Michael W. Blaney, M.D. Dr. Blaney is an awesome surgeon and I don't say that just because I work with him. Even before I worked with him I had great respect and admiration for what he does for his patient's care. He is very tentative and down to business. Although Dr. Blaney did not do my weight loss surgery, he does my follow-up care since my surgeon moved to Portland, OR. He did do surgery on me for my hernia repair, arm lift and tummy tuck. He did a great job with it! I have been very pleased with the results. When I first met Dr. Blaney it was over the phone and our conversation turned from him asking me questions to me asking him questions. Before I would commit to helping with his support group it was important for me to know his thoughts and feelings about weight loss surgery, patient care, and his long-term goals in the field of bariatrics. I quickly realized that he does have the best interest of his patients at heart. He devotes a lot of time to educate patients to make a well informed decision, giving up his Saturdays to spend 3 hours with his patients to make sure they know all that will go into this choice. Most of the time classes like these are not held by the surgeon, you get a lot of one on one time with Dr. Blaney, that you would not get anywhere else. When I had my tummy tuck surgery, he was very understanding. His bedside manner is excellent. Overall I would rate him at 10+++! I have seen him take on tough revisional cases and do them laproscopically, he has amazing surgical skill. I certainly miss Dr. Martindale very much, but I am glad to have found someone to do my aftercare since he left. Thanks inpart to Dr. Blaney allowing me to lead his support group and get under his wing I have continued to maintain my over 400 pound weight loss.
12/02/05
I recently emailed Dr. Martindale to see how he's doing. He was so nice as always. This man is amazing. I can't even imagine someone so thoughtful and passionate about a field like this, but he his truly devoted to helping those people like myself who have lost all hope of living anymore. I just hope he know's what a difference he's made in so many people's lives.
4/15/2005
I went to see Dr. Martindale for the last time before he leaves for his new job in Oregon. I will miss him so much. I gave him a heart shaped box filled with Hersey kisses. I told him at this point I had lost 250 pounds. I had counted out the kisses and give him one for each pound I had lost. This man is amazing. He's been such an inspiration in all that he does for other. He took on my case when no one else would do it and for that I can't thank him enough. He's saved my life and my husbands. I can't ever repay someone for doing something so special for me. Dr. Martindale will be grately missed at MCG. What a shame to lose such a special surgeon.
2/16/2004
I will have to tell you. I've been to now going on my fourth surgeon. Up to this point I was not 100% impressed with the ones that I had gone to. There was something about each one of them that held me back from wanting them to do surgery. I feel extremely BLESSED to have Dr. Martindale as my soon to be surgeon. This man is HIGHLY educated in this field. When we came in to meet me he was very friendly and kind. I felt like he was concerned about me. You could tell from the way that he talked about this that it was a passion for him to help people. He gave time for me to ask questions and did so very wonderfully. He made me feel very good knowing he deals with many patients that are over 500 pounds and has a true concern for those super obese. There are NOT many in this field that will even do surgery on someone these sizes, yet he takes the chance and helps us. What a man! Just to tell you some pluses. He takes the gallbladder out during surgery, he said it only take 3 minutes while your there. I said what about insurance, he said he doesn't charge them for it. He's done over 500 bariatric surgeries dealing with mostly high risk patients. He said to keep in mind he also does other surgeries such as hernia repairs, and other gastrointestinal surgeries, as well as be a professor, and he goes to other countries donating his time to help the less fortunate. He's done maybe 50 patients under 500 pounds the rest where over 500 pounds. He said the average BMI is 60, whereas most are around 45. I felt a huge relief that he's so experienced with high weights. The highest weight he did was over 900 pounds. I asked him about deaths. He has not had a patient die on the OR table. He has however lost 7 patients and he went into full details of each one, he said that patients had died anywhere between 8weeks to a year for various reason. He's only had 3 leaks. I asked him about certain patients and he remembered each one of them. That said a lot. Anyway I spent an hour and a half with him. He also knows and understands about my lymphedema. He felt that I would lose a good bit of weight from therapy. I could tell how he spoke that this was a passion. He said he does this surgery to save people's lives and give them life back. I fell in love with him. While he was talking to me I could see a glow around him. It was the most amazing experience, when we left I KNEW it was right and had major relief. I fully trust him and would put my life in his hands.
8-18-2003
I orginally went to Dr. Gooden in Augusta. He said that he didn't have an OR table big enough for me. Dr. Goodens staff was fine, I just wish someone there would have asked prior about my weight instead of waisting my time and the surgeons time. I was disappointed. This is just my opinion I would not recommend some to go to this surgeon. I was not impressed with his office or how his program was set up for the obese. I am now going to see Dr Burrowes in Atlanta on the 29th of October.
10-7-2003
I went to a Siminar for Dr. Duncan. I will say that I was quite impressed with this man. He is very smart, and had great dry humor! I would recommend him to anyone. His program is very well set up and he took the time after the siminar to talk with me personally. He only now does the Lap RNY. He does however have associates that do the open percedure too. I sent my packet to them and I'm suppose to go see him on November 20th. Provided I pick him to do the surgery.
10-29-2003
Dr. Burrowes was a very informative, and smart man. The longer I sat and spoke to him the more I understood that he does this surgery for the soul reason to give someone their life back. His office was very nice. You can park on the 3rd level in the parking garage and go across the cross walk into the office building. Take the elevators to the 5th floor. It's not very far to walk. His office had chair with and with out arms. As a very comfortable couch. His staff was very kind and took their time with me. Once I got in the office I didn't wait to long. I was then taken back to get weighed and also they take your picture with some measurements. They had no problems with my husband accompanying me back there. We then watched a couple of videos. Dr. Burrowes is a huge fan of the Fobi pouch, which was designed by a surgeon in California (Mathias A. L. Fobi). (http://www.cstobesity.com) I knew going in that he was liked this percedure over the others. If you want to have that done you will have to pay out of pocket $4500. I told him that I could not get the funding for that and would prefer just the RNY without the Fobi. He had NO PROBLEM doing that. Infact he does SIX percedures. RNY, VBG, LAP-BAND, D/S DUODENAL SWITCH, and FOBI POUCH. He said that most insurance will only pay or allow the VBG and RNY. Any other would be out of pocket expense involved. My overall view of Dr. Burrowes was very impressed. He's definately on the HIGH end of the scale. His death rate is very low and he had done over 1000 of this surgery. He took the time to answer all my questions. He doesn't want an answer that day. He told me again all the risks involved. I got a very thick aftercare booklet that explained what I will be able to eat, things to expect, a long list of potential problems that can be resolved by the patient to cut down on calls to his office. It listed ideas for meals. I was extremely impressed. It also described what to expect 1-4 days. I guess what I most impressed about is how he does the percedure. He does it open with an incision of 2-3 inches long!! I know that he is a very skilled surgeon and feel this will be the one for me.
11-20-2003
Well, I decided to go see Dr. Duncan today. Just wanted to feel him out too. I was very disappointed. I knew before I went that he doesn't want you to gain weight, but he wants you to do that for 90 days supervised BEFORE he will do surgery. I understand him wanting to shink the liver, but when I've been trying to diet since May this made me somewhat upset. I've been doing all I can. Not to meantion I was told on the phone that Dr. Duncan would be there. NOPE! He had an associate take a look at all of us. I was told one on one and I'm very upset that I went 150 miles to not ever see the surgeon. Total waste of my time. The staff is friendly, but people need to be told before hand the truth.
HI Amy-All I can say
is wow. I have been
overweight all of my
life and I started
this journey almost
a year ago. I
didn't see your
first episode on MTV
but I have been
reading your posts
for the past 5
months since I have
been a member of OH.
You and Kenneth are
such great people, I
wish you nothing
happiness and good
health.
Sincerely, Sharon
Johnson
Hey Amy....just
checked out the
updated MTV video.
You and Kenneth look
awesome and I still
can't tell you
enough what an
inspiration you both
are. I also wanted
to say a Happy
belated Birthday to
you. Hope you had a
great one!!! Sending
you lots of Love,
Nadine!
My goodness. Where do I begin? The past several months feel like a whirl wind. In fact the past several years have felt like a whirl wind. I feel like I have been just floating around existing and not really living. You think that after surgery you will just immediately be able to put your focus on yourself, but that is not the case. Both of my parents over the years became very sick. My dad had battled cancer since 2000 when they removed a huge mass. It went into somewhat remission if you can call it that in 2004, then returning in 2006. He had a bowel obstruction and things just went downhill from there. All along he was searching all over for someone, anyone to get him a "life saving surgery". It never happened, but we all got more time with him and I feel furtunate that we had several more years, some people only get months, weeks to live with cancer. My mom then developed uterine cancer. She was unable to have a hysterectomy because of her heart condition. She had congestive heart failure and a pulmonary embolism in 1998. She never fully recovered and for years was unable to walk because she had approximately 25% of her heart function. She lived it and overcame. She was able to get around the house and out in the public with the use of a power scooter. I am extremely proud of have had the parents I did. They were inspirations to me. Even after such trials in their lives they always managed to live life. They enjoyed going to the YMCA when they were both able and would dance around in the swimming pool. That was the only way my mom was able to walk (well float) and feel like she was able to walk. They were magical together. This year would have been 35 years of marriage. When I was born they gave me the middle name "love" because they told me i was conceived in love. What a blessing to know that you were wanted and planned.
My mom the last few months was struggling very hard to not lose her leg because of PAD (pulmonary artery diesease). This is such a deadly condition and you think that people who experience amputations are mainly diabetic. I was so wrong. The older a person gets and the problems you have had over the years with circulation can contribute to this condition. Her right foot (toes) started to turn black and before we knew it she was losing the skin layers and it quickly went into gangrene. They did an amputation below knee and after several weeks in ICU the infections would not let up, even after so many strong antibotics. She also lost the love of her life (my dad) during all of this and they say people who love each other so much just struggle living without them. My grandparents were good examples as well, married almost 65 years and died within 10 months of each other. I never imagined my mom would leave so soon, but I know she is in a much better place and once again with my dad. She passed away on February 23rd. Just a few short weeks after my dad.
This photo was taken in 2005, 7 months after my surgery. My mom did not like to take photos, so this is one of the few I have of us together.
Since all of this went down with losing both my parents. I decided to stop working full time for the bariatric program I was working for. I am going to go back to school full time to finish my degree. I am extremely close to finishing it and then have an externship to complete. I managed in the midst of all this to not put myself first because I was so focused on my parents as a caregiver. They say that people who are caregivers do not lookout for themselves and I have realized I was doing this. I have since had a great release of stress in making these decisions and I am grateful I decided to put myself first. I have a high GPA that I have maintained and want to continue to maintain until graduation. I am on the president's list and I made a promise to my dad that I would finish my school. One of the last moments we had together he told me how proud he was of all I had accomplished and the people I have helped over the years. He wanted me to go good things. He wanted me to finish school and continue to work in the medical field. Where the journey goes from here, I do not know.... but I know my parents will be smiling down on whatever I decided to do. I miss them both dearly.
Things have continued to be busy. I just started two new classes at school and work is busy. It has kept my mind busy, which is good because it makes me really sad to think about my dad.
We had out First Bariatric Ball here in Augusta last night. We had a blast! I loved seeing all the patients who have changed their lives. They looked amazing!! It was nice to dress up. Kenneth even put on his tux and matching bow tie. I don't have a photo just yet of us together without out jackets. I'll post that one once I have it. In the meantime here is a photo. Kenneth was so sweet, he request "Lady in Red" and we danced. I just loved the moment. He is a wonderful husband. Everything that has been going on we finally had a moment to get out and have some time together. We had a blast.
Today was to be a joyous day, it is my husband (Kenneth) and mine's 15th wedding anniversary. I'm grateful that I have him in my life, especially right now. For this past year my dad has been really fighting his cancer. He was lucky because he first was diagnosed in 2000. Dr. Frizi at Eisenhower removed a huge basketball area in his colon. He was left having to have a ileostomy bag, but was always very happy and cheerful even in the worst circumstances. He went on to keep fighting this for many years and then was diagnosed with cancer in the bladder, but because it was colon cancer first, it was still considered colon cancer. The cancer then turned into a mess between his bladder and what little intestine was left. This caused what is called a fistula. This made both urine and stool to pass both ways. In doing this my dad was unable to eat and has been on TPN for 2 years. The fistula caused major problems in terms of infection because stool is not suppose to be in the bladder. For the past 2 year since this fistula developed he has been in and out of the hospital, many times near death, but he survived. He wanted so badly to have the fistula fixed and we saw many surgeons in the hopes it would be fixed. Dr. Chasen was willing to take the risk and on December 4th he was set to have exploratory surgery and possibly undergo a major operation. Unfortunately my mother became very sick during that time and he decided along with Dr. Chasen and my family that this would be too much of a burden to go through right now. My dad again several weeks ago become very sick again with an infection and this time his body just could not take it anymore. My dad has had multiple CT scans and because of his stomach size it has been hard to determine about any masses. The last scan he had Dr. Chasen pretty much confirmed along with the radiologist that there was some type of mass. This was going into the kidney and liver. My dads kidney's started last week to fail along with his liver. Today my dad passed away after a long battle, but he was a survivor. He went home to be with the Lord and I know he is in a better place now. I have a very heavy heart, but I have peace and comfort in knowing he is without pain now.
I needed to express my gratefulness to Dr. Chasen. He has been there this whole time, never giving up on my dad. He took the time to comfort me when I needed it and was there today with open arms while I was crying over my dad's bed. I also cannot say enough about the great people I work with, they have been there throughout these last few weeks of pain, all with open arms, along with many of your emails, calls, and hugs. It has made this easier, but it is still quite painful. I know each day will get better. The hardest part at this time is my mom. She is devastated about this and it is hard to be a rock when you want to fall apart yourself.
It seems that life never does get easier, but it certainly delivers the hardest things you can imagine. I often wonder to myself if someone can really endure heartache and pain long term. Everyone's pain and feelings are important to them. These past few weeks have been probably some of the most intense I have endured in a long time and now that some of it has passed I breath a sigh of relief and look back wondering. How did I do it??? How do we ever do it? The end results are always what makes us proud of ourself.
Last week everything in my world seemed to be falling apart, my mother-in-law took a horrible fall, which resulted in a compound fracture, they had to do emergency surgery. Here Kenneth and I are waiting for the surgeon to come out with good or bad news. Thankfully they were able to do something with her leg, it was the same leg that her knee replacements went bad. They had just told her that morning she would be good to go in about 3 weeks to have the replacements put back in, then she fell that day. My dad is still having a hard time. He was not hisself and found out his kidneys were not functioning. They have been doing dialysis for the past 3 days now, he is getting better. Then to top everything off, my beloved "surgery" cat, Luffa, had to be put asleep because he went into kidney failure and had multiple stones blocking him. It was horrible and I am sad. Over 5 years ago I went to visit my mother-in-law, she had that wild kitten outside that needed a home. Of course Kenneth and her had to let me see him, after that we just had to take him home. The poor little guy was sick for many months from a "cold" that would not go away, was taken to the vet many times, finally was able to get over it, but it was a long time and lots of vet bills. Thankfully he survived. I called him my surgery cat because I got him right after my weight loss surgery. I'm so heart broken and so are the other 3 cats. Everyone misses him so much. Rest in peace my dear kitty, we will meet again on Rainbow Bridge.
On a positive note, my term is over. I made A's in both classes. Took my finals tonight and passed! That's the part I have to ask myself, how did I pass with all this other stuff going on. That old saying that God does not give us more than we can handle is true....
Life has been busy! Workng a lot and going to school. It seems the weekends roll into the weekdays now. I will be happy when I am finished with school, but I still have about 40 credit hours left. Then I might keep going on. I am still trying to figure out exactly what I want accomplish with my degree plan long term. Ultimate goal I think I would enjoy being a physician's assistant. We are talking a lot more school for that! We shall see. I am entirely motivated. I must be going to school nearly full time and working full time. I never imagined I would be doing this!
The wonderful bariatric program I work with was recently in the southeast region Ladies Home Journal. We had an updated photo, but still missing a member of our team, Carla. It is great to see our program growing. I love working with the patients, and nothing makes my job anymore enjoyable!
(Left to Right) Dr. Chasen, Cathie, Connie, Tosca, Bryn, me & Dr. Blaney (missing Carla!)
This past month I had a wow moment! I shared it with my support group and wanted to share it here. I took CPR. One thing that worried me was how I would get on the floor with my lymphedema. Plus, I don't just get down on the floor! Well the time came and the instructor asked if anyone has issues with their legs or knees that they could not do the training all day on the floor. I thought about raising my hand, but before I did that, I wanted to see what I could do. I got down on the floor, I was like WOW! I can do this, then I started the training, got on my knees. I was like I can do this! Then came the part I did not think about! How in the world am I going to get up??? Before I could give it a 2nd thought I was up! I'm now certified in CPR and using an AED. I had a great time and was so proud of myself. I'm doing things I never dreamed of!
Only have about 4 more weeks of this term and on to the next. I'm excited!
Finished up the interview last week. It turned out good. It was a busy week. I have my new term starting this Wednesday. My books for this term are HUGE! My medical coding and insurance class has 7 books! I am feeling a bit overwhelmed looking at the books, but I keep telling myself I can get through this. My final grades posted and I got A+ in both. In fact my one class on Microsoft Office 2007, I got 100%! Whoohooo!!
Today I have been doing a lot of thinking. Here I am on the brink of being 5 years post-op and each day I think of all the wonderful things I can do now. The things I did not think I could do and I am so grateful. Some of you know that when I was in high school I was made fun of on a daily basis and because of this my grades suffered. It was hard for me to focus any energy into my studies and I thought very low of myself. Many times I would "fake" being sick just wishing I would not have to go to school. It became a source of torment for me and I would literally end up in the counselors office because the thought of suicide was very real. Looking back it still is a source of pain for me, but I have slowly in time started to heal the hurt and wounds. They say that words do not hurt you, but they did for me and I still work on those deep feelings even now after being out of high school for almost 15 years. I have many regrets now because I did not go after my dreams of going to college. The great news is that even though I did not go back right out of high school, I am now! I just wanted everyone to know that it is never too late to start after your hopes and dreams. They are right at your grasp and nothing should stand in your way. If I only knew what I know today and felt about myself today life might not mean as much to me. They say that things happen for a reason and I believe that because of all I did go through growing up although painful it has taught me not to take things for granted and be a person who does care about others. I just received my grades back from this term and I am still getting A's. I still remain very happy and excited about all that has been given to me. My lesson for the day is NEVER take anything for granted, each day is truly a gift. When they day ends as my mother tells me you should learn one new things. Most importantly is continuing to "Pay It Forward" for others who are behind you, whether it be in life or on this journey we all have it in us!!
On a side note, I was recently contacted by my local NBC station to do an interview from when I was on MTV's True Life. The interview is set for tomorrow and to air sometime this week. I'll keep you posted on the air date. I'm excited to continue to share my story with others in the hopes that people will see that even after 5 years this still works!
Well, a lot has happened since I last posted. I'm now almost in another term with school. Even with everything going on last term I did get all A's again. I'm still holding strong on the Dean's List. I'm very happy and proud of that. Work has been very busy. I am still loving it. Each day brings on new people and situations. The doctors I work with are great. Things just continue to grow. The hospital I work with is about to undergo their Center of Excellence inspection. We are all looking forward to that and opening the new bariatric wing! Very exciting stuff!
I haven't updated my photo in a little while, so I decided to take a new photo. Still look the same! It is hard to believe that next month will be 5 years since my surgery. So much time has past and I cannot believe how much my life has changed. It is truly amazing.
My dad was in the hospital the past few weeks, a lot going on there. He was septic again. Thankfully he is back home again and is doing pretty good!
Here is a recent photo
I think about Doxiemom often and have missed her very much, this continues to be tough on me, but God gets me through each day. I'm very blessed to have a wonderful husband who listens to me each night when I need a shoulder. It is the best feeling in the world to know you have someone who is your best friend and husband! I'm certainly lucky! Life is great!
Well, it has been a rough week. I am still quite sad and I miss Doxie a great deal. I am feeling somewhat lost right now. It is almost like I am just floating around not knowing what I am doing. I am still managing to do all the things I need to do in my everyday life, but I have a hole in my heart. Just a hollow feeling there, almost like this empty feeling, I cannot even imagine describing it. I am sure I am not the only one to feel this feeling. It isn't a good feel, quite a lot of sadness. Thankfully I have moved past the crying spells, but it just isn't the same.
I have to tell everyone, that all the wonderful messages I received have helped me a lot. I am lucky because my job keeps me quite motivated. I came to the realization Friday when talking with Dr. Chasen about cross addictions. I now realize that I have one. I am addicted to work. Then he asked me an interesting question and I had to think very hard about it. What am I hiding from? In some aspects I am not hiding from anything by working as much as I do, but on other aspects, maybe I am actually hiding. How do you deal with something you cannot do anything about? These are the questions I started to ask myself after talking with Dr. Chasen. He certainly made my mind start to ponder his statement. So I thought about this all weekend and I have started to understand what I am scared of and what I just don't know how to deal with. My parents are both ill and have been for many years. I know even as I write this that my mom is telling my dad, listen to this. She reads my blog. I just feel that although this might be something she will tell me "don't worry" about, I still do. My parents are both in a situation that I feel helpless about, I feel like our roles have reversed since I lost all my weight. They both have cancer, they are both pretty much homebound. Although they still get around by a scooter, I see the effects that cancer and other things have done to them. I want to just wave some magic wand and they are both healthy adults. It has come down to feeling like I am helpless because there isn't anything else that can be done for their cancer or health. This is not the way I wanted to see things happen. I should be out shopping with my mom, doing those girl things, but for the past several years between me being ill and them being ill it hasn't happened. What would it be like to just be able to see my mother walk again. So then I think about how they must have felt for me, all those times when I would be on the couch and so helpless. Did they feel the pain I do for them? The sadness of wanting and wishing there was something to do. It is very painful. I just often times don't want to think about it, and just want to escape into a world where things are ok. Life certainly isn't fair, they say that a person is only given as much as they can handle. I wonder sometimes, God really must think I am made of stone because I have been thrown a lot of hard obstacles and they continue to be thrown my way. I am not complaining, I am just thinking of how I deal with it all. I have to admit that I am doing it very well. I have times I want to just go eat the house out and that is how I dealt with my emotions before. So now my new addiction is working and school. I am determined to show myself that all this time everything I ever wanted I can achieve. It can be done, although it has been a slow process I am getting to that point. I need to keep doing this otherwise that close reality is right there (food) and easily to go back to. I have to keep my mind occupied or else I will be back into that place. I am just thankful I do have a job that I enjoy so much and all our patients give me great hope and so much happiness to continually witness life changing events for them. Kenneth gave me the serenity prayer on a plaque for Christmas, I have it in my office and each day I am starting to realize just how true that old saying really is apart of my life. I just have to enjoy what I can and realize there are things unfortunately I cannot change.
On a happier note.... I took my finals the week before last while everything with Doxie was going on and I was amazed to have still maintained A's in both classes. I'm on to my next term starting this Wednesday in Medical Terminology and Computer Technology. I am already reading into the 2nd chapter for medical terminology, I am really enjoying the reading. The breakdown of words in the medical world certainly makes it a lot easier to understand how they work together as one word. It is very cool.
Over 6 years ago I joined an online community (Spotlight Health) looking for information about the LapBand at the time. This was my first real introduction into the internet message boards. I was very guarded at first on what I would write, but over time I started to write more. I am glad that I did. One of the first people I become friends with online was a sweet lady named "DoxieMom". She was quite a character. Eventually we started talking on the phone and before long become very close friends. I have to admit however that being I had been hurt before in friendships that I remained shielded for some time. Doxiemom's real name is Joy. Joy was always upfront and never left you hanging about how she felt about things. You could never get off the phone questioning that. During this time I was homebound, Doxie sent me many cards of encouragement and gifts. She was a sweet person. She has always been very private about her life online and I totally understand that. Many nights when I was feeling down or depressed she would talk to me and just make me laugh. She could make a bad situation good. When I was thinking about moving on to another job, it was her help that pushed me to make that change. She told me that I had so much to offer and that I didn't need to remain trapped within my house. It was a hard choice to make, but I did it. She was right! It was a good choice. She told me that I really needed to expand my education and not be scared to show people what I can do. I honestly owe her a lot because she taught me a lot of things. I am very reserved in the friends that I make, she was one of the few people I could truly count on for anything. I could call her up and she would lend an ear and give advice. We met several times when Kenneth and I would go to Orlando. She was just a great on the phone as she was in person. Unfortunately Doxie never had children, she would often refer to me as a daughter.
So this leads me to what happened this past week. Doxie had become terminal very quickly (cancer again) after being in the hospital and then rehab since November. They sent her home last week on hospice. I called her husband and we discussed that I would come down Sunday. By Friday evening she took a huge turn for the worst. I called Kenneth at work just balling my eyes out saying we have to get there!! We left right after he got home. By 6am we arrived, she was still breathing, but in the final moments. I was able to talk with her and she could not speak, but she gave signs that she could hear me. Kenneth and I had been driving all night, so we stayed for a few hours and then needed some sleep. Around 1130 the hospice nurse called us with the news. She had left us. It was almost like she had been waiting, I am just thankful I made it before she left us. I kept praying the whole way down to give me time to see her before it happened.
I miss my friend very much. My heart is hurting so badly. Today was her beautiful funeral. She passed away in Orlando with her friends and family, and then they placed her in North Carolina. It was probably the hardest thing I have had to do. I wanted to make sure her family knew just how much she impacted my life. I asked her husband Coy if I could say some words during the funeral. I managed to pull it together and was able to stand up to share just how much she did for me over these years. I am proud to have had her as a best friend and I look forward to seeing her again one day.
This is my dear friend, Doxie. I miss you....
These past few months just feel like a dream that I will eventually wake up from. I wonder sometimes how I hold it all together. This has been so hard....
My name is Amy Williams. I have come a long way since my appearance on MTV's True Life "I'm Obese". If you have not seen the video, the video is below. I truly have enjoyed the time I’ve given to this site to help other members. I am very involved with running a local support group and attend other surrounding groups to lend support. I love giving back to others along this journey and nothing makes me happier. I'm over 4 years post-op and have lost 411 pounds. I'm over 6 foot tall. Currently I work for a hospital bariatric program as the bariatric patient advocate/insurance coordinator. I'm a proud member of the Obesity Action Coalition and American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery. My greatest joy is doing adovcacy work for bariatrics and lymphedema. Changing lives and seeing members get their lives back is truly rewarding. Please feel free to Email Me
Click play on video below to see when I was on MTV's True Life & Update show
Webpage Dedication
When I started looking into WLS, I was not very serious about it. I felt I would die from it and it scared me. One day while watching the Oprah Show, Oprah had a man on that weighed 863 pounds at one time. He had lost over 600 pounds from the gastric bypass. The surgeon only gave him a 40% chance to live. To see that he made it thru the surgery and was able to change his life is such an inspiration to people that are super morbidly obese. The sad part was not many months later "Big" Pete passed away from congestive heart failure. This man has changed more lives then he may never know about and I dedicate this page to him....Please look him up on this site Peter Herida
Augusta, Ga Area Support Group If you are in the Augusta, Ga. area,sign up for the Augusta Support Group online.
It doesn't matter who your surgeon was, we are here to talk about issues related to WLS and just have fellowship/ friendship. I hope that you will join us.
2009 Support Meeting Schedule
Our 2009 meeting are the first Thursday at 7pm.
Please visit our support group page for complete details of dates, times and locations. Click Here for complete details.
List of things I want to do
1. Drive Done!
2. Wash dishes without my back hurting Done!
3. Stand for over 10 minutes Done!
4. Walk to the bathroom without getting winded Done!
5. Tie my shoes Done!
6. Go to walmart and pick something off the rack Done!
7. fit in a regular bathroom stall instead of the handicap one Done!
8. take a shower standing up Done!
9. take a shower with hubby again! woohoo Done!
10. just get out of the house and not be ashamed Done!
11. be on the Oprah show
12. go back to college or get a dream job Done!
13. be able to sit in a chair with arms Done!
14. clean the whole house in one day (like I use to) Done!
15. walk a mile Done!
16. go to the Y and swim Done!
17. go to the mall and hang out Done!
18. see a movie in the threater Done!
19. go on a cruise
20. go snorkling
21. get rid of wheelchair Done!
22. go to my 10 year HS reunion Done!
23. have a make over Done!
24. be under 300 pounds Done!
25. go to a obesityhelp.com convention Done!
26. plant a garden 2/24/08 I have an indoor garden! Done!
27. buckle seat belt without extentions Done!
28. go to church Done!
29. jog, skip, run Done!
30. dance Done!
31. go to glamour shots Done 5/26/07
32. be able to wear sexy underwear instead of "granny panties" LOL Done!
33. Go to Disneyworld Done!
34. see a broadway show
35. meet carnie wilson
36. fly on a plane Done! 3/05/2006
37. be able to walk on the beach and put my feet in the sand, feel the waves on my feet Done! 3/12/2006
38. get a manicure and pedicure Done!
39. be able to get my hair "professionally cut" FIT IN THE CHAIR! Done!
40. buy regular shoes for women Done!
41. wear jeans Done!
42. Go to someone's house with out the fear of breaking toilet, or furniture Done!
43. be social again Done!
44. go to a party (just to say I did) Done!
45. Get out of my wheelchair Done!
46. Speak in front a large crowd Done!
47. Be in a magazine Done!
48. Spread more awareness for Lymphedema Done and still doing it!
49. Help advocate for other people that are obese and need help Done and still doing it!
50. Run a support group Done!
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