Re: Let's fight about Widemark -- Nick's on target

[Guest guest]

At 8:37 PM -0800 10/29/01, Nick wrote:

>...

>

>As far as risks are concerned, your hypothetical 300 lb. paragon of health

>is a myth. By the time I hit 300 lbs., I had comorbidities. As my weight

>blossomed from there, they multiplied in both intensity and number. Now I

>am 60 and am very happy that I had this surgery for it is the only thing

>that could provide me with QOL in the coming years.

I did not realize that Nick had passed 59, too!!! I am in the same

boat as Nick, then, at 61. He hit id dead-on: past 300#, things go

downhill rapidly (except for the scales). All sorts of things start

to go wrong. Misery seems to like company. The next thing you

realize is that you don't want to get up from chairs, even chairs

that you can fit into. Walking up a flight of stairs is a chore at

best. Bending down to tie one's shoes restricts the ability breathe

as the fat belly squishes in the diaphragm. Legs swell. Breathing

is short. Sleep apnea threatens health. Heart skips beats and

palpitates. Cholesterol shoots skyward. Stomach acid squirts back

up the esophagus, and heartburn can be terrible without expensive

drugs. Medically powerful pills multiply on your table. Pill bills,

even with insurance, mount. You're on your way to the junk heap,

folks, but it all happened so insidiously that you didn't really know

what was going on until you woke up one day and found yourself in

deep kimchee.

Now, just 75 pounds down, and just under 300#, I can get up from

chairs with no sweat, and I can fit into most arm chairs; I can tie

my shoes without huffing and puffing for air; I can walk up even two

flights of stairs without having to rest afterward; my legs do not

swell any more; my cholesterol is down to 134 WITHOUT any drugs to

get it there; I am now off diuretics, and my heart medicine dosage

has been cut in half with a view to possibly discontinuing it in a

month; I do not think that I have significant sleep apnea any more;

heart palpitations are rare, and I have weaned myself off the acid

reflux drug (Prilosec--actually, a supressor of acid-making).

Of course, I still have loads of pills to take: 6 calcium tabs, 2

FiberCon, 1 mega-multi-vitamin, 2 ADEKs, 6 potassium citrate (to

suppress uric acid kidney stones, and several Acidophilus capsules to

keep my gut populated with " good " bacteria. But, most of those are

supplements, and not pharmacologically potent stuff.

Whatever years I have left will have a lot more quality of living in

them than if I had continued to gain just a few pounds every year...

So I have to agree wholeheartedly with Nick:

>If you are waiting for a gold leafed guarantee of 50 years of perfect

>health, don't bother reading the DS groups or any other WLS info because

>that isn't there. If you want to know how your life span will be affected,

>14+ years is about as far as you can go. Are there any medical procedures

>that have been developed over that time period for which you can find such a

>guarantee? Of course not. Does that mean that you would refuse them? If

>so, forget any WLS along with them.

--Steve

--

Steve Goldstein, age 61

Lap BPD/DS on May 2, 2001

Dr. Elariny, INOVA Fairfax Hospital, Virginia

Starting (05/02/01) BMI = 51

BMI on 10/25 = 39 (-75 lb.) -- No longer M.O.

Losing more slowly than most, but enjoying renewed health and life in general.