A Milestone-- Below 40 BMI and no longer invisible
According to my bathroom scale this morning, my weight has now dropped to 242, down from my official start of 286. That's 44 pounds, gone forever.
More significantly, my BMI has now dropped below 40, and I'm no longer considered "morbidly obese" and am now merely (!) "obese." BMI charts seem to differ, but I wanted to be sure that, by all their numbers, I'm now simply "obese." Uhhh...thanks?
In some ways, it's significant that I'm merely on the chart at all! Some BMI charts don't even go as high as 250 lbs, as if such a weight does not bear noticing. It should be noticed. In fact, moreso than the weights closer to the ideal, IMHO!
Those who are morbidly obese need MORE help, not less! Am I saying they (formerly, "we") need sympathy? Not necessarily. However, because there are issues --health and social are the two main ones-- the morbidly obese need to be on the charts and in the sights of the medical community.
Not to mention, the insurance company bean counters need to seriously rethink how difficult they make it for those who WANT help to get it. There are several diet pills out there proven to be effective when medically monitored and used in conjunction with nutrition counseling, behavior modification and --yes, I'll say it!-- a stern talking to the family about sabotage. Then, if that doesn't work, the insurance company needs to give in and make the various forms of bariatric surgery available without a fight, huge co-pays, and long waits while the patient "proves" how serious they are.
C'mon! Obesity causes very serious health issues like high blood pressure, diabetes, arthritis, sleep apnea, and stroke. The medications and/or treatments for these ailments can cost much more than the surgery annually for each patient if they're hospitalized once. My sleep apnea machine cost more than a grand, even before I used it once. The supplies for it cost about $600 a year, and that's what my insurance pays for! This doesn't include my regular visits to two different doctors and the obesity-related medications for pain, high cholesterol, and high blood sugar.
Since my LapBand was installed, I no longer need my cholesterol medication, I haven't taken a pain pill in months, I haven't had an apnea problem in three months, and I'm fairly sure my blood sugar is now close to normal, judging by the way I feel. That's with a "mere" 44 pounds gone out of the nearly 150 total I need to lose by the BMI charts to reach my "healthy" range.
How much more money do the insurance companies have to spend before they figure this out?
More significantly, my BMI has now dropped below 40, and I'm no longer considered "morbidly obese" and am now merely (!) "obese." BMI charts seem to differ, but I wanted to be sure that, by all their numbers, I'm now simply "obese." Uhhh...thanks?
In some ways, it's significant that I'm merely on the chart at all! Some BMI charts don't even go as high as 250 lbs, as if such a weight does not bear noticing. It should be noticed. In fact, moreso than the weights closer to the ideal, IMHO!
Those who are morbidly obese need MORE help, not less! Am I saying they (formerly, "we") need sympathy? Not necessarily. However, because there are issues --health and social are the two main ones-- the morbidly obese need to be on the charts and in the sights of the medical community.
Not to mention, the insurance company bean counters need to seriously rethink how difficult they make it for those who WANT help to get it. There are several diet pills out there proven to be effective when medically monitored and used in conjunction with nutrition counseling, behavior modification and --yes, I'll say it!-- a stern talking to the family about sabotage. Then, if that doesn't work, the insurance company needs to give in and make the various forms of bariatric surgery available without a fight, huge co-pays, and long waits while the patient "proves" how serious they are.
C'mon! Obesity causes very serious health issues like high blood pressure, diabetes, arthritis, sleep apnea, and stroke. The medications and/or treatments for these ailments can cost much more than the surgery annually for each patient if they're hospitalized once. My sleep apnea machine cost more than a grand, even before I used it once. The supplies for it cost about $600 a year, and that's what my insurance pays for! This doesn't include my regular visits to two different doctors and the obesity-related medications for pain, high cholesterol, and high blood sugar.
Since my LapBand was installed, I no longer need my cholesterol medication, I haven't taken a pain pill in months, I haven't had an apnea problem in three months, and I'm fairly sure my blood sugar is now close to normal, judging by the way I feel. That's with a "mere" 44 pounds gone out of the nearly 150 total I need to lose by the BMI charts to reach my "healthy" range.
How much more money do the insurance companies have to spend before they figure this out?
Comments