nmogote
I had gastric bypass surgery April 2006. I qualified due to medical issues. I was diabetic on insulin, I had sleep apnea, and I needed a cane to walk due to arthritis. After years of trying to lose weight on my own, my doctor recommended surgery. It was the best thing that happened to me. Asked if I would do it again, in a heartbeat!
I have never felt this good in my adult life. I have plenty of energy. I am no longer sick all the time. I no longer take any medications or insulin, nor use a CPAP machine to sleep, or walk with a cane. My medical provider is Kaiser. They require six-months paticipation in their "Options" group before surgery is scheduled.
I went through the "Options" program and became a believer that for a program to provide the most benefit, people who have been through the surgery should be doing the training. With my background in training, I knew my calling was to become a group leader. My fellow "Options" group members encouraged me to start our own group after we had our surgery. When we started we met at my home. Through my job I met representatives from Garden Grove Hospital and was invited to move my group to their Center for Surgical Weight Control. They were very supportive. Our group grew to include both gastric bypass and lapband patients. We learned much from each other and supported each other.
Now the next step in our group has evolved and we are now part of the Pacific Bariatrics Support Groups. Our group has moved to the Kaiser Orange Pavillion. This is where most of my group started. We are Kaiser patients and we had our surgery through Pacific Bariatrics. We look forward to a long relationship with Pacific Bariatrics. The success of our group has always been due to the tools made available by ObesityHelp. Thank you, ObesityHelp!
