Personal Narrative: My Experience With Gastric Bypass Surgery

Out of all the experiences I have had in my life, one of the most memorable ones would be having gastric bypass surgery. There are so many things I went through to get to where I am now. I could never explain every single detail of what I went through or how it made me feel, but I can summarize the process and how it has helped me change for the better. After gaining 75 pounds while being pregnant for my daughter, I had lost all hope of losing the weight and returning to the person I was before. Depression had set in and I did not know where to turn. No one could fix things or make everything alright again. So I took the first steps to bettering my life. Booking an appointment with my doctor to find out my options was what I did first. Once she explained to me that I could either find the will power to exercise and change without help, or join a bariatric program. There I would learn my behavioral problems with

I had a lot of support but also a lot of family and friends who were concerned that I was making a mistake. I had to go against my parents wishes because they didn’t want me to go forward with the surgery. The procedure took 3 to 4 hours which is about the normal amount of time it takes. I woke up with minimal pain and four to five laparoscopic incisions. The day of my surgery I could not have any food or drinks, only the fluids I was getting through my IV. The second day I was able to drink about 1-2 teaspoons of water every hour, but still no food. Over the next two to three weeks I was strictly on a clear liquid diet except for my glucerna protein shakes. This was the hardest part of the entire process and it took a toll on me psychologically. I had to cook food for my two-year old daughter but was not able to eat anything. There was a time I went into the bathroom and held the edge of the sink and just sobbed. I kept asking myself “Why did I do this to myself”, but there was no going