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| Personal Triumphs Against Obesity: Elaine's Story |
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I am 27 years old, married and I have two sons, a ten and a two years old . I am currently the Store Marketing Officer of a fast food chain. Last October 6, 2003 I underwent Gastric Banding surgery under Dr. Dineros and his team of at St. Luke's Medical Center. The operation lasted for about 1 hour and I was confined for 4 days including my preoperative stay. I came to know about bariatric surgery a year before my operation. I was watching "Magandang Gabi Bayan" and I saw their feature on Dr. Mike Mateo. Right then and there I was sold to the idea of bariatric surgery but I said to myself there was no chance that I could undergo such an operation because I could not afford it. So I immediately dismissed the idea. Back then I was just 175 pounds. I was not always this big, back in high school I was only 112 pounds. I even enrolled for a lifetime membership at a popular gym, not to lose weight but to gain weight. Imagine that! Obesity didn't run in my family. As a matter of fact my mother is quite shapely for her age and I even have a brother who has a weight problem, an underweight problem, that is. I first started to gain weight during my first pregnancy. From a mere 120 pounds I went up all the way to 199 pounds right before giving birth. After giving birth to my first son, my battle with obesity began. I tried all types of diets you could think of, from the grapefruit diet to the Atkins diet. I also tried all types of medication possible, herbal, Bangkok pills, and even prescribed medication. I have to admit, although some failed, some also proved to be effective. The problem was the moment I stopped the diet
or the medication I would easily gain back all the pounds, even double
the pounds! That was my continuing dilemma, the seesaw effect of the
diets and the pills. Nothing seemed to work on a long-term basis and
because of this a few more problems arose. I started to feel hopeless
and worthless which later on developed into depression. I developed
a "can't beat them, join them" attitude. I said to myself, I couldn't
seem to shed off the pounds, then why bother depriving myself of all
the good things in life like chocolates and ice cream? This is when
my love for food began. I ate to my heart's content. But then I found
myself pregnant again. This time around I was 209 pounds before giving
birth. The decision to do something drastic about my weight came when
I realized that a year after giving birth to second son, I did not
lose any weight. Instead I even gained more weight. I refuse to weigh
for years because I was in a state of denial. I could not accept the
fact that I was really getting bigger and bigger. But then eventually,
I realized that fact. I was scared. I did not want to be fat for the
rest of my life. I did not like the feeling. I used to be so thin.
I was used to wearing shorts and mini skirts. I was even a cheerleader
for crying out loud! There were so many things I could no longer do
because I was overweight. I was suffering from various aches and pains
for the main reason that I was over weight. This perhaps was one of
the major reasons why I decided to do something about my weight problem.
I did not want to develop further health problems. I said to myself,
if I don't do something now, not only am I jeopardizing my health
but I am also jeopardizing the future of my kids. With the rate of
my weight gain, I might end up having a heart attack before I reach
forty! My relatives shared the same sentiments as I did. My mother
was very supportive of my cause so she accompanied me to various clinics
to find out a way to address my weight problem. At first we considered
liposuction but then the doctor discouraged us, as it would not really
address my weight problem. Liposuction is more for aesthetic purposes
only and it is not a long-term solution. After weighing the pros and
cons, we decided to consider bariatric surgery. We set an appointment
with Dr. Dineros and thanks to my mom, in a weeks time I had my operation.
I entered the operating room weighing 217 pounds. It has been exactly
4 months since my operation and so far I have lost 37 pounds already.
Thanks to bariatric surgery |
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