At Your Service

The sun is shining the birds are singing, and this morning I woke to an unbelievable sense of the “thankfuls."  I spent the morning at Clarian North with patients who would be having bariatric surgery today.  I remembered the moment I was being wheeled back to surgery, the nerves, the anxiety, the relief.  I now look back at that moment over two years ago as my donor moment. 

I have been set firmly in the present the last couple of months as my oldest child prepares to get his drivers license.  They asked my 6 ft tall baby boy if he would like to be an organ donor.  Being a mom my throat immediately started to constrict and the very thought brought tears to my eyes.  Before I could speak for him (he is just 15, such a decision for a child) he replied of course, a whole body donor.  The moment of pride quickly replaced that initial feeling of mortality.  I realized they have learned something from this journey. 

When I decided to go forward with bariatric surgery I was donating the rest of my life for a cause.  I want all of America to know that there is life after. After the pain of living and breathing with the shame of not controlling my weight.  I was not aware that it wasn’t all my fault, not all.  I own my part in the place I went to. I own the quick easy meals in the drive thru.  I own the soda pop and fried foods, that is all me. 

What I didn’t know and now understand is that I had sabotaged my body for years trying to do “good” diets, by trying to keep on an unbelievably low calorie diet and sweating out the yucky stuff.  Clarian Bariatrics, and Indianapolis bariatric clinic, brought a level of education to me I had never encountered.  The support and education and beliefs are priceless.  I am thankful for being brought into the Clarian family and now being able to help a patient or two with this journey. 

I am thankful for being allowed to work with people who are not just doing their job, but their life’s work. I am thankful that I am here to here the birds sing, the sun shine, my child grow into a giving young man, and a patient start the rest of their life.  This process triggers a change in your body, but one can only hope it will trigger a change in your mind and heart.  To wake up two years later and know that every day is a gift and every gift is given in the thought that no repercussion is needed.  But, I still feel that I have been blessed to be given the chance at a new life and I am thankful.  This morning, I was asked moments before one of my patients was wheeled into surgery (she was a bit nervous) if I would do it again. 

Honestly, I would not have changed a thing.  That was all she needed and off she went.  Smiles through her tears and her new journey has begun.  I am thankful for getting to be there as she has progressed and now I will be there as she triumphs.  Did you wake up today thankful, make a list and as you feel the sun and hear the birds, know there is a reason for the season and spring leads us to a wonderful time of growth and new beginnings.  Thankful, should and could be a season of its own.  Thankful for Clarian Bariatric Surgery Center and all of the people who make it a blessing to the patients. GO TEAM!

Tell yourself, I will not eat out this week, don’t set unrealistic goals.  It is so satisfying to hit a small goal than to never hit a goal that was set to high from the beginning.  Once you attain the small goal add something to it, like I will not drink soda at home or at work all week. 

Little steps add up and can stimulate a huge change in you.  I know when you cannot walk around the block setting a goal to run a 5K next month is out of the question, so start small.  How about, I will walk to the end of the block every day this week.  Before you know it you will be able to walk that without being winded, add another block, keep up this pace before you know it that 5K will be child’s play. 

The support a patient and their family receive at Clarian Bariatrics is unbelievable.  The support groups offered let you know that you are not alone in this process.  Visit us at www.achalltochange.org or give us a call at 1-877-275-2555 and we will help guide you to a free informational seminar to start that list off in the right direction. You are a priority to us at Clarian Bariatrics, now make yourself a priority to you.  See you soon.

It is that time of year again.  Time to look at ourselves and decide what is important and what is not.  I know to parents, employees, coaches, Sunday school leaders, caregivers it is often hard to put you first.  But now is the time. 

Prioritizing is a very hard skill to develop.  By nature women in particular put our name at the bottom of the to do list.  Those lists need to be updated!  If you’re not healthy, if you do not take care of you, who is going to complete the list of 90 items you try to complete on a daily basis.  PRIORITIZE!  Learn that you are a priority, start off small, and take thirty minutes every day just for your well being. 

Take a yoga class, take a walk around the block, pull out that treadmill, or rowing machine.  March is Women’s Health Month and make your self a promise to change something small.  Bariatric weight loss surgery is a process that will change the rest of your life, but it is a tool just as the treadmill is a tool.  It will help you do a great job, but it needs to be used.  Start small and then take a bigger step. 

Look for more prioritizing tips later in the week!

Are you feeling the spring bug?  Are you itching for sunshine, flowers and warm breezes?  Me too.  Every spring I start my spring cleaning from the inside out.  I know, you think what is she talking about?

You know those cobwebs that gather on our unused treadmill, sewing machine and stationary bike.  They gather in our minds and hearts as well.  The springtime is a perfect time to start over, clean out the old and face the new. 

March is Women’s Health Month.  When is the last time you visited your primary care physician, had a mammogram, a pap?  You know where I am going with this.  We cannot start new things without first knowing how the “old equipment” is fairing.  Dust off your running shows start a walking group at lunch time.  Hang your clothes in the closet and use the treadmill for something besides a coat rack (don’t worry all of us do it). 

Clarian Bariatrics can help you with the dusting of the cobwebs on the education process for bariatric surgery. Visit ACallToChange.org  and sign up for a FREE weight loss surgery education seminar to begin the process.  The seminar is the starting point for all of us who seek bariatric weight loss, so dust of the spiders and we will see you soon.

Think about it for a moment.  Your family has known you forever as you are.  After weight loss surgery they are not sure if you are still you.  You do not look like you anymore.  Some feel they have lost the old you, and they have to learn to know and love the new you. It can wreck havoc on your life if you do not play an aggressive role in learning to deal with the process. I encourage support groups, buddy systems and talking to others who have had bariatric surgery.

My life is better now than before, I still have two beautiful children, I still volunteer at our church, help at the school and work with the youth in my community.  I have changed for the better.  I cannot say if it is the bariatric weight loss surgery or age, but I love a little deeper and care a little quicker. 

The changes in your life cannot be blamed or credited to the surgery.  Life happens.  Things change.  Marriages end.  Jobs change.  Learn to modify and roll with the punches.  I do not believe in feeling sorry for myself, nor do I believe in beating myself up.  We can never get a day back once the sun sets.  Make the most of every day.  Make good choices, if you don’t chalk it up to a learning experience and move past it. 

Tell the ones you love that you love them and be kind to those you do not.  But most of all learn to love your self.  Learn to appreciate what has been given.  Learn to be proud of your self for your accomplishments; this is not an easy road.  It is a rough, dusty, curvy dangerous path that you have to take at a steady pace.  Clarian Bariatrics will be there a long the way to help dust off the dirt, but you must first take the steps on that road.  Only you can put one foot in front of the other.  Happy Hiking! 

On November 30, 2006, I went in for my RNY weight loss surgery. I was embarrassed and chose to not tell anyone with the exception of my immediate family.  Not even my best friend.  I couldn’t tell anyone, I felt like a failure, I could not do this on my own. 

“Normal” people could do it, why couldn’t I? The surgery went well and immediately the weight started to drop.  I was still dealing with the issues inside.  I had to learn everything over again.  I learned how to prepare a healthy meal; I learned to not eat because I was bored, sad, mad or happy.  I learned to form family functions around things besides food. 

The bariatric weight loss surgery changed my body.  I had to change my mind.  I still work on this daily.  The process of weight loss by surgery or other means causes a ripple affect through your entire family.  I truly believe the surgery doesn’t change you on the inside. 

If you are a loving, caring person before you will still be after, if you are a hateful, ugly person before I pray you will change after but no promises.  The steps you take to become a happier, healthier person are multilayered.  You must learn to deal with your reaction to the changes you are going thru as well as the changes those around you are experiencing.  It is almost as hard for others to deal with the changes as it is you. 

The idea that bariatric surgery patients can never have anything sweet again is preposterous.  True, most of us do not experience the cravings for sweets again, but we still have families that have normal tummies.  Normal is subjective to your household. 

I have teenagers, so the sweet tooth is never ending.  I bake and cook all of the time and always try to incorporate healthy alternatives for their favorites.  I have included a few recipes for you to try at home over the holiday.  Brownies and peanut butter pie (posted earlier) are two of my family’s favorites, I hope you enjoy.

Also, these are a great source of protein for your little athlete or as a quick snack after a workout.

Bucky’s Brownies

1 c Baking cocoa
¾ c peanut butter (always try for a lower sugar and fat alternative) of your choice
¼ c vegetable oil
1 tsp cinnamon
15 oz can black beans (juice too)               
1 c Splenda
1 ¾ c all purpose flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
½ c boiling water
1 to 1 ½ c skim milk (depending on consistency)

In a blender or food processor puree the beans and their juice.  Add to the dry ingredients, add all liquid and eggs. Add peanut butter consistency should be a thick batter, but still parable.  Bake in 13 x 9 baking pan at 350 for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

Note:  Cinnamon is a great compliment to chocolate but too much over powers, be careful when you add, experiment add nuts, fruit, etc. No one will know that these are actually pretty healthy.

That was not the case. I had paid the price for several years of unsuccessful weight loss attempts.  My body had learned that over time I was planning a massacre of my metabolism by not feeding my body and going into starvation mode.  Oh, the problems I inflicted on my self in the name of the latest diets (if it was printed, televised or talked about, I tried it). 

I was the typical yo-yo dieter, but with the exception of Taebo I had never really lost any substantial weight.  I seamed to stay at a steady weight for extended periods of time.  I suffered from many obesity related diseases: ulcers, acid reflux, joint pain, painful menstrual cycles and the worst back ache I had ever experienced.  Nothing was helping me.  I went to my physician and he prescribed the diet pills on the market at the time. 

I even tried a weight loss doctor in a neighboring town.  Once again I lost some, but I didn’t like the way the pills made me feel so I stopped taking them and surprise!  The weight was back, and it brought its entire family with it.  The depression was something I did well to hide on the outside.  On the inside it was a different story.  I cried a lot, at home alone, in the bathroom behind the closed door, hidden by the sound of the running water and the radio. 

I was starting to get scared.  I did not want to die.  I wanted to see my children grow into adults.  I wanted to be the person I knew I was inside.  I have always had a very stubborn streak, and I knew that this was something that had to be handled now.  So back to my physician I went.  This time he sat me down and explained that the bariatric surgery was not the same as it way in the 1980’s and maybe I should look into it, if for nothing else some education.  So the journey began. 

For over two years I went to other Indianapolis based bariatric surgery centers, starving for education on this process.  Unsuccessfully, I might add.  I paid exorbitant fees and left more confused than when I went in.  Then, my dietician at Tipton Hospital sent me some information on Clarian Bariatrics. 

I soaked that information up like a sponge.  I took several months for me to get the nerve up to attend a seminar but once I did there was no turning back for me.  I couldn’t believe the difference.  They answered my questions and took their time explaining to the crowd the process.  I felt a sense of ease.  I was finally calm.  I made the appointment and as they say in the movies, the rest was history!” 

Okay, not really.  It was a ton of work a ton of commitment.  It is a daily choice.  I live by that motto.  I choose every day to be successful, to work at this process.  To make my life better.  I WAS NOT A WEEKLING!  I was going to overcome this demon eating at me.

In a utopia we would not see 14 year old children more than 100 pounds overweight.  We would not see child abuse, divorce or unemployment either.  We do not live in a utopia and Clarian Bariatrics strives to equip our patients and their families with the tools needed to be successful after weight loss surgery. 

To carry yourself with pride, to not hide behind a computer, a desk or a door.  Not everyone is wired to speak out in front of a crowd about causes of obesity and its nightmares.  It is a wonderful gift that I have been given to be allowed to meet and grow in coming to know these patients.  They are wonderful parts of this and every community. 

They have vital segments of our community locked inside and we as a society need to allow them to express themselves and know that they are accepted and appreciated for who they are.  Too many times patients do not have the confidence to express themselves on even the safest issues. That is why they never go forward and try to seek help with the deadly consequences of obesity issues. That in itself is reason enough for me to step out and tell my story.

I have given you pieces and parts of my life, but here is the full story.  I was a happily married 32 year old middle class woman.  I had two beautiful children and a job that I loved.  I was active with the youth, volunteered at our church and helped as I often as I could at my children’s schools.  Nothing sounds amiss, does it? 

What I chose to keep hidden was the pain, years of pain.  I was always active in school and even played softball on a local league for a few years after. Once I was married and started having children, I switched softball for bowling and continued to volunteer.  The problem was I was not as active as before and the pounds started to creep up. 

So being the sister of a fifth degree black belt, I decided to join the dojo and lose some weight.  I had not at this time entered into the mind set that if left untreated this would kill me, that came later.  I was successful, if only for a year or so at a time.  I began teaching TaeBo five days a week at the dojo and lost 80 pounds.  I felt great.  One bad car accident and a sedentary job later and I had gained it all back plus some.  I felt like a failure, I honestly could not figure out why I could not keep it off.  Was I just lazy?  That was what TV and Maury, Jerry and Sally had made me feel. 

The reasons for bariatric surgery are personal, as I have stated in previous writings.  Some people choose to let others know of their journey while some keep it as a very private issue.  Why?  What are the thoughts behind keeping it “hidden?"  I understand the reasoning that it is very private and very personal.  It is.

The reasons I often hear, take my breath away.  It is not because our patients are extremely private people.  More often than not it is because they are ashamed.  This reason always affects me in a negative way.  Society views obese people as lazy, not having any motivation, any ambitions or having no self control.  How wrong they are, and how sad that a person cannot open up to his/her own family because of the judgment and stigma often attached to bariatric surgery.  People are not obese because they cannot push away from the table.

You would not judge a person with cancer as someone who breeds weak cells, or has no willpower to fight off that disease.  How silly does that sound in this day and age.  Obesity has many underlying factors.  Obesity is a disease.  It is not to be taken lightly.  When left untreated, kills more people than cancer, diabetes, alcoholism and high blood pressure.
 
They are often issues that exacerbate this disease and those are often sad, heartbreaking issues that are personal and private. Things you would only talk to your closest friends about. I understand that.  I got it.  The issue that you would let yourself go untreated because the neighbor down the street thinks bariatric surgery is for “weaklings" brings tears to my eyes. 

I know the stigma attached to gastric bypass surgery.  I remember the comments made and sometimes they still are. It still hurts.  The idea that just because you have fixed the body you are living in, that you now live a perfect life is wrong, deadly wrong.

Above is a picture of me prior to surgery. If you'd like to see what I look like now, then click on my name above. I'd love to hear from you, and look for part two of this post later in the week.

With Valentine's Day tomorrow, consider making this delicious sweet treat for your sweetheart!

3- 8 oz pkgs. reduced fat cream cheese (softened to room temperature)
1 to 1 ½ c peanut butter ( try for a reduced sugar and calorie option) of your choice
1 c Splenda

Cream together in mixer checking consistency (you should have to scrap into the bowl)
Taste and see if it is sweet enough.  This gets sweeter overnight so prepare ahead.

Crust

2c reduced fat graham crackers  (try cinnamon for an added zip) crushed
¼ c Splenda
¼ c melted butter or low calorie alternative

Press firmly into a pie place sprayed with non stick cooking spray.

Spoon pie mixture into shell.  Garnish with a few crumbs of graham crackers and chill for 3-4 hours before serving.  This is very rich so a small piece is all you need.  YUM!

Insurance is a place most of us try to stay away from.  The process for weight loss surgery is unique.  The first thing done is a verification of benefits.  I tell all of our patients that this is not approval for surgery.  It simply states that if you meet all of the criteria for you insurance they will consider paying for your bariatric weight loss surgery.  There is no way around this process. 

The insurance department at Clarian Bariatrics works very hard in verifying benefits.  A few things to remember, if you are in the program and you are working in 2008 and you do not go to surgery until 2009, those benefits need to be verified again. 

As a patient take that upon yourself to question your company.  Benefits change at the New Year because of elections your employer has made with your insurance company.  I can explain specific bariatric surgery costs if you would like on a one to one basis, just email me at  bariatric@clarian.org.

The co-pays you will incur are varied, your office visits with your surgeon are only what your co pays normally are.  The program requirements are explained at seminar and you can feel free to phone me at any time at 317-275-7010 and we can go over those again.  If you do not have insurance or if you have exclusion with your insurance and chose to pay cash for your surgery there again are a few things that will change the amount owed and the time of that payment. 

On an average you would expect to pay $20,000 to $26,000 for your surgery.  Each case is specific to the patient, different tests, days in the hospital etc…I try to give a high average that way there are no surprises.  If you have questions please feel free to phone or email me any time.

Any holiday can be stressful, especially if the focus is food.  How about putting the focus back on what counts.  Instead of exchanging boxes of chocolates for Valentine's Day you and your significant other could try giving  small gifts of affirmation. 

Give each other the top ten things you love about each other, or a box of your most memorable moments together.  If we keep the focus off of our tummies and keep it on our hearts we will accomplish much more.  Bariatric patients need to avoid situations where they will be tempted to “fall off of the wagon”.  You want to express yourself but remain true to your new lifestyle, stress to your partner that what you really want this year is for him/her to show you how he feels, not how full he can make your tummy. 

Why not extend this habit and change your traditions even with the kids.  Give them baskets of coupons for free passes from doing the dishes, feeding the dog, a movie night with just mom and dad.  Change the ideas of the holiday in their minds.  It will create great memories and leave pathways for wonderful traditions. 

Clarian Bariatrics offers support groups that are wonderful ways for you to discover new ways for you to recreate your life.  To quote Albert Einstein “Not everything that can be counted counts and not everything that counts can be counted.”  Make use of your new life and show those around you what an amazing new life bariatric surgery has given you.

I've had some requests so attached is a before picture of me. If you want to see what I look like now, just click on my name above!

The first thing you will probably notice after weight loss surgery is that a radiant smile will come across your face.  It not only lights up your face, but all of the faces around you.  This tool, when wielded correctly, which Indiana Bariatric Surgeons give you will empower you to change everyone around you. 

You will want to share your happiness, your successes and share the journey.  Support groups are a wonderful venue for that.  You can learn from the struggles, successes and paths of those who have gone before you and offer a ray of hope for those who will go after.  Remember this is the journey you have chosen take one step at a time, baby steps if needed. 

Instead of thinking of the past as a failure, think of it as a platform, a foundation of learning, to build a house you must learn how to hammer a nail.  The same goes for weight loss surgery patients, one bite at a time, one step, one choice. 

One of my favorite quotes by Steve Grant, former linebacker of our beloved Colts and minister for Sports World Ministries, said “You are not born a winner, you are not born a loser, you are born a chooser!”  Chose to make it a wonderful journey, and use the resources at Clarian Bariatrics to help pave the path. 

Hi Everyone! I am posting more of my story...feel free to contact me if you have any questions!

This attention will help map the rest of your life.  Dr. Mattar often tells his patients that he can do the stomach stapling surgery but the brain surgery is our part.  You have to learn to re-think and cause your brain to evaluate the decisions you are making.  You have to develop the proper habits:  eating, sleeping and education. These are the foundation to wonderful beginnings. 

When you are sitting on the starting line for your bariatric weight loss marathon you have trouble envisioning your self as anything but what you are in that moment.  Hold on to your tennis shoes, the marathon has begun.  You notice I said marathon not race.  You will have to endure and overcome many obstacles. 

Some you will tackle with little effort, but more will take some dedication and concentration.  Be patient with your self, you did not get to your pre-surgery weight overnight, you will not lose it all overnight either.  I always say think of this time next year, what will you be doing then that you cannot do now? The list is unlimited.