Rachel J.
In 1982, I was born into a very wonderful family. My parents provided for me, taught me right from wrong, and showed me how important it is to be apart of a loving family. Despite their loving efforts, our family's constant going put me on the path for high weight at an early age. Yeah, it is in my genetics, because a lot of my family has been overweight, but it didn't help that we didn't always make healthy choices. I cannot blame anyone but myself, though, so I choose to look beyond that. As I became a teenager, I was already over 70 lbs past my ideal weight for my height. I stayed that way for as long as I can remember. I don't ever remember wearing a single digit size or ever shopping in the Junior department.
When I graduated high school, I was very unhappy with my size, and wanted to run away from all the hurt and embarrassment that it caused me. When I left and went to college, I began to feel better about myself, and started to learn that my weight does not have to define who I am, it just determines my body size. Regardless, I was still unhappy in my body. When I moved back home in 2002, I began a new job at the court house in Tifton, GA. Within a month, I met the man of my dreams. We started dating, and he asked me to marry him on October 22, 2002 (while my hands were digging out pumpkin guts). I kinda knew it was going to happen, but regardless, it made me the most happy woman ever!!!
We planned our wedding for March 15, 2003, and unlike most brides, I gained weight instead of losing it. From the time I came home in May 2002 until my wedding day, I had gained over 30 pounds, which was devastating for me. I was already at 225, and this made it even worse. Within two weeks of our marriage, my husband left for Marine Corp Boot Camp on Parris Island, SC. I supported him as best as I could, because he needed to know that I loved him no matter what. One month before he was scheduled to graduate bootcamp, I found out that we were expecting our first child. Yep, you guessed it, she was our honeymoon baby! In July, after he graduated, we found out that our new baby was going to be a little girl. YAY! A little princess to cuddle. I was so excited! We were so excited! haha!
In November 2003, Camryn was born due to an emergency c-section. We stayed in the hospital for a week, and were able to go home before Thanksgiving. It was wonderful. In December, we got our first base house, and it was such a blessing. Our little family was given our first little house, and we were grateful. In March 2004, on the date of our first anniversary, we found out that Camryn had some type of neurological condition that required immediate neuro-surgeon attention. We were scheduled to visit UNC (4 hours away from home), and speak with a Neuro-Surgeon, Dr. Ritter. Within the first 5 minutes, she knew exactly what problem our child faced. It was a condition known as Dandy Walker Malformation - which basically means that during my first trimester of pregnancy, her brain did not form a cerebellum and a cyst formed instead. It would be impossible to surgically remove the cyst, because all of the blood vessels that form through the brain during pregnancy had formed through that cyst. With testing, Dr. Ritter found that Camryn's cerebral-spinal fluid (CSF) was elevated. She ordered a mini-procedure to determine if surgery would be required. Basically, the monitored the CSF and did tests to determine if the levels of her CSF were higher than normal. Based on their findings, Camryn could benefit from a shunt, and she was scheduled for surgery. However, one complication faced us, because she got meningitis while in the PICU. I was furious. Soon after she was given appropriate antibiotics, she was taken to surgery. It was a success, and we started to see improvement in her behavior. Camryn never did the things that a normal infant did, like cry or smile. She just stared into the world, and never focused on an object. After that surgery, there was one time that she caught my eye, and I felt as if she could see me. That moment meant so much to me. In June 2004, we woke up early one morning @ like 4:30 AM and Camryn was suffering from a seziure. Based on Dr. Ritter's orders, I immediately told the Naval Hospital Drs that Camryn needed to be seen at UNC, because the hospital there did not have the equipment or experience in dealing with her condition. They procrastinated, and it took an act of God for me not to kill them. Finally, after much fighting with the Naval Hospital, UNC arranged an airlift transport. They came to get my baby. They flew her to UNC, and we had to drive. When we arrived there, the doctors had told us that she had suffered a seziure from the extreme fever that she had. The fever was stimulated by a Uniary Track Infection that she had gotten, and we had not realized. She had no signs of it. They kept her in the hospital for a week. Despite the efforts to give Camryn a normal life, she passed away at 8 1/2 months, just shortly after this incident in July 2004. It was crushing. My angel will always be a special part of my life, and I miss her greatly.
Within a month of her death, my husband received orders to Afghanistan to support Operation Enduring Freedom. He left in Jan. 2005. During the time immediately following Camryn's death, my weight steadily gained. When my husband deployed, I wanted to do something about it, because it was making me feel worse. I attended Weight Watchers. Despite my best efforts, I only lost about 22 pounds while he was deployed. He returned home in July 2005 and in August 2005 we found out that we were expecting our second child. Because of the complications with my pregnancy with Camryn and her conditions, they monitored this pregnancy like hawks. In Feb. 2006, I had to be admitted into the hospital at 29 weeks for preterm labor. I had another abruption, but this time it seemed to be smaller than the one with my first pregnancy. I was on a semi-bedrest, with my only ability to get up was to go to the bathroom and shower. I stayed in the hospital for one day short of 6 full weeks. Chandler was born on Monday, March 20, 2006 and it was beautiful. My c-section went smooth, and I was so excited; however, Chandler seemed to be showing problems with breathing, and that night was sent to the Medical Center of Central Georgia (in Macon, GA). He was placed in the NICU, and had to receive a dose of surfactin (not sure if I spelled that right). By the time I came to visit him on Wednesday, he had pulled out his own vent, and that meant that Mama could hold him. It was the first time since his birth, that I would be able to hold him. We spent a total of 8 days in the hospital after his birth, and he pulled through like a CHAMP! I love my little guy.
My weight after Chandler was born was in the 280's which meant a total gain of around 20 pounds during my pregnancy. Two months after Chandler was born, I found out that I was pregnant again. It was devastating news, because I had just endured 7 total weeks in a hospital not counting the previous experience, and needed a break. I remember feeling so depressed about it. I cried a lot. Not much later, we found out that we were expecting another little girl. I was ecstatic! It didn't take me long to realize that I needed to move past what I had lost, and accept this beautiful gift of a child. In Jan. 2007, I went into pre-term labor, but had carried her longer than both previous pregnancies. I actually felt that my body was getting the hang of having children..haha! I was showing pre-eclamptic symptoms, and so the Doctor decided to have a c-section the following morning. Of all three pregnancies and deliveries, my last was truly the best. Aubrie Jade popped into the world at 9:07 that morning. She was amazing. She was healthy. We didn't have to go to another hospital. We were actually discharged within two days. **yeah, and I had a c-section!!** I walked and walked and walked with this little girl. I was determined to heal and be better. It was a quick process. My weight after Aubrie was around 299. This was the highest I have ever been, and ever want to be. It's a number that will stay in my past forever!
In May 2007, we found out that my husband would be deploying to Iraq with his Unit, and I would be left behind with two babies. At the time, my daughter was 7 months old, and my son was 17 months. It would be a test, for sure. I decided at that time, I was going to try and lose weight again. I joined weight watchers again, and managed to lose roughly 37 pounds. My grandfather passed away only a month after my husband deployed, and it was a very hard time. My weight would shift from gain to loss sort-of quickly, but it was never at a point where my BMI was below 40. My husband returned from Iraq in last March (2008), and with his return....my weight has also started to shift back upward. I am tired of the yo-yo. I want to get healthy, and i have discovered that I can't do it entirely on my own. I need my family, friends, and WLS to tackle this beast.
Saturday, June 21, 2008, I attended a seminar given by Dr. Titus Duncan of Peachtree Surgical in Altanta, GA about Gastric Bypass surgery. I was enlightened, and excited. For once since my struggle with my weight, I felt like I could finally do something to control it, and make a huge difference in my life. I began my clearance process, and it took me roughly 2-3 months to complete. On October 20, 2008 my packet was submitted to Tricare for approval. On October 28th, I was able to schedule my consult (10/30), my pre-op (11/06), my endoscopy (11/07), and surgery (11/10).Finally, I have a date and now I can make the life-long change for the better. I have come to realize that I have the strength to change my outcome, but I need a tool to help me do that. I realize that WLS is that tool, and I can't wait to become a Success Story!!!
See ya on the flip side....soon...literally...within a few days! WAHOO!
