First Support Group Meeting

Gloria and I went to our first support group meeting since my surgery. It was a convenient location for us at John Knox Presbyterian Church, just west of Stark Tech Campus in Canton.

They had guest speakers from St. Vincent's Hospital talking about surprises after surgery.

It was a good group and a good discussion.

One thing that I learned was the importance of eating enough so the metabolism does not begin to shut down. In that case you stop losing the weight, because your body adjusts thinking it does not need it. So I am trying to make sure that I eat at least 800-1200 calories per day as well as making sure I eat 60 grams of protein. A lot of things were similiar between hospital plans, but there are some differences also.

I was able to reassure a lady who is going to have the surgery that she will do fine with it.

The last thing that I discovered is that there is a network of these support groups and a magazine that covers the entire country. You can find out more about it from http://www.obesityhelp.com/ or call 1-866-297-4964. This is a peer support community, with over 400,000 members nationwide. Many have lost over 100 pounds. Supportive peers who understand: Discrimination, Weight Loss Surgery, Relationship Issues; Fashion & Shopping, Recipes, Exercise and Diets and Life Transformation. Check it out if interested.

This group meets once a month, and there is no membership fee. We are also going to check out Cleveland Clinic's group and possibly Akron General's group too (we attended one of their meetings before).