I cannot begin to express how grateful I am to Dr. Bhoyrul and his staff, their support and encouragement are beyond words. The past two years of my life have been amazing and I have totally transformed into the woman I have dreamed of being.  After having my third child in 1992 I had gained an excess of 70 lbs, and for another 16 years I struggled with my weight. I was able to lose 30lbs here and there and then as usual gain it back plus some. I did this many times over the years.  When I first came to your office I weighed 239 lbs, that was the heaviest I had ever weighed.  I just could not control my food portions.

Years of being overweight was such a heartache for me. I wasted a lot of precious time with my kids and family not wanting to participate  in events or activities because of the unhealthiness and embarrassment of my  weight. This is time that I will never get back!!  It was time for me to make a change.

Having Bariatric Surgery quite literally saved my life. That's a sweeping statement to make. I don't do it lightly. Today, I am 192lbs (6'-3" tall). Thirteen months ago I tipped the scales at 432lbs. General health was in decline and malaise had descended over my life. Suffering enough, I approached La Jolla Weight Management, met Dr. Sunil Bhoyrul and attended a seminar hosted by Alvarado Hospital on the subject. Dr. Bhoyrul and the staff were attentive to my specific needs and concerns, empathetic with my condition, engaged with answering my questions, and lay to rest my greatest fears. The workup to surgery was thorough with attention paid to every detail from pre-surgical analysis and dieting, to administrative preparations. By surgery, every element was in place, leaving just the Doctor and me to focus on this very important day. Because of the personalized care and professional guidance provided by this highly dedicated staff, the surgery (for me) was almost a non-event. Certainly a lot of worry, a lot of weight, and years of misery were removed as smoothly as opening a curtain in a dark room revealing a bright and sunny day.

Dr. Bhoyrul is a team builder. I joined this team thirteen months ago. Going forward, I remain a member of the team that quite literally saved my life.

ZERO
"0" -  that was the number the nice looking boys on the Boardwalk at Mission Beach held up when I rode my bike past them, I was 15 years old, and all too well aware of the "0-10" cards that these boys thought it was fun to hold up as girls rode past. Cruel? You bet!
"0" -  that number stuck with me through my life. Zero was how I felt for more than 40 years. Obese, trying countless diets, pills, shots, protein drinks, hypnosis and starvation that never helped for long. Sure, lose some weight, never enough and then the cruel trick of gaining it back and more.
Seeing the disappointment in my parents eyes when I had "failed" again.
Wondering how and why my husband was attracted to me, and actually feeling embarrassed for my kids that I was their Mom.
Yep, "0" and over 250 lbs.!

That was only one of a number of things I will always remember about being overweight. So many other things- chairs breaking, not being able to get up out of a beach chair on the sand, taking the pictures, so I wasn't in the pictures, finding out that I was being let go from a job because I didn't look the part, buying clothes only because they fit, not because they looked good, listening to friends and family and their "helpful" suggestions to lose weight, too many things flood my memories of the pain I felt, and the body I was held prisoner in.

After my 40th birthday, the health problems started- the back pain, the leg pain, the high blood pressure, the cracking heels that would not heal and the sleep apnea.

I decided in 2008 that I would go ahead and check out the sleep apnea since I was literally falling asleep at peoples houses, stoplights, movies and anywhere that I might sit still for a few minutes.

I had a sleep study done and found out that I was stopping breathing close to ninety times an hour while sleeping! I was headed for a heart attack or a stroke. My doctor said it was a direct result from the weight and that he would suggest losing it immediately and that he would back me up on any way to do so.

I had never really considered weight loss surgery, it seemed so drastic and I never thought I had "that much" (ha!) to lose, but here I was going to the seminar that Dr. Bhoyrul was putting on.

I immediately felt at ease with this man, and listened to the presentation, and was impressed by the Lapband, I liked the accountability of having to visit your doctor for fills and maintenance, and the fact that the surgery was less invasive than the gastric bypass.

I felt like less of a "failure" when I heard the statistics regarding weight loss and the regain of weight when "dieting". When you hear that "these results are not typical" during a weight loss commercial, they are so right, with a success rate of .02% to keep off weight, they are definitely NOT typical!

Weight loss surgeries are a little different, the weight loss is typical! And with the right support system and program, it can be permanent weight loss!

After dieting and losing some weight before I went in for my office visit with Dr. Bhoyrul (I didn't want him to think I was too fat!), I booked my surgery for May 7th, 2008.

The surgery was very quick and any pain I felt was gone within 3 weeks time. I started losing weight immediately and within one year I had lost over 90lbs.! Yes, I do eat differently, and a lot less. But as I happily told a woman who was helping me with my size medium dress, when she said "I heard you have to give up a lot!," I said "yep, I gave up close to 100lbs.!"

I exercise daily now, lift weights, take water aerobics and have done things I would have never done overweight. I even swam with Dolphins in public, in a wetsuit!

And I even enjoy shopping! It sure is more fun buying size 6 pants instead of size 20! And not to shop in the large size shops is fantastic!

Thank you for the make over! God bless you all for the gift of life you have given to me with the tool of the Realize Band. I have quality of life back and every day the quality gets better with every pound that I lose.

I can't begin to express my gratitude and appreciation for Dr. Bhoyrul, his staff, and the Realize Band. Quite simply, they've saved my life.

Less than a year ago, I weighed 276 lbs. I was diabetic. I had high blood pressure. My cholesterol was off the charts. I took nearly 10 different medications every day. The only thing worse than my diet and lifestyle was my outlook. I had tried every diet but couldn't get it right. I was tired all the time, too tired to exercise. I was heading for an early grave at age 53. My two darling daughters would soon be without their father.

My supervisor at work told me about Dr. Bhoyrul and the lap band. This was my last and best hope. I attended a seminar and learned about the surgery and what changes I would need to make after the surgery. I became committed to improving my life.

The surgery was much easier than I thought it would be. It was a challenge to change my diet and begin exercising again, but I was committed to use this gift, this lap band, as a tool. The weight started shedding off and my diabetes abated. My fasting blood sugar readings became normal. In time, my blood pressure became normal and my cholesterol is so much better.

Today, not even a year after the lap band surgery, I've lost 70 lbs. I walk 2-6 miles every day without being winded. I eat right and feel great. Colleagues at work marvel not only that I lost the weight, but that I've kept it off. Many think I look much younger.

Would I do this all over? You bet I would. I bet my life... and won. There's a good chance I'll be walking those daughters of mine down the aisle some day, taking grandchildren to the zoo, and enjoying my future as a healthy person. What is the price of a good life? For me, it was trusting Dr. Bhoyrul and his warm, caring staff. For me, it was starting all over again with the lap band.