Obesity...

..it's a disease.  I think we all know that, but we forget.  I attended a back on track workshop with my surgeon last night.  I didn't realize that she has also had wls.  Somehow that makes her more credible to me. 

Anyway, she reminded us that obesity is a disease.  Just because we had surgery doesn't mean the disease went away.  Just like taking insulin doesn't mean that you are no longer diabetic, having surgery doesn't mean that you no longer suffer from obesity.  An alcoholic doesn't cure alcoholism by no longer drinking, they just get it under control.  They are still an alcoholic.  It doesn' matter whether I weigh 300 pounds or 125 pounds, I still have the disease of obesity.  Obesity is almost always genetic which further ensures that I will probably always have the disease of obesity. 

You can't cure obesity. You can resolve some of the bad effects of obesity like high blood pressure and diabetes and high cholesterol, but you can't cure obesity with surgery.  You can lose weight and you can feel better, but surgery isn't a cure. 

There was much more in last night's discussion and I'll pass along the food journaling that she suggests later on, but I just wanted to leave you with the thought that obesity is a disease that we will have forever.  Somehow that makes me feel like less of a failure when I stick something I shouldn't in my mouth.  It lets me look at this in a different way. 

Hugs,
Connie

Ohhhhh now I feel better...I can now justify eating that cupcake I made today  LOL....Ive been doing sooooo good for so long and this wasnt my cheat day...but boy oh boy I made them cause daughter been bugging me to be like a old lady since Im home allday I should  bake her  something like grandmothers do LOL...could of killed her but I made them...Im so nice arggggg. One was my limit.....but tonight...Im eating good, I made homemade sweet italian sausages with whole can tomatoes,onions,greenpeppers  in the crock pot  then I going to make subs out of them with melted provolone cheese...my house smells so good right now.
 I think I got off the subject abit here....my rambling, been doing that alot today. But yeah I agree with you 100% I do think its an addiction, I think its controllable but never really ever goes  away. I wi**** did would make life a heck of a lot easier. I also think it is genetic and that cant be beat unfortunatly. So we struggle like always, just now I think we have help and are abit more concious of what we are doing since having wls...so there is hope.

 

Kim, I can't imagine being able to bake cupcakes, smear the icing on them, have that wonderful aroma hanging in the air, and then not eat one - just can't imagine being able to do that. I hope you enjoyed it, it was just a cupcake! Don't "normal" people who eat "normally" enjoy a cupcake now and then, especially the ones they bake with love for their children??? I agree, Connie, that obesity is certainly genetically related - the jury is still out for me about it being a certifiable disease - like cancer or diabetes or heart disease. Do we inherit specific genes from our lineage, our ancestors, that predispose us to physiological conditions? You bet. I look at Devin and see that he is a walking talking replica of my father - same body build, right down to the color of his eyes - no one in my family has ever had my father's eyes, until Devin, they are that uncommon a color. Same sour disposition too. Devin has my genes. He is more muscle than fat - at least right now - but that's because he is quite active. Here's the thought I had last night before going to sleep last night - I used to smoke    Yup, many years ago. In fact, my mother used to wrap up cartons of cirgarettes for all of us as Christmas presents - is that not disgusting? Here was my thought last night - Mike oftentimes says on this board, "I'll always be a fat guy..." and I was thinking about that last night - will I always be a fat girl?  Connecting that thought to your post - will I always be diseased? Will I always have a disease called Obesity, even in a normal sized body, no matter how many years I am fortunate enough to live in a normal sized body? I no longer consider myself a smoker, haven't in decades. I don't think on any level, "I will always be a smoker," even though I haven't smoked in well over 20 years. Do I really want to live my life with a noose around my neck - I will always be that fat girl, that super morbidly obese fat, fat girl? Will that help me in any way to live healthily today and into the future? I dunno. I really don't. Just throwing this out there. And I REALLY want to hear more about your meeting. Love you, Maureen

I do, and always have, thought of it as a disease.  But unfortunately for us, society doesn't see it that way.  Many still have the "just cut back and you'll lose weight" mentality.  If society and the medical world treated it as such, promoted it as such, presented it as such, perhaps more research would be done.  After all, how many people die from obesity related illnesses? 
My best example is...of all people....Oprah.  I am not a fan of hers, however...look at the facts.  She has all the money, power and resources available to her.  Yet, she can't stay thin.  And she always has an excuse for gaining, but we know the real reason....her obesity is not under control.  I wish she would use her vast resources to face the issue of obesity as a disease...maybe it would get more attention from the medical world. 
Just my thoughts...
Joanie