A scary diagnosis and a perspective shift on surgery

[Ylime 453]

Bear with me as I share my story of recent medical events, a scary diagnosis, and a validation of moving forward with surgery.

Up until recently the only co-morbidity I had is chronic back pain due to my weight aggravating a spinal defect. It prevents me from doing everyday chores, but also exercising the way I want (lifting heavy things and conquering racing obstacles). The impact this has on my life as well as my increasing weight was enough to drive me to begin researching weight loss surgery.

The other part of my story is that I have epilepsy and was first diagnosed when I was 13, so it’s been a part of my life for 30 years. For the most part it’s well controlled with medication but I do have the occasional breakthrough seizure. It had been nearly six years since my last seizure. This past Sunday my brain decided to go haywire and I had three seizures within a two hour period and didn’t fully wake in between any of them. I’ve never had back to back seizures before and certainly never three in a row, so my husband called the paramedics to take me to the ER. They admitted me to the hospital where I stayed for two nights while I recovered.

While I was in the hospital the staff noted that my oxygen levels decreased drastically when I slept. They diagnosed me with Obesity Hypoventilation Syndrome. I had never heard of this before and thought it was a different name for sleep Apnea. While it’s related and sometimes occurs in combination with sleep apnea, it’s actually something completely different. The short explanation from my research is that “it’s a condition in which severely overweight people fail to breathe rapidly enough or deeply enough, resulting in low blood oxygen levels and high blood carbon dioxide (CO2) levels”. This is a condition that apparently can be fatal since elevated levels of carbon dioxide can create a variety of serious medical conditions.

The good news is that it can be cured by weight loss which validated my decision to have the surgery. Further research on this condition cautions patients going into surgery to ensure their surgeons are aware as some sedatives used could worsen the condition.

I am not one that subscribes to the “everything happens for a reason” theory. But I do believe that many situations are connected to other situations, even if we don’t recognize them right away. I believe the powers of the universe (whatever they may be) have a way of interfering in our lives in both positive and negative ways. I may never have known that I had this fatal condition if not for my hospital stay due to a pattern of seizures I had never experienced before. So I am willing to believe this was a way for the universe to both make me ok with the decision to have surgery but also ensure I was properly prepared for the potential risks that may come my way.

This new information has also changed my perspective on the surgery itself. I am still a bit embarrassed by the need for the surgery and do feel like a failure that I couldn’t make all the normal weight loss tactics work. Because of this I had planned on keeping the surgery a secret from anyone not in my family. But now that I have a potentially life-threatening condition, I almost feel like I should be sharing my story with those around me. I’m still contemplating this piece, so we’ll see what happens.

[Apple203 1,314]

When I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea, I kind of freaked out thinking about how serious the condition is. I've lost ~30#s so far, and the amount of pressure I need has dropped almost in half. Sorry about the seizures --my 26 yo son had one last week after several years without one.

[newmebithebypass 713]

Wow guys im sending hugs to you. I also believe in the random chaos of the universe connecting one event to another leading us on the path where we happen to be as we are right now. When i won my disability case and the weight just kept piling on i knew. That is why in September i will be going under and hopefully changing my life for the better come what may

Sent from my LGLS676 using BariatricPal mobile app

[Frustr8 7,886]

We have both conditions in my house, sending love and hugs to you💙💚❤ I plan a RnY in possibly May. I will be following your story and keeping you,on my thoughts daily.😝

[Ylime 453]

1 hour ago, Apple203 said:

When I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea, I kind of freaked out thinking about how serious the condition is. I've lost ~30#s so far, and the amount of pressure I need has dropped almost in half. Sorry about the seizures --my 26 yo son had one last week after several years without one.

That's awesome that you had such a drastic drop in pressure with only a portion of your weight loss. I'm currently on just 1 liter of oxygen so not a lot, but anxious to be rid of it altogether.

12 minutes ago, newmebithebypass said:

Wow guys im sending hugs to you. I also believe in the random chaos of the universe connecting one event to another leading us on the path where we happen to be as we are right now. When i won my disability case and the weight just kept piling on i knew. That is why in September i will be going under and hopefully changing my life for the better come what may

Sent from my LGLS676 using BariatricPal mobile app

Thanks for the hugs!

4 minutes ago, Frustr8 said:

We have both conditions in my house, sending love and hugs to you💙💚❤ I plan a RnY in possibly May. I will be following your story and keeping you,on my thoughts daily.😝

Thanks much. I plan on updating as I go through this entire process so stay tuned!

[Creekimp13 5,840]

People really need to stop obsessing about the minimal risks of surgery....and obsess more about the far more substantive risks they are taking by ignoring obesity related conditions.

Great cautionary tale.

Glad you're getting your surgery. Very smart move!