Patsy Ramirez struggled with her weight prior to being treated at Palmdale Regional.
Throughout her 20s and 30s, Patsy Ramirez struggled with her weight even though she maintained an active lifestyle. While she had the discipline to exercise, she lacked self-control when it came to food. “I wasn’t eating properly,” she explained, “I was eating more calories than I was exercising. I was a size 20 or 22.”
Ramirez learned about surgical weight-loss options through her physician and decided on the minimally invasive gastric bypass procedure, which reduces the size of the stomach and the amount of fat the body can absorb. For weeks before the surgery, she attended education classes on nutrition and met Bariatric Surgeon John Yadegar, MD, who would perform the procedure through Palmdale Regional. “They provided me with so much information that it was very easy to go through with it. And they are there when you need to talk to somebody. That was the best part.”
In July of 2013 Ramirez successfully underwent the gastric bypass procedure and with regular exercise and dietary changes, she finally began to lose weight. She has tracked her transformation in inches, writing a list of her measurements on her bathroom mirror in eyeliner that she keeps as a daily reminder.
Patsy Ramirez before and after weight-loss surgery.
Four years and many pounds later, she feels that the bariatric surgery was a life-changing decision. “When I was big, I didn’t feel normal. I was the one that didn’t fit in the chair, on the rollercoaster. Walking around the mall used to be so exhausting. Now it’s so easy. I feel normal. It’s not about food anymore, it’s just fitness.”
Ramirez strives to fit in two to three workouts most days. She began exercising with a personal trainer and took up boxing as a fun way to combine cardio with strength training. She also remains active in the Palmdale Regional weight-loss surgery support group that gathers once a month. "When I go to the support group and hear the stories of someone who is 10 years out or a few months or considering the surgery, it helps me revaluate and get right back in there."