Patient Stories

Before	After

I waited eight years to marry my husband, but on that day, the day that I had waited so long for, I sat in my room and cried wondering how I had let myself get so big. I was back home about to walk down the aisle in front of family and friends that hadn’t seen me since I moved to Arizona, since I had gotten so big.

I fought with my dress, I tried not to cry as my five bridesmaids, all of whom had been thin their entire lives, tried to figure out how to get the dress to fit. It fit perfectly and looked pretty good when I bought it, but I had gained another twenty or so pounds since the last fitting, I loved that dress but the biggest size it came in was 22 and I was a 26 now. I was too embarrassed to take it back.

When we finally got it zipped, I was pouring out of the top and I was sure that I would have to leave it unzipped in the limo so that I wouldn’t split out the zipper before the ceremony. I was stuffed into that dress, I could barely breath. I cried, as I looked in the mirror and thought that my face looked almost disfigured by the weight, I couldn’t remember what I looked like under all of it anymore.

I had waited so long for that day, and when it came I wanted to run and hide so no one would see me, no one would find out how big I had gotten. No one would be shocked when I walked down the aisle. Shock isn’t the reaction you hope for on your wedding day. I felt like a monster.

I held my head as high as could and avoided looking at anyone I was not talking to directly, I danced, I laughed, but mostly I cried. When the photos came I was horrified, I looked worse than I thought. I did not put them in frames or scrapbooks, I didn’t send them to family, and I didn’t put the album on the shelf. I hid them away, like a secret I didn’t want anyone to know. I didn’t know at the time that that photo album would be the push I needed to change my life forever.

I struggled with my weight since I was 12, but nothing really serious. I was taller and heavier than the other girls but really I only fought with 15-30 pounds from the time I was 12 until I was 23. That is when it all changed, I can’t even say why or how, I started University, moved to Arizona and moved in with my now husband, all good changes, but I piled the weight on. I was 5’10 and 168 lbs when I moved to Arizona in January of 2001, by my wedding in June of 2006 I was 314lbs.

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During those five years I tried so many diets and crazy fad weight loss products and programs. Atkins, South Beach, Nutrisystem, Trim-Spa, The Hollywood Juice Diet, and pretty much any other diet you can think of. I had the most success with Weight Watchers. I lost 83lbs but soon as I stopped weighing, measuring, and counting everything I gained it all back plus 26 lbs within a year. I gave up, I resolved myself to the fact that I would never be even relatively thin again.

In September of 2006, a friend asked me why I didn’t have any photos of my wedding anywhere in my house. I told her that I didn’t like any of the photos and she hounded me until I pulled out the photo album for her to see. I thought, why not she won’t be shocked, she has never seen me any other way. As we flipped through the album, all the feelings of that day flooded back, and I was mad, really mad. I resolved right then that I would not live the rest of my life like that. I would not accept the shame, embarrassment and physical condition that were keeping me from enjoying my life.

In January of 2005, Dr. Michael Orris performed my emergency appendectomy, after the surgery he told me that I would be a good candidate for lap band surgery. I dismissed it at the time, thinking that that was for the morbidly obese people that they showed on the Discovery Channel, certainly that was not me. Now, I wasn’t so sure. I did some research and found Dr. Orris and Dr. Debarros’ office online. When I did the BMI calculator, I was shocked that according to my BMI of 45 I was morbidly obese; I called for a consultation that day.

Even though I thought that lap band was my best option, I struggled with feelings of failure, why didn’t I have the discipline, strength and stick-to-it-ivness to lose the weight. What would my family and friends think, would they all think that I was failure? When people found out what would they think of me? Weight loss surgery was always treated as “cheating” by dieters and society in general. Even People Magazine’s annual “I lost it” issue touted the featured dieters with giant headlines “NO SURGERY!!!” Finally I decided that if anyone thought of me as a failure for having the surgery, then I didn’t want them in my life anyway, my health and emotional well being was more important than stigma and stereotypes.

I had my surgery on September 25, 2006. It was the best decision I ever made. I was frustrated at first; I wanted the weight gone right away. I worked the program, having fills when I knew I need them, following the Doctors directions and within a year I had lost 100lbs. During that year, I never felt like a dieter, I felt like a normal person. I thought: this is what it must be like to eat like a normal person, to not have cravings, hunger, and food running my life. Before I would look forward to eating all day, thinking about what I would eat next, now I eat to live, I enjoy my meals but I don’t think about it all day, I don’t make special trips to the grocery store everyday to feed a craving, and fast food has lost all its allure. Only someone who has struggled with this can understand, and I have to tell them that there is hope.

I have no shame about having the surgery, in fact I carry a photo from my wedding in my purse with me everyday, I am proud of my decision, I am proud of myself. I am now 5’10” and 164 lbs, my BMI is 23.5, within the healthy range and I wear a size 10, eight dress sizes smaller than on my wedding day! Before the surgery, I couldn’t cross my legs, tie my own shoes, paint my toe nails, walk a flight of stairs, walk my dogs, dance with my husband or fit in a plane seat, now I do yoga, step classes, dance, hike south mountain for hours with my husband and dogs. I no longer feel embarrassed or ashamed about my appearance, I look and feel like me again.

I can’t thank Dr. Orris enough for informing me about the surgery, and to both him and Dr. Debarros for being so much more than surgeons, but champions of life changing hope for so many like me. Their support, then and now is invaluable, their skill unmatched, and I can only hope that others will take the same leap of faith that I have, faith in hope, faith in a solution, faith in a healthy future, faith that you can change, and faith that the surgery and these surgeons will change your life in a way that nothing else can.

So now, I think it is time to renew my vows….and get new photos.
Sincerely, Rachel A. Stephen
 
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Before	After

Prior to having the Lap-Band surgery, food ruled my life. I thought about it all the time and was unable to control my eating. I tried all sorts of diets, but they all failed in the long run because of one problem: hunger. People who have never been obese rarely understand. They say things like, “Why don’t you just eat less and exercise more?” If only it were that simple. Eating less was met with my body practically begging and shouting at me to EAT EAT EAT! Finally, I had enough. Having the surgery has been the greatest investment in my health I have ever made. It is about regaining control over your eating and your freedom to choose how much to consume. When adjusted properly, the Band will not stop you from overeating. What it will do is give you back the control by greatly reducing your hunger; it is a lot easier to choose to eat less when your body is telling you that it is satisfied with a small portion of food.

Losing almost 150 pounds has made a tremendous difference in my health and quality of life. No longer do I dread getting on an airplane to visit family or wonder what the people around me are thinking. I have thrown away the “big and tall” clothing magazines and am now able to shop for clothes in a regular department store. My blood pressure has gone down, and I’m no longer at risk for developing type 2 diabetes. Best of all my energy level has increased tenfold, and I am finally able to keep up with my (highly active) little cousins. For anyone who is obese and is serious about making a change, I highly suggest you consider the Lap-Band. There is a whole world out there waiting for you.
 

Before	After

The Lap Band Surgery was the best decision I’ve ever made. Prior to surgery, my confidence was at an all-time low and I didn’t see a light at the end of the tunnel. Very soon after surgery I started to feel like I was gaining traction again. The pounds were melting off.Unlike the dozen’s of diets I had tried, I wasn’t feeling deprived. Now, 14 months post surgery, I have lost 116 pounds and I’m feeling like anything is possible. Thanks you to the kind nurses, doctors and staff at Surgery Specialty Hospital of Arizona!

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Before	After

An interview sent by Mike Murphy, Dietitian for Weight Loss Institute of Arizona, to Charlotte Peters.
1. What made you decide to have lap-band surgery?
My parents owned a bakery during all of my growing up years. I was tiny as a small child, but soon anyone could just look at me and know that I was “the baker’s daughter”. Fat cells were “implanted” into me early and oh, how I loved those donuts! The rest of my life continued to be a battle of me against my donut cells. My fourth grade teacher announced to the whole class that I received a 3 (e) on my math paper because I looked like a 3! This is the kind of thing that we have all faced during our childhood. My weight was up and down every 5 or so years and I knew how dangerous that was. My friend had gastric bypass and she was looking so great -I was so jealous! However, I didn’t want that drastic surgery. Then I heard about the lap band in an advertisement for WLiA. The sun began to shine and I knew this was for me.

2. Your insurance made you complete a diet and exercise program for 6 months to be approved, did this help you prepare better for surgery and did you feel it wasn’t necessary?
I felt that it wasn’t necessary as I had been that route before. If it was going to work, it would have worked years ago. However, I was faithful about exercising and I found out it wasn’t as bad as I had expected. During those long 6 months I did become familiar with the diet that I would be on and it gave me a chance to study it and to come to the conclusion that this was something I could do.

3. How has your life changed since your procedure?
Wow, I never expected that it would change this much in such a short amount of time. I can’t even begin to tell you how much energy I have and I’m not even taking a pill for thatl In fact, I am now off my cholesterol and blood pressure medication. I had back surgery in 2002 which was followed by chronic back pain. I am now off my strong pain medication. It is truly a miracle. I can keep up with my very active teenage grandchildren and they can tell how good I feel. My self esteem has improved because I know that I look better. People have stopped staring at me and wondering how I can even walk carrying all that extra weight. That was truly embarrassing!

4. What have you learned about the band that you can share with others?
Remember that the band is a too! that you are given. It is not an instant cure all; you have to work with it. It will let you know if you have eaten too much, not chewed enough or are taking too big of bites of food. Learn to slow down, enjoy where you are and what you are doing for yourself. Be patient, the weight will come off, not DROP off, but burn off as you work towards your goal. Sometimes there is a little discomfort, deal with it! It’s a small price to pay for being a healthier you.

5. Are you there any foods that you can’t (or won’t) eat?
I have not even tried steak. I did try a bit of baked pork chop, but I had to cut the bites so small that I couldn’t get much flavor. I figured it would be the same with steak. I won’t eat any more rice; it didn’t go down well at all. However, I will try things to see what happens. I have even had a little popcorn without any problem at all. Of course, you have to chew it well and eat one kernel at a time, but it’s so good. I only have a handful, but I make it last. I have tried a little bread and it’s okay, but I don’t want to gum things up, so I won’t eat that. I would rather eat something that’s really good for me, like fruits or vegetables and of course, protein. 

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