‘It was risky but worth it,’ she says
Staff writer
About 18 months ago, Bonnie Rindt of Marion began considering stomach-reduction surgery to lose weight and address medical problems.
She was taking 13 pills a day, and one medication was causing weight gain. She also was pre-diabetic and needed two knee replacements and a second back surgery.
Weighing 217 pounds, she contacted a doctor about undergoing the drastic weight-reduction procedure and found it was not easy to get approval.
She was referred to doctors at Shawnee Mission Medical Center. During the next year, she made numerous trips there, where she underwent various blood tests, a stress test, and many other kinds of testing. She also met with psychiatrists.
She was warned of the dangers of the procedure but finally got approval to go ahead with it after a psychiatrist recommended it.
“They wanted to know if you are likely to maintain the weight loss,” she said.
Her first choice was a procedure called “lap band,” but it would have required follow-up weekly visits to Shawnee Mission, so she opted for gastric bypass.
Using laparoscopic equipment, doctors cut away the top part of her stomach from the rest, creating a small pouch which then was connected to the middle part of the small intestine by a tube.
The pouch limited Rindt to four ounces of food at a time.
“It was really difficult at first,” she said. “At first, I could only have Jell-O and broth.”
After about two months, she suffered a complication. The tube opening grew shut, and she couldn’t keep food down.
It was surgically reopened, a procedure which took 15 minutes. Since then, things have gone smoothly.
After the third month, Rindt added plain yogurt and cottage cheese to her diet. Now, seven months later, she is able to eat solid food.
“I’m supposed to eat slowly and chew my food very, very well so it can go through the tiny opening,” she said.
She also drinks a lot of water, but only can take it in sips.
She lost 70 pounds in the first six months, using TOPS Chapter #899 of Marion as a support group.
She is working toward a personal weight goal of 145 pounds and has two-and-one-half pounds to go. At that point, she will shift to maintenance mode.
She exercises almost every day at Marion Wellness Center, walking on the treadmill, doing leg-strengthening routines, lifting weights, and riding the stationary bicycle.
“A lot of things have straightened out,” she said, speaking of her health.
She no longer has sleep apnea or acid reflux and her high cholesterol is coming down. The only medication she takes is for arthritis.
Rindt checks in with a doctor in Newton every month, but the visits gradually will decrease to every six months.
“I had a choice of either getting this done or possibly dying or having another back surgery,” she said. “I chose the lesser of two evils. Besides, I wanted to lose the weight.”