Nearly one year ago, I embarked on a journey to get healthy. I’ve been overweight and inactive women for as long as I can remember. I’ve tried every diet that’s come along: high protein, Atkins, Weight Watchers, Optifast, Nutrisystem, plus others. I’ve lost and regained a lot of weight along the way. My inactivity led to weak muscles, poor balance and coordination, and a lack of stamina. This set in motion a vicious cycle: don’t have the stamina to exercise so spend more time being sedentary which led to boredom and overeating which then contributed to a lack of stamina. Every doctor that I’ve seen in my adult years has told me to lose weight and exercise more. I’d smile, promise to do better, and then promptly head to a drive-through for a big glass of sweet tea.
My journey to get healthy, really healthy, began on February 23, 2017, when I received the results of a heart catheterization. I’d been having some shortness of breath and some fluttering of my heart for several months. My cardiologist did a nuclear stress test which didn’t go well so he referred me for the heart cath. The doctor who did the procedure spoke to me afterward and indicated that I have an enlarged left ventricle. He explained that this was causing my heart to work really hard which led to the symptoms I reported. He referred me back to my cardiologist for more information.
I must admit that this scared me! You see, my dad died at the age of 42 from complications following a heart attack. My maternal grandfather died at the age of 54 from a sudden cardiac arrest. So a serious diagnosis about my heart was overwhelming and frightening. No longer was I a patient with high blood pressure that needed to be monitored. Now, I was a patient with a significant diagnosis that could have major consequences and ultimately lead to death.
At my follow -up appointment, my cardiologist stated clearly that I must change my lifestyle, that this was the only way to make my heart better. He increased my blood pressure medicine because that helps relieve the pressure in the heart and then told me that if I didn’t lose weight if I didn’t get healthier, this condition would worsen.
This began my exploration into weight-loss surgery. I’d thought about it before, even attended an information meeting, but got overwhelmed and never actually took steps to make it happen. My cardiologist recommended a bariatric surgeon and encouraged me to move forward with taking control of my weight and therefore my health. Still, it was months before I did anything except worry about my heart health and my overall well-being.
But I eventually did take action. I looked up the surgeon my cardiologist recommended, found his practice, took the online information session, and set the first appointment. In part 2 of this series, I’ll share more about that first visit and what happened over the following months as the journey to a healthier me continued.
August 2018