Weight-Loss Surgery at Age 22: New Body, New Self

然后, 大二的时候, 弗里德伯格的母亲——她一生都在与体重问题作斗争——做了减肥手术, and 弗里德伯格 was inspired. "I watched her transform in front of me," 弗里德伯格 recalls. “所以当我搬到旧金山读研究生时，我知道我想重新开始. I wanted a fresh outlook and started looking into 减肥手术 21岁时."

A year later, in April 2011, 弗里德伯格 underwent 减肥手术 at UCSF.

Have you always been overweight?

All through elementary school, I was very active. I did gymnastics every day and I danced three times a week. I went to summer camp and had lots of time to play outside. 随着年龄的增长，我开始慢下来，那就是体重开始增加的时候.

作为一个严重超重的青少年，你面临着什么样的挑战?

我经常被取笑. 我在一个海滨小镇长大，长得和别人不一样. I was bigger, not slender and tan. 无论我多么努力地想要像其他人一样融入社会，这对我来说都很艰难, I was in such a different boat than they were.

How much did you weigh at your heaviest and when was that?

At my heaviest, I was 275 pounds. That was right around the time of my surgery. I felt like there was no hope. 对于我这个年纪的人(当时我22岁)来说，想到永远不会有出路，真的很难过, that no one would like me the way I was, and that I couldn't be happy again.

How much do you weigh now?

I am currently 190 pounds and still losing. 每天都是一场战斗，但我感觉越好，战斗就越容易.

一些研究发现，暴饮暴食是一种遗传成瘾. 你同意吗??

When I was growing up, my whole family was big. 不是一个人教我做坏事，也不是一个人给家里买食物. My mom never bought us sugary snacks. I never had Lucky Charms or Twinkies as a kid. 我的父母都做饭，我经常吃学校的午餐. While I agree that fat is a family affair, 我也相信肥胖与遗传有关.

My dad had two heart attacks before he turned 50. That prompted him to lose weight and exercise every day. 我和哥哥最重的时候体重差不多(他比我高一两英寸)。, 但他发现自己喜欢跑步，并因此减掉了70磅.

I don't see my family very often because we're so spread out, but now when we are together, instead of going out for big restaurant meals, 我们在家做饭，去艺术博物馆逛逛，或者去打保龄球.

Did you and your mother try to lose weight together?

In my youth, I tried every diet I could think of. Some of them I did with my mom, and others I tried on my own. 我认为他们中的一个必须工作，他们中的一些人做了一段时间. 但即使我坚持了，他们也开始让我失望，这真是一件令人沮丧的事情.

什么都帮不了我，我觉得我正在从那个大家都认识的我身边溜走. These were all things I internalized. I didn't need the entire school knowing my business, 但同时, I just wished someone would notice how much I was struggling. Though health class taught us the basics of nutrition, 没有人可以倾诉我正在经历的事情.

你会给其他严重超重的年轻人什么建议?

我妈妈曾经告诉我，不管我吃了多少种不同的节食法，也不管我去健身房锻炼了多少天, I would only lose the weight when I was completely ready. 我把这个建议给我这个年纪对未来不确定的人. 我去过那里，尽管我现在看起来不太像了. 当你如此容易上气不接下气的时候，这是一条很长的路要走.

What's been the hardest part of life after the surgery?

The hardest part for me was learning how to "re-eat." It's tough at first because you aren't hungry, 但后来, once you do feel like eating again, 同样的困难. I had to learn to eat smaller amounts of food. 对我来说，“重新进食”意味着，仅仅因为我觉得自己饿了并不意味着我真的饿了.

At first, all I could have were liquids and Jell-O. 一部分的我想测试自己，尝试不同的食物，但我告诉自己不行. After my surgery in April, I was on liquids for three weeks. After three weeks, I had lost 22 pounds. It was such a weird thing for me.

我一点也不饿, and part of me was just bored, 所以在我喝汤和蛋白奶昔之前，我必须坐下来好好想想. 对我来说，在我吃东西之前，这仍然是一段“坐下来思考”的时间. 我总是考虑什么对我是最好的，什么会让我后悔我的决定.

What has been the best part of life after surgery?

I think the best part by far was my pants. They fell off, more than once. 这是令人沮丧的, but such a wonderful feeling, knowing that they used to fit and to some extent, these are the pants I thought I would be in forever. It was empowering to be able to throw them away.

与手术前相比，你现在的饮食习惯怎么样?

自从手术以来，我必须小心，确保我吃有营养的食物. 我确实有一种特殊的饮食，主要由富含蛋白质的食物组成，以确保我的身体有足够的特定营养来运作. 大多数减肥手术患者都是高蛋白或高蛋白饮食. 让我感到困难的是我不吃红肉或猪肉产品. 这是我自己的选择. 我坚持吃鸡蛋、豆类、鸡肉、鱼和其他富含蛋白质的食物. 为了安全起见，我避免吃很多东西，比如糖果、巧克力和冰淇淋.

糖让我超级恶心. 对我来说，这种副作用很有趣，因为它能让我守规矩. I feel bad after eating just about any amount of sugar. That isn't to say I can't have a cookie when I want one, but I can't have my old usual of five or six cookies. 我最后会生病的. While I knew sugar might affect me like this, I also knew that it doesn't affect everyone that way, 所以我测试了一下自己. I spent a good deal of time paying for it (in the bathroom), but I learned valuable lessons about my body and my limits.

How has your relationship to food changed?

I see food completely differently now. 我知道我对自己的体重问题负有部分责任，但我相信这不能完全怪我. I never used to read labels. I never really cared what was good for me or not. Now I choose my foods very carefully. 我确保我确切地知道什么进入了我的身体，为我的健康和幸福提供了最佳的结果.

How has the surgery changed your life?

我现在可以和我的朋友一起购物，而不是在“特殊商店”.“我可以穿着紧身裙外出，而不是穿一件大罩子，感觉很自信. For someone my age, these things are all important. 但也, as a growing professional, 我喜欢知道人们不会因为我的长相而对我有偏见.

I've also learned how important it is to listen to your body. It means so little to some, 但如果我没有学会倾听我的身体和它告诉我的东西，我不认为我能达到现在的水平——几乎轻了100磅.

How has your outlook on the future changed?

I feel like I can start over. I decide who I want to be now, not society. I feel very positive about the future.

我的目标包括为电视和主要电影剪辑. 我目前正在研究生院攻读电视编辑硕士学位.