I had my picture on this web site but since I have so many articles
(and so little web space), I decided to "dump" the pic. I am in the process
of setting up my own web page with plenty of webspace but in the meantime,
this will have to do.
Who Am I?
Well, that is a tough question. See, I've been hiding behind all this
fat for so many years that I truly don't know the real me. But, I do know
a few things. I am 26 years old, I weigh 295 (as of March 3, 1998) and I
will be having a Gastric Bypass by Dr. Rabkin in San Francisco next month.
This will be my second attempt at obesity surgery. In 1992, I had a Vertical
Banded Gastroplasty and I later had it reversed (in 1995). The banded part
of the procedure started to close off causing really icky complications. Am
I scared about going under the knife for a third time? Heck no. The surgery
is the easy part. It's the recovery and the life changes that are hard.
I AM scared of being a statistic and "failing" to lose weight. I have
read hundreds (I'm not lying) of articles on obesity surgery. I am confident
that surgery is the only effective weapon against this obesity war. So what
do I want to do when I become a "loser"? I want to CLIMB. I want to climb
hills, mountains, stairs, etc. I want to be LIFTABLE. If I was in an
accident, I don't want to risk dying because noone could lift
me out of the car. I want to be JUDGED on the size of my heart and not
the size of my body. Ok, now on to the articles. I am not responsible for
their content. I simply found these articles and felt that someone might
benefit from them. If you find something objectable or untrue, please
inform me and I will simply remove the article! Enjoy...Hugs, Michelle
Articles
Journal
article: "American Society for Bariatric Surgery Says Insurance Plans Need to
Lighten Up on Obese Patients"
Newspaper
article titled "Insurers stymying important treatment of obesity"
Law Bulletin
article titled "Denial of Medicaid Coverage for Surgical Treatment of Obesity Reversed
by Idaho High Court
"
Newspaper
article titled "SURGERY HELPS PORTSMOUTH WOMAN WIN BATTLE WITH OBESITY"
Newspaper
article titled "AT LONG LAST: LOOKING ORDINARY;
GASTRIC BYPASS SURGERY IS KEY TO BETTER LIFE"
Cosmo
article titled ""BACK FROM BEING FAT! WEIGHT LOSS STORY"
Click here to read
a May 1996 article from Ladies Home Journal titled "Thin for Life: dramatic
surgery was the only way I could lose 130 pounds.
Click here to read
an April 1996 article from the Journal of Trauma
Nursing titled "The
obese trauma patient: treatment strategies" (This
article goes into
detail about the special needs of obese patients in
the hospital when
undergoing surgery..it's a good read if you want to
help manage your own
recovery)
Click here to read
a October 1997 article in Pulse magazine titled
"Surgery for obesity"
(If you are having the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and
are having a hard
time convincing your PCP or your insurance company,
this may be a good
article)
