I don’t think I’ve blogged about weight-loss surgery before,
or at least not in a long whileand I’m not sure why. Perhaps because I don’t
have extensive medical knowledge about it. What I do have is experience with
clients who have had bariatric surgerybut who still sought me out to resolve
post-surgery eating problems. Although I’m not totally against itI believe it should
be an intervention of final resort. Here’s why.
The post-surgery clients I’ve treated continued to have
disregulated eating problems decades later. Some remained morbidly obese while
others were some 20-50 pounds overweight. As one client said“My stomach is
still big enough to eat a Snickers barand ice cream slides down real easy.” Each
was an emotional eater with a history of food problems dating back to
childhoodand although they had been on many dietsnone had ever really explored
why they ate emotionally and compulsively.
With this (admittedly limited) experienceI was troubled by
an article in the LA TIMES a few months ago by Shari RoanThe use of
Weight-loss surgery may expand. What used to be a last-ditch effort to
scale down weightsaid the articlewas now likely to become more commonplace,
largely because of improvements in surgery technology. Making it less costlytime-consuming,
and invasive would make it appeal to more people. Dr. Blandine Laferrerea
diabetes expert at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in
New York expressed her fearasking“…But does that mean everyone who is
overweight should have it? I don’t think sobecause none of these procedures is
benign.” The article went on to say that many nutritionists are not all that
happy about the upswing in surgeriesciting side effects and potential risks
such as nutritional deficienciesdiarrhearegurgitationand bowel
obstructions; dumping syndromewhich is involuntary vomiting or defecation;
and complications from ulcerswound healinghemorrhagingdeep-vein
thrombosisheart attacksand strokes.
I doubt that the opinions of eating disorder therapists were
solicited. My guess is that most of us would not be for expanding bariatric
surgery because we end up seeing the people for whom it did not workthe
clients who have the same eating problems they had before the operation. It
saddens and frustrates me that our fat phobicthin obsessed culture is adamantly
hooked on the quick fix and refuses to take the long view of the causes of our
dangerousunhealthy relationship with food and our bodies. My advice: try
therapy with an eating specialist before going under the knife.And be sure to check out this website on
bariatric surgery: http://www.journeyintohunger.com/.
I don’t think I’ve blogged about weight-loss surgery before, or at least not in a long whileand I’m not sure why. Perhaps because I don’t have extensive medical knowledge about it. What I do have is experience with clients who have had bariatric surgerybut who still sought me out to resolve post-surgery eating problems. Although I’m not totally against itI believe it should be an intervention of final resort. Here’s why.
The post-surgery clients I’ve treated continued to have disregulated eating problems decades later. Some remained morbidly obese while others were some 20-50 pounds overweight. As one client said“My stomach is still big enough to eat a Snickers barand ice cream slides down real easy.” Each was an emotional eater with a history of food problems dating back to childhoodand although they had been on many dietsnone had ever really explored why they ate emotionally and compulsively.
With this (admittedly limited) experienceI was troubled by an article in the LA TIMES a few months ago by Shari RoanThe use of Weight-loss surgery may expand. What used to be a last-ditch effort to scale down weightsaid the articlewas now likely to become more commonplace, largely because of improvements in surgery technology. Making it less costlytime-consuming, and invasive would make it appeal to more people. Dr. Blandine Laferrerea diabetes expert at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York expressed her fearasking“…But does that mean everyone who is overweight should have it? I don’t think sobecause none of these procedures is benign.” The article went on to say that many nutritionists are not all that happy about the upswing in surgeriesciting side effects and potential risks such as nutritional deficienciesdiarrhearegurgitationand bowel obstructions; dumping syndromewhich is involuntary vomiting or defecation; and complications from ulcerswound healinghemorrhagingdeep-vein thrombosisheart attacksand strokes.
I doubt that the opinions of eating disorder therapists were solicited. My guess is that most of us would not be for expanding bariatric surgery because we end up seeing the people for whom it did not workthe clients who have the same eating problems they had before the operation. It saddens and frustrates me that our fat phobicthin obsessed culture is adamantly hooked on the quick fix and refuses to take the long view of the causes of our dangerousunhealthy relationship with food and our bodies. My advice: try therapy with an eating specialist before going under the knife. And be sure to check out this website on bariatric surgery: http://www.journeyintohunger.com/.
Best,
Karen
http://www.eatingnormal.com/
http://www.nicegirlsfinishfat.com/