Adam's Weight Loss Story
Weight Lost: 168 lbs.
Comorbidity Resolutions: No comorbidities but became eligible to be a kidney donor
Surgery Type: Gastric Bypass
I’ve always wanted to be healthy for my family and for my future. Albert Einstein said, “A life worth living is one that’s lived for others,” so that’s something that I live by. My mother was on dialysis for five years. She had kidney disease and needed a new kidney. I was not a candidate for donating a kidney to her because of my high body mass index (BMI). I tried everything under the sun to lose weight, from starving myself to death to only eating certain foods to drinking tea for 72 hours. Nothing worked. I decided that I needed to make a permanent life change and started looking at having a gastric bypass to lose the weight. It was a hard decision to make. Some people consider it cheating or the easy way out. But I can tell you, it was one of the hardest things I have ever done.
Surgery Results
I had a gastric bypass on May 14, 2014. Within a year, I became healthy and reached my goal, and on May 13, 2015, I went into surgery to donate a kidney. I was not able to donate directly to my mother. My kidney went to a 13-year old boy. I got to meet him and his family before and after surgery, and it was a great inspiration. It made my goal just that much more rewarding. So far, I’ve lost a little over 200 pounds. I’m almost at the point where I’ve lost more weight than what I weigh now. I’ve lost the weight of at least a good person. The bypass itself was not bad. It was actually easier than donating a kidney. The life changes were the hardest part. It was getting used to the new way of eating and a new way of life. Not eating with my eyes and ordering food with my stomach was a hard thing to do. I share food with my son now, and he eats more than I do. If you follow what they tell you to do, you don’t have the complications. And if you don’t do what they say, you suffer the consequences.
A Changed Life
Tying my shoes used to be one of the funniest jokes with my friends and family because I always had to hold my breath when I bent down to do so. Now, I don’t have to, which is wonderful. My life changed a lot more than I thought it would. I thought it was just going to mean I could buy smaller clothes, but it’s been more than that. I’m able to be more active with my kids and my family. I want to move and keep moving instead of staying still. I’ve had a great support group. My family has been behind me 110 percent. And my wife – I could not ask for a better partner through this situation. She has been there through thick and thin. Now that I have reached my goal and I’ve done what I could do for the woman who brought me into this world, my goal is to be an example for my children. I want be someone they can look up to. There are not that many role models in this world anymore, and if I can be a good example for their health, their education and their lifestyle, then I think I’ll be a good parent.