All the hard work was paying off for Tim Young on that Saturday in August 2015 at the Albany Half Marathon.
Nearly two years after he sought help at The Corvallis Clinic Weight Loss Center, two years from when strolling a mere block left him exhausted, Young mixed light jogging with walking to finish the 13.1-mile course.
It was one of many such events in which he and his wife, Ali, had participated during his journey to lower weight and better health.
But, after this one, something was off.
“I didn’t feel right,” Young said.
From “couch potato” to jogger
The 5-foot, 9-inch Lebanon resident weighed 377 pounds and was pre-diabetic in October 2013 when he first saw Dr. Brian Curtis, a Corvallis Clinic internist and Weight Loss Center medical director, and Sandy Lovelady, Dr. Curtis’ certified medical assistant. “His body mass index (BMI) was 53,” Dr. Curtis said. A person is considered obese with a BMI of 30 and above.
Ali, Young’s wife of 18 years and an RN who is the employee health nurse at Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital, had always been concerned about his eating and lack of exercise. “When we’d go shopping, he’d have to sit on a bench and wait for me.”
“I used to be the biggest couch potato,” the 48-year-old Young said. “My wife tried to get me to do something for some time. I finally said ‘yes’ to appease her.”
But from this “appeasement,” came forth a new man.
“Tim really embraced the weight loss program as a true lifestyle change,” Dr. Curtis said. “He made exercise a major part of his life and tracked his progress. He changed his diet and eating habits.”
Young was also prescribed the appetite-suppression drug Qsymia. “The medication helped with appetite control,” Dr. Curtis said, “but the credit for weight loss goes to him for making these large changes in his lifestyle.”
“For some odd reason, it clicked with me,” Young said of the regimen he undertook to drop his weight to about 277 pounds at the time of the half-marathon. Ali said it had changed their life. “We would go out, not just sit at home.” And, he also was no longer pre-diabetic.
Then came the days right after the half marathon.
Experiencing chest pain, dizziness, sweating, and fatigue, Young went to the emergency room at Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital. He was referred to Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center, where he was admitted. Tests found a blockage in his left coronary artery.
So, after two years of progressing from short, easy strolls, to power walking, to light jogging, and eventually to participating in numerous road races, Young faced a new hurdle: by-pass surgery.
“The weight loss saved me”
Ali was dismayed when her husband got sick and had to have heart surgery. “I said to him, ‘you’ve done all that work … and now’ …”
However, it was all that work that played a huge part in making it possible for Young to look forward to more half-marathons.
Dr. Nervin Fanous, the cardiothoracic surgeon who operated on Young, said the 100-pound weight loss drastically reduced the risks involved with the surgery. “Patients who carry a lot of extra weight have trouble getting out of bed after major surgery,” said Dr. Fanous, who was with Samaritan Heart & Vascular Institute at the time of Young’s surgery and now practices at Salem Hospital. “Patients who are debilitated before surgery tend to do worse after. His weight loss prior to the surgery promoted earlier post-operative ambulation, and therefore less risk of debility and the need for discharge to a nursing home to deal with such issues as bed sores. Also, surgery on a person with a large BMI is technically challenging.”
Young is convinced he wouldn’t be here today if he hadn’t shed those pounds. “The weight loss saved me,” he said. “Dr. Fanous was awesome. And I thank God every day for Dr. Curtis and Sandy Lovelady.”
“I am glad we could be part of his medical team,” Dr. Curtis said. “This is an example of the Weight Loss program serving in a ‘consultant’ role while his primary care was outside The Clinic.”
“I’m far from done”
Starting from scratch after surgery, Young is back jogging 3.5 miles four to five times a week, plus lifting weights. He has special praise for two staffers in the Cardiac Rehabilitation Department at Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital who helped get him back to this point: Rachel Lasselle, lead case manager and exercise specialist, and Raechel Graham, exercise specialist.
“The surgery has been life altering,” Young said. “It has made me rethink how I want to live my life and what’s really important.” To that end, he eventually left his job as a truck driver and is now seeking a less stressful job.
“I have a different husband,” said Ali, who herself has lost 40 pounds. “He encourages me now. He’s the one who gets up at 5 a.m. and says, ‘let’s go.’”
Young said he realizes now that the only person who prevented him from losing weight was himself, and he tries to spread that message to others.
“I’ve seen the change in me, especially since the surgery. I tell my friends to get checked; don’t let things go, and just be positive. Anything you do is better than doing nothing.
“I feel like there is nothing I can’t physically do if I want it bad enough. I hope to have a long life ahead of me. I’m far from perfect. I fight my demons still. It’s a hard road, and I’m far from done.”
