Julie G.
I started this journey back in the spring of 2004. I had been divorced a couple of years...was dating someone new, and had gained about 100lbs since 2000. I had actually been a personal trainer for awhile in the late 90's..a total gym rat. Through the divorce and all the stress that went with it, I managed to quit working out and gain the weight. I had always struggled with my weight since I was a child, although looking back at my teen years, I really was not overweight, just had a horrible body image from constant teasing an berating from my family about being fat. I proved them all right and gained a ton of weight after having children...lost 50 or so here and there, but always gained it back...now I am holding steady at about 270.
So...anyway...I went to a seminar for the WISH Center (they were the one that had a lot of commercials with Carnie Wilson) in April or May of 2004. Turns out though, they weren't on my insurance at the time, so I kind of put the idea away for a couple of months, until I got a letter from them in July that said they were now on BCBS preferred list. I went to the initial appointment (that was almost an entire day) they sent all the stuff in, and I was approved and scheduled for January 21, 2005. One of the final steps before surgery required by the WISH center was a final approval from my PCP. I had been anemic for several months, but it was pretty much chalked up to heavy periods (although they weren't that heavy) and being overweight (extra estrogen in my body) so I started on birth control pills and took iron....and I kept getting more anemic. My primary care doctor would not approve me for the surgery until I had a gastroenterology consult. I saw the gastro guy...and he said...we'll do a Colonoscopy and an EGD but we won't find anything in someone your age..( I was 36). On December 29th, I had the procedures, expecting it to be just a "Hey, you're fine.. go have your surgery..." but as I woke up, he told me that I had colon cancer. The day that I would have had WLS was the day I had a colon resection. I had to have 3 more surgeries due to complications with the port and catheters that I had to have inserted in my upper chest for chemo...then 7 months of chemo. That pretty much used up 2005. I started the WLS surgery process again in 2006, but had different insurance with different requirements, and didn't have the 6 months of diet history they needed and got denied. After a few months of being mad at my insurance company, I went to a different surgeon whose office seemed to have it more together, went through what I needed, and started the 6 months of WW. Fast forward to July 31st, 2007...after failing at WW for 6 months..I'm approved!! YAY!!!! 10/10/2007 I start my metamorphisis!!
