Dolores Monzo Lost 115 Lbs. After Weight-Loss Surgery

Dolores Monzo’s life changed, like most of ours do, when she became a parent. She adopted her son when he was 4, and instantly, he became the most important part of her life.

That’s when Monzo began to lose control of her weight.

“I kind of lost track of things and just started gaining the weight,” she says.

Ultimately, the 5-foot-4, Westmont woman reached 258 pounds and a body mass index (BMI) of 44.3, qualifying her as morbidly obese.

Over time, she tried diets—lots of diets, including some well-known commercial plans. One of these diets would work for a while, but then she would not only regain the weight she’d lost but also add a few more pounds.

“I would do well and then get bored with the routine – the diet, the exercising – and just drop out of it,” Monzo says.

She decided to have bariatric surgery to restrict the size of her stomach. She lost 115 pounds.

Her weight problem affected her life. She was always tired—exhausted, in fact. When she walked up a flight of stairs, she would be out of breath before she reached the top. Walking even short distances was difficult and would take her much longer than it did for her friends.

The ultimate humiliation involved her son. On a trip to an amusement park, he wanted to go on the roller coaster. Monzo barely fit in the seat.

“The look on the woman’s face as they tried to close the safety bar was painful for me,” she says. “I was embarrassed for my son.”

That’s when Monzo decided she needed more than ineffective diets. She realized she had to choose a method of losing weight that would also provide her with support to help her keep it off.

“For many people, bariatric surgery provides a better alternative than dieting—helping to break the cycle of obesity,” says Dr. David Tichansky, director of the Jefferson University Hospital Bariatric and Metabolic Surgery Program in Philadelphia.

In addition to just feeling better, Monzo says the surgery and her resulting weight loss have greatly improved her quality of life, which is better now at the age of 50 than it ever was in her 40s.

“Being a single parent, I want to be around for him, and I want to be there to enjoy his life as he grows older, gets married and has kids of his own,” Monzo says. “I wanted to be fit and 50, not fat and 50.”

Now she’s active, and that has helped her keep the weight off. She no longer drives around parking lots to find the closest spot. Because she has more energy now, she’s doing more around the house and yard.

“It’s given me more energy, I feel younger, I can go hiking and camping with my son … I am just trying different things that I always wanted to do but was embarrassed to do or didn’t have the energy for in the past.”

This report was complied with information from Thomas Jefferson University Hospital.