Here I am at about 280 pounds. This is down from my high weight of 303 pounds. I am fortunate to be a tall person at 5'9", but this still makes me morbidly obese with a BMI of 40.7 at my current weight of 275. The American Heart Association states in a 1997 Journal article that bariatric surgery is the treatment of choice for someone like me. Fortunately for me the procedures have greatly improved throughout the years that I have had my weight so very high. The RNY procedure is considered to be the "GOLD STANDARD" of bariatric surgery. Even with knowing this, surgery was not an easy decision to make. But, I have concluded that I have been morbidly obese for most of the last 35 years and if I am to be able to have any quality of life as I move towards my "senior" years I MUST have this surgery. I am a Type II Diabetic, I have knee pain that prevents me from walking very far and now have a handicap sticker for my vehicle, I believe that I have sleep apnea which is a danger all unto itself, I live my daily life in pain from my various over-stressed joints, I have hypertension that is barely under control (and only because of losing some weight), I cannot do any of the fun or challenging things in life so the words "I can't" have become part of my vocabulary, many times sleeping at night is so very painful and this is even after I purchased a much nicer bed to accomodate the various aches and pains, and I could probably go on and on . . . because what this does to you emotionally cannot be measured.
My greatest fear of all is to one day find myself confined to a wheelchair because of my weight and being unable to take care of myself. This is not a pleasant thought. There are indeed worse things in life than considering and following through on gastric bypass surgery. The surgery is a risk, but any surgery is a risk. Any surgery is a risk for me no matter what it is for. I could find myself needing gallbladder surgery and that carries the same mortality odds as bariatric surgery!!
September 26, 2003 |
