In each of our lives are dates that hold great significance; birthdays, wedding anniversaries, graduations, deaths of loved ones; occasions etched in our memory and close to our hearts.
Ashley Cawthon has those dates in her life. This story is about one in particular.
“I told myself I wanted to lose 200 pounds,” the Illini Community Hospital nurse leader said. “I never, ever in a million years thought I would do it. But on July 12, 2023, I weighed 177.8 pounds. I did it. I am so incredibly proud of myself. It has been a very long journey but it has been worth every single bit of it.”
Ashley wrestled with weight issues for 18 years. Dieting and exercise did not help. Eventually, she reached 378 pounds.
“I didn’t like the person that I saw in the mirror,” the mother of two said. “I didn’t love myself. I didn’t get to enjoy doing things with my children because my weight did not allow me to.”
“I wanted to be healthy and I wanted to be able to be active for my kids and I wanted to be able to look into the mirror every day and love myself.”
The American Medical Association recognized obesity as a disease process in 2013, a major contributor to diabetes, heart disease, stroke and kidney disease.
How Ashley found success
To change her life, Ashley turned to the nationally accredited Blessing Bariatric Institute and underwent a vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG) in November 2021. VSG is a procedure during which the size of the stomach is reduced and safely limits the amount of food a person can eat.
The Blessing Bariatric Center provides three surgical procedures. Each is explained on the Blessing Health website. Surgery is not always required in the treatment plan for obese patients. However, once a patient has reached a certain weight – typically 100 pounds overweight - surgery can be the only treatment that works long term.
With the help of her Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy, Ashley achieved her “never-ever-in-a-million years” dream of losing 200 pounds. An added bonus was elimination of the acid reflux problem with which she had also lived before losing the weight.
“The care I received at the Blessing Bariatric Institute was fabulous,” Ashley said. “Every single person I encountered was an exceptional advocate, people who support you during your journey.”
Bariatric patients require regular medical follow up for the rest of their lives.
“Success after bariatric surgery depends on a patient’s commitment to understanding the disease of morbid obesity and taking an active role in achieving long term health and happiness,” said Fernando Bonanni, Jr., MD, MBA, FACS, FASMBS, board certified bariatric surgeon and medical director of the Blessing Bariatric Institute. “Patients find the Blessing Bariatric Institute is committed to helping them succeed.”
Weight goes down, happiness goes up
The people in Ashley’s life are happy for the transformation she has made to improve her health.
“My oldest child has said, ‘I’m so glad we get to do this with you now,’” Ashley concluded. “She could be talking about anything from fishing, to being outside and playing, going on a walk, or me chasing them when they are on their bikes. Really just anything, because those were things I had no desire to do because I could not keep up with them.”
“It’s been nice to get back into the things that I really, truly love.”
The Blessing Bariatric Institute also offers a Medically-Managed Weight Loss program. For more information on the care team and all the services they provide, go to blessinghealth.org/bariatric.