WXOW News 19 La Crosse, WI – News, Weather and Sports |A second chance
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(WXOW) - For millions of Americans obesity is a daily struggle.
And losing the weight, isn't always easy.
More and more people are opting for bariatric surgery, or weight loss surgery.
Laura Kruse, a Marshfield woman allowed camera's to follow her this past year on her bariatric journey.
I met Laura Kruse in August 2008.
Then.. she struggled with simple activities.. like playing with her dog.
Work became more challenging .. daily life.. overwhelming.
She blamed her weight.
"With my job, I'm up and down off the floor. I'm moving all over the place an it's gotten harder. My knees are getting sore, my feet are getting sore. I just want to get rid of all of that."
Kruse struggled with weight most of her life and when college sports ended.. inactivity and motherhood began.
That's when obesity set in.
5 years ago.. with diets not working.. Kruse began contemplating surgery.
She made the first step.. to go to a weight loss meeting.
"I talked to my family after I did the orientation, my husband and my kids, and I said 'If I do this, it's the whole family doing it. It's not just me. I'm doing the major part of it but the whole family will be eating differently. They were all very, very supportive."
She'd need support from more than just her family.
Her insurance provider gave the go-ahead-- but she still needed to convince a Marshfield Clinic dietician and psychologist that she needed surgery.
A mental and physical evaluation took place.. and she even re-learned how and what to eat.
Cindy Stenovich.. a dietician.. worked at Marshfield Clinic.. starting Laura on her weight loss trail.
"A person needs to be in the habit of eating 3 meals a day with no snacks in between which is a big change for some people. People are sometimes used to skipping meals or grabbing their meals. So, getting into a regular eating period is very, very important."
For many patients.. just like Laura it's the new eating pattern that proves difficult.
Stenovich advises slowing down at mealtime.. and completely chewing food.. a habit .. that takes practice.
"They'll need to be chewing their food 20 times to make sure it's at a consistency that can pass through the smaller pouch successfully and not get into any trouble."
David Winemiller.. a clinical psychologist also helps Laura through the journey.
"Bariatric procedures can be likened to a freight train. It's a very powerful tool. But, for any freight train to do it's job a set of tracks that's in reasonably good repair and is headed in the right direction. The rails on those tracks, of course, are diet and exercise."
Winemiller's part in Laura's surgery is perhaps the most important.
He works.. to ensure that Laura is mentally capable of completely changing her lifestyle for the rest of her life.. both with food and exercise.
"They might say, 'Well, after I lose the weight it'll be easier for me to exercise' or 'I don't need to change my diet until after surgery. I'll have to. I won't be able to eat as much.' Both are recipes for disaster."
It's a commitment Laura knows she can and needs to make.. and she's optimistic about the results.
"I want to be healthy. I know I'm not going to do this and be a size two. I was probably born a size two. I was never super petite and I'm not looking for that."
She's looking for a new way of life.. and that's what bariatric surgery is to her.
It's not just about losing the weight.. it's about changing from the inside out.
"It's not a cure. It's just a tool. It's just a way to get you to the weight you need to be. You still have to watch what you eat and do all those things or you could end up right back where you are."
