Brenda R.
I have been heavy my whole life. I think I was born at 125 pounds. I have tried just about every diet known to man and not much success. I take that back, one time there was. I did the Atkins diet for about 9 months and lost more than 90 pounds. I felt wonderful and thought that it would never end. But then I started doing things differently and thought that I would be able to eat a bit of this and a bit of that. Boy what a mistake that one was. It didn't work after that. I gained it back plus which was the story of my life.
I thought long and hard about this surgery. When I finally decided to do it the time went so fast. In a matter of weeks things were rolling and the approval came. I got approved the first time. I figure the insurance company was so tired of paying out claims for me they thought that if they approved it and I got this surgery things would change. lol
I think that some of the push that I had was seeing some of my family get so sick and pass on so early in life. My dad being one of them. He died when I was 15 of a heart attack and he was 53-the same age I am right now. I have always been told that there is one parent that you take more after and that one would be my dad. My mom always called me pocket copy of him. I guess she was right. When I got diagnosed with a heart problem 15 years ago I knew that I would die at the same age my dad did. Then when I got put in the hospital this spring with what they thought was my heart problem I just knew then that my time was here. I even told my cardiologist this. Imagine my surprise when it turned out to be a kidney stone! lol After all I just KNEW that my time was coming to an end. That is when I decided to get serious about getting some of this weight off. I knew that was my wake up call. This was the time that I got going. It didn't take being a bad diabetic. I was taking 5 shots and 2 pills a day and my sugars were still out of control. I at least got out of taking the shots when I got my insulin pump earlier this year. I got out of taking the shots but I was still putting insulin in my body. I was so insulin resistant that they had to have me put in 500 insulin instead of 100. When I was putting in the 100 insulin I was still taking just as much and I had to change the pump every day. It took a kidney stone of all things! I think that I was always a slow learner for some things in my life! lol
I guess what it took to bring me to this point in my life was just being tired of being sick and tired. I had no energy and my back hurt so bad that I couldn't even walk through WalMart anymore, I had to use a scooter. I thought to myself why am I doing this to me? There has to be a better way and thank God I found it. Now I am going to have the tool to help me to be the best well person that I can be. I am going to improve my health and get off some of this medicine. My cardiologist told me the other day that I will probably get off the water pill for the congestive heart failure. I really didn't think that would happen. I know that the surgery isn't going to make the cardiomyopathy go away but it will help it in that it is going to take a lot of the strain off the heart. For that I am grateful. It isn't going to take the disc disease away or the arthritis or the herniated discs but it sure is going to help a lot. The way I see this it is going to be a win win situation. With that I can live and enjoy my life life I haven't for a long time.
I believe in the saying "If God brings you to it, He gets you through it." and He has brought me to it and he is going to make sure I get through it.
I am going to end now and with these words I part "This is my story and I'm sticking to it!" 
