I was reading some things Jody was saying this morning at it set me off on a thinking tangent. You can recognize one of my thinking tangents by the following symptoms: deep blank stares, babbling, drooling, and possibly smoke emanating from my ears and or nose. I tell you that so you will know I gave this somber thought.
Anyway…..What if we just pretend for a minute….just one minute…What if ALL doctors across the country treated and talked to their patients like mine did? What if instead of sugar coating everything and throwing pills at symptoms they actually investigated and found the root problem of the ailment? I had a laundry list of physical problems Diabetes, Hypertension, sky high Cholesterol, Cardiac Arrhythmias….sadly I was perfectly at ease living with these problems, actually I was perfectly at ease DYING from these because it never really dawned on me that I was in fact dying. I had been placated by doctors for years as they threw more and more pills at me. They pacified me by pretending to be looking for a cure to my problems all the while because of a sense of not wanting to offend they let me live the life I was accustomed to. No one ever said to me “You know Fattikins if you lost a bunch of weight most, if not all, of your problems will go away!” There is a complacent attitude in not only the general populous but seems to be running rampant in the medical community as well. A mind-set of absolute and total denial about just how much weight can impact and influence your overall well being. Take me for example, I lost weight and I no longer have Diabetes, Hypertension, sky high Cholesterol, Cardiac Arrhythmias. It was that simple lose weight, lose the problems.
I know exactly where I would be if he would have calmly and dismissively said to me “Cuts some pounds, try to quit smoking and eat more white meat blah blah blah” I would still be over 300 pounds, still ramming Big Macs down my gullet, chain smoking and slowly waddling my way to an oversized casket at a very young age. It took a bit of foul language, some evil eyes, and a grotesquely painted picture of how the rest of my pathetic fat life was going to play out, or what was left of it. Now from a monetary standpoint this doctor had an honest to cash cow (both literally and figuratively) with me as a patient. I was looking at a lot of office visits, lots of tests, lots of misc expenditures all that where sure to pad his pockets. Instead he set me off on the right path from the word jump. So why is that so hard? Why is he the only doctor I saw in nearly 2 decades of visiting physicians that took the time to bust my chops? Denial, complacency, afraid to hurt feelings and offend? I wish I knew but I am eternally thankful that he took the time to cuss me out.
Nearly every day I say the following quote “If I can do it anyone can” and I am being dead serious about it. If a slovenly, morbidly obese, chain smoking, un-motivated person such as me can decide to put down the cigarettes, jump on a bike and take the reins of my own health over anyone can.
100 Pounds Ago 
Gene
Iam sick of crap doctors that dont at least push patients or say, “if you dont lose the weight and cigarette’s you will die young, possibly from a terrble cancer or have a stroke and drool and piss yourself for 20years then die”
I really dont care, if a doctor swears says you are really fucked. But unfortunately many people are wusses and cant handle, “you are fatt, stop the bullshit food and emotional shit,” or whatever!
Everyone whines and blames everyone and the world. Whatever your life is, theres almays a better way. Basically you need to inform patient with a statement on the door saying honest but good Doctor that will kick your ass into health!
Id do what that doctor does, but unfortunately its hard to tell who this works for and you have to at least come off decent, swearing and brute honesty just doesnt always help maintain a small med. practice, with our cultures wuss mentality. Its BS and people dont get it, its a screwed up world!
Anyway
Dont you love those people say theyok with their huge fatness, i sure as hell would hate myself enough to do something fast, plus all the other health risks are just retarded!
Couldn’t agree more, Gene…COULD NOT AGREE, MORE!!! My doctor didn’t cuss me out, but he told me I was going to be dead by the time I was 50 and the last 10 years of my life would be miserable. That finally registered in my fat noggin and I got off my ass and did something about it. 230 pounds later, I would never go back. The doctor, along with Jodi, who stepped in to help encourage me along the way, helped save my life. If it takes an f-bomb, hell if it takes a REAL bomb – whatever it is, DO IT!! People’s lives are at stake!
Jon
You’ve got to be kidding. The number one complaint I hear from my female friends is that the doctor always brings up losing weight as a solution to their health problems. This is why there is such a fat acceptance movement among heavier women. Maybe your doctor didn’t say it, but many do.
Well Eric since I had a list of doctors as long as my arm and nary a single one of them suggested I should get serious about losing weight…no I am not kidding. I could also provide you with a list of people who suffer from massive health problems who are in fact obese and they too will tell you that not a single one of their docs told them either. I was speaking from my personal experience…hence the reason for this entire BLOG, I never claimed to have the great and vast experience of your gaggle of female friends.
Gene