Donna Morris
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After |
Donna Morris is enjoying a lifesaver that is so sweet that it offers her a chance to put a weight problem in the past.
Morris, 40, had struggled to lose weight and she felt that she needed to find an answer in light of her genetic history. High blood pressure and strokes run in her family.
But by undergoing laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery she has seen weight drop. Along with that, she has gained peace of mind about her blood pressure, because it has dropped into a normal range.
Donna has three daughters over age 20. But she gained weight in the last 15 years, which was in contrast to after the birth of her children, when she found success in losing weight. But over the years, it became harder, causing her to try many diets.
Finally after many ups and downs in her weight battle, she decided in 2003 to contact Dr. Christopher Joyce who performed laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery, on Donna on Nov. 4.
“Having high blood pressure, which for me had become outrageous, was the biggest reason why I did this,” Donna says. “Since I've done it, I've lost weight and my blood pressure has come down quite a bit. It was 148 over 110 at one time. When I last checked it, it was 117 over 72, which was very low for me, and I've probably not had that low of blood pressure since my early 20s. High blood pressure is very scary.”
Donna says she is on track to losing her weight and, in the process, meeting her goal. She dropped four pants sizes over six weeks after the surgery, going from 226 pounds to 191 pounds in that time. Her goal is 140 pounds.
“It is a completely different lifestyle,” she continues. “I can definitely go up the stairs of my two-story house without losing my breath. I feel better about myself and it is nice to hear complements that people have noticed the weight loss and that I feel good.”
“People in my family have had strokes and it is a relief that my high blood pressure is under control with this weight being off. I want to be around longer with my kids. I have three thin daughters. Between heart attacks and strokes that run in my family, I was not on the right road. I know I did this surgery for the right reasons. I know I did the right thing by having this surgery.”
Donna encourages other people with a weight problem to consider seeking surgery.
“I wasn't as overweight as some people, but I had the medical reasons behind that. Yet, I couldn't do it by myself any more. If you have more weight than I did, this is the route to take. Yeah, it is a different lifestyle in what you can eat. More than anything, you're mind still thinks about the food. But I don't crave food anymore.”