166 pounds lighter after weight-loss procedure

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Anita Thomas, of Bolingbrook, lost 166 pounds thanks to weight-loss surgery performed at Silver Cross Hospital in Joliet, Ill. | Submitted photo

Updated: November 10, 2011 10:47AM

JOLIET — In order to deal with stress, for decades Anita Thomas overate, which led to her weighing more than 400 pounds and having to use a walker and cane to move around.

“One day I looked into the mirror and something just clicked in my head,” said 67-year-old Thomas. “I was so disgusted with my weight and wanted to become healthier so I could be around to spend time with my four children and three grandchildren.”

Thomas’ health improved since she lost 166 pounds after her Realize adjustable gastric band weight-loss surgery at Silver Cross Hospital in 2009.

As Thomas began losing weight, her outlook on life dramatically changed.

“Now I am motivated to live and I look forward to enjoying every day,” he said.

Prior to her surgery, Thomas suffered from high blood pressure, severe pain in her knees and in 2003 she had to have a pacemaker implanted. Now she walks pain-free without the assistance of a cane or walker and has no high blood pressure.

“I have more energy to live each day to the fullest,” she said.

Both her cardiologist and a friend referred her to Bariatric and Minimally Invasive Surgery at Silver Cross.

Free informational seminars on the procedure are held at 5:45 p.m. every Wednesday on the Silver Cross Hospital campus.

Her surgeon was Dr. Christopher Joyce, who with his partner, Dr. Brian Lahmann, have performed more than 2,000 surgeries including laparoscopic gastric bypass, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, and lap-band and Realize gastric band systems.

Patients receive a multidisciplinary approach, with the help of many different departments at Silver Cross.

“Patients see an exercise physiologist, dietitian, cardiologist, psychologist, pulmonologist and a bariatric nurse to get them ready for surgery,” Joyce said. “We screen our patients very carefully to ensure their success and safety.”

But once the surgery is over, the work has just begun for the patient. They achieve their weight-loss goals by adhering to a post-operative lifestyle, which includes changed eating habits and regular exercise.