funnygerl
**MY ORIGINAL POST FROM 2002**
| Heidi Allyce Van Nuys, CA, USA Post Op - BMI: 56.7 Surgery Type: Duodenal Switch Surgeon: Gary Anthone |
I am a 34 year old African-American woman. I am a singer at night and I am a secretary by day. I have battled my weight my entire life. The only times I remember being "normal" sized were my late teen years when I was a card-carrying bulimic.
No one could have told me this would be a step I would or could take. My weight had never interfered with my ability to dance and get onstage and be a star. But when my weight hit 341 lbs, my 5'7" body could not take it anymore. My knees went out, I couldn't go up a flight of stairs, my periods would come and go as they pleased. I was miserable. I seriously considered the surgery because although I have proven time and time again that I can lose weight, I have never proven that I can keep it off. I wanted a permanent solution to my weight problem.
When I asked my PCP for a referral to consult with a surgeon for Gastric Bypass surgery, my request was denied and they offered to send me to a nutritionist. I promptly wrote a letter to Blue Cross which included a page long summary of all the diets I had been on and weight I had lost and regained since 1985. I also made sure to mention several times that I felt like I was dying(which was NOT a lie). After about 6 weeks I finally got the ok but I wanted to go to a surgeon that could do the surgery laparascopically. The surgeon they referred me to (Dr. Gary Anthone) only did open incision. I did not even look him up or read about him because I was obsessed with getting a RNY laparascopically. After being turned down twice and wasting 6 months I finally checked this site for info about Dr. Anthone and Duodenal Switch. Boy was I sorry I had wasted so much time. DS sounded so much more suited to me than RNY and turns out Dr. Anthone is very famous and VERY GOOD.
About Me
Van Nuys, CA
Location
36.9
BMI
Surgery
06/20/2002
Surgery Date
Aug 06, 2001
Member Since