Jess2086

Obesity & Me

Describe your behavioral and emotional battle with weight control before learning about bariatric surgery.

Prior to bariatric surgery, food was like an escape for me. I ate when I was sad, I ate when I was happy, I ate as a treat to myself when I seldom did something right, I ate to make myself feel better after having a bad day(which was often). As sad as it might be and as cliche as it may sound, food WAS my best friend at one point. It was always there, it never judged me and always made me feel better.

What was (is) the worst thing about being overweight?

The worst thing about being overweight(to me) has to be when it gets to the point where you don't feel like a "normal" human being anymore. You feel as if every person that looks at you is thinking the same thing about you and it's usually not a nice thought.

If you have had weight loss surgery already, what things do you most enjoy doing now that you weren't able to do before?

I enjoy walking through crowds without the constant fear of what people might be thinking about. I like feeling normal as I walk by people and no longer feel like a huge freak. It's great!

How did you first find out about bariatric surgery and what were your initial impressions of it?

It was brought up during a conversation with my father(registered nurse). I'd heard about it(previous to that conversation) on the media from celebrities who underwent gastric bypass or the lap band to reports on the news from doctors pro and against it. I never gave it a second thought because I felt it was TOO big of a step to take, that I wasn't "that far gone", that I could still do it on my own...I was wrong.

What aftercare support group/program do you have? How helpful/important is this?

I do not currently have an aftercare support group/program. I am thinking about attending/looking for one soon, I just haven't had the time as of yet. I consider myself rather successful but I think I'd feel better about my success if I had other people with similar interests and objectives to share and talk about it with.

What is your scar like? Is this what you expected?

Well, I have about 11 incision-scars on my stomach. Six are from the lap. gastric bypass and five are from the lap. cholecystectomy. I've never been a belly-baring short top wearing girl and have resigned myself to never be so I'm okay with them. They're very soft and I'm thinking maybe I can soften them up even more with some sort of laser-procedure.

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

I have experienced several plateaus since surgery. My weight has stalled on several ocassions and even though this frustrates me it also encourages me to work more and push myself harder. I have been hospitalized several times as well and have become quite ill so working out is not necessarily easy to do, but I can always adjust my diet and kick-start my weight loss.

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

I'm not necessarily sure if people are indeed treating me differently or if it's just me. Maybe the fact that I feel better about myself reflects in my personality and I become more approachable and come across as a happy person. Things are definitely better now though.
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