Hi everyone,
This site is great!
I took a tour around for a while before I joined and I have to say, those before, during and after pictures brought tears to my eyes, I thought, "I could be that person"!. You all are amazing.
Please excuse this long message, I am just so happy to communicate with others that have had a weight problem, I'm the biggest person I know!
So, I just have begun on my journey of "Obesity Surgery" as my health insurance calls it.
Here is some info. about myself , I'm 5' 6" and currently I weigh 246. I did the BMI calculation and depending on the time of day (i.e. if I am 248-249) I just make the 40 BMI. I have no high blood pressure, no sleep apnea, no diabetes and no other qualifyiing conditions to qualify with a BMI of 35-39. Isn't that sad that I want to have this surgery so that I DON'T get those conditions but may not be able to have the surgery because I don't have those condition, kind of a catch 22.
My highest was 261 a few years ago. My lowest, in recent years was about 209 back in May 2001 (class reunion time!). I was 175 when I got married in 1989, and that was after losing 57lbs with Weight Watchers.
I wasn't a fat kid, I was very active and to be honest, my mom was the food police so I didn't dare overeat. Then about 3 years into college my parents got divorced, my mom moved back East and I was in college in the Midwest and free (to eat!), I went from the healthy 155 (from 14-19 yrs. old) to about 195 and until 1989, stayed at about 233. Then I had three daughters, and there was the excuse to eat and eat during pregnancy, so any weight lost in between those 9 years of having the girls, I ended up gaining back during each pregnancy. I have lost the same 50 or so pounds probably 3 times, been a member of Weight Watchers on and off for at least 15 years (don't I wish I had that $13/week back!), never getting goal or really close to it. I think if I wasn't at Weight Watchers all those years, I would have been much more than I am now.
I've got all the exercise equipment in the house that I need, but I don't use it regularly, a track behind myself, a trampoline, etc. But I'm still big. I even joined a Fitness Boot Camp (6-7am) last summer for 7 weeks, I went 3X a week but I wasn't really committed to eating healthier, I just ate more and maintained the same weight. This summer, I said goodbye to those weekly Weight Watchers meetings and went back to the Fitness Boot Camp but for 5x a week (for 4 weeks) and decided I had better eat healthy. Today was the 12th day and I've lost about 2-3 lbs this time around, I'm planning on joining for another 4 weeks when this session is over but that is the end of it, kids school schedule along with work does not allow me to be out of the house at 6am-7am so here I am, trying to figure out how to get this weight off forever, I'm not really winning the weight battle even with a boot camp.
I even sent in an audition tape to Biggest Loser Casting the other day (for Season 7), that is how committed I am to getting rid of this weight forever. I figured with 6-8 hours of exercise a day, I am bound to lose this weight!
I am so tired of being this much overweight, people tell me I am not big enough for Biggest Loser or that I don't look that bad (they must be looking at me from the front because believe my, the rear looks bad!), If I sit at my desk, I look ok, it is the bottom half of me that I need to replace!
Ok, back to Gastric Bypass...my husband first brought it up a few weeks ago, FOR HIM! I'm thinking, all these years of me doing Weight Watchers (NutriSystem back in 1993 - lost only 20 lbs) and struggling and him only doing Atkins once (my husband is probably 100+ over ideal weight) and no other diets all these 18 years (and me counting points forever) and no Boot Camp for him and now he throws out Gastric Bypass?! That sounds like a person looking for a "Quick Fix", I am just realizing that it may be somewhat of a quick fix as far as weight coming off the first few months but it is permanent and goodbye eating all that junk late at night or even eating anything solid for a very long time. I want him to go to a Seminar with me for a local Gastric Bypass Surgery place and he doesn't seem to hip on going, I want him there for support and now he is starting to try and talk me out of it. He tells me "we can support each other and try and lose weight" (without Gastric Bypass) but hello, I've been doing it all these years and counting calories isn't working for me.
So, I've got an appt. with my primary care physician next week to begin the process of compiling support to qualify for this (if I intend to go through with the surgery). Sorry to say I never went to the dr. about Weight Mgmt., it was pretty obvious I needed help but if ever asked, I would say I had joined Weight Watchers and my dr(s) never pressured me, now I have to begin appts. for the purpose of Weight Management - let's hope that she puts together a convincing pile of supporting info, good thing I kept all those weight watcher weigh in booklets.
Just starting to consider Gastric Bypass
Van
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