Team Of Doctors Treat Man Who Weighed More Than 1,000 Pounds

[matcom]

<snip>



SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- A man who once weighed more than half a ton has lost 321 pounds under the care of a team of doctors and hopes to lose 450 pounds more.

Patrick Deuel, 42, of Valentine, Neb., weighed 1,072 pounds when he was admitted to Sioux Falls' Avera McKennan Hospital eight weeks ago. Deuel, who is just under 6 feet tall, is on a 1,200 calorie-a-day diet.

"If we hadn't gotten him here, he'd be dead now," said Fred Harris, Deuel's lead doctor.

The former restaurant manager has been bedridden since last fall. He has battled heart failure, thyroid problems, diabetes, pulmonary hypertension and arthritis, and needed help just to roll over in bed.

"Until recently, I wasn't able to see any light at the end of the tunnel," he said Monday from his hospital bed.

A group known as the League of Human Dignity helped arrange for Deuel to be driven to a local livestock scale, where he could be weighed.

http://www.wftv.com/newsofthestrange/3642597/detail.html

[MissMillie]

1. I can't begin to imagine what life is like for this man

He probably can't even reach to wash himself.

[mac56]

2. Kudos to these doctors

and the League of Human Dignity.

[DaveFL99]

42. Those would be the people who weighed him on a livestock scale right ?

[mac56]

47. Right.

I'm sure we can all agree that determining his accurate weight was an essential part of helping him get the intervention he needed. I'm sure we can all agree that it wasn't his fault that a customary human weight scale wasn't available. I'm sure we can all agree that an organization that would take the time to make and carry through such unusual arrangements shows a great deal of compassion for this man.

[DaveFL99]

48. You're sure of too much.

Speak for yourself and yourself only.

[supernova]

3. Wow! I wish him luck

on his weight loss journey. I don't think anyone has lived long enough to lose that much weight. Hope I'm wrong.

[Love Bug]

4. You hear about these sad cases from time to time

and the first thing I wonder is, if the person can't even walk, who is bringing them all that food?

Of course, I realize that is simplistic and there is a lot more to overweight than that.

[hlthe2b]

11. Delivery services, I suppose....

While many, like the disabled elderly may need these services, the emergence of grocery and all other manners of delivery services is not always a good thing...

[denverbill]

5. You would think the 'League of Human Dignity'

wouldn't announce the fact that they weighed him on a livestock scale.

[slutticus]

6. I don't think they announced it...

...the press announced it.

[candy]

7. The poor guy.

[demnan]

8. If he had thyroid problems

curing those problems might be helping him lose weight as well. Most people who have extreme weight problems are this way because of a health abnormality. I knew a guy in college that way, weighed about 600 pounds and ate very little, according to his roommate.

My weight problems can't be explained away by thyroid, though.

[pagerbear]

9. OK, here's a question

This has nothing to do with this unfortunate man, and everything to do with the rest of us and human nature.

I notice everyone is posting sympathetic thoughts about this man. Yet some DUers have posted very hateful thoughts about people who are obese but can get around--either mocking them for their clothing choices or for eating in public or for using wheelchairs or carts (and many other reasons), or raging against people's physical characteristics when it's really their politics and/or public behavior and statements they hate. I've posted about this before, and I find this practice completely abhorrent.

Where, exactly, do you draw the line? At what point does disgust become sympathy? Can someone clarify this for me?

[hlthe2b]

10. I'm with you pagerbear, in fact I was afraid to read the comments for fear

there were going to be horribly tasteless jokes assocated. While I'm glad to see there are not, I'm often totally dismayed at the attitudes towards obesity on this forum and associated intolerance. Seems to be the one consistently remaining stereotype (i.e., obesity = SIMPLY a problem of laziness, sloth, lack of will power in individuals affected). Ironically, the same folks who castigate an otherwise healthy, attractive individual(usually a celebrity) for having picked up as few as an extra 5-10 pounds, will also feign great indignition and sorrow for the emaciated "near-death" anorexic.

I'd like to think that DUers could be more enlightened. Keep pointing this out, pagerbear. It bears repeating and further "enlightenment."

On edit, I send out prayers and karmic wishes for all who are fighting this level of morbid obesity and this poor man, in particular.

[redqueen]

28. Disgust becomes sympathy when it's politically correct

for those that engage in the fat-bashing, that is. Some people don't go there and I trust their compassion is genuine.

[DaveFL99]

45. To be honest it never develops into sympathy for me.

Thyroid can't explain much.

[matcom]

12. kick

because i can

[pagerbear]

13. This appears to be the thread for sympathetic comments

...while the other seems to be confined to cruel mockery and derision.

[MissMillie]

14. As far as I'm concerned...

... there but for the grace of God go I.

[Misinformed01]

17. Sadly, Americans can be real assholes

about the way people look. That nasty trait goes right along with greed...for money, material posessions etc.

I don't know what other thread you are referring to, but I can imagine there are some cruel comments about this fellow-

Stephanie

[pagerbear]

19. Not just Americans

[Misinformed01]

35. Sadly, I haven't had much experience with people

who aren't Americans. I wish I could tell you that I am well traveled enough to comment on other nationalities proclivities towards assholishness.

So, I am going to stick with what I know: cruel, greedy Americans.

Stephanie

[underpants]

15. Dupe

Please continue discussion here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=105&topic_id=1519788&mesg_id=1519788

[matcom]

16. asshole

:P

MatcomNews will NOT BE undone!!

[CO Liberal]

27. That Other Thread Was Locked As a Dupe

Look for the nasty comments to start showing up here....

[Bogus W Potus]

18. I said this in the other thread, but I'll say it again.

I'll say it in a more direct manner in this thread.

How fucking sick do you have to be to make fun of someone for something like this? Are you that pathetic that you have to make fun of people like this?

Set aside the arguments of whose fault it is. This isn't about fault. It's about compassion.

I for one hope that this gentleman gets the help that he needs with his problem.

[matcom]

20. wow. now who is THAT directed at?

might you be a little more specific?

[Bogus W Potus]

22. Yes.

From the other thread:

"But still - I don't understand how Americans can't control their own appetites or show any balance in their daily lives. It's really getting disgusting."

-LiberalPragmatist

[matcom]

24. then keep your tirade on the other thread

(which should get locked anyway) cause sofar i don't sen anyone on MY thread saying those things

[Bogus W Potus]

26. My tirade?

Whatever buddy.

I wasn't the one making those asinine comments about overweight people. I'm not the one you should be mad at. But I can't tell you what to do, so keep on doing it if it makes you feel better.

:eyes:

[matcom]

30. dude. chill

you posted nasty stuff not directed at anyone on this thread. that isn't how we tend to do it around here. it just invites future flame bait.

btw, welcome

[liberalpragmatist]

29. I'm sorry, you're right

The "disgusting" comment was uncalled for and I take it back.

I also agree with you that many people who are called "obese" are not and that there is an over-emphasis on thinness in our culture. People who are only slightly overweight and healthy are fine.

Nevertheless I stand by my point that there are many people who are overly obese - when we're talking about people who weigh 400+, 500+ Ibs. that is a problem and while you're right, I shouldn't have said they were disgusting, I do think these people need help and should also make some lifestyle changes to get themselves down to reasonable weights. Though you noted on the other thread that the obesity problem isn't that big a deal, when you live in a place like Indiana (where I live) you do see a lot of people who clearly have weight problems and I blame American lifestyles for a lot of that.

Now, like I said - does that mean that everyone has to be *thin*? No. And you're right, saying it was "disgusting" was uncalled for.

[MissMillie]

32. "Obese" is a medical term

I believe it means someone who weighs 30 lbs. more than their ideal body weight.

[Bogus W Potus]

36. It's really not simple as they would like you to believe.

I have a friend with a BMI of 28 or so but if you saw him you would realize that he is not unhealthy. While he might be overweight according to the government charts, he is in fine health. He's built, 6'2" 220 or something like that, and his body fat percentage is incredibly low. These government charts don't take athletes into account when quantifying.

I'm technically overweight too at 6'1" 190 but I'm not what you would call heavy.

Basically, what I'm saying is that these government BMI charts that say if you are 30 pounds above an "ideal weight", you are overweight, are just bs. Michael Jordan would be characterized as overweight even though he clearly isn't.

We're all individuals.

[CO Liberal]

39. I'm 5 Foot 10 and 225 Pounds

And according the the weight charts, I'm obese.

Bullshit.

[Bogus W Potus]

43. Like I said above,

the weight charts don't take athletes into account. Of course athletes are going to weigh more because muscle is denser than body fat.

[CO Liberal]

44. And The People Who Go By Those Charts...

...are the densest of all.

[Bogus W Potus]

46. Agreed.

Studies have shown that waist size relative to weight is a much better indicator than BMI.

[Bogus W Potus]

34. Glad you realized it.

Thanks.

[Bogus W Potus]

25. or this

liberalpragmatist (781 posts) Click to send email to this author Click to send private message to this author Click to add this author to your buddy list Click to add this author to your Ignore list Wed Aug-11-04 03:19 PM
Response to Reply #2
15. I mean that America's obesity problem is disgusting



I realize that many Americans have genetic or thyroid problems which impact their weights, and I'm in no way saying that everybody needs to be thin. But they should be healthy, and American lifestyles promote gross obesity to the gross detriment of our collective health.

That's what I meant was disgusting - not that man in question.

Shameful. Doesn't he have other things to worry about?

[pagerbear]

21. Thank you Bogus.

Sometimes I'm so ashamed of the behavior of our fellow DUers.

[CO Liberal]

23. From The Referenced Article

I originally posted this message in the other thread that was started on this story. I'm reposting it hear because this thread seems more sympathetic to this poor man's plight. - Wayne

* * * * *

Deuel, who has battled weight problems all his life and blames his condition in part on genetics, said it took months to find a hospital. Hospitals closer to his home balked at admitting him, he said.

“I got scared because I couldn’t help him anymore, and I didn’t know who would help him,” said his wife, Edith.

* * * * *

Some people have a propensity to gain weight easily - Patrick Deuel is an extreme case of this. It can be aggravated by constant dieting and regaining (yo-yo dieting) - this can throw the body's metabolism out of whack.

And shame on the hospitals that "balked at admitting him". There's a tendancy in the medical profession to undertreat the overweight - many doctors do the minimum they have to do, and "get the fat lady (or man) out of the office".

I wish Patrick Deull the best of luck. And hope no one tries to talk him into the butchery of weight-loss surgery.

[Droopy]

31. I agree, I don't see how he could have been refused

admitance to those other hospitals. The guy was obviously in need of help. With the diseases that he has suffered from he probably didn't have much time left unless he got help.

[Heyo]

37. Perhaps they were not equipped...

.. to handle a patient of this man's size.. so they kept referring him elsewhere... The word "balked" sounds like "get lost, big fella" and that may not have been what happened.... if so that's pretty heartless.

Heyo

[Shakespeare]

38. The hospitals literally may not be equipped to handle his girth.

His size, unfortunately, requires a special gurney, a special bed, and other related equipment that not all hospitals have on hand. There was a story in the news recently that hospitals are having to order oversized gurneys and beds because of the increase in the number of morbidly obese patients they're seeing.

If they can't safely hold him as a patient, then yes, they should refuse to admit him there, for his own good.

[LastKnight]

33. bah i posted this on monday night, got no replies. nt

[Dukkha]

40. He's got a difficult path now

Dramatic weight loss can be just as dangerous as dramatic weight gain. I remember one man just has heavy who lost 400lbs on 8 weeks. Then his stomach literally started tearing from the inside. He did get his wish eventually to walk outside for the first time in years to visit his mother's grave.

[WI_DEM]

41. when someone gets to be more than 1000 pounds

it isn't a case of simply eating too much. There are some major medical problems there. I'm just glad he is getting help. It isn't only people who are grossly overweight who are discriminated against, but even folks who are marginally overweight or obese are often looked down upon. I'm glad to see that this thread has taken a by and large compassionate tone.