The Turkey

I am waiting for the Turkey to finish cooking. I am preparing a turkey for our support group party tomorrow. It's a BIG turkey, so it is taking a long time to cook. This gives me some time to write this.

I have been sort of avoiding the most difficult part of my recent medical issues. I have over the past three years put on a lot of weight. I had lost a lot of weight about five years ago, but gradually it has returned. I am not as heavy as I had once been, but I am far too heavy. The really bad thing about this is that it is leading to additional physical issues, or at least contributing to them. I am having knee pain once again, my cholesterol was up (drugs now controlling the level), and now I am pre-diabetic. Add this to the fact that I really hate being fat and you have my current situation. Oh yes, I also have sleep apnea (that too is controlled with the use of a CPAP machine.) Many of these medical issues I know are absent or lessened when I weigh less. All the charts say I should weigh in the range of 135 to 160 lbs and I am not even close.

The ENT Doctor I saw recently really rocked my world in many ways. He immediately started to treat many issues aggressively. He is also the first Doctor to suggest to me that gastric bypass surgery might be a good thing. He suggested the Lap-Band version of the surgery which is minimally invasive surgically. At first I pretty much dismissed the idea. I have lost a lot of weight on my own before, but the truth of the matter is that I have not really been able to keep the weight off. When I was younger I was skinny. Tall and skinny, that was me. Well, those days are behind me. I would really like to be able to wear sizes that don't begin with W (for you guy's that is the symbol for women's sizes. Women's sizes are politically correct for heavy.)

I am now leaning at seriously considering the Lap_band surgery. Early in January there is a seminar on the surgery. I know my weight is high enough to warrant the surgery and the fact that it is affecting my health is another positive for the surgery. The question I have is will my insurance (Medicare and a supplement) pay for the surgery. There is so much to consider. I do though often think of the term "morbidly obese." It is a grim term and it describes my BMI. Yes, there is a lot to consider.(By the way if you follow the link to BMI, I am taller and heavier and do fit the morbidly obese category.)

By the way, in case I don't write again before the 25th, have a very Merry Christmas!

Love,
Shel