The beginning of my journey

[Stephanie Stroup McIntosh 157]

So lately a lot of people have asked me what made me decide to have surgery and I wanted to write it out and share it publicly. I find that I am better able to hold myself accountable when I am open and honest, not just with myself but with others. So here goes my story. Well this is the short version.

I have always been overweight. I have also always been very active. I didn't see my weight as something that was holding me back. I am successful in my career and my relationships. I have great friends and family.

The company I work for started doing voluntary health screenings about 7 years ago. They even paid you to do it and there were no consequences. I knew the numbers wouldn't be pretty, but who can't use a little extra money. Pretty much the annual health screening was the only time I saw a doctor without being sick. The numbers got worse over the years, but I could look in the mirror. I knew I was gaining weight.

Two years ago, the health screenings were tied to my insurance. I could get a significant discount on my insurance if I met certain benchmarks or made improvements from the prior year. If I didn't do either of those things, I could take a nutrition class or participate in a program to get the discounts. This was fine with me. I did the programs. I played the part and did what they told me to do. Its not like I didn't know I was overweight, I just wasn't really at a point in my life where I was ready to change anything.

This past year when it was time for the health screening, I wanted to have some better numbers. I didn't want to jump through the hoops of the various programs just to save $10 a week. I decided I was going to make sure I improved over the results from the previous year. I was eating right and working out more. I was confident that I would have some improvement. I was wrong. My numbers were all worse than the year prior.

I still had a few weeks before everything had to be submitted, so I decided to try even harder and go to my PCP before the deadline to get updated results, hoping they would be better. I cut out all sugar. I stopped going out to eat. I lived on chicken breast and steamed veggies. I increased my exercise.

Guess what...3 weeks later when I went to the doctors, my blood work numbers were even worse.

It seemed like I was doomed. That is when I realized that I couldn't do it on my own. Even when I did what the doctor told me, my health was getting worse. I have some pretty severe back issues and was really limited in what I could do, but I wasn't giving up. (I completed six 5k races last year.) I also have PCOS which plays a part in my inability to lose weight.

I decided that it was time to make a more drastic change. I started the process to have weight loss surgery. I joined a new gym (and actually started to go). I donated most of the food in my house to people in need. I started talking to other people about my weight.

By this point (September 2014), I weighed 295 pounds. I probably weighed more before that, but never got on the scale. I was in horrible pain all the time. I regularly saw a chiropractor, just so I could stay upright. I was dying.

I showed up to the first consultation having already fasted, knowing they would send me for blood work. I had all of my pre-op testing done that first day. I was serious.

My routine at the gym started with 2 hours in the pool. I was in too much pain to do anything else. I went 4-5 days a week. I work as a kitchen manager, so I would often go to work before the gym even opened in the morning, but it if was still open when I got out of work, I was there. Many nights I wouldn't even get to the gym until 9:00 p.m.

I made it through the holidays and was losing weight. The ladies at the doctor's office were all very happy with my progress and encouraged me to keep going. In January, I started a weight loss competition at my gym. Previously, I wouldn't have even considered signing up for it. This competition gave me an extra incentive to lose the weight. I weighed 282 pounds, but I was already feeling better. I started working out on the machines at the gym instead of the pool. This is also when I really started to share with people what I was doing and why. My support system grew.

I went to the gym almost everyday for the next 6 weeks. I stopped drinking Pepsi (that was the hardest part) and stopped making excuses. People were staring at me at the gym. Not because I was overweight, but because I worked out so hard. One day I had a man in his 40s ask me to stop going so hard, because he couldn't keep up and I was making him look bad. That's a great feeling.

The end of the contest came and my team won. I weighed in at 269 pounds. I admit I was pretty dehydrated at the weigh in and made sure to wear my lightest clothes. The contest ended the day after my 6 month weigh in for surgery.

Both of the 2 things I was using to hold myself accountable came to an end at the same time and my birthday was just a few days away. I went back to my old habits. I jumped up to 280 pounds in a little less than 2 weeks. When I stepped on the scale, I couldn't believe how quickly I had put the weight back on after working so hard to take it off.

I was failing.

I realized that I had to change my life for good. There would be nothing easy about having weight loss surgery.

By the time I had surgery on March 23, I weighed 263 pounds. I had fallen in love with the Arc Trainer at the gym and was really putting in the effort required.

My surgery went well. My only complication being that they hit a nerve putting in an IV and I now have a lot of pain in my left arm. I am hoping it will heal on its own. I chose to spend 3 nights in the hospital, since I have had some allergic reactions to pain meds in the past. I got up and walked every few hours and felt great when I left. (I weighed 271 the day I was discharged because of all of the Water weight that comes with surgery.)

Now on April 9th, I am 243 pounds and have no back pain at all. My stomach is still sore from the surgery, but its nothing to severe. Its just achy muscles. I am back at the gym on a daily basis. I started with just walking the track and every day I am going a little farther. I did some basic strength training yesterday, but am waiting for the doctor to clear me to do more. I don't want to hurt anything.

The weight loss is already very noticeable. People who I never thought would have cared are noticing and asking about it. I am telling them the truth and explaining what my life is like now, post surgery. I have found that a lot of people know someone who has had the surgery. Everyone has been very supportive so far and a lot of people are now asking for my advice.

I have lost just over 50 pounds. I still have a long way to go, but I am confident that I can get there. I am putting in the work. The results will come.

My doctor's goal for me is 192 pounds, but I am shooting for 160. My blood work that I have had over the past month has all been better than that from September and I am feeling great. I only wish that I would have taken before measurements so that I could know how many inches I have lost. I know I have lost a few, because I can wear my old jeans again.

Thanks for listening to my story and I look forward to hearing yours.

[CanyonBaby 1,852]

Well done! You should be very proud of yourself, and always keep that dedication you have... it will help you win the battles you have yet to face. I am glad you found this site, it should really help you with any issues that may come up. But with your attitude and go-getter mind-set, I think you're going to do great! Thanks for the inspiring story, and good luck to you on your journey!

[jane13 2,256]

Awesome job - keep working that ARC trainer and you will be at your doctors goal in no time