Changing Their Lives Together

Nicki and Shannon have always been close, even for twins. They live within a couple miles of each other, work for the same company (their desks are right next to each other), and share friends. Unfortunately, for most of their adult lives, they also shared their struggle with being overweight.

They tried what seemed like every exercise plan and extreme diet they could to lose weight, but nothing worked. Shannon became depressed and developed severe social anxiety. "I would almost never go out because I was worried and embarrassed about what people would think of me," she explained. She found herself eating in response to any strong emotion, which only fueled her anxiety. "I ate all the time, sometimes without even realizing it." Nicki, too, used food to relieve anxiety. Over time, they became concerned that they were on the path to developing diabetes. The disease runs in their family and the sisters worried that their children would be affected if they didn't start to take better care of themselves. "I want to be present with my kids, not worrying about insulin pumps or other medications," said Nicki.

The last straw happened for Nicki one morning shortly after arriving to work. She sat down at her desk and heard a ripping sound. She looked down and, to her dismay, saw that her pants had split down the thigh. It was in that moment she decided she wasn't going to live like that anymore.

By the time Nicki had reached her breaking point, both she and Shannon were 100 pounds overweight. They began researching bariatric programs in the area and decided that GBMC was the place for them. "We didn't see a lot of support at the other hospitals, so we were surprised to see how responsive the doctors were and how active people were in the Facebook support group," she explained.

In May 2015, Nicki had weight-loss surgery and everything about her life changed. In 7 months, she lost 130 pounds and has kept it off. "I have never been happier with myself. I found a new me and I'm not letting her go," she said.

Around the same time, Shannon was diagnosed with intracranial hypotension, a brain condition that causes severe headache, nausea, vomiting, neck pain, visual and hearing disturbances, and vertigo. There are very few treatments for this disease and Shannon's symptoms weren't improving. Her doctor told her that substantial weight loss was one of her only options if she wanted to avoid brain surgery. Wanting to prevent this and having seen how successful her sister was, Shannon decided to join the Comprehensive Obesity Management Program at GBMC. After her weight-loss surgery, she saw a significant decrease in her headaches and she no longer has constant ringing in her ears. "I got my life back," she said.

On top of her symptom improvement, Shannon found a new confidence that she hadn't thought possible. She is no longer afraid to go to social events and spends time with her friends without feeling embarrassed. She's happier than she's ever been.

Both Nicki and Shannon say that getting weight-loss surgery was one of the best decisions they've ever made and encourage anyone who might be considering a similar surgery to sign up for a free information session.