Melissa’s Story

Dr. Robert Wegner performed my RNY gastric bypass surgery on November 9, 2015. I was 36 at the time, and while I’ve never been skinny, I have an athletic build and played three sports throughout high school. I started struggling with my weight my first year of college when I was 18 years old. I have tried just about every diet on the market. I had some success with many of those plans, but I never lost more than 50 pounds, and each time I re-gained, I gained more. At my heaviest, I was 353 pounds. I had high-blood pressure, GERD, pre-diabetes, no energy, chronic pain, and depression. The summer of 2015, my employer-provided health insurance changed and no longer excluded weight loss surgery.

I made a decision to change my life and get healthy. I scheduled my initial seminar, and decided to more forward with the process. I was lucky to have 6 months of documented efforts to lose weight with my Primary Care Provider, so it only took a few months to schedule my surgery. Within months of the surgery, I was taken off of all of my medications. I stuck to the prescribed nutrition and supplement plan, and the weight started to fall off. All of the conditions I listed disappeared. I felt great about myself, I had so much energy, and I decided that I was not going to waste the second chance I was given with the surgery. I have lost a total of 173 pounds, and I maintain a weight of between 180-185. I am an exercise enthusiast. I enjoy running, cycling, and CrossFit. I have completed countless 5K, 10K, endurance, and obstacle course races. I ran the St. Jude Half Marathon in December of 2017. I completed the Spartan Trifecta in 2016.

I had the courage to change careers, I met and married my husband, and I love my life. I am setting a positive example for my two children, and I know I will be around as they get older. Dr. Wegner and the St. Francis Center for Surgical Weight Loss team gave me a second change at life, and I feel like I am finally living the life I have always wanted. I will forever be grateful.