072 “Hey Reeger..,” A Letter from a Listener

June 17, 2016

Welcome to the weight loss surgery podcast where we talk about obesity and bariatric surgery one episode at a time. I’m your host, family nurse practitioner, Reeger Cortell. This episode is brought to you by you, my listeners. I am so touched by the love you show me, whether that is iTunes rates, sharing the […]

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071 Jeff Newell: On Gaining a New Life

May 31, 2016

In this episode Jeff Newell returns to the podcast to catch us up on his life since having Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass on 12/1/2014. Jeff has been on the podcast before on episodes 055, 049, 043, and 042. He is now 18 month out from his surgery and 300 pounds down from his pre-surgery weight of […]

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070 Reeger Cortell FNP: An Interview by Rob Portinga

May 9, 2016

Presenting Your Host, Reeger Cortell, FNP Over the last 18 months or so, I, Rob Portinga, have had the pleasure of going from being a guest, to being a contributing host on the Weight Loss Surgery Podcast (WLSP). It was started by Reeger Cortel, FNP nearly three years ago now. One of the driving themes, and […]

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069 Talking about the Fear Factors of Bariatric Surgery with Dr Raul Rosenthal

April 17, 2016

My guest today is Dr Raul Rosenthal. Dr Rosenthal works at the Cleveland Clinic Florida in Weston Florida, where he is a bariatric surgeon, chief of surgery, chief of staff, and the director of the Cleveland Clinic Florida Metabolic and Bariatric Institute. In addition to all those good works, he is also the current president of […]

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068 Understanding Lipedema with Sarah Bramblette and Karen Herbst, MD, PhD

March 15, 2016

In this episode I bring you my conversation with Sarah Bramblette. As you are about to hear, Sarah is many things but above all she is an inspirational mix of hardwork, intelligence, grit, compassion, and determination. She is everything you would want in a loved one, a friend, a daughter, and an obesity advocate. Sarah’s […]

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067 The Bariatric Surgeon Episode

February 20, 2016

In this episode I bring you my interviews with six different bariatric surgeons. I conducted these interviews while I was at ObesityWeek in Los Angeles, CA in November 2015. I asked each surgeon one or two of the following questions: How do you help people decide which surgery to choose? And, If you could wave […]

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066 Connie Stapleton, PhD- Healing Your Relationship with Yourself

January 25, 2016

In this episode I bring you my conversation with clinical psychologist, Connie Stapleton, PhD. Dr Stapleton has been working in the field of bariatric surgery for 11 years and as you would image, and are about to hear, she has a wealth of information and insight to share with you. Discussed in this episode: How […]

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065 After the After with Nikki Massie

January 2, 2016

In this episode, I bring you my conversation with Nikki Massie. Nikki is many things within the bariatric surgery community including a bariatric surgery patient who had Roux-enY Gastric Bypass in 2008, the creator of the ever popular website Bariatric Foodie where she encourages you to “play with your food,” a prolific blogger, a storyteller, a […]

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064 Scott Monte, PharmD on Medications Just Before and Just After Bariatric Surgery

December 6, 2015

  In this episode I bring you my conversation with pharmacist, Scott Monte, PharmD. I met Scott at the 2015 Obesity Week conference in Los Angeles. Since 2009 Scott has worked as a pharmacist with the bariatric surgery program known Synergy Bariatrics in Buffalo, NY. After talking with him at the conference I knew I […]

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063 Pandora Williams on Feelings and Fitness

November 15, 2015

  After a lifetime of struggling with obesity, Pandora Williams underwent Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass on October 19th, 2010. Now, five years later and through a lot of hard work and dedication, she is a fitness and wellness coach, blogger, avid runner, and motivational speaker. In this episode with interviewer Rob Portinga, Pandora tells her story […]

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062 “I Have a Disease; It’s Called Obesity” Video Contest Winner!

November 1, 2015

  This episode is a quick update telling you about a video I produced called “I Have a Disease; It’s Called Obesity.” The video won the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery “It Starts Now” video contest! In this episode I tell you a little bit about how I came to write the script, […]

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061 Sandi Henderson: You are More Than Enough

October 18, 2015

  After a lifetime of yo-yo dieting, in 2004 Sandi Henderson’s weight was up to 425 lbs. She had uncontrolled high blood pressure, sleep apnea, asthma, and significant daily pain from bone-on-bone arthritic knees. After a significant health scare, Sandi decided it was time to make some lasting changes. As part of her decision to […]

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060 Pre-Op Education Part 2

September 28, 2015

  In this episode I go the second part of the Pre-Op education I teach to our patients who are getting ready for bariatric surgery. The focus of this second part is on the psychology of life after bariatric surgery. Discussed in this episode: The 7 right ingredients to live a Bari Great Life The […]

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A Thin Person Responds to Nicole Arbour

September 9, 2015

  I’ve attempted to avoid the whole Nicole Arbour  “Dear Fat People” thing. In general, 99% of the time I do not respond to hatefulness, whether it’s on the internet or elsewhere because I know that people who spew this kind of hatred are just energy vampires who feed off of other peoples responses, no […]

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059 MBSAQIP Accreditation

September 8, 2015

In this episode I am going to take you on a walk of sorts, an MBSAQIP walk. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, you will soon. For starters, MBSAQIP stands for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program. What you’re about to hear are my reflections, sort of “A day in […]

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058 Texas Tell ’em! Interviews from #YWM2015

August 24, 2015

  This episode I brought my mic to the people! Specifically the wonderful people at the Obesity Action Coalition’s Your Weight Matters Convention in San Antonio, Texas in August, 2015. While I was there I interviewed eleven different people about their bariatric surgery journey. Part of the interview included a game I invented called Texas […]

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057 Pre-Op Education Part 1

August 10, 2015

In this episode I go over the first part of the Pre-Op education I teach to our patients who are getting ready for bariatric surgery. The focus of this first part will be on the common early questions and concerns people have who have just undergone bariatric surgery. I have found that providing this education […]

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056 Randy Seeley, PhD: The Biology of Body Weight

July 17, 2015

In this episode I bring back Randy Seeley, Ph.D.. Dr Seeley is a research scientist at the University of Michigan School of Medicine. The focus of Dr Seeley’s work is examining how various hormones produced by the body work to influence the brain, food intake, and body weight. Dr Seeley and I last spoke one […]

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055 Catching Up with Jeff Newell

July 5, 2015

  In this episode, Rob Portinga and I have a conversation with Jeff Newell. Jeff is now 7 months out from having Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass surgery. This is our fourth conversation with Jeff along his Bari Great Life journey. Previous conversations have been episodes 042, 043, and 049. Discussed in this episode: Jeff’s journey so […]

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054 Looking Back and Forward

June 15, 2015

      June 13th was the 2 year anniversary of launching this podcast. In this episode I walk you through my journey of starting this podcast. I also share some of my thoughts about getting ready for bariatric surgery. It is all a journey of learning, for me, for you, for all of us. […]

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