Aftermath of an aide's weight loss surgery

Abigail was eighteen when she began working here last year as a hospitality aide. She passed ice, made beds, escorted and pushed residents to meals, and generally helped the aides. Abigail is tall and was very obese back then. Consequently, she was not the best worker. Nevertheless, she took the nurse aide training class and became an aide.

Abigail told me she was going to have weight loss surgery. She was to have it done at Children's Hospital in the state capital. I asked her if she was going to counseling before surgery and she told me she wasn't. She said they did a lot of fat shaming at counseling. I told her that would be part of it. I also told her that nutrition would be involved and other types of coping mechanisms. She didn't seem to be interested. At one time she thought she could go off to college several counties away, come back to have the surgery, and return to college without problems. I told her that was not realistic.

Even though Abigail wasn't a good worker, she was a good talker. She wanted to work in the entertainment field as a manager of a musical artist. That sounded fascinating to me I liked her stories. I never knew whether she made them up or not and did not really care. When she was telling me stories, I was entertained. She is a fairly bright girl but I could tell her weight really had her down.

Abigail had the weight loss surgery at the end of June. She did not return to work until late in August. She complained constantly that she couldn't eat much and that she had to drink a lot of fluid. I wondered what the long-term ramifications of the surgery would be. Abigail worked from August until Christmas Eve. She was tired, stressed, and there was a disagreement with one or more of the other aides. I don't know if somebody teased her, or what happened. She was in my room and all of a sudden decided she had to leave. She ended up going home. The next thing I know she was let go or quit.

Since Abigail was a bit of a prima donna, not many of the other aides missed her. One of them, Ashley even said she would quit if Abigail ever returned. I thought that was strong language. I reminded the other aides that Abigail was going through what amounted to a serious health problem. I never think forced weight loss is good. But there aren't many options for an eighteen-year-old who believes that diets can't work for her.

The nurse manager here hired Abigail back a couple of months ago because there were only three aides total on afternoon shift. Ashley I had quit at the end of February to work at another nursing home that paid more. We all figured she would return when she realized how much work was involved in making more money.

Ashley came back about a month ago. There were also rumors that others would be hired back. I wondered if Abigail's returning was just a stopgap measure. But they needed Abigail to fill the schedule. Then, when they were better staffed, Abigail would be expendable.

From what happened that scenario played out. Abigail did something unprofessional talking about a resident within his earshot. The other aides reported Abigail to the nurse. She was asked to leave. Then she talked with the nurse manager and decided she wanted to quit. So Abigail is no longer here. We will go back to being shortstaffed but not as bad as before.

Abigail has gone through it since the weight loss surgery. She has lost an amazing amount of weight but her hair is quite thin and she looks unwell. I have read that gastric bypass makes the stomach  so small that any overeating causes great discomfort.

I hope Abigail finds a way through this difficult valley she's in. Weight loss is not a destination, it is a journey just like life. Being proud of watching what you eat is necessary to stick with it and stay healthy.