"When I got to CSSA in May, I was not initially scheduled to see Dr. Fedorak, but was informed I had been switched to him. It was a great first encounter! He and I clicked pretty well. We are about the same age. I had a million questions and he answered all of them beyond my satisfaction. He is very straightforward and honest. He told me the good, bad, and ugly. He spent at least 2 1/2 hours with me. I talked, he listened. He talked, I listened. I really "fell for him" when he told me to stop appologizing for who I was and how I was because obesity is not a character flaw. Amen! I also asked him why he would want to do this type of surgery...was it because someone he loved and/or cared about was fat or what?! I loved his response, which I felt was truly sincere. He said that if I had gone to him years earlier, he would have probably treated me with the same attitude every doctor I have ever encountered had had toward someone of my size. But, he said, after joining the staff of CSSA, he began to watch the patients that were coming in before and after the other surgeons had done the procedure on them and he realized it was as great a joy as bringing a new life in the world. He said what greater joy could he get from medicine than to be able to give someone there life back! Is that beautiful or what?!?!? He has taken personal time and attention with me, and when my initial surgery had to be postponed because we found I had anemia the evening before I was supposed to go in, he really cared about how devastated I was and took charge of further testing I needed to rule out causes of the anemia. I feel that he has cared about me, the person, since the very beginning and the bond has just strengthened as I have traveled along the rod to my new beginning. His staff, Barb and all of the gals, have been absolutely wonderful to me, even when I have been frustrated and upset because of the obstacles and ordeals of getting everything done. It has taken longer than I though or wanted, but as I look at it now, I realize it is all for a reason and will work out."
