HARLINGEN — For Valley residents looking for options to lose weight during the new year, Valley Baptist Medical Center holds free “Introduction to Medical & Surgical Weight Loss Options” patient information seminars in Harlingen on the first and second Tuesdays of each month.
Upcoming dates for these free seminars include Tuesday, Feb. 7 and Tuesday, Feb. 14, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., in the Boggus Education Pavilion, located at 2110 Benwood St. across the street from the Valley Baptist Emergency Room entrance.
In addition to educational seminars, Valley Baptist also offers a pair of bariatric support groups that are open to the public.
The “New Beginnings” support group meets the third Tuesday of every month at 6 p.m. at the Boggus Education Pavilion. The “2 Plus Years” support group meets the fourth Tuesday of every month at 5:30 p.m. at the Surgical and Medical Weight Loss Center at 2220 Haine Drive, Suite 38.
Dawn Rodriguez, RN, BSN, CBN, Director of the Medical and Surgical Weight Loss Program at Valley Baptist Medical Center-Harlingen, said the seminars can help Valley residents learn more about ways to reduce weight and pursue a healthier life “with the people and activities you love, and with the confidence you deserve.”
In addition to being a surgical nurse, Rodriguez has experienced bariatric surgery herself and personally understands the concerns of weight loss patients.
Rodriguez said she knows the frustration of trying to determine if insurance covers the surgery, out of pocket expenses, the “to-do” list prior to surgery, and even which physicians a patient must see just to have the surgery.
She also understands the fear of the surgery itself, the desire to lose the weight and more importantly, to keep the weight off.
Along with exploring medical and surgical weight loss options, Rodriguez and Olivia Zamora, Registered Dietitian/Licensed Dietitian with the Valley Baptist Medical and Surgical Weight Loss Program, share a wealth of information about healthier eating and pursuing a healthier lifestyle with their patients.
“We help the patients to make the lifestyle choices that can help enable them to take the weight off and keep it off,” Zamora said.
“I really encourage them to monitor what they’re consuming. We look at what we need to change in order to make it easier for them to lose weight.”
Part of losing weight is utilizing the many tools available for tracking eating habits, Zamora said.
Using certain mobile phone apps can help people keep a log of what they’re eating in order to better monitor their progress in reducing their portion sizes, she said.
During a recent presentation at Valley Baptist, it was noted that portion sizes have actually increased over the years at many fast food restaurants – even though the average person of today is less active than in the past.
Obesity has become a major concern in the Valley and across the country, often being associated with other conditions such as diabetes and heart disease.
In addition to dieting, treatments for obesity include exercise, medication, behavior changes, and in some cases, bariatric surgery.
One such surgical option for weight-loss surgery is the “sleeve gastrectomy,” during which the surgeon removes the majority of the stomach, turning the remainder of the stomach into a narrow “sleeve.”
With this method, patients may lose weight because of “gastric restriction” and decreased hunger due to changes in hormone levels related to hunger.
The laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy has become the preferred metabolic and bariatric surgery of choice across the nation due to its low complication rate and high level of excess body weight loss.
Regardless of the type of weight loss surgery, Rodriguez said a patient must be committed and motivated to pursue a healthier lifestyle in order to achieve and maintain success in meeting their weight loss goals.
For more information about medical and surgical weight loss options, contact your physician and Rodriguez at 956-389-6896.
To view a video on the Surgical and Medical Weight Loss Program at Valley Baptist, or for more information online, visit https://www.valleybaptist.net/.
To RSVP for an upcoming bariatric surgery seminar, please call 1-888-902-5433.
