Success Stories

Before

After

Matt Monahan
Surgery Date: 5/18/04
Weight Loss: 172 Lbs

Born a happy healthy baby boy on December 16th 1986, I was a completely normal infant and toddler. I showed no signs of what was to come. Diagnosed with Asthma as a young boy, my method of treatment for this in was shots of steroids. I was in the third grade when I began my steroids shots in the third grade. The results were a mixed blessing. While able to out grow my Asthma, as a third grader my caloric intake was greater than the amount of calories being burned. This is partly because I would get an Asthma attack at even the slightest amount physical engagement, my calorie use was limited, this was combined with the steroids that I was being given; the pairing gave me a violent shove toward the life of an obese individual. My weight continued to snowball out of control for the next 13 years. Throughout much of my later elementary and all of middle my classmates teased me relentlessly calling me “thunder thighs”, and my personal favorite (despite being male) “two – ton – Tina”.

High school was a very different story. Just being a student on the campus of my high school was a very physically demanding task. There were four floors to my building. I had to run from class to class and floor to floor, this would make me winded. It would take me several minutes to regain a normal heart rate and breathing pattern.

I had learned ways of coping through the physically demanding life and the torment at the hands, or words rather, of my peers. They had also given up the teasing for the most part. One of the coping techniques I embraced throughout my elementary and middle school years as my “beloved” was the idea of making fun of myself, and making others laugh while doing it. Self mockery worked; on the surface I was perfectly happy, but perfectly miserable on the inside. In high school I forced myself to get involved with activities.

The organization nearest and dearest my heart, the Davison High School Choral Music Department, was one that put me somewhat in the “spotlight”. The choral department was also in charge of the school’s musical each spring, and the class was required to participate in the production. This requirement didn’t upset me any because of my excitement about acting. I looked forward to being on stage, being someone other than myself, even if it was only for a few hours. The dancing and energy requirements of the productions were very physically demanding. I would get winded walking across the stage to make my cue. I realized something had to be done.

I knew several people who like me had tried dieting to no avail. They pursued the option of surgery after extensive research on several different bariatric surgeries. They made the decision about which procedure to have done based on their personal needs.

In November of 2003 I began the journey towards surgery. While never nervous about the procedure, I got frustrated that it would take so long to get through the formalities. I went to the surgeon’s office in late November to have a consultation with the program director. After hearing describe the surgery and all the details of the procedures to follow the next step was to schedule an appointment for a physical with the surgeon. I had the consultation in February of 2004. I happily as a result of the meeting, he declared me a candidate after much careful review of personal history and family history. I took the necessary steps to get to the operating room. The process was detailed and tedious, and the road to surgery seemed to last forever. My insurance tried to reject me, and my family doctor wanted me to get a second opinion in regards to what surgery and surgeon. I just kept praying and God kept opening the doors for me to have this procedure.

In March of 2004 I was ecstatic to find out that the final approvals, the tests, the hospital booking; the appointments were all through the only step I had left to do was show up for my surgery time. I prepared myself mentally and spiritually the night before. Because of God giving me peace I felt no qualms and no apprehension going into the procedure. I felt at total peace about the whole situation knowing that not only the hands of a terrific surgeon and medical staff, but more importantly I was in God almighty’s hands were protecting me. At age seventeen, size fifty two waist, I woke up after a fairly restful night at approximately five in the morning on the day Tuesday, May 18th 2004, the date which my physical body was “reborn”. Relaxed by the two hour drive, I arrived at the hospital and began the final leg of the journey to the operating room. The surgery went off without a hitch.

The process that followed was the most trying and building mentally, physically, and spiritually that I’ve experienced. The days were long and hard, but the results were better than I could ever imagine. The pain wasn’t really an issue. I was back on my feet in about four or five weeks. I wasn’t moving as fast as I was before but life was going well. Ironically the next step in the process was learning how to eat. I thought I knew how to eat, isn’t that why I needed surgery to begin with? I had to learn that my stomach wasn’t a liter in capacity anymore. It was only about three or four ounces. I had to learn that protein is the most important food to pass through my lips. After learning to eat I learned to establish the all important vitamin regime. This is key to the success of any bariatric surgery patient’s healthy life after surgery; I had to learn how many pills I could take at a time and when I needed to take them. I follow my vitamin routine very faithfully. If I happen to miss a day the skipped vitamins don’t affect me that much, but missing any more than a day makes me feel run down and I can tell that I haven’t had them. Learning how to eat and taking vitamins is a miniscule price to pay for the way this surgery has affected my life.

I have been living as a “bari” for just under two years. Life is exponentially better as a result of this surgery. I am currently studying youth ministry at Bethel, a small Christian college in northern Indiana. Not only am I able to run up and down the flights of stairs in my dorm and buildings where I have classes, but I am able to run across campus to the classes. I feel better about myself. People finally see me as “normal” and I stand out not because of my size, but because of my character. I must say it’s to be looked at for what truly matters…the contents of my character and heart is pretty weird but cool. Character and heart are always the most important things whether you are a slim 165 pounds (my current weight) or a slightly less slim 337 pounds (my former weight). Each and every person is a valuable creation of God and they should always feel good that they have amazing qualities that no one else possesses. Our worth is not measured by a fifty two inch waist or a thirty two inch waist. I have been hard pressed to learn this heavy lesson, but now I know what really matters.

Matthew Ryan Monahan