Bariatric Surgery in San Antonio Success Story Carmelo Isaac Villegas*

After multiple failed weight loss attempts over the years Isaac finally hit his limit at the end of 2015. “I could not walk, stand or carry my then 2 year old for more than five minutes!” So Isaac went in for bariatric surgery in San Antonio. on July 20, 2016 “Absolutely! I would do it all over again. This has been one of the best decisions I have ever made”

Highest Weight: 404lbs
Goal Weight: 200lbs
Current Weight: 285lbs
Procedure: Gastric Bypass

Isaac began struggling with his weight when he was around 15 or 16 years old. He noticed at this point that his eating had increased while his activity had decreased and since his mother’s side of the family suffers from multiple obesity related conditions, such as high blood pressure and diabetes, his weight gain was concerning. At the age of 18 Isaac decided to take his first step in getting his weight down and reducing his health risks by staring the grapefruit diet, but unfortunately it only lasted six weeks before he fell off the wagon and started his poor habits again. He stated that “it took off a great amount of weight; however, the moment I fell off the diet all my weight came back with a vengeance.” When he noticed his weight going back up he tried to get back on the diet but he had lost his desire to continue with that plan so he found a workout partner and began exercising to get the weight off instead. This regimen worked great for him, but again, after only a few weeks he lost his motivation and stopped going to the gym and went back to his sedentary lifestyle.

After multiple failed weight loss attempts over the years Isaac finally hit his limit at the end of 2015. “I could not walk, stand or carry my then 2 year old for more than five minutes!” Isaac exclaimed. He also became embarrassed that he was often told by people that he needed to stay home when they were going out because he wouldn’t be able to keep up with them. Then, in January 2016, Isaac went to the doctor to get two bombs dropped on him, first that he was at his highest weight ever at just over 400lbs and second that he was pre-diabetic and would now add taking medication for diabetes to his daily medications for high blood pressure and cholesterol. “Believe it or not, this was my A-ha moment…this had gone too far and I was ready to make a change.” Isaac began his search for how to make this change happen and came across Dr. Patel and TBS. He printed out all the information he could find and took it to his primary care doctor to get her opinion and she highly recommended he call. He made the call that day and the following weekend he was sitting in the seminar and stayed behind to have a one on one with Dr Patel and his journey towards getting gastric bypass bariatric surgery in San Antonio began that day.

During his research Isaac had decided he was interested in pursuing the Gastric Sleeve, but after his initial meeting with Dr Patel he was informed that the sleeve was not in the cards for him. Due to the fact that Isaac’s BMI was so high, he would not benefit as much as he would like from the sleeve and so in order to get the best results he and Dr Patel agreed that he would be a perfect candidate for the Gastric Bypass. So on July 20, 2016 Isaac took the biggest step in his journey and went into surgery for the gastric bypass and in the last five months he has already seen a huge change. Isaac’s highest weight was 404lbs, just before surgery he was 376lbs and now he weighs in at 285lbs. He has lost almost 100lbs so far and he is really pushing for his final goal of being down 200lbs, he said “I have not hit that mark yet, but I am confident that I will!”

Isaac stays motivated by seeing his tremendous results. He can now shop in regular clothing stores and wear clothes straight off the rack, he is now branching out and wearing clothes that he was previously uncomfortable in. “My self-esteem has definitely improved by leaps and bounds.” His biggest motivation though comes from his wife and daughter. He says that he can finally sleep well at night knowing that he will be around for them and will enjoy life with them with no limitations. Isaac no longer has the same aches and pains in his knees and back, he no longer has sleep apnea and now sleeps great at night with no CPAP. He no longer feels the need to nap everyday, though he still enjoys a good nap from time to time, and doesn’t fall asleep in public places anymore. His energy level is high and he can spend time doing fun things with his family instead of missing out.

Though Isaac is very happy with his new life, he has definitely had his struggles throughout the process. He had a really rough time when it came to transitioning his diet out of the liquid phase. Sometimes this was due to not being able to keep food down, and other times it was more of a fear that if he tried things that he used to like he would find that he still likes them and would fall back into his old habits and regain the weight he had lost. “It was definitely a mental challenge, but again my support group has kept me grounded and kept me moving forward.” Isaac also mentioned that his wife helped him overcome his body image struggles that arose. She had to force him to throw out all his big clothes that no longer fit him instead of holding on to them as though they were his security blanket. Those feelings that he needs those clothes to hide his weight still come up from time to time but now he can confront those feelings and move forward.

“Absolutely! I would do it all over again. This has been one of the best decisions I have ever made” exclaimed Isaac when asked if he would do it again. And to anyone contemplating surgery he would tell them to do their research and ask any questions that come to mind. He wants everyone to remember that the surgery is not magic pill but it’s a huge step with an even greater pay off.

He also wanted to add “I am thankful that God placed Dr Patel and TBS in my path. They have made a huge impact in my life.”