22岁时的减肥手术:新的身体，新的自我

然后, 大二的时候, 弗里德伯格's mother – who'd also struggled with lifelong weight issues – had 减肥手术, 弗里德伯格受到了启发. “我看着她在我面前变形，”弗里德伯格回忆道. "So when I moved to San Francisco for graduate school, I knew I wanted to start over. 我想要一个全新的视角，并开始研究 减肥手术 21岁时."

一年后的2011年4月，弗里德伯格接受了手术 在加州大学旧金山分校做减肥手术.

你一直超重吗?

整个小学，我都很活跃. 我每天都做体操，一周跳三次舞. 我参加了夏令营，有很多时间在外面玩. As I got older, I started to slow down, and that's when the pounds started to pile on.

What challenges did you face as a severely overweight teenager?

我经常被取笑. I grew up in a beach town and I didn't look like everyone else. 我更大，不苗条，皮肤晒得黝黑. It was tough knowing that no matter how hard I tried to be like everyone else and fit in, 我和他们的处境完全不同.

你体重最大的时候是多少，是什么时候?

我最重的时候有275磅. 那正好是我做手术的时候. 我觉得没有希望了. It was really sad for someone my age (I was 22 at the time) to think that there would never be a way out, 没人会喜欢原来的我, 我不可能再快乐了.

你现在有多重?

我现在重190磅，还在减. It's a battle every day, but the better I feel, the easier the battle.

Some research has found that overeating is a genetic addiction. 你同意吗??

在我的成长过程中，我的整个家庭都是大家庭. It wasn't a single person teaching me bad ways, or a single person buying the food for the family. 我妈妈从不给我们买含糖零食. 我小时候从没吃过幸运符和奶油夹心蛋糕. Both of my parents cooked meals, and I often ate school lunches. 虽然我同意肥胖是家事, I also believe that being fat has something to do with genetics.

我爸爸在50岁前两次心脏病发作. 这促使他减肥并每天锻炼. My brother and I probably weighed the same at our heaviest (he's an inch or two taller), but he found that he loves to run and has lost 70 pounds doing so.

我不经常见到我的家人，因为我们住得太分散了, 但现在当我们在一起的时候, 而不是去大饭店吃饭, we cook at home and go walk around the art museum or go bowling.

你和你妈妈试过一起减肥吗?

年轻的时候，我试过我能想到的每一种饮食. 其中一些是我和妈妈一起做的，还有一些是我自己尝试的. I thought one of them had to work and some of them did for a little while. But even when I stuck to them, they started failing me, and that was a really depressing thing.

Nothing helped me, and I felt like I was slipping away from the person that everyone knew me as. 这些都是我内化的东西. 我不想让全校都知道我的事, 但同时, 我只是希望有人能注意到我有多挣扎. 虽然健康课教了我们基本的营养知识, there was no one I could talk to about the things I was going through.

What advice would you give to other severely overweight young adults?

My mom used to tell me that no matter how many different diets I was on or how many days I went to the gym, 只有当我完全准备好了，我才会减肥. I give that advice to people my age who aren't sure about their future. I've been there, even if I don't look like it as much anymore. It's a long road to walk when you get out of breath so easily.

手术后生活中最艰难的部分是什么?

对我来说最难的部分是学习如何“重新进食”.“一开始很难，因为你不饿, 但后来, 一旦你又想吃东西了, 同样的困难. 我必须学会少吃点东西. For me, "re-eating" meant that just because I thought I was hungry didn't mean I was.

一开始，我只能吃液体和果冻. Part of me wanted to test myself and try different foods, but I told myself no. 在4月份的手术后，我有三周没有喝水. 三周后，我瘦了22磅. 这对我来说太奇怪了.

我一点也不饿, 我的一部分只是觉得无聊, so I had to really sit and think before I ate (or slurped) my soup and my protein shakes. It's still somewhat of a "sit and think" time for me before I eat. I always think of what's best for me and what will make me regret my decisions.

手术后生活中最美好的部分是什么?

我觉得到目前为止最好的部分是我的裤子. 他们不止一次摔了下来. 这是令人沮丧的, 但这是一种美妙的感觉, 知道他们曾经在某种程度上适合, 这条裤子我以为我能穿一辈子. 能够把它们扔掉是一种力量.

What are your eating habits like now compared with before surgery?

Since the surgery, I have to be careful and make sure I eat nutritious foods. I do have a special diet that consists mainly of protein-rich foods to make sure my body has enough of that particular nutrient to function. Most 减肥手术 patients are on high- or higher-protein diets. What makes it difficult for me is that I don't eat red meat or pork products. 这是我自己的选择. I stick to eggs, beans, chicken, fish and other protein-rich foods. There are many things I steer clear of, just to be safe, such as candy, chocolate and ice cream.

糖让我超级恶心. For me, this side effect is interesting because it helps keep me in line. 不管吃多少糖，我都会感觉不舒服. 这并不是说我想吃饼干的时候就不能吃, 但我不能像往常一样吃五六块饼干了. 我最后会生病的. 虽然我知道糖可能会这样影响我, 我也知道这并不会影响到每个人, 所以我测试了一下自己. 我花了好长时间(在浴室里)付钱。, 但我学到了关于我的身体和极限的宝贵经验.

你和食物的关系有什么变化?

我现在对食物的看法完全不同了. I know I'm partly responsible for my weight issues, but I believe I'm not entirely to blame. 我以前从来不看标签. 我从来不在乎什么对我好或不好. 现在我非常仔细地选择我的食物. I make sure I know exactly what's going into my body to give me the optimum results for my health and well-being.

手术如何改变了你的生活?

I can shop with my friends now and not at the "special stores." I can go out in a tight dress and feel confident instead of wearing a big cover-up. 对我这个年纪的人来说，这些都很重要. 但也, 作为一个成长中的专业人士, I like knowing that people won't look at me and prejudge me just by the way I look.

我也明白了倾听你身体的声音是多么重要. 这对一些人来说意义不大, but I don't think I'd be where I am now – almost 100 pounds lighter – if I didn't learn to listen to my body and what it has to tell me.

你对未来的看法有什么变化?

我觉得我可以重新开始. 我现在决定我想成为什么样的人，而不是社会. 我对未来感到非常乐观.

My goals include editing for television and major motion pictures. I'm currently in graduate school for my master's in television editing.