nitaylor
This is rather odd for me (this "my story" thing), as I usually tend to be the "observer" not the one in the spotlight...lol.
I will say that I've probably not been anywhere near thin since about 6th grade. I come from a big "southern" family of nine (6 kids, parents, and grandmother) so there was never a lack of great food. My parents often entertained guest/neighbors, so there were regular "cookouts" with more great food. I honestly don't have any memories of my parents expressing any concern about my weight. I was a healthy child other than the chickenpox in 1st grade. I do remember a weigh-in for gym class in 12th grade and I was somewhat suprised to find that I "tipped the scales" at 200lbs. Even then, it wasn't that big of a deal to as I've always had very good health checkups.
Friction began somewhat between me and my doctor's as an adult patient, however. Every time I changed jobs or my employer changed health coverage, my 1st appointment with the new doc consisted of him telling me how fat/unhealthy I was (really??) and proceeding to give me every test known to man to prove such. I often relished in the test results - Normal: BP, EKG, blood glucose level, excellent cholesteral level, etc. It was the only thing that would get them to grudgingly leave me alone... lol
Well, I've matured a bit...I'll soon be 40yrs old and last I checked (I've never owned a scale) I'm over 300lbs. Obviously (at 5'5) that is way too heavy. Further I recently found out that my best friend has been diagnosed with hypertension and prescribed medication. Those factors lead me to start examining my own health status. While I still get satisfactory/normal test results and didn't have the classic comorbid conditions (diabetes, high blood pressure ), I've finally noticed things that do actually concern me.
1. Walking/standing - I don't drive, so I've taken public transportation or walked mostly to get to and fro. I've found that I get a backache when walking even short distances or if I stand more than 15 - 20mins.
2. My knees - staircases, whether going up or down (need I say more?)
3. My ankles - I left my flipflops at work (shoot!!) and I spent nearly 10mins this very morning trying to put on closed-heel shoes because I didn't elevate my legs while I slept last night to reduce swelling (and didn't have time to put them up and wait for the swelling to go down - had to get to work)
4. Apnea? - This concerns me the most. My family has complained that I have begun to snore and that it's gotten progressively worse over the last couple of years. I have never been able to sleep completely horizontal , but attributed that to sinus problems. However, I've gone from sleeping at a slight incline to nearly a sitting position. Otherwise I wake with a terrible cough and/or dry heave.
I believe that the combination of improved diet, exercise and WLS will have an immediate impact on these conditions and offer access to a life that I've wanted to enjoy, but thought was unattainable.
