Physician Loses 87 Pounds and Shatters Stigma to Weight Loss Surgery
BMI Surgery at Silver Cross Hospital helps Physician Enhance her Life
As a physician, Kathleen Slugocki, D.O., felt a societal stigma existed toward weight loss surgery. But after having laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy surgery in October 2016 with BMI Surgery at Silver Cross Hospital and losing 87 pounds, the obstetrician/gynecologist’s view has changed.
“Through BMI Surgery’s bariatric surgery program, I learned that I wasn’t a failure to have weight loss surgery because the surgery is a tool that I needed to succeed in losing weight,” she said. “As I was approaching 40, I noticed more people around me, who struggled to lose weight, found help through weight loss surgery. I too was having difficulty losing weight and was fearful that diabetes and high blood pressure was in my future since I have a family history of those conditions.”
Photo caption: Following weight loss surgery at Silver Cross Hospital, Kathleen Slugocki, D.O., obstetrician/gynecologist, has lost 87 pounds and enjoys an active lifestyle.
Today Dr. Slugocki not only has more stamina to keep up with her two small children, she is free of any foot or knee pain. She works out four to five days a week and even completed a 10K race last summer. And as a surgeon in an active specialty, she has more energy than ever when meeting the demands of a busy on-call schedule.
“I am so grateful to Dr. Christopher Joyce, his staff and all the nurses at Silver Cross Hospital who thoughtfully guided me through the program,” she said. “Weight loss surgery has profoundly improved my life both personally and professionally. I just want to spread the word to others how positive the procedure and nutritional and fitness program can be to helping live a healthier life,” she said.
Creating Support Networks for Others
Dr. Slugocki channels her enthusiasm by sharing her advice with other weight loss patients from across the country on social media. She and a friend created a Facebook page for male and female physicians who had bariatric surgery. The group of over 130 physicians share tips on having weight loss surgery and discuss specific challenges physicians may face during the weight loss process. “We wanted to create a forum for fellow physicians to be comfortable to find support during their weight loss journey and address any misconceptions about weight loss surgery.”
Weight Loss Surgery Process
At BMI Surgery’s free informational session, patients learn that surgery is only a tool to lose weight, since they need to make behavioral changes in order to lose weight.
Patients benefit from a multidisciplinary approach, with the help of many different departments at Silver Cross. “Patients, like Dr. Slugocki, see an exercise physiologist, dietitian, cardiologist, psychologist, pulmonologist, and a bariatric nurse to get them ready for surgery,” says Dr. Christopher Joyce. “We screen our patients very carefully to ensure their success and safety.”
BMI Surgery has changed the lives of over 6,000 patients with life-changing surgeries including laparoscopic gastric bypass, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, and Lap-Band® gastric band systems at Silver Cross Hospital. Board-certified laparoscopic and bariatric surgeons Brian Lahmann, M.D., and Christopher Joyce, M.D., are dedicated to helping patients win their personal battles with obesity and enjoy healthier lives. Their office is located on the Silver Cross Hospital campus at I-355 and Route 6 in New Lenox. BMI Surgery at Silver Cross Hospital has been named a MBSAQIP accredited center – Comprehensive. BMI Surgery is also a Blue Distinction Center for Bariatric Surgery.
Free Lecture
To find out more about the bariatric surgery program at Silver Cross Hospital, attend a free informational session on both traditional and laparoscopic surgery any Wednesday at 5:45 p.m. at BMI Surgery at 1890 Silver Cross Blvd., Suite 260, New Lenox. Register to attend at www.bmisurgery.org.
