“Before and after”: what people look like who have lost 150 kg or more

Before going to the clinic of the bariatric surgeon Dr. Nozardan, 45-year-old Tami weighed about 270 kg, hated her body and could not do without outside help. Thanks to the doctor’s recommendations, she managed to lose weight up to 225 kg in just a few months and prove that she can control her diet after surgery. After the gastric sleeve surgery, Tami continued to adhere to a strict diet, so after a while her weight reached 157 kg.

However, the more she lost weight, the more inconvenience and pain she suffered from sagging skin and lymphedema on her stomach – the accumulation of fluid due to improper circulation of lymph. Tami’s emotional state also worsened due to the fact that after the operation her husband James went to another woman. Nevertheless, this did not break the heroine and gave her confidence that she needed to put even more efforts on the way to the goal – 80 kg (so she would be able to take care of herself and her son).

Six months after leaving, the husband decided to return to Tami and try to renew the relationship. But in order to reunite the family, she had to agree to James’ demand to return to her home state of Kentucky and refuse to see a doctor in Houston on a regular basis. In spite of everything, the participant in the show continued to successfully lose weight, starting to exercise on an exercise bike. However, full physical activity was still hampered by saggy skin, which also made it difficult to find new clothes. Having lost weight up to 123 kg, the woman decided to go to a clinic in Kentucky, where the doctor offered her an operation to remove excess skin and lymphedema. During the operation, Tami got rid of 12 kg of skin and fat. As a result, she was able to fully move and exercise seriously.

“I will finally have a normal life. I was given a second chance. And from now on I plan to live it to the fullest, “Tami admitted a few weeks after the operation.

Tami after losing weight

Karina, lost 160 kg

“Every day it becomes harder for me to breathe, harder to move,” said 38-year-old Karina, who weighed almost 290 kg before deciding to seek help from a specialist. In the past, she had undergone surgery to insert an intragastric balloon, which did not work, so the family was skeptical about her visit to the new clinic. Having reduced the consumed calories to 1200 per day, the heroine was able to lose weight by almost 20 kg within a month. Thanks to this, she was approved for surgery to remove the gastric balloon.

“I can do so much on my own already. I am really proud of myself, ”said Karina with joy, starting to look for work and housing in order to move away from her parents for the first time in her life and live an independent life. By the way, a year earlier, Karina’s parents had to fold the rear seats of the car and lay her on the floor in order to take her to the clinic. Now she herself can get behind the wheel and drive a car. However, despite the heroine’s successes, the doctor noticed that she was violating her dietary regime, and in order to be admitted to the operation to remove excess skin, she needed to lose about 45 kg more.

Losing weight was not the only change in the heroine’s life. So, she began going to a psychotherapist, moved in with a friend and for the first time in her life began to meet a man. Despite the fact that due to the violation of the diet, the weight began to grow again, Karina refused to continue working with Dr. Nozardan, deciding to focus on relationships, new work and establishing an independent life. From the very beginning of her weight loss journey, she managed to lose almost 160 kg.

Karina after losing weight

David and Benji, both lost almost 150 kg

Brothers David and Benjamin decided to undergo bariatric surgery together when both reached a weight that interfered with their normal life and physical activity. David began his weight loss journey with a weight of 338 kg, and Benji, as the whole family called him, weighed a little less, 264 kg, but he knew that if he didn’t pull himself together, he would soon catch up with his brother. After surgery, in a few months, they both managed to lose almost 150 kg.

“Two years ago I was like lifeless. And now I live a fulfilling life. I am happy and full of energy to continue on my way, ”said 35-year-old David. Having lost weight, he was able to become more active, found a new job, began to regularly engage in strength exercises and was able to drive a car on his own.

The changes also affected his personal life: he decided to break up with his girlfriend, who also experienced problems with being overweight, but was not going to change her habits and did not support David’s new lifestyle. Soon, the man began a relationship with a new beloved Carrie, with whom he had known for a long time, but, ashamed of his weight, he was afraid to prove himself. His daughter Trinity also moved in with him.

“It seems as if I was reborn,” admitted David, enjoying his new life. Satisfied with the result of his weight loss, he decided to stop attending the bariatric clinic and refused further medical care.

True, his decision was not approved by his brother Benji. Due to conflicts with David and stress, he began to overeat and gain weight again. The violation of the diet upset his attending physician, who also discovered that Benji had liver problems. To get admission to surgery to remove excess skin, the man had to completely give up alcohol and return to food restrictions. The hero was determined: he began to pay more attention to physical activity, spend time with his daughter in the open air, go to rides and go-karting with her. The efforts were not in vain – Benjamin underwent an operation to remove 8 kg of sagging skin, while simultaneously removing the gallbladder due to the large number of stones.

After surgery, the doctor prescribed a new diet for Benji – now it is aimed not at losing weight, but at maintaining it. He became more physically active, which allowed him to spend more time with his family: “Now I can be the husband and father I wanted to be for so long.” The man decided to thank his family for their support with a joint trip to the Bahamas. Together with his wife and daughter, they began to take diving lessons at a local pool, preparing for a real dive in the sea. The changes inspired Benji to open his own business – he had long dreamed of starting a cargo transportation company.

“I know how lucky I am to have been given a second chance. This is just the beginning. Ahead is the future in which everything is possible for me, ”the hero, who managed to lose almost 185 kg of excess weight in two years, proudly declared.

Benji after weight loss

Erica, lost 180 kg

“My addiction to food is killing me,” – with these words began the story of Erica, who, before going to the clinic, hated her life, because because of her weight of more than 300 kg, any movements caused her pain. As a teenager, Erica had already undergone bariatric surgery, so to carry out a new one, Dr. Nozardan first had to remove the old staples installed on the stomach. After surgery, the heroine continued to lose weight, increased physical activity and took up boxing. However, she had to get rid of another 20 kg in order for the doctor to approve the operation to remove the skin that had formed on her stomach.

According to the doctor, after two bariatric surgeries that did not lead to the expected results, the patient had less than a 1% chance of long-term success. In addition, during the examination, it turned out that due to overeating, Erica’s stomach stretched out and became even larger than it was before the sleeve resection. At their own peril and risk, the surgeons performed the third operation to make Erica eat less again. The stomach regained a small volume, which could only contain very small portions of food.

The heroine had to return to California to live with her sister, because without constant help at home, she was afraid not to cope with the consequences of surgery. “Back home, I plan to work hard to create a future for myself, which, according to Dr. Nozardan and the psychotherapist, I can have,” concluded Erica.