Obesity is a major national health problem, and science has been developing a number of ways to address it. The most revolutionary is surgical intervention to alter the gastrointestinal system so that less food/nutrients can be consumed and/or absorbed. People who undergo this surgery usually experience drastic weight loss and dramatic health improvements. They also discover a new sense of self and face challenges often unimaginable when they were obese.

Using in-depth, first person accounts of 33 men and women who underwent weight-loss surgery, this book elaborates on the complexities of finally getting what you wished for— the good, the bad, and the totally unexpected.

We live in a culture fascinated by physical make-overs, but no one talks about their psychological consequences. Losing a lot of weight is perhaps the most extreme make-over of all. It leaves people emotionally changed, and these changes are the heart of this book.The fascinating narratives contain important lessons for individuals considering or having had the surgery and for those who try to help them. It is simply a story of how finally getting what you’ve always wished for can be much more complicated affair than you ever imagined.

A native of Madrid, Spain, Dr. Marta Meana obtained her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from McGill University in Montreal, completed a pre-doctoral internship in Behavioral Medicine and Outpatient Psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego and then a post-doctoral fellowship in Women’s Health at the Toronto Hospital in Toronto, Canada. Dr. Meana has over 50 scientific publications to her name and has presented her research in close to 60 conference presentations. Areas of research have included obesity surgery, female sexual dysfunction, chronic pain, and breast and cervical cancer screening.

Dr. Lindsey Ricciardi received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Maine and a doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She was honored with the UNLV President’s Graduate Fellowship in 2003 for her seminal research efforts investigating psychological and social aspects of weight loss surgery. Together with her husband Dominic, a bariatric physician, she runs an interdisciplinary weight management program, Creative Health Solutions, in Las Vegas, Nevada, where she serves as Director of Behavioral Health Services.

"The narratives of these individuals make vivid the human effects of the surgery in a way that a well-designed empirical study never could." - PsycCRITIQUES