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The
reason for WLS: I am too heavy for my health. After countless
years of failed diets, weight loss meds, half-hearted attempts
to exercise regularly and the grim effects of yo-yo weight,
I tipped the scales at a whopping 440 lbs. I developed
sleep apnea, type II diabetes, sore hips and reduced lung
capacity due to all the weight. I wheezed when I took more
than five steps at a time, and forget about going anywhere
in public that required me to walk more than a couple minutes
without a place to sit. I was becoming more and more house-bound.
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surgery, I will die. Period. There are risks involved with
surgery, that is true, but without it, I will incur more
health problems as I get older. So far my heart is fine,
and my blood pressure is normal. But I fell and injured
my knee and the x-rays indicate that the cartilage in my
knees is almost gone because of excess weight. I am only
32. And that is just the tip of the iceberg. There are
all sorts of social indignities that an obese person faces
in their daily lives, from the open rude ridicule of insensitive
persons to the embarrassing agony of not fitting into a
regular public toilet, or movie theatre seats, simple things
that normal sized people do every day and take for granted.
I am scheduled to have surgery this summer. I am one of
the lucky ones.
I
have been working diligently to change my lifestyle by
exercising regularly, and working on my eating issues.
I am also aware that if a person who only had about 50
or so pounds to lose followed the exercise regimen and
eating plan (the diabetic eating plan) that I have adhered
to over the past two years, that they would have long
ago attained their desired weight. I lost 90 pounds initially
but then have maintained that loss for about a year now.
It is very discouraging. However, my body doesn’t
seem to be able to release the weight in a “normal” medically
accepted manner. That is where surgery comes in. In order
for me to reach a healthy weight I need the boost that
WLS can provide. I am very aware that it is only a tool
that will work only if I continue to do my part in maintaining
a healthier lifestyle. But combined with WLS, I am confident
that I will be able to reach a more acceptable weight,
and keep it there, and drain the health care system of
extra dollars that would need to be spent on me should
I further incur the inevitable co-morbidities that would
only get more complicated with the passing of time. I
will be able to go back to school, and become a more
productive member of society. At the size I am now, that
is impossible.
Since
her submission, C has had her surgery.
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