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I want to offer a special thanks to Donna Rubin for sharing her
story with us. Here is her story: Hi, my name is Donna Rubin.
I am 40 years old; I have been married for 20 years and have four
children ranging from ages 5 to 15.
Until recently, I have always battled my weight. I was a “not so
heavy” child who became a heavy teenager. Although my father was
heavy, my family always had a prejudice against fat women. As the
only heavy one, they never let me forget it. I hated family
get-together’s because my weight would be a topic. “Can’t she just
put down the fork?” or “Such a pretty face!” were the nice
comments. I was called lots of names by my family, friends and
strangers. That always hurt.
When I was in my twenties, I starved myself to a size 10. During
this time, I met and married my husband. My husband wanted me to
lose more weight and become model thin. He didn’t understand how
hard it was for me to maintain that size 10. I finally gave up,
stopped starving myself and started gaining weight. In one year, I
gained nearly one hundred pounds. I gained more weight with the
birth of each of my four children. My husband never said anything
negative and he tried to empathize with me. He always told me I
looked great, but he knew I was miserable.
I tried lots of diets, but I always felt deprived on a diet. I
do not stick to them very long. I finally reached 288 pounds on a
5’3” frame. My BMI was 50. Everything hurt and of course nothing
looks good in a size 28. I never considered weight loss surgery.
That was for people who were “really” fat and who had no “control.”
My attitude changed when a friend of mine had gastric bypass
surgery. I saw the changes in her right away. Her surgery was also
covered by insurance. I began researching surgery too.
I did most of my research from my computer. I joined different
groups consisting of individuals who had Roux en Y gastric bypass,
BPD-DS and Adjustable Gastric Band. It happened that an excellent
surgeon, experienced in all of these procedures was on our health
insurance.
From my research, I decided that I was a good candidate for the
Lap Band and made an appointment with Dr. Christine Ren in New York
City. We discussed the surgery, she informed me of all of the
possible problems, let me ask all my questions, and I decided upon
the surgery. I liked Dr. Ren and her staff. I met with a
nutritionist and psychologist, took all my pre-op tests, and had my
surgery at New York University Hospital on November 25, 2002.
My surgery took about 45 minutes. I was up and walking a few
hours later. I experienced no pain. I followed the prescribed
post-op protocol and watched myself change.
As an Orthodox Jewish woman, the Lap
Band fit my lifestyle. No food was off limits, I just started
to eat like a thin person. My weight came off steadily and I
incorporated exercise and a gym to help. I have had 5 saline
“fills” to adjust the restriction of my band. A year and a
half later, I have lost 106 pounds. I am 40
pounds from my goal weight.
Words cannot describe my new life. I now wear a size 12-14 and
have to remind myself I no longer have to shop in the plus sized
department. Everyone fusses over me and the compliments buoy my self
confidence. I dance at weddings and I smile and talk to people. I
participate in life instead of living it from the sidelines. People
who have not seen me in a couple of years do not recognize me. I
get satisfaction from watching jaws drop! I look like a normal
sized woman. “Blessed” is a word that describes my life now.
I have learned that the Lap Band is a tool. It has helped me make
changes in my eating habits. I never thought I could be satisfied
with the portions I eat now, but I am. Sometimes, I still feel like
a morbidly obese woman in a size 14 body. My mind has been slow to
accept the changes. I see a psychologist who deals with bariatric
patients, and he has been a great help.
My husband tells me I am beautiful. He has always told me I am
beautiful, but now I can believe it. My children have told me they
are no longer embarrassed by me and they like going places with me.
Children tell it like it is.
I am so thankful for my surgery. A few months ago I had vision
correction surgery, so now I can see the changes in me without
glasses. I like what I see!
Donna Rubin
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Before |
After |
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I Need your Input....
I am running short on
success stories! Please consider sharing your success story
with the rest of us. Write your story like Donna did above
and include your before and after pictures. I will be happy
to include it in a future issue of this e-newsletter and you
will be inspiring many others.
Thanks
for your help,
Barbara |
I love good news. If you have good news, a
success story to share, or inspiration,
please send it to me at
Barbara@WLScenter.com so that I can
include it in future issues. |
