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[abridge at gmail.com (Adam Bridge)]

Sonny I hear you.

Two years ago I went to my orthopedic surgeon and we looked at my
x-rays - no cartilage  in my knees - bone on bone contact both of
them. I was taking full doses of anti-inflammatory  drugs. I was 56.
My weight had been rising for a decade or so to hit a max of 350 then
a decline to 280 but then it was rising again. (I'm 6' 2")

The long-term outcome for good knee replacements, those that last, was
derived from men (in my case) who weighed less that 180 pounds and
were older than I was. If I had a knee replacement(s) I'd likely have
to have a second whose success was less likely to be as positive.

I'd been wrestling with weight issues for a long time. Finally we
sought out a local center whose reputation was very good and who had
been in business for almost 20 years. We listened to the doctor and
last January (2006) we began a medically monitored fast. I went in
weighing 300 pounds. I now weigh 187 plus or minus a few depending.
During the fast we learned about nutrition, about how to deal with
failure (because diets always have failure in them) and how to make
supportive decisions. Saw a physician every week. Had EKG monthly
along with blood work. My weekly support group is really important.

I KNOW I'll be in this program for the rest of my life. Maybe I'll not
need to go every week at some point but I know I'll go at least once a
month to touch base, have my records recorded (I track EVERYTHING I
eat because it's important for me that I do that . . . I have to own
the responsibility for my food choices.)

Programs like the one I'm in are relatively rare but not impossible to
find. But I wasn't ready until my surgeon and I had a heart to heart.
Now I can walk miles. I can ride my bike 20 miles and my knees don't
kill me. My blood chemistry is in the best shape of my life and I eat
more fruits and veggies than I imagined possible. And I'm picky as
hell about what I put in my mouth. I negotiate with restaurants about
portion sizes and content and tip accordingly when well taken care of
because that's valuable to me.

In my head I still weight 350 pounds. I test chairs in case they might
collapse under me. I expect people to cringe when they see me want the
seat beside them on the airplane or the bus or the train. I expect the
off-hand nasty comment -- the kind of thing you'd hear in the 50s said
to a black person who was inconvenient. I'm not sure that will ever go
away.

I wish you good luck with your knees - I know where you're coming
from. Intimately. My solution isn't yours. I respect everyone who
struggles with issues of weight because I know how desperately hard it
is. I'm much more understanding of those who are trying to quit
smoking too because their task is almost as hard.

Good luck! And I do thank Tina for the good words about her own knee
surgery because they give me hope that my own - when it's time - will
be as successful.

Adam Bridge