A Second Chance at Life

A second chance at life came around to me when Vanderbilt surgeon, Dr. Melvin, performed the great surgery, a Roux-en-Y gastric bypass procedure, on me.  At the time of the procedure I weighed 392 lbs. That weight is what I have written down and does differ from record to record just as scales differ.  I had been diagnosed with Cardiomyopathy and was taking medication to help my heart function better. These medications caused my pancreas to lose control of my insulin levels, causing me to start taking medicine to the  control diabetes.  That brought my total medication numbers to 14 pills per day. I had no endurance; to go grocery shopping was a major task for me.  I was not living at that point in my life, just existing.

Today I not take medication.  At present my weight is 222lbs. I do some form of exercise every day now and have energy for daily activities, still working on building my stamina up as I run out of steam fast.
Everyone who knows me says that I am a different person.  Well I am still the same, but there is just a lot less of me to have to move around.  I have been cleared to enter a trial work period, which would remove me from the roles of disability.

Dr. Melvin and Vanderbilt have given me a second chance at life. I cannot put into words what that has meant to me physically, mentally, and emotionally.  I now have a life and look forward to every day with anticipation.