Determined To Succeed

Good morning my friends. Whether you’ve been along for the ride since I began this blog or have just joined in I welcome you and want you to know you now have a place to relax, vent, cry, laugh, learn from and most of all share. We are all in this weight loss journey together and I am so proud to begin knowing each and every one of you.

Being on the Dr. Oz Show was an amazing experience and he asked me personally to blog for him and become a Wellness Warrior. That makes me both happy and proud. I hope I do a good job.

And thanks to the Dr. Oz Show and a subsequent appearance on FOX 5 News out of New York yesterday I have heard from so many wonderful people about their weight loss stories and there have been a few in just the one day since that have touched my heart. None more so than my new friend, Kelle, who talked about her fiancee, Fernando, and his untimely death due to complications from gastric bypass surgery.

Kelle lost her fiancée, Fernando, in 2008 from complications due to gastric bypass surgery. He weighed 411 when they found out they were expecting their son. Growing up an obese child he decided it was time to make a lifestyle change. Fernando felt he had to do it for their son, so that he would be around for his little boy, be able to run after him in the park, and just be healthy for his son and Kelle. Fernando also decided to have the surgery because nothing had worked for him. He was diagnosed with Type-2 diabetes just 6 months prior to his death. He also went to a nutritionist, joined Weight Watchers, did sleep studies for his apnea but nothing worked. Unfortunately, the worst possible outcome happened and Fernando passed away at the age of 42.

Kelle’s son was 9-months-old when his father died and she wishes sometimes that he would have stayed the large man he was. “Although he was a big guy he had an even bigger heart,” Kelle said, “and when a life is lost and your laying there for your loved one to say your final good-byes it doesn’t matter what size you are.”

That is so true.

It is always hard for me to write about gastric bypass because, while I knew I would never have it for myself,  I know so many people who have had the surgery (or lap band surgery). I would also never be down on them for two reasons: because they are my friends and I love them and also because they made the decision to have their respective surgeries for themselves. They have gone on to lose weight and keep it off and be healthy and extend their lives because of it. For that, and their continued friendship, I am most grateful.

After reading Kelle’s letter I did some poking around this wonderful, new-fangled internet thingie and found out something very interesting. You type “gastric bypass mortality rate” into Google and you’ll get varying degrees of information and data, some of which is from the mid-2000s. I did however find one article from January 2010 which is interesting and does seem to go along with the other stats I found.

A study led by researchers at the University of Cincinnati concluded that while the benefits of gastric bypass surgery may far outweigh the health risks for most people who are morbidly obese (which is defined as having a body mass index of 40 or higher) the 30-day mortality from the surgery can range to as high as 2 percent in some studies . That means up to 1 in every 50 surgeries can result in complications and mortality.

I am so glad Kelle wrote me and told me her story. The first time I had ever heard of gastric bypass was because of my old boss’s friend. He was 400 lbs and he unfortunately died from complications of the surgery much like Fernando. That was when I decided if I was ever going to lose weight it would not be through surgery and why I absolutely believe that people can do it naturally. 42 is way too young to lose a loved one especially when he is a father. But he did what he felt he had to do for Kelle and his new son and that amounts to only one thing – love.

I struggle every day with weight loss. I really do. It’s hard to say I am going to resist the foods I love because I’m scared. I’m scared I might go back to having them in the amounts I used to and, therefore, will go back to being the weight I was. I struggle every day with portion control and saying no to a food today so I can have it as a treat later. I really do want to continue my weight loss. It is a struggle every single day. I get up. I crave certain foods. I crave the foods that I know are bad for me. And I have to resist every single day and not give into them. That is what I want this blog to do. Tell people that with a little resistance (and most of all self-love) they can achieve their goals.

Weight loss is a story we can all share and understand. In the days and months and years to come I hope you guys continue to share your stories with me. Sorry today’s blog was so long. But this journey we’re on is a long one. But it’s one that you can now do with the company of friends and loved ones by your side.