Gastric Bypass Surgery - I Am a New Person - Havre de Grace, MD

I thought I would give everyone an update on how I've been doing. In one more month, I will be 2 years out from surgery. I am doing great. I have stopped losing the weight and I am now maintaining the weight I am at. In the past year, I have had some plastic surgery done. I had brachioplasty (arm lift) and also the tummy tuck done. I lost over 100 pounds, but I still felt "Unfinished." I felt like a freak everytime I looked in the mirror and saw all the sagging skin I was left with. My plastic surgery left me feeling complete. I now have that hour glass figure and my arms don't flap in the breeze when I move them. I still have days when I am challenged by the food around me. I have found that Gastric Bypass surgery is very much a head game that you play with yourself. You have to constantly remind yourself of where you have been, and where you DON'T want to go back to. The eating has gotten easier for me. I have good days, and I have bad days, but I have a quote that I say to myself when the weak moments kick in..."This food does not taste as good as skinny feels." (thank you Terry) I would not change a single thing I have done. My life has changed so much since surgery. I have so much more self confidence in myself now. I WANT to be out there in the public and not hiding inside my house. I WANT to eat healthy, and exercise, and look my best when I go out. I am proud of what I have accomplished. Never in my life did I ever think I would feel this way about myself. Every once in awhile, old ghosts come back to haunt me, and I need some reassurance from my hubby on whether or not I look ok, but then I realize that it's the head games coming into play again. Being able to recognize these moments are very important. So, I will continue to eat right, exercise, take my vitamins every day, and enjoy this new life I was given. Best of luck to everyone out there who has gone thru it, or is thinking of going thru it.

I had Gastric Bypass surgery done in Sept. 2008. I weighed 259 pounds on the day of surgery. I had diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, achy joints...you name it. I had no complications at all from this surgery. I had it done laproscopic, and only had 6 small cuts on my belly. The healing process was very fast and I was back to normal in no time at all. If you are willing to change your lifestyle, this surgery will help you become the person you only dreamed of being. By change your lifestyle, I mean you need to be willing to completely change your eating habits, commit to taking vitamins the rest of your life, and exercise on a daily basis. These are the main things that you need to be willing to do because this is a life changing procedure. In the beginning, I was only able to eat very small portions...I mean 1/4 cup of food if I was lucky, but it filled me up. I found it to be amazing that I could feel so full on such a small amount of food. That is the wonderful part of this whole surgery, your stomach gets full with a small amount of food, and if you try to overeat, you will pay the price with what is called dumping. That can consist of anything from vomiting to severe diarrhea. After 1 year, I am able to eat a little more than 1/4 cup, but still not anything like I was able to eat before the surgery. I have kept a journal of my whole experience and I'm so glad I did. It is amazing to look back at the photos and wonder who that person it. I can't even remember looking like that. I also kept a chart of my measurements, again, it is amazing to watch the inches melt away. After 1 year, I have lost 100 pounds, and a total of 60 inches off my body. I am a new person. I am now able to do some things that I only dreamed of doing before. I am now the owner of a bicycle. I am 49 years old, and I haven't had a bicycle since I was about 12. I went from wearing size 24 pants, to wearing size 10. I went from a 3X shirt to a size large (sometimes medium). It is a good feeling to be able to shop in the misses department and not the plus size. Shopping has actually become a fun thing to do now. This surgery has made me into a new person. I have a whole new outlook on life. I am healthy, I feel healthy, and I am loving life now. My only regret is that I didn't do this years ago.