Until then I would like to share with you a comedian that I truly enjoy. His name is Jeff Dunham and he is an American ventriloquist. He has three Comedy Central specials; Jeff Dunham: Arguing with Myself, Jeff Dunham: Spark of Insanity, and Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special and a new show that premiers Thursday October 22, 2009. You can find him all over Youtube and he's even got a little space over on Myspace that has videos and other things you can check out.
I have a Myspace, but I pay no attention to it anymore. Why would I? It's gone seriously downhill in my opinion and has more asshats then nice people who are only interested in getting between groups of friends or people in relationships. The last "What are you doing?" thing from me was that Myspace is a toxic place. Which is how I actually feel. So being the smart young lady that I am, I stay away from Myspace. Still have a profile on it, I just am not there.
Ahhh, I knew it would pop back into my head! I KNEW it! :)
My trip to Lubbock Texas was very educating! In so many ways...first perhaps the important things learned.
I am on the cusp of being morbidly obese according to the BMI and what doctors say a person should fall. Let me put it perhaps a bit easier for you...
| BMI | Obesity Category |
| Below 19 | Underweight |
| 20-24 | Normal |
| 25-29 | Overweight |
| 30-34 | Obese |
| 35-39 | Severely Obese |
| 40-49 | Morbidly Obese |
| 50+ | Super Obese |
My BMI is 44. Yes, I am chubby, I actually wear my weight well and I love food. I no longer get the exercise needed to keep me at a healthy weight as I used to. I think it all started with my graduation gift of a 1975 AMC Hornet. But that's not as important as the things I learned from The Advanced Bariatric Surgery Center.
Which of course is in Lubbock Texas and the reason I was there (Although I think I have a friend that lives/lived there). What I learned from visiting and getting information on gastric by-pass made me a bit sad and also made me think.
According to Dr. Syn obesity is the result of genetics and environment. All humans are genetically prone to storing fat, since back in the caveman days it was the ones who could store it that survived when food was scarce. The ones with the high metabolisms didn't obviously so their genetics weren't as likely to be passed on. Environment should be an easy one to determine. Take a look around, count how many fast food restaurants there are now compared to....let's say 1920. It is now completely acceptable and normal for people to eat out instead of at home. So you've got that...
Then there's the myth that "Surgery is the easy way out."
What in the hell is easy about surgery? Even before I went down there (down then over?) I knew there is nothing ever easy about any surgery. There is a .5% chance of dieing with any surgery. And what a person has to go through after wards is not easy either. You really have to be committed to making a change in your life. You want to add back the 20 years that you lost from being obese in the first place changes need to be made.
Change is not easy.
Take 1,000 people, put them at the base of Everest and tell them to climb to the top. Tell them they have to do it or they'll be shot dead. How many people are actually going to make it up there? No training is given, perhaps some tools and supplies but not many, a lot of different opinions on how to best make it to the top is available for those who want it, but pretty much they are on their own.
How many would make it to the top?
It's basically the same thing when it comes to the morbidly obese and dieting. Out of 1,000 who try to do it on their own only 5 will actually make it. Surgery is the first choice and generally the only choice for a lot. The people who would actually sit there and tell these people that they should have the willpower enough to be able to push themselves away from the table and just stop eating or stick to a diet don't know shit. They're always, and I do mean always the ones who have never suffered with obesity at any level above BMI 29.
If you've never been there, don't pretend to know how to come back from that place. Don't assume anything...that only makes an ass out of you....not me. ;)
If you are obese don't be ashamed of needing surgery. At least you have taken a step to improve yourself knowing damn well that something needs to change and you have the courage to change it. Do not let those narrow minded people out there make you feel bad about anything.
And for the love of God do not do the Lap-band. It is bad for you. You will not loose weight. It's extremely hard to find any actual data on the research done on lap-band in Belgium where it first came out back in 1994 (year might be wrong, but it was the 90s) and there is new results showing why the lap-band, vertical banding, Gastroplasty, Jejuno-ileal bypass, VBG (Vertical Banded Gastroplasty) doesn't work. I can tell you what Dr. Syn told us, but unless the results can actually be found that isn't bias to the Lap-band, all you have is what I've been told and opinions.
When people with the above procedures (Called Restrictive [Vertical Banded, Gastroplasty for example] or Malabsorptive [Jejunoileal Bypass for example]procedures) try to eat heavy solid foods like beef and vegetables they end up throwing it back up, but soft foods like Hershey's syrup and cake stay down because they can easily pass by the band or small opening left in the stomach. How can you loose weight if the only foods that pass through are the ones that aren't good for you? Even if you chew the heavy foods up well and only eat a little bit at a time, you're still throwing them back up, so naturally you're going to eat the foods that don't make you puke. And naturally, you're not going to loose weight this way.
The Roux-en-Y gastric bypass however is different and has in-total the most favorable efficacy, durability and complication profile when done by a trained/experienced bariatric surgeon.
I think the real key here is to find an experienced and trained bariatric surgeon. Not a doctor who went to a weekend retreat in the mountains to learn how to place a lap-band on a pig. They have no idea what a slip looks like, or any signs of a slip. Check out doctors who only do bariatric surgeries. Nothing else and I am sure they can tell you better than I what to do.
Sadly I cannot accurately remember everything that was said on Tuesday. This is what I remember and I will admit some of it might be off. I'm not a doctor. Talk to someone who is. Dr. Syn is a bariatric surgeon and nothing else. I've linked to his web-site and I suggest you check it out. Get more information.
Personally, I rather have one surgery and not have to worry about 'adjustments' in a foreign object in my body.
The Roux-en-Y gastric bypass isn't a bunch of flowers and joy either though. A lot of changes in eating habits have to be made. No more eating out (at least at first), no more soda (ever) and having to be very careful what goes into the mouth, making sure there's enough protein and other vitamins so that malnutrition doesn't happen isn't freaking easy.
Don't choose a surgery based on price. That is foolish. Your health in all aspects is too important to let money make the deciding factor. I personally have no medical insurance at all and I will have to save up to have any surgery. But all this gives me the time I need to at least try to be one of those 5 in 1,000. Like I said, I'm pretty much on the cusp at a BMI of 44. If I can eat right, get out more there could be a chance of my BMI dropping. Or even after all my attempts I might still need surgery. I don't know. I rather not have surgery because I do not do well in hospitals. I've been in too many of them as a visitor and I become anxious and quite scared. Not a good thing for being a patient.
Perhaps that fact will help. Maybe I'll get support from my family. Maybe my mindset and lifestyle will change. Probably having someone in the home who plans to have the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery will also help.
Guess we'll wait around and see.
The other thing I learned in Lubbock?
They have some damn nice homes! VERY nice houses!
3 comments:
BMI is garbage. It says I'm 40 pounds overweight at 204 and I look like a scarecrow. If I lost 40 pounds you could see what I'm thinking.
BMI doesn't work for everyone. Athletes can't use it due to the fact muscle weighs more than fat. In my case though, my BMI sucks...in so many ways.
LOL
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