Weight Loss Winformation

Today I am joined by my favorite co-host and bariatric post-op, Laura Preston. In today’s episode we talk about how finding your bariatric community in today’s climate is so much easier than when she and I entered the bariatric community nearly 2 decades ago! It’s critical as a bariatric patient to find a “home group” if you will, while still following your favorite individuals on social media. IN...

I end most of my podcasts and anything else I do when speaking to patients by saying, “It’s Your Health! Your Responsibility. This Day. Every Day.” After reading so much lately about how lifestyle, and specifically, how STRESS affects not only weight gain or regain, but the prevalence of cancers, Multiple Sclerosis, autoimmune diseases and Alzheimer’s disease, not to mention heart disease, arthrit...

In the last episode of BariAftercare, the Podcast! I talked about how the bariatric lifestyle is more than developing healthy habits in the areas of eating and exercise! Lifestyle incorporates your hobbies, your attitudes, the people you hang with and so much more! My good friend and passionate advocate of creating the life you love, Laura Preston was very enthusiastic about that episode and so we...

In the world of bariatric medicine, the word Lifestyle is often associated with nutrition and physical movement. Those are absolutely part of what lifestyle means. In addition, a healthy lifestyle includes your mindset, the people you hang out with, and the activities you participate in. Lifestyle is about your whole self… mind, body and spirit. Your overall lifestyle, as it turns out, has a huge...

I recently met Jeannie, a very dynamic, straightforward (my kinda woman) bariatric dietitian. Jeannie was recommended to me by my good friend and 18-year post-op, Laura Preston. Laura texted me these exact words: “Jeanie is a ROCK star…..super real. Super realistic. Funny. Straight Shooter.” And she on target with every one of those descriptive words! I had a wonderful time talking with Jeannie ab...

In the last podcast episode, I reviewed my book called MindPrep – the Book! The title says “the book” in it because I have a video series called MindPrep. The video series is what inspired me to turn the content into a book. Not only do I include all of the information from the Mind Prep videos in the book, I have added information I’ve accumulated over the many years since initially developing th...

Fifteen years ago… or maybe it’s been longer ago at this point, I created a series of ten videos I require every person for whom I complete a presurgical psychological evaluation to watch. OK… I only require that they watch the first five as they are predominantly focused on pre-surgical psychological and emotional issues, but I strongly encourage them to watch the five post-op videos as well… eve...

Casey is an incredible example of how to live life FULLY and enjoy the freedoms that significant weight loss offers. Casey is no longer hindered by excess weight and is able to participate fully in the many outdoor activities she has always loved. Jamie has learned to free herself to a significant degree from the negative self-talk she engaged in related to her weight, and THAT is a big deal! She...

There are hundreds and thousands of post-op patients on the planet! A LOT of them are talking the talk about how to live a healthy post-op life… I wonder how many of those people are also WALKING THE WALK! Hopefully, a lot of them! I know for SURE that the post-op peer mentor I am talking to in this episode is doing both… talking the talk AND DO-ing the walking, as well! Listen as Caleshia shares...

The number of women for whom I conduct pre-surgical bariatric evaluations far outweighs the number of men! According to the National Institutes of Health, 80% of those who had bariatric surgery in the ten years beginning in 2002 were women … meaning only 20% were men. These numbers remain pretty consistent today. Consequently, men are left out of the post-op bariatric community in a number of ways...

One of the things I love most about the Internet is being able to connect with people in other parts of the world. Last year I had the opportunity to attend a bariatric conference in Australia. I met a number of professionals who are passionately working in the field of bariatrics. In this episode, I talk with Jacqui Lewis from BN Healthy, a bariatric vitamin company based in Australia. BN Healthy...

The scale… for some, this box of springs, pins, and gears shoved into a stainless steel or aluminum case… is a source of neutral information that can help them make behavioral adjustments in order to lose, maintain, or even gain weight (can you imagine…)? For others, the scale is the equivalent of a ferocious monster capable of mass emotional destruction should it display a number dreaded by the e...

Struggling with body image is a pre-surgery issue for many, a post-surgery issue for most, and a no-surgery problem for nearly everyone! The VAST majority of women (as in over 90% of us) struggle with body image issues while only 5% of women naturally have the figure traditionally depicted in media as THE ONE we should all aspire to have! Well, those are not good odds! Yet so many of us continue t...

People, to include medical professionals, seem to be throwing the term Body Dysmorphic Disorder around willy nilly these days. Unfortunately, many people are uneducated about what Body Dysmorphic Disorder actually is. In the world of bariatrics, it is my suspicion, based on the fact that only 1-2% of the population suffers from Body Dysmorphic Disorder and 90% of people (at least women) suffer fro...

I read a fiction series one time and the female protagonist was referred to by the author throughout the series as being “inimitable.” I loved the word… after I looked it up to see what it meant. The word “inimitable” means, “impossible to copy; unique.” That is how I think of Laura Preston. Laura is an 18-year post-op who has also worked in several professional roles in the bariatric community. M...

Are you really fearful of succeeding at weight loss or are you possibly afraid of the life changes that often accompany weight loss success? Do you fear changes in your relationships? Changes in the amount of attention you will receive after losing weight? Changes related to what others may expect of you as a healthier-weight, more active person? Are you afraid of the amount of effort it will take...

If you’ve ever lost weight before, only to gain some, most, or all of it back, then you are likely familiar with fear of failure! Now you’re considering, or have had bariatric surgery, you may realize that the pesky old fear of failure lurks in the back of your mind, never too far from consciousness. Let’s talk openly about this nagging nuisance. AND let’s talk about some great ways to minimize th...

One of my favorite sayings is, “No one can do it for you, but you can’t do it alone!” Meaning… you are the one who ultimately does the DO-ing required for making the changes in your life. However, without the support, encouragement, accountability and an occasional loving kick in the rear from others, the DO-ing may not get done! In this episode of BariAftercare, the Podcast, meet the amazing grou...

The diet mentality can keep you sucked into the vortex of maintaining an unhealthy relationship with food… which, by the way, often impacts your relationship with yourself… also in an unhealthy way. One of my hopes, which is also shared by Dr. Susan Mitchell, a registered dietician who has worked in the world of weight loss and bariatric surgery for many years. In this episode, Dr. Mitchell talks...

You know how we get ourselves in trouble with expectations? We mistake wishes, wants, dreams and desires for realistic outcomes. Expectations are defined as a strong belief that something will happen or be the case in the future. Realistic expectations are based on what is actually possible, not on desire or dreams alone. When it comes to weight loss, unrealistic expectations run amok. Let’s dig i...

Have you seen the latest headlines by professionals in the world of bariatric medicine? Extra, Extra… read all about it: Obesity Is Not Your Fault! Who doesn’t want to hear that? Besides me, that is… Why don’t I want to hear that obesity is not your fault? Is it because I believe that obesity IS your fault? I certainly do NOT think your genetics are your fault, nor do I think your childhood enviro...

Brittany Spears confessed it many years ago, and many of us could do the same most days of our lives: “Oops. I did it again.” I can’t remember what Brittany had done again, but when it comes to sabotaging weight loss and healthy lifestyle efforts, there is no shortage of examples. As with most behaviors, those we engage in that lead us away from our goals usually begin in our thoughts. Oh, the pow...

If you’re regularly dissing on yourself in what you say to and about yourself (or even think negative thoughts about yourself), not only will your life suffer, but so will the lives of those around you! Let’s be honest… if you’re feeling angry with yourself, if you’re down on yourself all the time… it’s like being lost in a mental boxing ring in your head and you’re about to knock yourself out bec...

Who wants to acknowledge that their behavior broadcasts to others their level of self-esteem (at least to some degree)? Let’s see… when my body was emaciated from anorexia, it was an outward sign, unfortunately, of my internal low self-esteem. When I got drunk five nights a week during my last two years of college, it too, was an indication that my self-esteem was in the toilet, as did my abuse of...

Some self-disclosure for you on THIS episode of BariAftercare! The SELF is a work in progress throughout our lives. There is a big TO DO following bariatric surgery when it comes to the SELF. Why? Because how we feel about ourSELF has a LOT to do with how we treat our bodies, the kinds of relationships we have … with other people, with food, with finances, with alcohol and many other things. Liste...