Gastric Bypass Bariatric Surgery Success Story Alecia Pemberton from Killeen TX*

Before her gastric bypass bariatric surgery, Alecia did not have consistent results with dieting. “I lost weight using the HCG diet and Phentermine but was always up and down, up and down, never consistent!’”

Highest Weight: 327
Current Weight: 183
Procedure: Gastric Bypass Bariatric Surgery on February 18, 2015

Alecia Pemberton, as a child, was always small. In fact, her nickname growing up was ‘Tiny!’

Later in life Alecia was trained in the military, married, and had three children. It was at this point in her life where her weight started to become a serious issue. ‘I was mainly a stay at home mom’ says Alecia. After her children were born and she felt comfortable working again she became a corrections officer at the State Prison. However, even though she was getting out of the house and working more, she still had issues with her weight.  ‘I tried a few different diets including the HCG diet and using Phentermine. I lost some weight but it was always up and down up and down!’

This flux in her weight continued through her 30’s. It wasn’t until two events happened that she decided to make a change. The first, she attended a debutante ball and saw a picture of herself, ‘I never liked being in front of a camera. I would always be the one who was taking the picture. Until I saw this specific picture, at the debutant ball, I realized that I needed to make a change!’ Alecia says that she was so embarrassed at the way she looked. The second, and final, instance that led her to Texas Bariatric Specialists was when she had to have a seat extender for a plane seat. This was equally embarrassing and after speaking to her friend, who had great results after her surgery with Dr. Patel, decided to make an appointment for a free seminar.

After her first appointment with James Houston, PA-C Alecia says, ‘My mind was made up, I knew I was going to go through with it!’ It was this appointment that helped Alecia know that this was the right decision for her, ‘Speaking with James he was always helpful and very important to my success. He would have suggestions and tips for when things got difficult. His positive but firm attitude was just what I needed for accountability!’ Together they agreed that bariatric surgery was the correct choice. Throughout her pre-op process Alecia always stayed positive and says, ‘There was never a point where I did not think I couldn’t do it!’ Prior to her surgery Alecia struggled with sleep apnea and swollen limbs, especially her feet. Now, after she traveled to San Antonio for her bariatric surgery, she no longer suffers from sleep apnea and her feet have gone done a whole shoe size, due to reduced swelling.

‘I always knew I had to do it. My daughter had a lot of years left and I want to be around for as many of them as I can!’ At her highest weight Alecia was three-hundred and twenty-seven pounds! Now she is down to an astounding one-hundred and eighty-three pounds! This has caused her to drop from a size twenty-four waist to a size ten to twelve! Now, after her surgery, Alecia is very active doing Zumba four days a week and even when I spoke with her for this interview, she just got done running a 5k! Long gone are the days where she celebrates every occasion with food. Now she is incorporating a healthy lifestyle into her daily meals and her family is partaking as well. Life after surgery has been great for Alecia, ‘Now I love taking pictures and being in them! I try not to post too many to Facebook but it’s hard not to because of all the weight I have lost!’ Everyone at Texas Bariatric Specialist has been very proud of Alecia and her weight loss! She has completely embraced the lifestyle change that is expected of patients and has come away with fantastic results. Alecia says that, ‘some people were leery in the beginning, telling me the negative aspects of the surgery, however, after they see all the weight that I have lost, no longer are their comments negative!’