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To speak with a current or previous Weight Management Program patient, give us a call and we’ll arrange an over the phone conversation for you.
Here's what a patient who has gone through the program has to say about Weight Management Program of Salem:
Jump to a testimonial - Mike Pankow, Elaine Stauffer, Keith Collins, Charles D. McGee MD |
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Mike Pankow
When I first entered the program, I was a mess. I weighed 315 lbs. I had just been told that my kidneys were failing from Diabetes. Neuropathy in my legs was making me clumsy (I had fallen several times). My left hand was developing muscle atrophy and coordination problems. I had multiple other diabetic related problems. I had just been involved in an incident at work with a former employee who was threatening to kill former coworkers. I had just quit my job of 18 years for these physical and emotional problems. You might say I needed a change.
I went to see a psychologist, Dr. Mooney PhD. He was associated with the program while it was at the Salem Clinic. He encouraged me to join as a way to gain some control on my life. That was life saving advice.
I have always been fat. I was well over 200 lbs by the time I entered high school. I have always ignored my body image. I did not look at full length mirrors. I knew I was fat. I did not like to admit it to myself. I was embarrassed and certainly did not feel likable or attractive. I became a shy introverted person. At the time I started, I was a compulsive eater and could not even walk around the block.
The diet changed everything. It was wonderful because it worked. I lost weight consistently and was not feeling any starvation that I feared. I lost about 60 lbs during that period. I decided to add some exercise to my program. I started a water walking program at the YMCA. My first day in the pool, I fell in the locker room and fractured my right hip. That brought a sudden end to that phase. I regained much of what I had lost and had to work through some depression again. However, I did decide to try again. This time I have succeeded. I am at 180 lbs. That is 135 lbs lost from my original 315lbs!
The diet phase was very simple and easy for me. I emptied the house of anything edible except the meal replacements. I live alone and did not have the distractions of dealing with others eating. I would make the apple cinnamon cookies. I mixed up the dry ingredients into 4 meal batches each weekend for the rest of the week. Then every other day I would wip up a couple of batches and freeze the cookies in one meal portions. This made everything very simple and easy. Eating 5 times a day ensured that I was never hungry and was perfect for diabetic blood sugar control.
The weekly classes did help me stay focused on the weight loss. Consistently loosing and being able to share that was very motivating. The information and training from the classes was a major help in learning to change my eating habits. I did a lot of reading and investigation on my own as well. My background in medical claims work gave me a good understanding of the science involved. By the time the program ended, I really knew what my bad habits had been and what I needed to do to change them.
I mention also that during this second weight loss phase, I fell from my bike and again fractured my right hip and left wrist. By this time however, the program had made so much progress that I was not even tempted to stop.
I reached my goal in October 2003. It has been nearly one year and I have not regained any weight as of today. I have maintained walking for at least an hour a day. I recently got a new bicycle and now alternately ride it for several hours a day. I eat a regular diet full of fruit, veggies, and whole grain. I have come to really enjoy the regular walks and rides. My insulin needs a small fraction of what it was. All my other medications have decreased or been stopped. My kidneys have stabilized at a higher level of functioning. I no longer have bouts of depression. My life has gone from black to bright over the past couple of years. The diet and the wonderful supportive staff have been helped me to live again.
Thanks for the memories.
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Elaine Stauffer
Time in Program: 10 months
- Why did you choose the Weight Management Program?
- I was tired and frustrated with the way I looked and felt all the time. I was exercising and still gaining weight.
- I work with a person that told me about the program and discussed what it was and that I needed to be ready to do this for myself. By this time I was ready to finally loss weight for me and not for my family, husband, for my job or anything or anyone else. Just me.
- Why did you choose the Weight Management Program over other programs?
- It’s the only program that I have found that a person would be able to have the same coaches to discuss issues on a weekly basis.
- The staff knew the right question to ask to find out what was happening and if I was having problems during the past week.
- The WMP staff works well together, are friendly, and happy to see you come in.
- How did our program being “medically supervised” help you?
- Finding out that how calories and weight loss go hand and hand, and having it presented in a such a way so and knowing that you could ask questions without feeling awkward help me a lot.
- Having a medical person tell you if your goal was the best for you and if not why. Having the BMI, measuring, weighing in, and holding me accountable for weight gain and talking about why and what I was eating.
- Have you tried other programs before?
- Oh yes, I tried several. 16 years ago I lost weight using the Nutria System plan, I was quite successful at least I thought I was and I kept the weight of for 4 years and then the weight gradually started coming back. I went through several different plans the last being LA Weight Loss.
- How was using our Meal Replacement for you?
- At first I thought it would be difficult, I didn’t think I could drink this all the time
- Yes, after I got started. I found out through the WMP Staff and other in the program that you could cook different things using the product and still lose weight. And not have to always drink the product.
- During the foundation phase, what skills and strategies stuck with you?
- When I was attending the weekly class and we talked about portion, and seeing what portion size looks like on a plate, why we might have fallen off our plan. When we talked about making other choices, and being give examples of better choices (I thought I had been making good choices but in the class we discussed even better choices)
- Did this program successfully help you to understand that Health and Weight Management is a life long change in lifestyle and habits?
- Yes. That is one of the things I needed to understand and also how to make those changes without disrupting my families life.
- I understand more and more how exercise needs to be in my routine everyday. I am very active but I just wasn’t doing the right kinds of exersise to lose and/or maintain my weight.
- How do you feel now that you have been doing the program successfully for over a year?
- Well I haven’t quite been on the program for a year yet. But I feel great I have more energy, my clothes fit, not to mention how much smaller the size is now.
- And I understand the importance of how to make my exercise work with me instead of against me.
- Do you think Maintenance is a component in keeping the weight off (i.e. group support sessions)?
- Yes I do and I will make effort to attend classes, maybe not all the time but knowing that the support is there and will be there is a great plus.
I will continue to use the product, and weigh in just to maintain the support and the friendships I have made.
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Keith Collins
Time in Program: 12 months
I first heard about the Weight Management Program when I was visiting my primary care physician. He recommended the program because I would be joining a safe, medically supervised weight loss clinic. I decided to join after suffering back and joint pain along with Heart disease. After my first visit with Doctor Carney, I realized being under his care was going to be a huge advantage.
I used the Health One meal replacement which worked very well because of its simplicity. I was able to stay within the calorie limit recommended and it met all of my nutritional needs. I instantly started to see weight loss. It kept me very motivated. I felt satisfied and not hungry. That was a big help!
With the help of trained staff, I was able to learn many things about myself including coping skills, strategies to use to maintain my weight after I lost it, and meal planning. The Weight Management Program understands the difficulties of losing weight and the struggle of keeping the weight off.
I will need to practice every thing I’ve learned in more detail when using conventional food again. I was happy to be in such a supportive environment and as long as I let them help me, I was, am, and will be successful.
I now know the importance of a strong maintenance program. You can’t just lose the weight and walk away thinking you’ll keep it off “this time.” It’s imperative to make conscious choices in order to stay healthy for life.
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Charles D. McGee MD
I WAS ONE OF THEM!
We all know that Americans are too heavy. I WAS ONE OF THEM! There is no simple solution. We must eat less and exercise more. If you accept this idea, the Weight Management Program is for you. The balanced meal replacements are a reliable way to attain a predictable weight loss. The program support is great and the weight loss is very fast.
But as we all know, the real issue is long term weight loss. The long term support is equally effective and if you are serious about weight loss this program may be the one for you. This could be the change in your health you have been waiting for.
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