Introduction

[Note: The entries in this diary appear last in first out, after this Introduction.]

This is my diary of my experiences with weight loss surgery. I use this general term, because there are two (actually more) types of weight loss operations: gastric bypass or lap-band. But, I am getting ahead of myself. Click to see more...

[Note: in the rest of this blog, you will see the "Click to see more..." message at the end of each posting. Many times,there is actually nothing more. So, at the end of those posts, I have proceeded the "more" link with "End of post, so don't ...".]

Friday, September 26, 2008 I had my first set of appointments in the preliminary examinations for Weight Loss Surgery. Here are the facts:

• Weight: 343lbs (350lbs with clothes on, but I will use 343 as it seems to be my body weight set point)
  
• Height: 5' 11"
• Body Mass Index: 47.8 (non-overweight BMI: 18.5-24.9)

(go to BMI Calculator to figure out yours)

The standard qualifications for WLS patients are a BMI > 40 and an age between 18 and 65. I qualify.

I had an electrocardiogram which was judged OK, but there was one little dip where there should have been a rise and so, since I am 61 I am scheduled for a stress test to make sure everything is OK.

The subject of the appointments I will have, ending with a meeting with my chosen surgeon, are:

• Two seminars on Weight Loss Surgery
  
• Blood work
• Introductory meeting with Bariatric nurse
• Introductory with director of WLS program at BIDMC
• Ultrasound to determine if I have gallstones
• Stress test
• Nutritionist
• Psychologist
  
• Exercise physiologist
  
• Surgeon

i.e., extensive.

On my application to the Bariatric Surgery Program at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, my answer to the final question of "Tell us about yourself..." was:

My primary reason for wanting to get control of my eating and consequently my weight is because I am fearful of all of the adverse health conditions that have accumulated in my body due to being significantly overweight in the last 15 years. Yes, there are many activities that I no longer can do because of my excessive weight. Things like walking, hiking, enjoying the adventurous aspects of traveling. Then there is the self-loathing that results from my lack of discipline to "just eat less" and my appearance.

I'm pretty smart and that has worked against me. Although I was very successful in loosing weight in Overeaters Anonymous, after a while I started to fail because I started to ignore the advice that "Thinking is not on of the tools of OA". And indeed it has taken me several years to fill out this form, because after I investigated everything there was to know about weight loss surgery, I thought "Why go through that? I can always exercise the discipline that you will need after the surgery and loose weight without going through the surgery." The only problem is that I never got around to exercising the discipline, and so the weight stay on. I have finally realized that all of this intellectualization has resulted in me weighing 350 pounds and on the verge of diabetes, the third or fourth medical condition due to my obesity. My biggest fear is how to deal with the stress I currently relieve by medicating myself with overeating. Then, of course, there are the unknowns about what it will feel like after the surgery, and the well publicized surgery complications.

Having said all of this, I want you to know I am both enthusiastic as well was watchful about what I am going to do. Please wish me luck.

Harry

P.S. Why did I choose the name "Reboot" for this blog? Well, in computers when the machine starts to perform badly because of the accrual of lots of junk, mismanaged memory, rogue processes, etc., the best thing is to reboot the machine and start from scratch. I find this a metaphor for what I am about to do regarding my eating: lots of bad habits, reasons for eating, out of control behaviors. The best thing is to start again with learning how to eat and WLS surgery is the only 100% foolproof way to do this. -- HF

Not entirely understandable

The reason there have been no updates is that things are indeed changing and indeed I am feeling fuller -- but it has not been an entirely understandable (to me) process. I had the fill 9 days ago. The first two days I was on a liquid diet and so I couldn't notice a change. Days 3-6 indeed I felt a predictable increase of fullness. Day 7-8 something must have gotten caught, because I felt full all of the time and couldn't eat much. I was concerned. Day 9 (yesterday) I started feeling as if food indeed was going down, and in fact was going down easier then days 3-6. I'm not entirely sure what that means.

Bottom line is that right now, I feel that the band is doing it's job and I indeed feel as if I want to eat less than I have in the past. In addition, my weight is indeed decreasing -- not as fast as days 7&8, but actually at the right rate -- somewhere between 1&2 pounds a week.

There is an interesting contrast in the Weight Loss Surgery (WLS) approach to weight loss and the Overeaters Anonymous (OA) approach.

• With WLS, there are three components: the gastric band, sensible eating plan, and exercise. In some sense these are pretty easy in that there is not a lot of ambiguous territory: you are what you eat and how much you exercise. The band is an almost passive partner used to reduce your appetite.
  
  
• With the OA approach there are also several components: a detailed food plan, daily contact with your sponsor, reading literature, multiple times per week meetings, readings about weightloss that go into the psychic and spiritual aspects of eating and the impact of over eating on yourself. There is no advocacy for exercise -- something which I find curious. With WLS there are support groups, but no where near as effective as the OA support group -- which is one of the most significant parts of the program.

I am clear in understanding how much I value and prefer the WLS approach. However, there are some aspects of OA that I still find useful: the reading about the impact of being overweight on both my physical health as well as how I feel about myself. I wish there were a stronger -- but perhaps not quite as strong -- patient support group. The Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) WLS support groups suffer because they are lead by BIDMC staff rather than by the patients themselves. I am also resisting organizing one myself because I am already doing too many things -- but I may decide to do this in the fall. End of post, so don't ...