness. I, too, have seen people on the street who clearly need some intervention and wanted to proselytize to them the benefits of surgery. But I stop myself because I know a lot of people don't have the strength of will it takes to make this a successful and positive tool. And that's all it is, a tool.

Having the sleeve done has really opened my eyes to the unhealthy relationship people have with food, especially in this country. I don't think I was fully aware of this even in myself until now. I no longer crave the food I did before. I look at bread and dessert and think to myself how little I want it now and how much I "needed" it before. I consider myself lucky that it seems to be working for me. I had doubts. Many doubts. Paralyzing doubts. Not so much anymore. I know I'm not perfect, and I may slip, but I'm confident now I can make this work. Hopefully others will too.

[Catracks 865]

On Saturday I went on a medical talk show on KFWB. That station broadcasts to all of Southern California. I asked a question about resolving diabetes and he ask me questions about the sleeve for about 20 minutes. I hope someone heard and looked into it.