Although, no one has told me directly to my face that I took the easy way out of my weight problem; I know the stigma exists and the thought has passed someone's mind when they discovered my "super secret" method of losing all the weight.
Just take a look at comments on any entertainment social media page about a brave celebrity who took the leap into bariatric surgery and see the hurtful and ridiculous comments that both heavy and healthy people write. "I lost 100 lbs. without the help of surgery" "Look at her using her fame and fortune to get cosmetic surgery" The uniformed comments go on and on!
A certified surgeon once told me that the success rate for a person who needs to lose a significant amount of weight (over 75 lbs) is 1%. That is a 99% failure rate. (Without Surgery)
Firstly, it is just a tool! The surgeons do not use a magic stapler that melt away all the fat in your body and have you come off the table 100 lbs. lighter. Your jaw isn't wired shut, you're essentially the same person, they just did you the favor of giving you a smaller stomach, removing those hunger hormones and essentially kick-starting your metabolism again, so during this first year of rapid weight-loss, your body resets to it's new stomach, and essentially no longer wants to be in a BIG body (also know as a set-weight point). Ideally, removing 80-85% of your stomach with the sleeve lowers your set weight point.
Again, this is how I understood it after going through my own process (I am no medical professional). I was told that no matter how many times I wanted to diet, exercise and practically starve myself- the genetics of my body wanted to be big. The way out, was to fix my stomach, re-wire everything and start over.
Yes, it limits how much you can eat and regardless you will lose weight, but it is a life-long commitment of change. You have to give up a lot of crap, that you can't even go back to if you wanted because of the discomfort it would cause you i.e. Soda. You have to re-learn how to eat, you have to commit to exercise, just like any other "healthy" person does. The only difference is, we needed this tool to tell our bodies "hey, we can't function at this high weight you set for us".
So, with everything setup against us.. society, our own bodies, and statistics; in by no way is surgery the easy way out. It is the only way out of obesity- unless you are lucky enough to be that 1%. Exercise and healthy eating are still apart of the program, but we could never be successful in our weight-loss without this tool.
We treat every other disease without expecting patients to treat themselves, so we cannot expect the same for obesity.
You are probably thinking about the TV Show biggest loser. A surgeon in my practice had a fun fact that I went ahead and Googled. They have all gained their weight back.. except one participant. Who went ahead and had bariatric surgery. Do they not have will power? Because they worked their tails off on that show throwing tires and climbing mountains. It's not about willpower, it's not an easy way out, it's a treatment for a problem that can be easily fixed. So, don't beat up anyone who had it and think, well of course they're losing all the weight so easily they had surgery- IT'S NOT EASY! It's just the best option for weight-loss, and to keep it off.
"(After Surgey) Sleep apnea often vanishes and, with the bypass operation, so does acid reflux. Blood pressure falls. Diabetes often goes away even before much weight is lost — sometimes before patients leave the hospital. Weight loss can also relieve diabetes, but it turns out that the surgery’s effect is different, and only partly understood. Part of it is because of a marked increase in a hormone, GLP-1, after surgery. The hormone makes the pancreas release more insulin and also makes people — and animals — feel satiated. Patients also become more sensitive to the insulin they make."
Just take a look at comments on any entertainment social media page about a brave celebrity who took the leap into bariatric surgery and see the hurtful and ridiculous comments that both heavy and healthy people write. "I lost 100 lbs. without the help of surgery" "Look at her using her fame and fortune to get cosmetic surgery" The uniformed comments go on and on!
A certified surgeon once told me that the success rate for a person who needs to lose a significant amount of weight (over 75 lbs) is 1%. That is a 99% failure rate. (Without Surgery)
Firstly, it is just a tool! The surgeons do not use a magic stapler that melt away all the fat in your body and have you come off the table 100 lbs. lighter. Your jaw isn't wired shut, you're essentially the same person, they just did you the favor of giving you a smaller stomach, removing those hunger hormones and essentially kick-starting your metabolism again, so during this first year of rapid weight-loss, your body resets to it's new stomach, and essentially no longer wants to be in a BIG body (also know as a set-weight point). Ideally, removing 80-85% of your stomach with the sleeve lowers your set weight point.
Again, this is how I understood it after going through my own process (I am no medical professional). I was told that no matter how many times I wanted to diet, exercise and practically starve myself- the genetics of my body wanted to be big. The way out, was to fix my stomach, re-wire everything and start over.
Yes, it limits how much you can eat and regardless you will lose weight, but it is a life-long commitment of change. You have to give up a lot of crap, that you can't even go back to if you wanted because of the discomfort it would cause you i.e. Soda. You have to re-learn how to eat, you have to commit to exercise, just like any other "healthy" person does. The only difference is, we needed this tool to tell our bodies "hey, we can't function at this high weight you set for us".
So, with everything setup against us.. society, our own bodies, and statistics; in by no way is surgery the easy way out. It is the only way out of obesity- unless you are lucky enough to be that 1%. Exercise and healthy eating are still apart of the program, but we could never be successful in our weight-loss without this tool.
We treat every other disease without expecting patients to treat themselves, so we cannot expect the same for obesity.
You are probably thinking about the TV Show biggest loser. A surgeon in my practice had a fun fact that I went ahead and Googled. They have all gained their weight back.. except one participant. Who went ahead and had bariatric surgery. Do they not have will power? Because they worked their tails off on that show throwing tires and climbing mountains. It's not about willpower, it's not an easy way out, it's a treatment for a problem that can be easily fixed. So, don't beat up anyone who had it and think, well of course they're losing all the weight so easily they had surgery- IT'S NOT EASY! It's just the best option for weight-loss, and to keep it off.
"(After Surgey) Sleep apnea often vanishes and, with the bypass operation, so does acid reflux. Blood pressure falls. Diabetes often goes away even before much weight is lost — sometimes before patients leave the hospital. Weight loss can also relieve diabetes, but it turns out that the surgery’s effect is different, and only partly understood. Part of it is because of a marked increase in a hormone, GLP-1, after surgery. The hormone makes the pancreas release more insulin and also makes people — and animals — feel satiated. Patients also become more sensitive to the insulin they make."
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