Had a patient with BMI of 90

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tnrunningnurse
tnrunningnurse Posts: 549 Member
in Motivation and Support
I am a nurse in the OR...I see overweight patients a lot. In fact I would say most of the patients I see are in the obese catagory. This week I had a patient that weighed 675lbs and had a BMI of 90....it broke my heart. I truly have a heart for patients that are that obese.....I wonder...are they addicted to food (which would be horrible,,,because you need food to live...so that is an addiction you control not quit) or if they have had something horrible that has happened and they use food for comfort....it makes me thankful that I have the motivation to be healthy....Mind you I have my binge days...and I do enjoy alcohol in moderation (sometimes more than moderation).
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Replies

  • umikap
    umikap Posts: 15 Member
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    This kind of thing breaks my heart too.
    I have never looked at it the way you put it.....food addiction is an addiction that has to be controlled and not quit. WOW
  • tnrunningnurse
    tnrunningnurse Posts: 549 Member
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    Most people don't think about the fact that you have to have food to live...other addictions like alcohol,gambling,drugs...well you don't need those so you have to Quit....but you can't quit food. you have to have it to live....hardest addiction ever.
  • jcmartin0313
    jcmartin0313 Posts: 574 Member
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    Need to be careful discussing your cases on here....I have stories but the HIPAA police scare the hell out of me.
  • angieleighbyrd
    angieleighbyrd Posts: 989 Member
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    Need to be careful discussing your cases on here....I have stories but the HIPAA police scare the hell out of me.

    she didn't mention names, or even a diagnosis. I am certified in HIPPA. she is fine.
  • snrose
    snrose Posts: 233 Member
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    so sad. it inspires me to keep going with my healthy lifestyle though!
  • lilpoindexter
    lilpoindexter Posts: 1,122 Member
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    Is there any hope of getting healthier for someone like that, or is it game over?
  • caraiselite
    caraiselite Posts: 2,631 Member
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    i have a pretty severe carb addiction but a low carb lifestyle and ketosis does the trick for me.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,326 Member
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    wow. so what do you suggest for someone like that?

    for instance what's the first goal you set for that person body percentage wise?
  • skb12573
    skb12573 Posts: 202 Member
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    NO HIPPA violations here
  • tabulator32
    tabulator32 Posts: 701 Member
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    NO HIPPA violations here

    Nope. There's not.

    Anyway, I hope the person comes around and starts heading the other direction.
  • GypsySoul_74
    GypsySoul_74 Posts: 152 Member
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    food is such a hard addiction... i'm definitely an emotional eater. my first instinct when i'm stressed or something hard happens or i recall a bad memory is to run to the cupboard or the freezer. i've had to fight it as long as i can remember. i'm one of the only healthy-weight adults in my family because everyone does this; i don't know how i ever broke the trend.

    but i feel so sad for people whose weight has gotten that out of control. all i can think is how easily it could be me, or someone in my family... i've seen documentaries about extremely obese people striving to adopt a healthy lifestyle and manage their obesity, and i love watching them and rooting for them to reach their goals. but one thing i've noticed is that there always seems to be that underlying emotional eating issue--they dealt with death or abuse or another traumatic experience at a young age and ate to soothe their pain. it's scary and sobering. :/
  • GypsySoul_74
    GypsySoul_74 Posts: 152 Member
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    here's a link to information about those documentaries i saw, if anyone would be interested:

    http://tlc.howstuffworks.com/tv/my-600-lb-life
  • suzieqcookie
    suzieqcookie Posts: 314 Member
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    food is definitely an addiction.. there are days i wish i was addicted to drugs or alcohol. no one every tells them "just switch to lite beer and have it three times a day between walks" or " get better quality crack and do less of it"
  • ctooch99
    ctooch99 Posts: 459 Member
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    It really is an epidemic in this country now - just got a post from BeyondDiet.com - interesting 60 minutes story for anyone who may not have caught it:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9MH_tks_wE&feature=player_embedded
  • _TastySnoBalls_
    _TastySnoBalls_ Posts: 1,298 Member
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    holy sh**
    that's insane!
    as a future nurse myself, i really want to incorporate a healthy lifestyle (nutrition AND fitness) into my patient teaching, and steer away from all the pharmaceuticals.
  • Heyman09
    Heyman09 Posts: 184
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    It breaks me up too....My mom has lived most of her life obese and she has just now gotten healthy but for health reasons. I love watching people like that going to the gym and not caring what others around them think because them living for another 20 yrs is more important.....I congratulate them.
  • Elf_Princess1210
    Elf_Princess1210 Posts: 895 Member
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    I think that this patient has a food addiction, and you're right. It is very sad! JACHO has listed the caring treatment of the obese as one of their patient safety goals, since studies have shown that a lot of obese and morbidly obese people avoid going to doctors. Its usually a fear of shame or ridicule based on their weight, as well as worrying that there won't be any medical equipment or chairs that obese patients will be able to use.
  • sun33082
    sun33082 Posts: 416 Member
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    I just have to say that I love the positive, compassionate comments that are being made here. No mention of "disgusting" or "i don't understand how someone can do that to themselves", etc.

    From a previous very morbidly obese person, I say thanks :)
  • Elf_Princess1210
    Elf_Princess1210 Posts: 895 Member
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    Need to be careful discussing your cases on here....I have stories but the HIPAA police scare the hell out of me.

    she didn't mention names, or even a diagnosis. I am certified in HIPPA. she is fine.

    HiPPA aside, some facilities are combing the net for unflattering posts by their employees on social networking sites. I know of a nurse that got in a lot of trouble because she posted on Facebook about the fact she wasn't in the mood to give a certain cancer drug and complained about having to take care of cancer patients. She didn't technically violate HIPPA but the hospital we worked for reprimanded her for posting something that reflects poorly on the facility. More and more hospitals are doing this, so just be careful, ok?
  • Elf_Princess1210
    Elf_Princess1210 Posts: 895 Member
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    I just have to say that I love the positive, compassionate comments that are being made here. No mention of "disgusting" or "i don't understand how someone can do that to themselves", etc.

    From a previous very morbidly obese person, I say thanks :)

    :) I was a CNA about 8 years ago and heard a RN making fun of one of our really big patients once. She made the woman cry! I was so mad I told her to remover her skinny *kitten* from the room and to quit making my favorite patient cry! ( she really was my favorite patient, usually she smiled all the time until that ***** hurt her feelings)

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