Natalia Kondratiuk-Świerubska, Głos.gazeta.pl: When did you learn that obesity is a disease?
Katarzyna Głowińska, President of the Foundation for the Treatment of Obesity: It happened only when I found the right doctor specializing in the treatment of obesity. Over eleven years ago, in 2012, I went to see a bariatric surgeon. He was the one who made me aware of this issue. To this day I think it was one of the most important moments in my life. Previously, I had no knowledge about it for many years. I was constantly convinced that it was my fault. I thought I was making a lot of mistakes that made me look the way I do.
It seems to me that many sick people today still do not have such awareness.
Yes, unfortunately it is still not common knowledge. Moreover, I noticed that in many cases this pattern looks similar to mine. It is often a shock for patients when, after years of unsuccessful efforts, they finally find an informed specialist and learn that obesity is a disease. Only then do they start to change their thinking and approach to many issues. They also realize that it’s not their fault at all and they stop blaming themselves. This awareness can completely change your life. I realize that the topic still arouses emotions and causes a lot of unflattering comments. However, we do not intend to give up.
When did you start being obese?
I have been sick since childhood. I have always had a tendency to gain weight and I was not the first sick person in my family. My mother and aunts were also sick, but none of them had struggled with this problem since childhood, like me. When I was 11 years old, my body weight was already 82 kg. However, at the age of 14, I weighed 120 kg. My maximum weight was 158 kg. However, I don’t know if it was actually even higher, because I weighed myself after making some dietary changes.
It must have been very difficult growing up. When, as a teenager, I suddenly gained 10 kg, I heard a lot of unpleasant comments, especially from my friends. And my weight was still normal, I wasn’t even overweight.
It was definitely not an easy time for me. My peers often made me feel that I was different and inferior – precisely because of my body weight. Sometimes they even made cruel jokes on me. Once, during a break, someone put a photo of a person with a very advanced stage of obesity into my pencil case. Another time, for St. Nicholas Day, I received a small plastic chair packed in a waste bag.
This sounds terrible.
I don’t remember my school days well. It was even more difficult because at that time there was no understanding of what obesity was and no empathy towards the sick. And it is known that children can be very direct and honest – they will say whatever they think. They can be really cruel towards people who are different in some way.
Over the years, however, I managed to work through these difficult experiences. I think I had to experience it to understand what problems sick people have to face. Thanks to this, I understand them perfectly. However, I would like children with obesity to no longer have to experience such unpleasant situations. Because one person can handle it and another can’t.
What misconceptions about sick people do you encounter most often?
Of course, people think that we eat a lot, that we don’t move, that we sit in front of the TV all day. I used to laugh that in some people’s imagination, an obese person lives in a refrigerator and the tap in his kitchen does not come out with water, but with oil. It was, of course, laughter through tears.
I know patients who eat healthily and are very active. And unfortunately they still get sick. Such cases remind us that this disease is often not the result of our negligence. Someone once asked me: “Why don’t you do something with yourself?” Where I have been trying to “do something with myself” for most of my life.
We must remember that obesity is a disease that can be treated. However, this healing process will most likely last for the rest of your life. Because it is a chronic, recurrent disease that does not go away on its own.
What was the treatment process like in your case?
It was a difficult, long and quite unlucky road. It was often the case that various random events, for example diseases, did not allow bariatric surgery to be performed. However, I never gave up. First, I had an intragastric balloon implanted for six months. Then I managed to reduce my body weight by 22 kg. Unfortunately, the operation could not be performed. In 2015, we tried again and unfortunately nothing came of it. Three years later, I finally underwent sleeve gastrectomy.
How has your daily functioning changed after the procedure?
I have been five years post-surgery. At the very beginning, I practically didn’t feel hungry at all. It was a very strange feeling for me. Before, I thought about food almost all the time. And after the procedure, I felt as if someone had finally freed me from it. I promise you, I have never been so full as I was then! There are studies that show that in many patients the feeling of satiety does not appear or it occurs much later than in healthy people. Two years later, which was also very important to me, my leg was operated on. I have a hip endoprosthesis, thanks to which I regained the ability to function normally and live without pain.
Please tell me more about it.
In 1996, my femoral head broke off. I then underwent the procedure. The condition of the leg was good for a long time, but at some point it deteriorated significantly. Eventually it got so bad that I couldn’t leave the house. At that time, I was completely dependent on others. Additionally, I was struggling with extremely severe pain. Fortunately, these problems have already been overcome.
What words do you think we should avoid when talking to sick people?
We certainly shouldn’t blame anyone for being sick. Let’s also avoid expressions with a negative connotation. A good example here is the word fat/fat that I described . I know some people think it’s just a description of an appearance trait. However, I, like many other patients, believe that it has a hurtful connotation. It’s really hard to consider them neutral. According to research conducted for our dictionary, as many as 73 percent people think it is an offensive word. The name “yo-yo effect” is equally problematic. It sounds funny, but the recurrence of the disease is not pleasant. In my opinion, such a term diminishes the importance of this phenomenon.
Finally, I would like to ask about the methods currently offered to patients. A person close to me recently consulted a dietitian who repeated myths from years ago and did not actually tell her anything about treating obesity. She only received a very restrictive diet plan, which in my opinion is difficult to maintain.
Unfortunately, many specialists are still unaware of this problem. I am surprised that despite numerous information campaigns that have taken place in recent years, this topic is still so misunderstood.
The most important thing is that the patient goes to an appropriate center dealing with obesity treatment. First, you need to perform a series of tests to check how a person’s body functions – for example, whether there are any metabolic diseases that may cause weight gain. Of course, not everyone with obesity is eligible for surgical treatment. But we now have different conservative methods. This is, for example, pharmacotherapy. It is also worth remembering that each patient’s story is different. There is no one path that is good for all patients. Because there are many stories and causes of obesity.
Thank you very much for the interview and I wish you all the best!
Source: Gazeta
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