kcoy
I was always the biggest kid in my class. It probably had something to do with being tall. And even though I probably wasn't over weight for my height, I always felt fat. I certainly wasn't the 110 lb. prom princess.
But looking back when I went to college I did look fairly average. Maybe a little 'broad across the beam', but not bad.
I got pregnant with my son when I was 21. Pregnancy is a great excuse to let yourself go. I probably weighed 225 when he was born. I did get back down to about 170, but before I got pregnant again (5 years later), I gained it all back. With the 2nd child, I gained again, to about 250. Instant replay -- I lost to about 225, then was up to 250 when I became pregnant the 3rd time. I wrestled with that weight for years, then started gaining about 10 pounds a year. I had a hysterectomy in 2004, and gained 30 pounds to my high weight - 333.
I started my journey more than once. I did the complete pre-op work up in 2000, but just couldn't go through with it. I just could not get my head around it.
In December 2005, I decided enough was enough.
In mid-December I first saw my bariatric doctor. By the end of December I had all my pre-op work up done, except the psych eval and my 6 month supervised weight loss. I completed everything by June 2006. My paperwork was submitted to my insurer.
Then I got to wait. 30, 60, then 90 days. Only to discover my paperwork had been sent in to the wrong insurer! In October 2006 it went to the right insurer. In December 2006 I was denied. They stated I was denied because I was too healthy (no co-morbidities). I appealed, and was denied again in April 2007.
I hired a specialize lawyer at ObesityLaw.com to handle my final appeal. After 60 days, and expecting a 3rd denial, I was approved!
It was a whirlwind from there. Within 3 weeks I had surgery, including my gallbladder removed.
If I would have wrote this portion 2 weeks ago, I would have said I was unhappy with my choice. It was a difficult transition for me, caused in part because I was not absorbing my hormone replacement.
I think I'm on the uphill side now, just fighting to find food that wants to agree with me.
But...I can truly say I would not have lost my weight to-date without this surgery. I have lost the first digit 3 in my weight forever!
I am encouraged by all of the kind folks out there, and hope I can be as supportive to you too!
