I was 46 years old, 5’8, weighed 345 pounds, and I had hypertension, diabetes (on Metformin),and arthritis in both of my knees. My orthopedist said I would need a knee replacement by the time I turned 50. My family doctor and orthopedist both agreed I should look into a bariatric procedure. A co-worker used Dr. Marvin and I checked out his website. I saw what diabetes did to some of my family members and I wanted to get healthy and prolong my life. I have a wife and two kid that I want to be around for as long as possible.
My wife and I went to a bariatric information meeting at Methodist and heard Dr. Marvin speak about the procedure. It was very informative and left us very positive. I had previously been unsuccessful on different diets, exercise programs, and my ability to exercise was limited since my knee kept giving out on me. I went through a physician supervised diet, a cardiac work up, psychologist visit, a sleep study (found out I had sleep apnea), and visits with Dr. Marvin and his wonderful staff.
The gastric bypass (Roux n Y) surgery I had was not bad at all. I came in as an outpatient, and was up walking without assistance 4 hours after surgery. I wanted to walk as much as I could to get better faster. I got to go home the next day. The 1st week of clear liquids was tough, but manageable with the support of family. My family helped me with the broth, jello and popsicles. Then 3 weeks of soft foods and lots of walking. I was able to return to work 2 weeks after surgery. After the soft diets, I have been on a low fat, low sugar diet. I have lost 130 pounds in 6 months.
The is the best decision I have made. I am more active, I have more energy, my knees don’t hurt, I can walk/jog on a tread mill for 10 miles. I have not had diabetes medicine or a elevated blood sugar since the day after surgery, I am only on a low dose blood pressure medicine, compared to being on 3 different ones. I have new clothes, I went from a BMI of 54 to 33, and a waist size of 54 to a 38, and a shirt size of 3x/4x to a Lg/XL.
My family and friends have supported me. My family joined a gym together, we diet together, and they have lost weight also. This is a life saving procedure as long as you are ready for your life to be changed while it is being saved.
