Weight Loss Surgery Directory

Before & After

 
 
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Goals

keep most of my hair :)

13 People
 in progress, 
9 People
 achieved this

lower my resting heart rate

0 People
 in progress, 
1 Person
 achieved this

lose weight!

4 People
 in progress, 
1 Person
 achieved this

reverse my Type 2 Diabetes

12 People
 in progress, 
18 People
 achieved this

reduce or eliminate my hemoroids

0 People
 in progress, 
1 Person
 achieved this
Surgeon Testimonial

Eric DeMaria, M.D.
Dr. DeMaria has a significant amount of experience with Bariatric Surgery and in his position as Director of the Duke University Medical Center Weight Loss Surgery Program he trains other surgeons during their fellowship at Duke. The program that Dr. DeMaria directs at Duke is comprehensive and has a significant emphasis on aftercare which is comprised of medical, psychological and nutritional support at 3 wks, 3 months, 6 months and 1 year postop. I have found all of the staff, from the office, nurses, to the dietician to be helpful and available. I had my Lap-RNY 06-05-07. While Dr. DeMaria is without question very competent, he perforated my colon during the surgery. Normally this would require a conversion to an open procedure, but Dr. DeMaria was able to re-sect the colon laparoscopically. I have done well since my surgery and have lost all of my excess weight. I have talked with Dr. DeMaria at length about my concerns that while it is important for bariatric programs to provide a significant amount of support through the weight loss process, but that it is at least as important, if not more to provide significant support as you enter the maintenance phase of this life-changing journey. I'm delighted to say that he is a strong proponent of long-term bariatric aftercare and has opened a practice that focuses on the 'whole' bariatric patient in the long term; medical follow-up/management, nutritional support, psychiatric/behavioral support, and physiological/exercise. I hope this becomes a model to support the bariatric patient population.
Member Interests
  • Dogs - I have Havanese ... Like chocolate I haven't met one I don't like :)
  • Meeting People - As my children say-Mom do you know everyone? Not yet, but I'm workiing on it : )
  • Singing - I love to sing ... However, my children are embarassed when people turn around
  • Shopping, Bargain Hunting & Auctions - OMGoodness! I love great deals! Like 500 sq ft of great tile for $5.00!
  • Photography - I love photography in general, viewing or creating
  • Scrapbooks - I started doing this about 15 years ago ... still so much to do. I love it!
  • Interior Decoration - I am often told I have an eye for it ... I love to stage homes for sale
  • Mentoring - I love to watch a flower unfold ... that's what happens when mentor young or old
  • Genealogy & Family History - I'm reasearching the family history of my children ... We are definitely muts!
  • Computer and Internet Surfing - I started using the internet long before AOL ... It's still amazing!

Barbara C.'s Journey

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Describe your behavioral and emotional battle with weight control before learning about bariatric surgery.
I was an overweight child and became an obese adolescent and adult. I experienced a huge weight gain on the occasion of my marriage, ballooning up to 217 pounds. Unfortunately, I have never been able to get and keep my weight under 225 for more than six months. In spite of multiple efforts at dieting including HCG shots, Weight Watchers, Grapefruit, Cabbage Soup, Cambridge, many over the counter diets (Dexitrim, Hoodia, etc.), Slimfast, Jenny Craig, Nutrisystem, Hypnosis, Registered Dietician and Personal Trainer, Medifast, medically supervised VCL diet, Shaklee Shakes, Oprah/Bob Greene diet. With each attempt I have lost some weight, however when the diet effort stops, the weight comes back, often more. When I...
Barbara C.'s Blog
Barbara C.'s Blog


Hair Loss in WLS Patients
on February 23, 2011 3:23 pm
I am often asked about hair loss in WLS patients, so I did a little research and found an article from the Obesity Action Coalition written by Jacqueline Jacques that describes how hair grows, the risk factors and treatments for hair loss.

I am including her conclusion and will provide a brief summary of the article.

Conclusion
Hair loss can be distressing to bariatric surgery patients and many will try nutrition themselves to see if they can prevent it. Unfortunately, there is little evidence that early hair loss is preventable because it is mostly likely caused by surgery and rapid weight-loss.

Later hair loss, however, can be indicative of a nutritional problem, especially iron deficiency, and may be a clinically useful sign. Educating patients about the potential for hair loss and possible underlying causes can help them to make informed choices and avoid wasting money on gimmicks that may have little real value.

Summary:
At any given time most of our hair is in a 'growth phase', but a small percentage is in a 'resting phase'. A number of stressors can cause a greater percentage of our hair to move into a resting phase and WLS patients are at particular risk because we have all had major surgery and experience rapid weight loss which are among the stressors that can impact having a larger percentage of our hair being in the resting phase. Also, if we are experiencing low values of ferritin, zinc or protein or have had more rapid than expected weight loss we may be at greater risk of hair loss.

While some think that supplementing with Biotin, topically or ingesting it; studies have not shown it to be effective in either stopping hair loss or improving regrowth.

 


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