Hello everybody!

Please forgive me for the format of this post as I am not accustomed to blogging or forums, but as I am sitting here 5 days after my surgery I was compelled by one of my closest friends to document my impending journey. I thought about writing in a journal to express my thoughts and I even played around with the possibility of making a YouTube channel focus around my own personal weight loss. I stumbled across this website some time ago and remembered it today and registered. I figured that writing to a community of people with the same struggles and triumphs that I have and will face would be the best route.

So... a little about me...

I am a young professional male living in New Orleans, LA... yes... the Big Easy...one of the culinary capitals of the free world and I have struggled with weight issues my ENTIRE life. While I have managed to excel in my educational and work environments I was often faced with the ridicule and pressure of being HUSKY, CHUBBY, BIG-BONED, PUDGY, FLUFFY, and all those other euphemisms for FAT. Being overweight was something that I came to accept early on as I loved to eat and most of my family was heavy. And though it hurt sometimes, I soon developed an exterior persona that would paint me as a person who was oblivious to their size; being stronger, wittier, and smarter than the people I would make acquaintances with and then going home to deal with the issues of my body in silence... and sometimes sadness.

The first time I played around with the notion of WLS was back in 2009. I was 23, out of college 2 years at that time and making a pretty good living for myself. I was in a relationship that was toxic and discouraging... Voices telling you that you are basically never going to change or grow just because you are smaller can really put a damper on your outlook. Needless to say... I ended this relationship and renewed my own confidence until I was soon faced with yet another challenge.

While vacationing with my friends for Memorial Day in 2010, I could sense something was different with my body. I was solemn, fatigued, and uninterested with the festivities that were taking place. I was also vomiting every morning... not food, but a weird golden substance that I decided to classify as acid reflux. On my first day back to work, my coworkers noticed that I looked dehydrated... like a fish out of Water... and that I was barely moving and slightly incoherent. My manager forced me to go to urgent care and soon after being seen by the doctor there, they urged me to go to the ER for treatment. Within in 45 minutes of being in ER I was diagnosed with Type-2 diabetes with a severe case of diabetic ketoacidosis, or DKA, which is an extreme shortage of insulin that is potentially fatal.

After a week in the hospital, I was sent home with a shopping list of prescriptions to take and a whole new outlook on life. I immediately decides to sign up for a diet food home delivery service and tried that out for several months until the cost of that plus my meds became out of control. While I lost weight on the program pretty quickly, once I stopped the weight began to creep back. I knew I had to do something that would be definite... and that is when I decided to pursue WLS. I began reading, interrogating others who I knew had had it, and watching other VGS patients on YouTube. I told my close friends on my 25th birthday, on a cruise ship no less, that planned on pursuing WLS and I have not looked back since.&nSo... here I am... 5 days after my surgery... and despite the slight discomfort that is expected after surgery and a mild case of cabin fever (GET ME OUT OF THIS HOUSE!!!), I am feeling good and optimistic about what is to come.

Congrats!! I'm not far from you - I live about an hour north west of Biloxi. Best wishes!!! I'm having my pre-op work up now. Barium for breakfast. :/

Congrats!! I'm not far from you - I live about an hour north west of Biloxi. Best wishes!!! I'm having my pre-op work up now. Barium for breakfast. :/

It'll all be worth it!!! Keep in touch!!