Hello, world!
I am Felicity and this blog is to share my Weight Loss Surgery journey with the world.
Why am I doing this? I feel that part of my journey to a better ME is to document my own thoughts, challenges, and successes along the way - and hopefully - help others who may be going through some of the same thoughts and feelings that I am.
This blog is about weight loss, so let's get the important info out of the way first. I have struggled with weight for as long as I can remember. When I was a child growing up, I remember being scolded for sneaking lunch treats and eating too much outside my family mealtime. I had a poor body image because I was 'chubby' which led me to eat even more. I was over 200lb by the time I was 14 years old. I was over 250 by 17 and broke the 300lb mark around age 21. My highest weight was about 380lb when I was 27 years old.
Magically, even though I was heavy, I was relatively healthy. I am lucky to not have had any co-morbidities that are often associated with super obesity. I am not diabetic, my blood pressure is in a normal range, no heart conditions. I did have issues with little-to-no menstrual cycles, back pain, and sleep apnea. It was hard to do any physical activity and I would get winded just walking through a parking lot.
It was at my highest weight of 380lb that I decided I had to do SOMETHING. Hundreds and thousands of dollars in diets and gym memberships weren't working. I could lose a little weight, but then immediately regain. I always felt hunger. That is when I started looking online into Weight Loss Surgery. I had a great job with good benefits which included bariatric surgery. So, I got up the courage to call a local surgeon within my network and schedule a consultation.
The surgeon was very charming and nice and made me feel right at home. My online research all pointed towards getting a Lap-Band procedure, so I expressed interest in that to the surgeon. He let me know that I would be a great candidate and set me up on the approval process. Although I dragged my feet along the way (getting medical records was a challenge!) 18 months later in July 2011 I was recovering from my brand new band.
This is where I wish I could start telling you about how well the surgery went and how it worked for me. It didn't. I followed the post-op instructions, but was so HUNGRY all the time. I only lost about 20lb within the first 4 months, then another 20lb over the next 4 years, but never did I see any significant weight loss. I had many adjustments to the restriction of the band, but it was never quite right. Some days I could eat a large movie theater popcorn with butter, then other days I would wake up and a glass of water would not pass through my restriction. I was left depressed that even I was too fat for this lap band to work. I had even lower self-esteem and self-loathing that I paid money for a surgery, went under the knife, and had nothing to show for it except some scars.
Fast forward to 2015. I have been frustrated with my Lap-Band for 4 years now. I feel like it is a curse. I have an unhealthy relationship with food - I binge-eat foods that will pass my band and avoid foods that will give me issues. It was finally in June of 2015 that I decided to look into what is called a "Revision Surgery" - basically, removal of the Lap Band and changing to another form of weight loss surgery. I was very interested in this after hearing about an acquaintance of my husband having the same issues with his lap band as I did, then revising to a Gastric Sleeve (VSG) and being very successful. Maybe I wasn't the issue, and instead I chose the wrong surgery?
I finally made an appointment for a consultation with a respectable surgeon in my state that does WLS revisions. My pre-authorization tests are completed and paperwork is underway - I decided that a revision to a Gastric Bypass (RNY) is the best bet for me, and I am making lifestyle changes to make sure I succeed. More about that -- and a surgery date -- soon!
