Nancy Hicks Casperson

I first heard about this through my son and Daughter in law they both had surgery.They both have lost over 200 pds a piece in a little over a year and a half.So I decided if I want out of this Nursing Home then I needed to also have it done.I'm only 56 years old and live in a nursing Home.So I had it done in Dec of 2013 and have lost 200 pounds.I started out at 500 pounds and I can happily say I now weigh 299.My surgeon is Dr.Marshal from Peoria Illinois.He is great

Holiday celebrations are all about food, right? Save up every year, to overeat and not keep yourself in check. It’s a losing mindset from the get-go. The end of the year is really about memories, gratitude and those who we care for in life, not just the Thanksgiving feast or the Christmas Day buffet. What makes a holiday special also makes it filled with emotions and triggers that enable our unhealthy excessive eating behaviors to be acceptable at this time of year.


A few things that may sound familiar and affect many of us during the holiday season are:
Family traditions and ethnic backgrounds with food memories that have followed us through life.
Trauma, hardships or losses that make holiday cheer tough to enjoy or even tolerate on some levels.
Falling back on a diet mindset and thinking it’s ok to eat recreate old habits from October 31-January 2.
Awareness of mental and emotional struggles feeling more acute during the holiday season.

For bariatric patients, an immediate fear presents itself: “How can I survive all the parties and family celebrations while embracing my post-surgery food choices so I don’t lose control with holiday eating and drinking this year?” The practical answer: Prepare for it, just as if the surgery was ahead of you. Think and plan for success with the least amount of guilt and destruction possible.
Holiday foods are not “rewards” or “treats” or a reason to fall off the mindful thinking that you use every day. We all have family and cultural traditions of holiday foods, and the meanings behind them; that often follow us into adulthood. The connection is to people, not food itself. Holiday time often intensifies many people’s mental and emotional struggle with life issues. Food can often be an immediate distraction and way to receive immediate gratification in tough times. The trouble is, the stresses and issues remain after the food is consumed. Often, alcohol consumption increases at holiday time as well, so mindset is altered by allowing more uninhibited behavior to prevail. Using good judgment often decreases as well.
So, if we can use the model of being prepared and accountable for ourselves, what would it look like?
Think of the season on your terms. Where can you plan and take the lead on making good choices for yourself while still feeling the holiday spirit? Find control where you can make food to bring to others parties or meals. Host at your home to take pressure off of yourself. Be honest and ask to be considered when food is being prepared and served so that you can also taste but be flooded by the excessive choices and behaviors all around us.
Find ways to relax and refresh so you are not overwhelmed or drained by the holiday madness. Keep a journal of your thoughts, fears, successes and challenges to remind you of the proud journey you are on now. Use meditative activities to bring a more even and peaceful attitude to the business of the season and the potential for burnout and self-destruction. Give of yourself to others that need to be uplifted.
Find a community, group hobby or counselor if the season is troubling of extremely unmanageable. Many times the holiday triggers are too hard to handle alone. Ask for help and know that you are being proactive (helping yourself) instead of reactive (always behind and at the mercy of others decisions and actions).

The key is to stay connected to the resources, the people, places and things that bring successful experiences to us, and avoid harmful or undermining circumstances that reinforce low self-esteem and bad, and often destructive, behaviors. As a bariatric patient, being accountable is helping yourself stay focused on a positive and productive mindset with help provide a fulfilling and peaceful holiday season each and every year. Yes, this is you, enjoying your life during the holidays.

Mom taught me the greatest lesson I’ve ever learned:
Self-acceptance and the desire to change are not mutually exclusive propositions


I hit 300 pounds by the age of 18. Dating back to early childhood, all my efforts to diet had failed, and always left me heavier than I’d been when I started.
In my 20s, I decided to accept my body - fat and all. No more diets. No more wasting time feeling bad about my size. From now on, I was gonna work on loving the body I had. If I remember correctly, about 10 minutes later, my mother broke the news:
“Sweetheart, I’m having weight loss surgery.”
A chorus of ‘No!’ started singing in my head. Every reason why surgery was a bad idea tried to elbow its way to the stage.
“It’s dangerous!”
“It’s expensive!”
“It’s a cop out!”
“It’s society that needs to change, not you!”
“You’re beautiful just as you are!”
“It’s their problem, not yours!”
“NO!”
My mom had gone through periods of consistently eating nourishing foods in nourishing ways, exercising every day, and sleeping well. And as a result, she knew what it felt like to be more comfortable in her own skin, and to move through the world without the burden of 150+-pounds of excess fat.
I, on the other hand, was young, and had always been overweight and out of shape, but I wasn’t gonna let that stop me from believing I knew what was best for my mother. I was an idealistic feminist college student who’d just stumbled upon the solution to suffering: loving myself just exactly as I was.
To my mind, by choosing to have surgery, my mom was being a narrow-minded, self-hating fool.
“Mom, you need to love yourself! Don’t let society tell you how your body should look!”
“I do love myself," she said. "That’s why I’m doing this. I want to be comfortable. I want to be able to do things I’m not comfortable doing at this weight. And I want to be alive and healthy for when you have babies.”
I could hardly believe the depth of her ignorance.
“There’s a support group for post-ops that’s open to the public. Please come with me,” she said.
Fine, I thought. There was bound to be some post-op there who’d almost died, or someone that couldn’t swallow...All I needed was one flesh and blood person to base my argument on, and then my mother would have no choice but to come to her senses.
“I’ll come on one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“I want you to listen to everything that gets said in that meeting. I’m not going if you’re gonna ignore the truth.”
“It’s a deal.”
My mom drove us to the meeting in Englewood, NJ. There was a facilitator, and just under 50 people in the room, mostly women in their 40s and 50s. Some had had surgery already, some were scheduled to have it, and some were just thinking about it.
I sat against the wall in silent protest. While waiting for the meeting to start, I invented a life and a personality for the facilitator, compared her to me, and decided I was superior. She started with some house-keepy details and then launched right in.
“Welcome, everyone,” she said. “First we’ll hear check-ins from the post-ops, and then, if there’s still time, we’ll take some questions.”
The post-ops shared personal stories ranging from the straightforward: ‘I had surgery, I lost a lot of weight, I feel better, and here I am,’ to the gripping: ‘I had surgery, had a bunch of post-surgical complications, and here’s what life has looked like since.’
Everyone’s story was a little different, but one thing was universal: these people hadn’t gone under the knife to get hot; they’d undergone surgery because they wanted to live as fully as they could in the time that remained, and for them, that meant being a healthier weight. Dieting had failed them, like it fails most of us, but surgery felt like it might be the answer.
The facilitator called a break. I watched as my mother got up and introduced herself to a post-op who’d shared that losing weight meant getting her blood pressure, cholesterol, and type 2 diabetes under control. The woman was older, she was not meeting any popular standards of beauty, and appeared positively vibrant. I hadn’t realized how down my mom looked until she started to brighten up talking to this woman.
The moderator called us back. People were smiling and whispering, quietly exchanging cards and phone numbers. She thanked everyone for their shares, and opened up the floor, as promised.
“Does anyone have any questions for the post-ops?”
Now was my chance. I raised my hand.
“How many of you wish you hadn’t had surgery?”
Not a single hand went up. Maybe they’re embarrassed, I thought. Surely the ones who’d had complications felt foolish for having had surgery, but maybe peer pressure was keeping them quiet.
I needed to ask a better question, get them to talk about the danger.
“Uh...can I ask one more?” the facilitator nodded.
“What’s the biggest, scariest risk to having surgery?”
There was a tiny pause. My brain fired off all kinds of answers: Vitamin deficiencies! Pain! Death!
“Judgement.”
What?
“Being criticized.”
Wait, what?
“When people think surgery’s the easy way out, or a sign of weakness, or just a stupid idea, and they never stop letting you know." Huh.
According to a roomful of WLS post-ops, having to deal with my criticism might be the biggest, scariest risk my mom would face if she had surgery. Compared to daily, holier-than-thou judgement, even post-surgical complications might seem trite and manageable.
My mom do go ahead with her surgery. In under a year, I watched her regain much of the health and livelihood she’d lost. A little over a year later, I went to the same surgeon.
Ever since I opted to have gastric bypass surgery myself in 2003, I can tell you that the folks at that meeting were right.
I’ve worked my tail off to get well, to get an honest handle on my relationship to food, and to create a body I love. I became a personal trainer, coach, and educator to help others do the same. As a wellness professional, I’ve been judged for having had surgery in much the same way I was judged for being the fattest kid on the playground, except now, it’s often by other fitness “professionals.”
I’ve since apologized to my mother for the grief I tried to give her when she first started exploring surgery as an option. And I’ve thanked her for sparking the greatest lesson I’ve ever learned - the lesson that I’ve dedicated my career to teaching to others:
Self-acceptance and the desire to change are not mutually exclusive propositions - they can co-exist. In my experience, and that of countless clients and students, the only way to make lasting, sustainable, positive change is to begin from a place of love.

For many of us, Thanksgiving takes an enormous amount of emotional energy to get through, since it has traditionally been the one time a year that we were “legally allowed” to stuff our selves (along with the turkey)! Now I am no mathematician, but even I can figure out what might go haywire when you add cultural “permission” to over eat (Thanksgiving) with the stress of reuniting with family members!




With families come emotional buttons that have been embedded since childhood and are visible only to a select few. This can affect the depth and tone of how we communicate with those who have impacted our lives the most. Add to this the expectations of having the perfect family holiday and it is no wonder that Thanksgiving can feel more like a minefield than a celebration for those of us who struggle with our relationship with food. 


So, how can you show up for Thanksgiving this year in a completely different way and leave feeling nourished (instead of stuffed) and joyful (instead of disappointed)? By changing one simple but profound thing: your focus.
What might your holiday be like if you were to intentionally shift your focus from your relationship with food, to your relationship with the people that matter most to you?
Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on our many blessings, not the least of which are the important relationships in our lives. You can increase the prospects of having an emotionally connecting and satisfying holiday with your family by doing only one thing in advance. Noticing your profound (and authentic) gratitude for the people who make a difference in your life. 


Here are three simple steps that can make gratitude and appreciation tastier than any prize-winning stuffing at your Thanksgiving table:


1. Make a list of the people you will be seeing who have made a real difference in your life.

2.Write down bullet points of the contributions each of them have made and how their support has impacted you.

3. Express these sentiments to them – in a letter, email, call, poem, conversation at the dinner table, etc.


What better way to set the emotional table for a heartfelt and meaningful holiday than by telling people how much they mean to you. Even if there have been hurt feelings in the past, if it is equally true that there are examples of loving acts, kindness, and compassion toward you, than remembering and being present with that reality will shape your life (and theirs) in immeasurable ways.
If you are willing to share what you love about the people closest to you, and how their presence in your life has made a difference, you will be amazed at how great you feel and how much easier family gatherings can be when people are in a state of gratitude and appreciation for one another.


Warning: This approach to being with others might feel so nourishing, that you may want to use it in daily life, rather than saving it for special occasions!
Have a wonderful and connecting Thanksgiving!

Standing outside this morning I looked about and all was quiet. Moments later a light breeze started to affect one of the Maples we planted thirty years ago. It drew my attention because it was a soft rustling noise that came from no where and sounded peaceful and pleasant. Suddenly in the distance I could hear the rumbling of thunder and it felt ominous. Approaching my peaceful moment with the ability to give me cause to worry. It hit me that the entire experience of a few moments was comparable to the journey of weight loss surgery.


We get to a point where we give in and think that we have reached the bottom of our life. There is nothing left and we think there is nothing for us out there to help or offer us an option to turn our lives around. But through gentle words and in the form of encouragement by family, friends and the medical field we learn about Bariatric Surgery. We are offered a tool that can assist us to find a new path to good health and well being. A fear builds deep within us but we know inside that this is the only option left. This is make or break it time and we have no where else to go. We see our mortality and the future looks dim. We are willing to do what it takes to find ourselves on the other side which offers a new life without food addiction.
We can't even imagine how that would feel to be thin and in good health. Finally having the real control of our future and our lives. Not being the object of well intentioned or intentional comments or opinions that hurt so deep we feel wounded and or scarred for the rest of our days. But it is not to be. We have an option. A gentle breeze overcomes us as we realize we do have an option. We do have a future. One that will keep us around long enough to enjoy the rest of our lives as the person we always wanted to be. Being able to watch our children grow up and then the grandchildren. Not to mention doing all the things you thought you would never do. Making a bucket list of experiences you want to have and places you want to go. Not to mention the effects this new and improved you will have in a positive way with your family and friends, work acquaintances and yes even strangers. This is the gentle breeze of realization that is engulfing your spirit and giving you hope for a better life ahead.
When does the thunder roll in the distance to threaten this new found peace you are experiencing? When you realize that it will take real effort on your part to accomplish this. When you take the time to really start changing how you view food and figure out why you used food as a comfort in good times and in bad. We are conditioned to believe that food plays a much bigger roll in our lives then simply giving us the proper nutrients to keep our bodies in good working order. By well meaning parents who told us how it was so important to clean our plates to the diet industry that makes millions off of failed diets. The false comfort in the form of food related slogans that advertising companies use to make us think that food equals happiness. That food is the backbone of our lives. Here are a few.
Help yourself to happiness – Golden Coral
Come hungry, leave happy – IHOP
Unwrap a smile – Little Debbie's
Comfort in every bite – Mars Bar
Life tastes better with KFC – Kentucky Fried chicken
Little nuggets of joy- McDonald's Chicken McNuggets
Double your flavor,double your fun – Double Mint Gum
Feels like home – Sarah Lee
Get your smile on – Lay's
And on and on, teaching us that food is the answer to all our woes and will bring us happiness. But we know from our own personal experiences that this is not the case. And yet we battle these feelings of needing food as the drug of choice to fulfill in us an emptiness every single day. We find ourselves reverting back to the habits that has brought us momentary relief only to find that it did not help at all.
This is the thunder that we all experience in our journey. The fight to stay on course and not give into the heavy winds and booming sounds of habit or the artificial comfort of using food to make us feel better. We are in a war. We will win a battle at a time. We will get there. Maybe not today or tomorrow but we will control this disease. Weight loss surgery is our tool to learn new life long habits and choices that will once again bring the gentle breeze of hope and then success.

I am 66 and had surgery 5 weeks ago. I have lost a total of 33 lbs since the beginning of pre-op. Due to pain issues I am not able to exercise as many do. I can walk but it is very cold where I live and it would have to be in the house or the mall. I have gone to the mall numberous times but still can only walk a short distance and then I must sit down. I have only lost 1 lb in the last 2 weeks. It is very discouraging. I can not eat much. I try to drink all that is required but that is very hard also. Protein about 50 a day.
I would like to hear from others that are my age and how you are doing. Most people that post are 40 or less and don't have the problems older people have.

I first heard about this through my son and Daughter in law they both had surgery.They both have lost over 200 pds a piece in a little over a year and a half.So I decided if I want out of this Nursing Home then I needed to also have it done.I'm only 56 years old and live in a nursing Home.So I had it done in Dec of 2013 and have lost 200 pounds.I started out at 500 pounds and I can happily say I now weigh 299.My surgeon is Dr.Marshal from Peoria Illinois.He is great

I first heard about this through my son and Daughter in law they both had surgery.They both have lost over 200 pds a piece in a little over a year and a half.So I decided if I want out of this Nursing Home then I needed to also have it done.I'm only 56 years old and live in a nursing Home.So I had it done in Dec of 2013 and have lost 200 pounds.I started out at 500 pounds and I can happily say I now weigh 299.My surgeon is Dr.Marshal from Peoria Illinois.He is great

I first heard about this through my son and Daughter in law they both had surgery.They both have lost over 200 pds a piece in a little over a year and a half.So I decided if I want out of this Nursing Home then I needed to also have it done.I'm only 56 years old and live in a nursing Home.So I had it done in Dec of 2013 and have lost 200 pounds.I started out at 500 pounds and I can happily say I now weigh 299.My surgeon is Dr.Marshal from Peoria Illinois.He is great

I first heard about this through my son and Daughter in law they both had surgery.They both have lost over 200 pds a piece in a little over a year and a half.So I decided if I want out of this Nursing Home then I needed to also have it done.I'm only 56 years old and live in a nursing Home.So I had it done in Dec of 2013 and have lost 200 pounds.I started out at 500 pounds and I can happily say I now weigh 299.My surgeon is Dr.Marshal from Peoria Illinois.He is great

I first heard about this through my son and Daughter in law they both had surgery.They both have lost over 200 pds a piece in a little over a year and a half.So I decided if I want out of this Nursing Home then I needed to also have it done.I'm only 56 years old and live in a nursing Home.So I had it done in Dec of 2013 and have lost 200 pounds.I started out at 500 pounds and I can happily say I now weigh 299.My surgeon is Dr.Marshal from Peoria Illinois.He is great

Protein is IMPERATIVE to bariatric patients. And the great thing is we have so many options!


Once upon a time it was nearly impossible for a bariatric patient to keep their protein counts up. We were taught to only eat certain foods and to avoid others. chicken breast, lean beef, and fish was the rule of thumb. The problem with these foods was that several people had problems eating, swallowing, and digesting them. And we were told that once we hit a certain point, to avoid Protein Drinks as we needed to be eating our protein rather than drinking it.
Isn't it nice to know that times have changed? New research and information has given the bariatric patient so many more options on foods we can eat now to keep our protein levels where they should be. We are no longer restricted to the leanest cuts of meat, but are encouraged to try other cuts such as dark meat chicken, 80/20 or 90/10 ground beef, and (a personal favorite) BACON. Additionally, we are encouraged to eat eggs and shrimp, salmon and pork. And protein drinks (when done RIGHT) are no longer a no-no!
How Much Protein Do We REALLY Need and Why Is It So Important?
According to most surgeons and nutritionists, we need about 65-70 grams of protein daily. That goes up a little bit if you're recovering from surgery or are sick or pregnant (to about 85-90 grams). Protein is an essential building block of our bodies. When we're losing weight, especially, protein is one of the hardest working macronutrients on the planet. Beyond muscle building, it also helps strengthen our immune system, rebuilds tissue, and can even improve brain function. Additionally, when we lose weight, our bodies burn protein. When we're not getting enough protein, our body takes it from wherever it can get it - typically our body muscle. What's more, it can actually take muscle from our cardiac system!
How Can I Get My Protein?
Focusing on protein is the #1 concern of many bariatric patients. Of course, eating your protein is the very best bet. Focusing on protein foods with a high protein to fat ratio is the very best bet. Some of the best protein foods are egg whites, chicken breast, and shrimp. Although other meats, poultry, and seafood are also good options. cheese is another great choice as are nuts and seeds. Beans do give some protein, but many bariatric patients have issues with digesting them.
Another good option is the Protein Drink. Once only encouraged in the early phases after surgery, now many nutritionists and dietitians are encouraging the bariatric patient to include protein supplements in their daily diets. Most contain high (35+ g) amounts of protein, and leave you free to consume other healthy (and needed) foods later on such as vital fruits and vegetables.
The #1 suggested protein drink that nutritionists suggest is whey protein. It is, by far, the most digestible and assimilated protein on the market (that means your body can use it a lot easier than other kinds). Sadly, many people can't tolerate whey or stomach it. If this is the case, there are other options available that are almost as easily digested such as egg white protein or vegan (brown rice, pea, and hemp) Proteins.
If I'm Focusing On Protein, I Don't Have Room For Other Foods, HELP!
VITAMINS! You remember those Vitamins and Fiber supplements the doctor sent you home with? TAKE THEM. It's true that we often have to forgo fruits, vegetables, and whole grains when we're focusing on protein. That's why these supplements are so important to our lifestyle.
Remember The Basics!
The basics of our lifestyle don't change with time. We still need to remain focused on protein, Water, and our Vitamin supplements. Keeping these three things at the forefront of your mind will help ensure you successful weight loss, successful maintenance, and a successful lifestyle overall!