My Story...

Hi! I'm Emily and this is my journey through life after RNY Gastric Bypass surgery. I had GBS on August 27th, 2012. Here's my story: I have been overweight my entire life. I was a big baby, child and of course grew up to be a very big adult!

 

My weight has affected every area of my life. It has made me constantly self conscious. I was an easy target in school and people would single me out because I was one of the biggest girls in school. 

That's me in the purple and black jacket. I realize that it could have been worse, but growing up as a shy overweight girl is really painful. Boys would dare each other to ask me out. My so called best friend in 8th grade created a fake email with her snarky male friend to harass me through derogatory messages. The pain inside of me was uncontrollable. I maintained a weight of around 220 through high school and then my weight rose quickly. I had freedom, a job and a social life to maintain. Exercise was not on my mind! I gained a lot of weight during college because I secluded myself and I didn't have many friends. I ate to stifle the boredom.  I have had my share of weight loss attempts. I feel like I've tried almost everything. I worked out mercilessly, starved myself, Atkins, No Flour/No Sugar, etc. I would lose some weight, but it would never stay off. In 2011, I moved to TN. I had given up on losing weight and felt like I would always be heavy. I was about 310 pounds when I moved here. The Southern Cuisine was very different than what I was used to and I showed no restraint while indulging. Between the stress of being in a new place and job hunting, I got pretty depressed and just tried to eat to make myself feel better (Do you see a trend? I'm an emotional eater). 

        I started a new job in November of 2012. Thankfully, the new job had good insurance and I started the weight loss insurance procedures in February 2012. My insurance wanted me to have 6 months of consecutive weigh ins, a psych evaluation, cardiologist testing (since my BMI was over 50), nutrition classes, and lots of blood work. I attended a Seminar at St. Francis Hospital in March to learn about the surgery. Each insurance group has different requirements for gastric bypass insurance approval. I completed my 6 month period in late July. My highest weight was around 352 in July of 2012. I hated what I'd become! I ached. My body felt about 30 years older than my real age. I didn't feel 28! I was constantly feeling uncomfortable with my body image and desperately fearing what others thought of me. 

The hospital submitted all of my paperwork to my insurance and the long wait started. Honestly, I was worried. My weight fluctuated so much during the 6 months that I was worried they wouldn't approve me. I was approved a little over two weeks later and had my last pre-op appointment on August 15th! On that day they gave me my surgery date. I was thisclose to crying when the nurse gave me my date of August 27th! I have fought so hard and felt so burdened by my weight for my entire lifetime. Its like relief just swept over me and I finally felt like I could breathe again. It was going to be ok. I was finally going to get relief from this prison I was trapped in! Since my surgery was going to be so soon, I had to start the next day on the Liver Shrink Diet. I was allowed to have a protein shake or bar for breakfast or lunch and then a 4 oz. serving of a lean protein and a small carb for dinner. I was allowed to have unlimited non-starchy vegetables throughout the day if I was hungry. I remember thinking "I need to have a last meal before I start this diet!" That night I bid goodbye to my favorite unhealthy foods by having a last supper of Chick-fil-A chicken strips meal, waffle fries, crack sauce (chick-fil-a sauce) and a chocolate chunk cookie. Those next days leading up to my surgery were tough! This big girl was not used to being restricted! I tried to savor my night time meal with every bite. The Dr. warned us in the waiting room that they will know if we haven't followed the pre-surgery diet! This diet helps shrink the liver so the surgeon has more room to maneuver while operating. Those days leading up to surgery were tough, but I had a goal in mind and I wanted to accomplish it! Follow up with my next post to hear about my surgery experience.