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Max
Moderator
08-12-2000
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 11:49 am
40 pounds overweight and the docs are advocating surgery? That's just not right. Candidates for surgery are those who are considered morbidly obese, usually needing to lose upwards of 100 pounds. Forty pounds is overweight, but it's not at all something that I would think would warrant as drastic a move as surgery. Good grief.
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Cndeariso
Member
06-28-2004
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 11:52 am
ITA Max. that's why i don't understand. i think it is her idea, not her doctor's.
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Mameblanche
Member
08-24-2002
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 12:06 pm
So much for a quick fix. Sigh. I was hoping the boobjob would spur me to lose the weight, not the other way around. LOL. I'm thinking that if I do lose the weight and the boobies get smaller I may not be nearly as compelled to have them 'done' at that point, even if they are still heading south, just from a (slightly) higher vantage point.
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Mameblanche
Member
08-24-2002
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 12:10 pm
Just a quick note about OA, it's NOT a diet club, so it can work in tandem (my word for the day) with other reputable programs as Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig, etc. It's a new way of thinking and a support system. I used to sponsor a bulimic. There are all types of people in this world with all types of food-related issues. All are welcome at OA, including Anorexics and Bulimics, etc. (The name Overeater's is a bit of a misnomer in that regard.) When I worked the program it worked for me. I've just been too content/lazy in the past few years to do anything about it. But during my 5 years in OA., I found friends and spirituality, AND did better weight-wise than I have ever done since. ETA - and like any 12 step program there is no charge, they are self-supporting and just pass the hat around for donations. When I belonged I was broke, and was lucky if I could afford to donate 50 cents per meeting, but you do what you can, it's your business.
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Texannie
Member
07-16-2001
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 1:21 pm
WW is good. I think it is telling that two different doctors have suggested the same surgery.
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Gidget
Member
07-28-2002
| Thursday, May 10, 2007 - 10:45 am
my co-worker's sister in her early 50's had the gastric bypass. she lost a great deal of weight. she was dead a month later of a heart attack. i had my gall bladder out a few years back. i too sought one of the best surgeons in my area. after the surgery i lost my appetite and lost weight. i joked on a follow up visit did he do a bypass while he was in there. he was not at all amused. his answer he wouldnt do that operation and it is nothing but blood money. ive heard some success stories before. i have even met someone i could not believe could have ever been over 100 pounds overweight. what i dont get is if you have to make all those mental and lifestyle changes exactly what is the point of the surgery. with the exception of some rare metabolic disorders weight control is mind over matter for most people. the people who manage to stretch their pouch and regain are proof of this. would love to see some hard facts of people who have lost and maintained because they had the surgery. really wonder what the success percentage is. the success percentage for losing and keeping off weight with any other method is sadly very low.
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Pamy
Member
01-02-2002
| Thursday, May 10, 2007 - 6:11 pm
when I saw Lap Band in the title I thought damn! Lap dances are so yesterday, ppl are getting a whole band on them now!
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Cndeariso
Member
06-28-2004
| Thursday, May 10, 2007 - 6:45 pm
what i dont get is if you have to make all those mental and lifestyle changes exactly what is the point of the surgery. ITA, gidget.
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Kep421
Member
08-11-2001
| Friday, May 11, 2007 - 11:51 am
I'm about 100 lbs overweight, have a BMI of 47%, have borderline HBP, am diabetic and suffer from joint pain in my knees/ankles/hips. I've been begging for the surgery for months now, but my doc will not recommend it until I can prove to him that I am capable of changing my lifestyle. My Doc has been very pro gastric bypass, for the right people, and he will go to bat all the way with the ins companies if need be. I know of 3 success stories, all of which are his patients. But he said if I wanted it that bad, I would have remain in an exercise program for at LEAST 6 mos and change my eating habits... I've joined Curves for a year and am on a "bastardized" version of the South Beach diet...and I can feel the difference in myself allready (only been doing it for a month). I think next week when I weigh in with him, I'm going to find out I am no longer 100lbs overweight and no longer eligible for the surgery... which I think was my doctor's plan all along!!! I love my doc...he is a great guy....
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Colordeagua
Member
10-25-2003
| Friday, May 11, 2007 - 10:17 pm
Kep, you are so lucky to have such a good doc. Is he a GP, FP, internist? I don't have a PCP. I need one. Hope to find a good one come fall when I get (boobies) checked. I like my surgeon and radiation oncologist a lot, but I hope I don't need their services again. I had a gyn who I loved, but she retired (early) and left the area a few years ago already. Again, lucky you.
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Zachsmom
Member
07-13-2000
| Saturday, May 12, 2007 - 12:00 am
In 1991 I had to have part of my stomach and intestines removed. (I have Crohns disease). The way that everything is 're-connected' is basically the same surgery as what people are wanting for the gastric bypass. I cannot fathom why a person would want the complications/side effects(or is it affects?) that go along with this surgery. Remember, my surgery was for different reasons. I had a bowel obstruction. But when my small intestines, stomach and colon were deemed 'healthy' (ie no Crohns) I still had problems. I had to for many years carry an extra pair of clothes as I could not pass gas. If I passed gas it could have been a bowel movement. To this day I cannot pass gas without fear. There are other complications such as anemia, vitamin deficencies (sp?),malabsorbtion, malnutrition, and cramping. I do not know why anyone, for the sake of being thin, would want to go through that. I was 86 lbs when I had the surgery and the most I have every weighed was 140, and that was in my 9th month of pregnancy. Why do not the doctors say "Hey, you want this surgery, this is how your life is going to be, you can only eat 1/4 cup for a meal, you have to do this for 6-8 months." It's a lifestyle change. I just cannot see why so many people would do this willingly. I had this done to save my life (bowel obstruction) and I do not see why people want this when it can be obtained with lifestyle change!
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Nancy
Member
08-01-2000
| Sunday, May 13, 2007 - 9:43 am
We have a newspaper article here back early fall about someone who was going to have bypass surgery--in the article it talked about how muuch he was eating just prior to the surgery('to get it all in') --the dr.s then say no to the surgery unless he could prove he could change his lifestyle--he actually went on a diet (supervised) and joined a gym and to date has lost around 100 lbs all on his own! go figure!
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Kep421
Member
08-11-2001
| Monday, May 14, 2007 - 2:30 pm
My Doc is a GP internist...He has opened a medical "co-op" with other local practioners and its a kind of one stop shopping for us patients. I love it....I get my mammagrams, blood work, ultrasounds, etc. all at the same office. SO CONVENIENT...plus I get to know all the people who work there... so its so much more personal. yes... I feel very lucky to have him as a dr...plus all us women patients call him Dr. Georgeous because he's sooooo cute...
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Cndeariso
Member
06-28-2004
| Monday, May 14, 2007 - 3:03 pm
kep, it sounds like you have a great doctor! that is great about your weight loss. i wish every doctor wasn't so knife happy. does the by-pass surgery still have a 20% mortality rate? btw, as of last Thursday, dh has lost just over 17 lbs. on Weight Watchers point system. he is so proud of himself. he says his knee isn't bothering him much anymore and his blood sugar has came way down in the morning to a normal level.
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Justavice
Member
11-22-2005
| Monday, May 14, 2007 - 6:31 pm
Wow!!! That is fantastic Cnd!! I am not sure how much weight your DH has to lose, but if he is excited about the program, that is at least half the battle! Has he made a decision about seeing a counselor? And you mentioned way back in the thread about him gaining weight when you go out of town, and I have been following the Niagara Falls thread... Has he thought at all about some kind of concrete plan for the trip? Maybe researching some restaurants online and looking at their menus to see what will work with his points? Or going grocery shopping to account for most meals so the occasional meal out will work within his program? I think it's great he is really trying to change his lifestyle and is also happy about it so far.
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Cndeariso
Member
06-28-2004
| Monday, May 14, 2007 - 6:45 pm
thanks, justavice. dh is 6' 5" and started out at 400 lbs. so, he is now nearing 380 lbs. he has a long way to go. the good thing about Weight Watchers for him is that they break it into manageable parts. your goal is 10% of your weight. so, his goal is 40 lbs. when he reaches that he will set a new goal of 36 lbs. and, since the meetings are at work and during work (he doesn't have to use leave time) he is sticking with it much more so than when he tried it before away from work.
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Cndeariso
Member
06-28-2004
| Monday, May 14, 2007 - 6:47 pm
dang, i didn't mean to post yet. i wasn't finished. LOL dh is taking a wait and see attitude on counseling. as long as he continues to do well they way he is right now, i'm not going to push it. as far as the trip is concerned, he will bring his 'tools' for keeping up with the points as best he can. he has done well on the weekends we have gone out of town so far.
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Cndeariso
Member
06-28-2004
| Monday, May 14, 2007 - 6:52 pm
i know this will sound like a cop-out but i'll say it anyway. i will not try to join him in this weight loss battle until he has lost 30 lbs. i need to drop about 100 lbs myself. the last time we tried to do this together i lost weight faster than he did and he got mad and quit. so, i feel if he gets a good head start AND i don't tell him i'm doing it too THEN maybe he won't quit. i just don't get the ego thing anyway. we go bowling about twice a month. neither of us are any good. i've never broken 100 and he rarely does. but, if i ever get a spare or strike he gets upset. if i get ahead of him he will just about kill himself until he comes back and beats me. LOL
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Justavice
Member
11-22-2005
| Monday, May 14, 2007 - 6:55 pm
That makes sense about the counseling. Definitely not necessary to press the issue if there is no issue when the WW is working. I've have several friends who have successfully used WW and loved the fact that they could still socialize at restaurants and stay within their points for the day. I did not know WW had that manageable goal system in place. What a great way to break it down so it doesn't seem impossible. Is he taking photos to document his progress? I've been watching the reruns of The Biggest Loser and I am always amazed at the weekly check ins with photos.
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Cndeariso
Member
06-28-2004
| Monday, May 14, 2007 - 7:00 pm
i hadn't thought about the photo thing. i'll mention it to him when i get back home Wednesday. i'm out of town for work right now. thanks for the idea!
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Zachsmom
Member
07-13-2000
| Monday, May 14, 2007 - 10:18 pm
Cnd, I think Weight Watchers is the best. They really teach you healthy eating habits. Plus, you are never denied food. YAY for your DH!!! There used to be a thread around here for Weight Watchers recipes. Also, have him try vegetarian meals. Contrary to popular belief, you can obtain a lot of protein eating vegetarian meals. I pretty much eat a vegetarian diet, but I do have eggs and milk. I do not know the difference of the 3 different vegetarian diets, I eat the one that allows fish and eggs and milk. This is not to say that every once in a while I eat a big fat juicy steak 
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Kep421
Member
08-11-2001
| Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - 2:31 pm
Congrats to your hubby Cnd!! I know how hard those 17lbs can be to lose. My appt is thurs...and my weigh in and measurements will be taken on wednesday...so hopefully I can show my dr what I've accomplished in the last 30 days.... Not sure about the weight, but I know I've lost inches...my clothes fit differently....
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Zachsmom
Member
07-13-2000
| Wednesday, May 16, 2007 - 8:33 am
Kep, if you have lost 17lbs in 30 days...that is WONDERFUL!!! Can you continue what you are doing for say 6 months and then re-evaluate if you want the surgery? I just think surgery is such an extreme. Think of what you have done for the last 30 days. Do you have a support system at home? Losing weight is difficult. Learning a new lifestyle is difficult. I KNOW you can do this on your own. You are such a strong person and I know you can do this.
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Scooterrific
Member
07-08-2005
| Wednesday, May 16, 2007 - 8:56 am
YAY Kep!!!!
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Wednesday, May 16, 2007 - 10:38 am
Good luck Kep! It's inches that you want to pay attention to anyways. People who fixate on pounds usually are destined to fail. I've never been on it, but I know people who have had great success with Weight Watchers. While I was on a month's sabbatical from work a few years ago, three of the women in my office decided to join WW together. I hated them, because they would share recipes with each other (and I totally felt left out), and they would go to WW meetings at lunch. Without me. But... but... but... each and every one of them got very close to their target weight. They all felt better about themselves. (And eventually, they decided that it would be OK to share recipes with me, too! ) A couple of them have fallen off the bandwagon, and one of them has started WW again to lose the weight she gained. She knows it is a lifestyle change, and when she became complacent she quit paying attention to what she was eating. And gained half the weight back. But she knows what she was doing wrong (and why), and is fixing the problem. I'm with ZM on this... surgery is not a quick fix answer and it is an extreme solution. If you can lose weight on your own, in a healthy (both physically, mentally, and emotionally) way, then you have a much better chance of staying healthy. What really worries me is the (almost total) body dysmorphyia in our society. Almost everyone has a distorted body self-image. Some people, who are not morbidly obese (like the 40 lb overweight person), are looking for quick answers. But without changing their lifestyles, what is that quick answer gonna do in the long run? You've traumatized your body with unnecessary surgery, you could have complications, you could gain all of the weight back (especially if you don't monitor your sugar intake!). Heck, just stopping with the sugar drinks, switching to flavored sparkling waters, I bet she'd lose half the weight she needs to lose in one month!! (Ack! Sorry for the soapbox! I do know that the various surgeries can be successful for some people. I just worry about people who are looking outside for help, rather than inside! )
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