Why I'm Choosing Surgery: About My Weight and My Health

Obviously, I'm overweight. Although I'm not shockingly huge, known as "morbidly obese," according to the prevailing wisdom, I am obese.

To qualify for surgery under the public health guidelines, the BMI threshold is 40. My BMI is less than 40. However, you can qualify for surgery if your BMI is over 35 and you also have two or more health conditions that could be improved by the surgery. I do qualify for that.

That's not good, but that alone would not be enough, would not lead me to take this drastic step.

Health Scare

Two years ago, I went for some routine bloodwork, and had a high fasting glucose -- not in the diabetic range, but high enough to raise an alarm. It's sometimes called pre-diabetes. I was completely freaked out. I already have more than one chronic health condition. My life already requires a lot of maintenance. I've adjusted to all of it, but I cannot even think about adding diabetes to that list.

I used this scare as a motivation to make smarter food choices and get more exercise. At the time I was very busy, with very little time to myself, and regular exercise had really fallen out of the picture. So I did this for some months, got tested again... and there was no change. Or, there was a change but it was insignificantly small.

Now fast-forward to the present. I'm eating healthfully, I'm getting regular exercise, and I'm taking supplements that are supposed to help with blood sugar levels. My blood sugar readings after eating are normal. But my fasting levels are still in that pre-diabetes range.

Age

I'm 58 years old. I've seen a lot of information about the determinants of a healthy old age, and much can be determined by your health as you head into old age. Being a healthy senior and maintaining my independence as I age is really on my mind. There's so much we can't control. I want to control what I can.

I do eat a very healthy diet. I do get exercise -- not a huge amount, but I aim for that minimum 150 minutes per week. That's all good. But I am never going to lose enough weight, and maintain a lower weight, to significantly lower my BMI and change my health outcomes. The most I could hope for would be to stop gaining weight.

And I'd likely ruin my life while I tried. (I'm not exaggerating.)

My Diet...

I said I eat a very healthy diet. That's both true and not true.

I don't eat fast food, I don't drink soda or anything with sugar in it. I don't eat processed food.

I do eat a lot of fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. I'm an omnivore, which I believe is a healthy way to live.

I don't stress eat, and I don't eat from boredom. I eat only when I'm hungry.

...And My Brain

But. There's the but. I'm always hungry. I eat, and I feel full. Ninety minutes later, I'm hungry again.

And when you're always hungry and have access to food, it's very difficult to always make good choices. I do all the things you're supposed to do. I plan ahead. I have healthy snacks on hand to help with hunger between meals. I'm the queen of healthy snacks. But it doesn't always work.

In the last 10 years, I have gained five pounds per year. And I was about 10 pounds overweight to start with.

Bariatric surgery shrinks your stomach, so that it can only accept small amounts of food. But it does more than that.

Your stomach secretes hormones that tell your brain when you are hungry or sated, and tell your pancreas how much insulin to secrete -- and a lot of other things that medical science doesn't completely understand. After bariatric surgery, those hormones are drastically reduced. It's believed this contributes to both weight loss and the maintenance of a healthy weight.