Adrienne P.
I am not sure if you have access to my old profile or not so I will give a brief history and then move on. I am doing this because I received an e-mail today telling me Happy Anniversary. I hadn't even realized today was my two year post op anniversary, but oddly enough I realized that I have been talking about my surgery all morning at work.
I had thought about having a gastric bypass for several years. My primary physician was not thrilled about the idea at all and my insurance will not pay so I kind of considered it a pipe dream. Then in 2004 I went to see my doctor again and she told me that she had done a lot a research on the procedure and now she was supportive of me wanting to do this. Maybe the fact that I had gained 60 lbs in less than a year played a part in her decision as well. From there things started moving very quickly, and I was blessed that I was able to get a loan for the money I needed. The steps I had to take before surgery are pretty fuzzy now, but it was filled with lots of Dr appointments, nutritional counseling, and support groups. I had my Gastric Bypass on 1/10/05 at Citizens Hospital in Victoria with Dr McDaniel. I would recommend him in a heart beat. His staff was so professional and supportive. I was very good about attending my support group every week, but admittedly I have not been in quite some time. I think about it but I think that I get frustrated because it tends to focus more on those thinking about the process, beginning the process, or just having come out of surgery. It was vitally important to have that support, but now two years out I feel I need a different kind of support. I hit my goal weight in March 2006. I underwent plastic surgery in April and had a tummy tuck, breast lift and augmentation, and arm lift. Wow, that was an agonizing two weeks of recovery but worth every minute.
For those of you still thinking about this surgery, I will tell you that it was not always an easy road and I still have issues that I struggle with, but I have not regretted my decision for one moment throughout this entire journey. My biggest struggle these days is still my obsession with food. I have not be cured from cravings or making bad decisions, but portion control seems to be key. I also have not exercised in quite a while and I always said that I not only wanted to be thin but fit. I know that this is going to be a life long struggle but the fact that I am now considered thin and have lost half my body size (154 lbs) is quite amazing to me. I know how important this website was for me going through the process, and I hope that I can get back to writing more frequently so that others can benefit from the support of this community.