PhillyBud
My journey to Bariatric Surgery began in the late winter of 2009. I weighed 215 pounds and stand 5'6" tall. I have Type 2 diabetes, OSA - Obstructive Sleep Apnea, and high blood pressure. When I was diagnosed with diabetes at age 50 in 2004, it was well controlled with Metformin for about 5 years, but suddenly the "numbers" were getting high and when my endocrinologist recommened taking insulin, I took that as a "wake up call." I understand that diabetes is a progressive disease and that complications can be a problem down the road: neuropathy, vision problems, blood circulation that could result from anything from erectile dysfunction to amputation of toes or feet, renal failure, heart attack and stroke, etc.
My surgery - gastric bypass Roux-en-Y - was performed at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital on Monday, Dec. 20, 2010.
Today is my first day home from the hospital, and frankly I'm sore and in pain..
I hope to learn how to live my life post bariatric surgery. 
I am a single man, 56, who loves to travel and have visited about 85 countries on six continents. My interests include art, history, music, theater, literature, anthropology, eastern spirituality, etc. I live in a three story 6 bedroom old crumbling c.1890 Victorian house in a historic residential district in Philadelphia. The house needs a lot of work and I'm always making repairs! Life is beautiful, though, and I want to be around for a long time! 
