Hi Everyone...
Okay I am going to do something crazy... I am not going to use any emoticons this time! Just thought I would test it out.
Hi, my name is Sipele K!
I live in Voorhees, NJ. I am about 20 minutes from Philly and 45 minute from Atlantic City, NJ. I am married and have no biological children, however I fell like I am raising my parents, my sister, and a whole bunch of neices and nephews. They come to me for everything, but I have to admit... I like to take care of them for the most part.
I have been SMO since childhood... I plan on giving you more info on my childhood as I update my profile. Most of my family is obese, but I am by far the largest. My father is native hawaiian and if you have ever seen native hawaiians... you know we all come with some meat on our bones. Since I engaged in 2000 I have gained over 200 lbs and my health has quickly been deteriorating. Myself along with my PCP feel that surgery is my only means of losing a signifigant amount of weight and having the ability to keep it off. I have been researching it since 1999/2000 but with moving and other issues that always seem to pop up when you least expect them... I am finally in the process of actually having the WLS.
I am planning to have the RNY OPEN. The main reason is because of my size. I hold most of my weight in my stomach area... like a big donut or spare time... and I cannot have the RNY LAP for the simple fact that the tools just aren't big enough. Plus, I figure... if they have any problems I will already be open and hopefully easier to get to.
I am very happy with my decision so far... I get the heebie jeebies once in a while... but I think that's a good thing. It's healthy to FREAK OUT once in a while... or at least I hope so!
I go to the NJ/PA boards, the married massage board (that place is a ghost town!), the WLS in you 20's, and here. The other boards just don't SSSCCCRRREEEAAAMMMMMMMM "SUPPORT" to me... it is more like... leave a message and I will say, "hi" sometime in the next week or so. THANK GOD for the SMOers!
willby 
aaahhhh much better!
SipeleK
Is there a 12-step program for that now!? 
what a great post, monica:
guess i'll go next
i live in farmington, mn (about 10 mins south of the Mall of America)
I've been married for 28 years and have two daughters, 19 & 15.
(and i'm the one who just found out she's not pregnant - thank God)
i had a lap rny on feb 8, 2005 because my comorbidities were beginning to add up. i felt it was do this or die.
i would do it again, in a hearbeat, because i'm feeling so much better. i've lost about 120 lbs so far and need to go down at least another 120. but i'm in no hurry. life is good. i follow the rules as best i can and the weight comes off. 
again, monica, thanks for asking.
take it easy
dorthe
i live in farmington, mn (about 10 mins south of the Mall of America)
I've been married for 28 years and have two daughters, 19 & 15.
(and i'm the one who just found out she's not pregnant - thank God)
i had a lap rny on feb 8, 2005 because my comorbidities were beginning to add up. i felt it was do this or die.
i would do it again, in a hearbeat, because i'm feeling so much better. i've lost about 120 lbs so far and need to go down at least another 120. but i'm in no hurry. life is good. i follow the rules as best i can and the weight comes off.
again, monica, thanks for asking.
take it easy
dorthe Oh there you are! I wondered where you were.
You already know all my answers, but I digress...
Howdy neighbors, my name is Ruth, 44 yo female 
, single , no children... Ok now.... where da single men at?! 
Kidding folks... well, maybe..
Where do you live?
Northeast Philly (that's Philadelphia, PA for you out-of-towners )
What made you decide to have the surgery?
I must have been born obese. I have been 'dieting' since I was 13 (that was 8th grade - my first 'official' diet). I have been on countless diets, programs, etc., ever since. Have undoubtedly gained and lost hundreds, if not thousands of pounds since then. Was always the fat kid... last picked for any 'team', put down, teased, gawked at, etc., by kids and adults alike, friends and family too. My own grandmother once told me she was ashamed of me for gaining back the weight I had lost on one of my many diets! 
Didn't date in high school (shocker), never went to my prom, never had a date for New Years Eve or Valentine's Day (thanks alot, Hallmark). Have been gradually adding onto my weight-related health issues. Have always had irregular periods... hypertension since my mid 20's... diabetes in my late 30's... asthma in my early 40's... most recently sleep apnea and hypothyroidism (Jan '05). I went for a consultation at Barix Clinics in December 2003. Was thrilled and terrified at the same time. I had no support people in my life at that time. The clearances required, with no guidance or references provided by Barix, was much too daunting, stressful, and scarey, so I backed off of having surgery then. Last September I went on a trip with some other bbw's from another site. A 5 day cruise and then 5 days in Florida. I met a woman on that trip who was actually from around here (Levittown, PA) and she had had WLS at Barix, where I had had my previous consultation. She even had the same surgeon as I had. Small world, eh. Anyway, that trip proved to me I was in big trouble. I couldn't even walk the length of the ship without being in severe pain (hips and knees). I begged out of doing most activities for a variety of reasons. I did tell everyone how much I was hurting. I took to taking Tylenol PM constantly just to get through it. Even other obese people on that trip teased me if you will, about my lack of participation. I was to the point of screaming, "just leave me alone!" The woman that I met on that trip shared some things with me about her surgery and how she was more active now, etc. I went home and soon realized I also had sleep apnea. I met a coworker who had had lap rny, and with her encouragement, on January 12, 2005 I had my 2nd WLS consultation with the same surgeon I had met before. I have since been on the rollercoaster (always hated those things - they make me 
), that has been my life ever since. After a few months, I contacted the woman I had met on that trip to Florida and she told me about the support meetings at Barix and I have been going ever since. Nine months later, I am still hoping to have open rny. As most of you know, things for me have been quite challenging. For more details of my WLS journey, please see my profile here. I concur with Monica that there are some great people on our PA board, but as most others here on this board can attest to, they don't get us SMO's. The 'lightweights', who may very well have other issues, but who are through the whole process, often without even one clearance asked of them, in less than one month, and 50% to goal in less than three month make me so 
! Yup, banging my head into wall here too Monica.
What type of surgery did you have or going to have?
(Oops, just said that above, my bad). I am hoping to have open RNY, but part of me would prefer lap rny because of faster healing, but (yes, another but), as Monica stated, once you are open, they can check the plumbing, do an oil change, and rotate the tires too, while they have you opened. In other words, make sure everything is okey dokey in there.
Are you happy with your choice? To be continued...
Huggs... Ruth
I wondered where you were.
You already know all my answers, but I digress...
Howdy neighbors, my name is Ruth, 44 yo female , single , no children... Ok now.... where da single men at?! Kidding folks... well, maybe..
Where do you live?
Northeast Philly (that's Philadelphia, PA for you out-of-towners )
What made you decide to have the surgery?
I must have been born obese. I have been 'dieting' since I was 13 (that was 8th grade - my first 'official' diet). I have been on countless diets, programs, etc., ever since. Have undoubtedly gained and lost hundreds, if not thousands of pounds since then. Was always the fat kid... last picked for any 'team', put down, teased, gawked at, etc., by kids and adults alike, friends and family too. My own grandmother once told me she was ashamed of me for gaining back the weight I had lost on one of my many diets! Didn't date in high school (shocker), never went to my prom, never had a date for New Years Eve or Valentine's Day (thanks alot, Hallmark). Have been gradually adding onto my weight-related health issues. Have always had irregular periods... hypertension since my mid 20's... diabetes in my late 30's... asthma in my early 40's... most recently sleep apnea and hypothyroidism (Jan '05). I went for a consultation at Barix Clinics in December 2003. Was thrilled and terrified at the same time. I had no support people in my life at that time. The clearances required, with no guidance or references provided by Barix, was much too daunting, stressful, and scarey, so I backed off of having surgery then. Last September I went on a trip with some other bbw's from another site. A 5 day cruise and then 5 days in Florida. I met a woman on that trip who was actually from around here (Levittown, PA) and she had had WLS at Barix, where I had had my previous consultation. She even had the same surgeon as I had. Small world, eh. Anyway, that trip proved to me I was in big trouble. I couldn't even walk the length of the ship without being in severe pain (hips and knees). I begged out of doing most activities for a variety of reasons. I did tell everyone how much I was hurting. I took to taking Tylenol PM constantly just to get through it. Even other obese people on that trip teased me if you will, about my lack of participation. I was to the point of screaming, "just leave me alone!" The woman that I met on that trip shared some things with me about her surgery and how she was more active now, etc. I went home and soon realized I also had sleep apnea. I met a coworker who had had lap rny, and with her encouragement, on January 12, 2005 I had my 2nd WLS consultation with the same surgeon I had met before. I have since been on the rollercoaster (always hated those things - they make me ), that has been my life ever since. After a few months, I contacted the woman I had met on that trip to Florida and she told me about the support meetings at Barix and I have been going ever since. Nine months later, I am still hoping to have open rny. As most of you know, things for me have been quite challenging. For more details of my WLS journey, please see my profile here. I concur with Monica that there are some great people on our PA board, but as most others here on this board can attest to, they don't get us SMO's. The 'lightweights', who may very well have other issues, but who are through the whole process, often without even one clearance asked of them, in less than one month, and 50% to goal in less than three month make me so ! Yup, banging my head into wall here too Monica.
What type of surgery did you have or going to have?
(Oops, just said that above, my bad). I am hoping to have open RNY, but part of me would prefer lap rny because of faster healing, but (yes, another but), as Monica stated, once you are open, they can check the plumbing, do an oil change, and rotate the tires too, while they have you opened. In other words, make sure everything is okey dokey in there.
Are you happy with your choice? To be continued...
Huggs... Ruth 
My name is John and I live in the town of Porter, Indiana. It is a small town located near lake Michigan in Northwest Indiana. I have been married for 19 years and have three boys ages 17,15 and 13. They are all playing football this fall.
I weighed 244 when I graduated from Purdue. I yo -yo dieted for 10 years bouncing back and forth 80 lbs or so. 13 years ago my wife got cancer and underwent "big guns chemo". During her 6 month chemo sessions I stopped working out and gained 60 lbs. and weighed 300 lbs. I took over the shopping and cooking duties of the family. Once I reached 300 lbs I had a hard time moving. For the next 13 years I kept gaining weight up to 400 lbs.
One of the guys I work with said I should have surgery his wife was going threw getting approved for surgery at the time. He gave me the Wish Center web site and I started to learn about the WLS. I had a real hard time carrying around 400 lbs. One of the facts that made a point with me was life expectancy was 13 to 20 years less for someone mortally obese. I was border line diabetic. My sister who is two years older the me suffered a stroke and I did not want to be in the same shoes. I could not keep up with the other workers at work and was in pain all the time. I was tired and fatigued all the time. I slept with a C=pap machine and could not lie down in bed. I slept in a recliner. When I was fired from my job of 24 years the boss was just starring at my belly. I really do not blame him he had to cut so many and my weight was hampering my job performance. At 400 lbs the Blast Furnace Casthouse is a difficult place to work. It did hurt my feelings.
I had the open gastric bypass 11 months ago. I have lost 192 lbs. so far. Right now I think I am still in a state of shock. I had given up hope of losing weight before I found out about WLS. I was in a 6x and 7x today I went to a regular outlet mall and bought a 1x leather jacket and it fit. It felt wonderful. After I got fired I was able to back into the union in another department. It is very hot and hard physical work. I feel so much better at work I can not describe it. My energy level now is phenomenal. Am I happy with my choice? It is the very best thing I ever did.
John,
WOW!! Your story is a true inspiration. I'm sorry to hear about your trials in the past. I hope your wife is fine now. It must have taken true courage to have worked in the furnace room of a steel mill being SMO. I cant take the heat in the summertime, let alone a furnace room. I just dont have enough words to congratulate you on your new life. You should be so proud. Youre a living breathing testimonial to this surgery!
Take care
willby
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