Weighty Matters
by Rachel Howard-Collins
At 24 years old, Hillary Lorman’s health wasn’t good. She sat in her doctor’s office as he read off a witch’s brew of problems: high pulse rate, high blood pressure and borderline sleep apnea.
The trouble? Lorman weighed 240 pounds – too much for her average-sized frame.
Something had to change.
Almost a year later, Lorman is marking the months in pounds lost, not time. She is about 60 pounds lighter and is enjoying extra energy and a thinner physique, with no more high pulse rate, high blood pressure or sleep apnea.
Her secret? Lap-Band surgery.
Reality Check
Lorman hadn’t always been heavy. A spunky California girl, she played sports in high school and was very active. After she quit sports, the pounds began to creep on.
“I didn’t realize I was big until I got on a carnival ride in Italy, and I didn’t fit,” says Army wife Lorman. “And then I realized…wow.’”
Then Lorman and her husband, Joe, found out they were expecting a daughter, so her weight loss was put on hold.
A year and a half after their daughter Haley was born, Lorman decided to undergo Lap-Band surgery, which was covered by Tricare.
Not a Magic Pill
The Lap-Band is a band that is surgically placed around the stomach. It makes a person feel fuller faster. Unlike gastric bypass surgery, the Lap-Band doesn’t permanently alter the stomach; it can be adjusted as needed, and it usually has fewer complications than gastric bypass.
“I just needed something to keep me from overeating,” Lorman said. “It is a crutch; it is not a magic bean. It is a tool.”
If the Lap-Band was going to work, Lorman had to follow the doctor’s guidelines for her new lifestyle. Now, instead of breads, pastas, and pastries, she noshes on salads and lean meats. She doesn’t drink for an hour after dinner so that the food stays in her stomach longer, keeping her full. She avoids fizzy drinks – including all sodas and sparkling wines – because they can alter the size of the pouch made by the Lap-Band. The bigger the pouch, the more hungry she feels.
She also exercises by walking with Haley around the local towns in Storck Barracks in Illesheim, Germany, where Joe is a pilot.
Hello, Summer!
Lorman has reached her original goal: to be healthy, without the concerns that plagued her. She’s losing about five to six pounds per month. And those around her are noticing.
“As a husband, I like that my wife’s health has 100 percent improved, that she’s more active, and that she has much more energy to chase around our two-year-old,” said Joe Lorman with a smile.
So, what’s next on Hillary’s goal list?
If she’s looking at numbers, she’d like to weigh about 160. But her current goal is more aesthetic.
“I want to be able to wear summertime clothes and feel comfortable,” she said.
Doing the Math
Tricare covers Lap-Band surgery, gastric bypass surgery and gastric stapling, said Austin Camacho, chief of public affairs for Tricare Management Activity. However, there are requirements:
A person must be 100 pounds over their ideal weight and have diabetes, high blood pressure, gallbladder disease, narcolepsy, severe respiratory problems, hypothalamic disorders or arthritis of weight-bearing joints, like the knees. Or, they must be twice their ideal weight.
For example, the average American woman is five feet, four inches tall. She should weigh between 114 pounds and 151 pounds, depending on whether she is small-, medium- or large-framed. So, for a medium-framed average woman to be eligible for Lap-Band, she’d need to be one of the following:
- 224-238 pounds with one of the problems listed above
- 248-276 pounds
Sources: 1999 Metropolitan Life Height and Weight Tables, Tricare Policy Manual