Deedlbugg
My Story
Nov 14, 2008
Hello. My name is Deanne. I am a 41 year old wife and mother of two. I have struggled with my weight for the past 15 years. It started creeping up on me slowly at first. I would yo-yo diet with the same 10 pounds. Even though I managed to lose the 10 pounds I'd needed to squeeze into my wedding gown, I somehow found them again on my honeymoon. It wasn't until after the birth of my first child that I started to really lose the battle. And make no mistake, it was definitely a battle. The vicious cycle of dieting, quitting, and gaining more weight began. I dieted and quit so many times I'd lost count. I've done Weight Watchers, Atkins, Fat Free, Phen-Phen, Dr. supervised diets (THREE TIMES). I'd spent money on numerous gym memberships and worked like a dog only to find myself disappointed and frustrated with little result to show for it. The next thing I knew, I was almost 40 years old and 270 pounds. At that point I would have scaled Mt. Everest if I thought it would get me thin, healthy, and back to feeling like my normal, confident self. I lost that confident person 15 years ago. I didn't understand how I could be so weak. I spent those years loathing my body and myself. Feeling like a failure. Hiding from get-together's that I really did want to go to. Not having my picture taken with my family. Feeling like I let my husband down. We all know the kinds of losses we've suffered from being overweight, and those are only some of the emotional ones. Add to that sleep Apnea, high blood pressure and borderline type 2 diabetes and you have a recipe for disaster. Finally, my lack of self control spiraled and spiraled into a depression that I seemed destined to endure and I lost all hope. One day a friend casually mentioned that she wanted her husband to consider this "new" type of weight loss surgery called Gastric Banding. I'd only ever heard about Gastric Bypass surgery, and though I even knew a few people who'd had it, I was fearful of it and would not have had much support from my family. The simplicity and non-invasiveness of this "new" surgery intrigued me. After doing some research I found that my local Reading Hospital had a Weight Management Center that gave free seminars on weight loss surgery and I immediately signed up for one. I was surprised to meet the actual surgeon and some of his staff at the seminar which was very informative and I left there feeling optimistic about my future. I have since come to know Dr Ku and his staff much better since on March 5th, 2008 I had Lap-band surgery. Dr. Ku is an incredible surgeon and makes you feel like you and your success matter! The rest of the staff could not have been more helpful and supportive. They honestly understood my desperation and wanted me to succeed in my weight goals as much as I did! They held my hand as they efficiently guided me through the process and have been there for questions time and time again. I'm grateful to them for helping me change my life. The Lap-Band is the tool I needed to start to gain control over my hunger. It's been eight short months and I have gone from 243 pounds on the day of my surgery to 163 today! That's exactly eighty pounds! I'm 14 pounds from my goal weight and I'm certain I will get there! This has been a dream come true for me. I'm able to run around with my kids and do all the things obesity robbed me of for far too long. The journey has been amazing and I FINALLY have "me" back. I wouldn't change my decision for anything!
