4/18/09

Apr 18, 2009

I had my surgery in May of 2008.  I weighed 370 pounds at the time of my surgery.  I now weigh 225 pounds.  I am an emotional eater.  You name an emotion, any emotion, and I will be eating through it.  I had one of the first RNY surgeries back in the 70's.  After 20 years, I started packing the weight back on.  Dr. Eric Schlesinger did a revision on me.  I think that he called it an extended bypass.  He tied off most of my lower intestine.  I always have to be near a private commode.  Food goes through me in a hurry.  This surgery is definitely not for most people, but I felt that it was my only option.  I couldn't believe it when I went for a consultation with Dr. Schlesinger and he described the surgery that he wanted to do.  It was like I was guided by the hand of an angel right into the hands of Dr. Schlesinger.

There is a lot of things that I have learned - - - - and had to learn the hard way.  Mal-absorption is the biggest.  Can you believe that you can be malnourished and still weigh over 200 lbs?  It is not fun.  I am just now starting on a long journey back to good health.  It is discouraging when you are so weak that you can't do anything.  My advice:  FOLLOW YOUR DOCTOR'S INSTRUCTIONS.  Keep all  your post-op appointments.  Join support groups.  For a year I felt great.  I was losing weight and eating whatever I felt like.  But I was taking the wrong vitamins (tablets that I didn't absorb).  Now I am on chewable vitamins that are specifically for people who have mal-absorption issues.  I am also drinking some "undigested protein" that tastes horrible.  It took me a year to use up every bit of nutrients that were stored in my body.  Now I am paying for it - - - - big time.  It will take months to build myself back up.  But I learned my lesson.


Signing off.
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