The Beginning of the End...

This is me...

The first thing you'll notice is you don't see my body. Only my face. I think I have a pretty face. Somewhere, buried beneath all that fat, are fairly high cheekbones, a nice solid jaw line and deep set eyes! I have tons of pictures of myself and I've realized I've cropped most all of them to only include my face. Tsk...Tsk...Tsk...

This is my beginning. 376 pounds to start this journey and a solid 165 to finish it or should I say the real start of the journey will begin at 165. I've made the decision to undergo bariatric surgery, specifically the LapBand. I've realized I'm addicted to food. Most people are addicted to cigarettes, drugs, alcohol, etc...but I am addicted to FOOD! I won't tell you now as I'm still too embarrased of how much I can eat in one sitting. Take my word for it, it's far too much. The pictures tell all.

I've met with one surgeon but am still debating between two surgeons - Dr. Ernest Rehnke in St. Petersburg, Florida or Dr. Wil Aguila in Tampa, Florida. It's not a decision I take lightly. Although, the LapBand surgery is far more safe than gastric bypass, there is still large risk involved and the surgery itself is not a "fix all" type of procedure. It will still require commitment to a healthier lifestyle! I have my first pre-op appointment with Dr. Rehnke on 11/23/09. I'm still waiting to get in to see Dr. Aguila. At this point in time, I'm also waiting on my insurance company to make the approval. It's possible I will be required to undergo six months of consecutive treatment with my GP for nutritional cousneling prior to the surgery. As I've argued to the insurance company, I have about 10 years of solid medical history of obesity and, if they want me to dig back further, I can! I understand it's required of the policy my employer purchased, but it's still disheartening that my journey may be put off for another six months. We shall see. I'm going to see my GP tomorrow to see if I can get their help in my push to get the insurance company to override their nutritional counseling! Wish me luck!

For those of you who are interested in learning more about bariatric surgery, specifically the Lap Band - here's the two types of bands you can get --- : www.lapband.com and www.realizemysuccess.com

Until later ;)