Welcome back to my new series all about the process I’m in of pursuing weight loss surgery. Last time, I talked about how I decided to get surgery, and the very first steps I took. Today, I’m talking about WHY I’m getting this surgery. I have a lot of reasons, so I figured bullet points might work best at covering them all.
- I don’t just have a few pounds to lose. I’m not just chubby or fat. According to my BMI, I am considered “morbidly obese.” I have over 100 pounds to lose. That’s a lot to lose with just diet and exercise alone. Having this tool will help me with this major hurtle. Having to lose a number in the triple digits is scary and overwhelming, so instead, I am working with a team to do this, and the tool of surgery.
- Diabetes runs in my family. While I don’t have it yet, and am not even pre-diabetic, I’d like to just keep myself from ever getting into that zone. Did you know that most people who DO have diabetes who get this surgery almost INSTANTLY go into remission?
- I am sick of being tired all the dang time. I’m tired just an hour or two after waking up, and I feel that way all day. I’m sluggish and exhausted, and with carrying around all this extra weight… it’s no wonder.
- Going along with the being tired thing, I want to have more energy so I can be more active with my kids. I want to be able to run in the yard with them, and easily get up and down from the floor.
- I’m also sick of getting out of breath on stairs, and just the general aches and pains that come with a lot of extra pounds on your body.
- Yes, I know I lost over 100 pounds years ago, but I had A LOT more free time and energy then. I would sometimes work out for 2 hours a day. I had no kids, house, or husband, and I only worked part time. Right now, I can fit in SOME exercise, but not the amount that I used to that would be needed to lose an extreme amount of weight again.
- I want to do the surgery now, while I’m still young and healthy because this should decrease the likelihood of complications with the surgery. I don’t want to wait until I’m 50 and diabetic. I want to do this while I’m young because I still have so much life to live. This will give me so much of my life back.
- I’ve suffered from migraines for many years, and while not everyone is healed from their migraines after this surgery, a lot of people do see them decrease. Migraines are sometimes linked to obesity, but not always.
- I’ve learned that people almost always gain weight back after dieting because their body gets kind of “set” at a certain weight and size and you nearly always end up going back to it. That’s why nearly all diets, calorie counting, weight loss programs, etc. end up failing in the long term. Studies show that after having surgery though, your body weight “resets” at a lower weight and you are much likelier to stay at or around that lower weight. I suck at science, so instead, here is a statement from a medical study that explains better than I do: “A key observation is that the large weight loss after gastric bypass surgery does not seem to make patients hungrier and hypo-metabolic, responses typically seen after calorie restriction-induced weight loss. Instead, many gastric bypass patients seem both psychologically and physiologically ‘at ease’ with their reduced body weight. The surgery seems to have reprogrammed the defended body weight at a lower level.” (source) Basically, I see this as giving me a much higher likelihood of succeeding because it’s going to help reset my body, literally form the inside out.
- And lastly, the biggest reason for why I want surgery instead of JUST diet and exercise: I’m addicted to sugar and sweets and I’m an emotional eater. Trying to cut them back or out altogether without surgery has been hard because I can eat sweets right now with seemingly no consequences. After you have surgery, you are physically limited in what you can eat, both by your smaller stomach and also by dumping syndrome, which, after surgery, “occurs when food, especially sugar, moves from your stomach into your small bowel too quickly.” It makes you very sick. Yes, this seems extreme, but I honestly feel like knowing that there will be a physical consequence for eating too many sweets is what it’s going to take to help me start breaking my sugar addiction. This surgery is going to start by re-training my body, and then eventually, my mind. A lot of people even say that their taste buds and cravings change altogether after surgery, so that’s what I’m hoping for. And if not, at least my body will develop somewhat of an intolerance to it so that I will greatly decrease both my ability and desire to eat sweets.
I know that there are people who have concerns and questions about this surgery, but please know that this process is a 4 – 6 month journey specifically because the doctors want to make sure you are physically and mentally prepared. Not only have I done tons of my own research, but any other concerns or questions you may have about me and this surgery have already been addressed in one of the many appointments I’ve already had (with my primary care doctor, with the dietitians, with the bariatric PA, etc). Not only that, I have many more appointments still to come including further appointments with the dietitians, a sleep study, and even appointments with a therapist who specializes in bariatrics and food addiction. It’s a very exhausting and exhaustive process so that the medical team can make sure you understand the changes you have to make leading up to and after surgery. All this to say, any concerns you may have… they have been covered and talked about extensively at my appointments. I know what I am up against, I know what I have to do, my doctor feels this is a good option for me, and I am already working with a dietitian on changing habits. I also plan to continue working with the therapist AFTER the surgery, even though it is not required. I already told her in an email that I would like to continue seeing her because I know that I need to work on finding better ways to cope with emotions than food, and that I am struggling with sugar addiction.
I also know that surgery and anesthesia in general are scary, and that there are complications that can arise from these things. I was extremely scared about this, as I mentioned in my first post, but the doctors have assured me that being young and healthy right now will make it easier for me. I want to STAY young and healthy, so I am simply going to believe that the small risks will absolutely be worth the rewards in the end.
I absolutely love and appreciate all the support and concern that I’ve received from my family and friends, and I just want to assure everyone that it’s going to be okay and that all of the worries you have about me have already been addressed by the amazing medical team I’ve got behind me. Going into something thinking you are going to fail is only going to set you up for failure. I plan on going into this with a positive mindset and the knowledge that I have the skills and support that I need to succeed. So thanks for being there for me, and all of the amazing support you’ve all already shown me. <3
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