ObesityHelp

50 yrs old; 226 lbs preop, 39 bmi, 5'3". Expect to have surgery sometime this year.

Gained some before surgery saying goodbye to food. Pre surgery weight was 233.5 lbs. My surgery is scheduled for Dec 8th. (Only 15 more days!!) Each day I wake up the first thing I think about is the number of days I have left until I have surgery. I am both excited and terrified! Because fear is surviving the surgery. (this is
MAJOR surgery, risks exist. My md friends keep asking me if I'm sure that I want to do THIS! But I'm going to dispite the comments from family and friends). I would suggest, if you decide to do it you don't tell anyone. It is very strange how people react to this surgery. People don't understand how difficult it is too loose weight. Also, if you don't loose fast enough or gain later you'll have them there to remind you. The reason I told everyone and thier brother is that I work at the hospital where I'm having the surgery.
Everyone is going to know it's not a gall bladder operation and because there are so many doctors that have reservations about this surgery (only a 40% success rate and success is loosing 1/2 the wieght you need to loose) that I know that I will be looked at like the "test" case (I'm the 21st surgery but the first in 2 years). I need to really be successful for future patients. I'm thankful for the pressure, I thrive on it.


I will post before and after pictures just as soon as I start taking pictures.

I would like to thank everyone who have posted pictures and told their stories. There are so many successes here.

Surgery: It was so painless for me. I only felt discomfort. I was given a morphin spinal drip. Best thing in the world. I suggest it for anyone as long as they find out the side effects. I know them so I wasn't surprised to see shadows on the wall and feel depressed. It only lasted 2 days. Oh, I was hospitalized for 5 days. I'm menapausal so had some mean hot flashes in the hospital so I had a friend bring a fan for me. It helped. The doctor gave me a patch but it took a week to work.

1/5/99: have lost 26 lbs!! I have lost a dress size (and I'm not looking for it!). My clothes are loose so I will get the sewing machine out soon and start taking my clothes in. I already feel like a new person. I look down and no longer see my stomach!! Oh, my shoes are loose too and people can see the change in my face already. Other than my face I still look like a fat person, only smaller. I realize my body will not really look changed for another 40 lbs. I can wait.

I started walking in the 3rd week and am now walking 3 miles each morning. I plan to walk to and from work (6 miles roundtrip) when I have to start working again. I have started lifting light weights at home (no stomach exercises until 6 weeks have passed) and I have joined a weight training group that starts in the middle of January.

I still want to eat, especially when I have to do something that I don't want to do. It gets really tough when my food triggers hit me. I have to keep reminding myself that I'm not really hungry.