You know how people say that getting bariatric surgery is cheating in the weight loss game? I disagree.
I have a very good friend who underwent bariatric (gastric bypass) surgery several years ago. And let me tell ya: It's no walk in the park!
Since she was going to stay with me for several days post surgery, she had me read up on the surgery and it's risks. Holy healing, Batman! This stuff was serious! And scary! The risks involved were downright frightening, the lifestyle changes seemed to be truly daunting, and the healing process was going to be difficult and painful, to put it mildly.
Furthermore, she couldn't just go trippin' in fur surgery as soon as she made the choice. No sirree- She had to actually lose weight and follow strict dietary guidelines (the same ones she would be following after the surgery) for many months before her surgeon would qualify her for gastric bypass.
This, of course, naturally leads to the question,- Why go through the surgery at all? Why not just follow those procedures until the weight is lost?
I asked this same question of my personal trainer at the time. He seemed very sympathetic of those who chose bariatric surgery as a weight loss tool. His answer was "Because they just eat and eat and eat and never get full". At that point a light bulb went on in my head and I got it: At morbidly obese weights the stomach is distended and the feeling of fullness never happens.
If you are going to stay at a healthy weight, it's very helpful to have some physical type of signal that it's time to stop eating.
I admire people who can go from morbidly obese or even super morbidly obese (which she was) to normal weight without surgery. But I also support those who elect to have it, since I have seen first hand the sacrifice and self discipline that losing and keeping the weight off with bariatric surgery requires.
I had a front row seat to her healing process and I can tell you, it was terrible. I felt so bad for her. Moving was hard. She dreaded it. Eating was worse. I actually had to talk her into it a few times.
As she healed, she developed complications that set her back and worried us all. It was touch and go there for a while
She'd already lost quite a bit of weight on her own, but after the surgery weight seemed to just fall off. She got smaller and smaller, to the point where I had a hard time finding her in a crowd. It used to be easy- Since she was short I just looked for the widest space in the mayhem. Now, I had to hunt her down like a bloodhound.
To her credit, she also went to the gym regularly. She lifted weights and did cardio. She wasn't just smaller; she was fit.
This all then, of course, made yet another problem: Huge amounts of loose skin.
And so a year after the gastric bypass, when her doctor was convinced that she was set in her new lifestyle, he performed a body lift (removing the skin around her middle). And again, she stayed with me for the first few days out of the hospital. I think the healing from that was even worse than from the gastric bypass. There were little plastic bags hanging off of her for drainage, and with an incision literally clear around her middle she had no comfortable way to sit or lay down. But thanks to taking proper care of herself, she healed quickly. Now she is glad she went through the whole process.
She still works to keep her health in check. She did it right, and so many people do not. If you are considering bariatric surgery and know you won't be committed to a true and permanent lifestyle change, I'd advise against it. But for my friend, she was ready to do whatever was necessary to save her own life and ensure her future grandchildren have a grandma. If that's you, do your research and then make your decision.
And for those of us who have lost weight by more traditional means (or not lost weight at all), we need to not make assumptions and instead be supportive. Everyone has their own path to wellness. This may not be yours, but it could be lifesaving for someone else.
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