Osgood woman shares story of weight struggle
Wanda English Burnett - Editor

The Second Annual American Cancer Society Great American Weigh In will see hundreds of Americans taking to the scales on Wednesday, March 3.

Char Bultman of Osgood, has already weighed in and March 3, will mark the three-month anniversary of the day she took the plunge and had gastric bypass surgery.

"The truth is if I had never dieted the first time, I'd only be about 30 pounds overweight right now," Bultman shares her story of years of struggles with a number of diet programs in hopes of helping "just one person."

HOW IT STARTED

On a diet roller coaster for twenty-five years, Bultman said she wasn't always overweight. "I weighed 105 pounds when I got married." Obesity does run in her family and she remembered her grandfather who weighed 500 pounds when he died.

"I've tried every diet plan and each time I lost weight, I gained it back plus more besides," Bultman said. Bultman also says the expense of "eating healthy" was a deterrent along with the fact she cooked the way she was taught, mostly frying foods.

MAKING THE DECISION

Noting that she is only about 5'1" in height, Bultman said she was having trouble just walking from her house to her daughter's house, which is just next door.

Bultman, whose weight spiraled out of control last year, made the decision to take the biggest step of her life and have surgery on December 3. "I wasn't going to share my all time high weight, but I think I will, it's not a secret," she said, "I weighed in on December 3, at 363 pounds." She said she agonized for about five years about getting the gastric bypass. "I read up on the surgery and I knew the risks."

Saying the surgery was intense and not a decision to be made lightly, Bultman said she's sick of hearing people say having gastric bypass is the easy way out. "Let me tell you, there's nothing easy about it."

A lot of reasons went into the final decision for Bultman to have the gastric bypass, which is an operation that creates a small gastric (stomach) pouch, which is about the size of a small egg. "My stomach is no bigger than an egg," she noted, adding that it doesn't hold much.

The surgery was performed at Christ Hospital in Cincinnati, by Dr. Wesley Alexander, a renowned kidney transplant doctor. "He's the best in his field," she said.

Bultman had to have massive amounts of blood during the surgery and even after she was sent home she was rushed back to the hospital for complications. Each day was a miracle as she struggled to live. She has other medical problems which compounded the difficulties she endured with the latest surgery.

"Why put yourself through such a horrific surgery?" Bultman was asked. Her reply was simple, "I wanted my life back."

Bultman said she doesn't think she would be alive for her fiftieth birthday, which will be in three years, if she didn't lose weight. The fact that she is very family oriented is evident as she talks and by the display of family photos that adorn her home. "I wanted to play with my grandchildren," she said. The Bultmans - Tim and Char - have ten grandchildren and four step grandchildren. They have two sons, Jeremy and Mike, and a daughter Angie Meyer.

"I remember being in a terrible car accident about three years ago and when the emergency people came, I was embarrassed because of my size. I kept apologizing to them," she shared, adding that volunteers from the Milan Rescue Squad are the greatest. "They treated me with so much respect."

After a lung surgery that was necessary following the accident, Bultman is disabled.

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE

"I dream of running, riding my bike, and I want to jump," she said with a twinkle in her eye. Bultman said she wants to enjoy life with her family. "And if sharing my story will help just one person - it's worth it."

Bultman's life changing operation doesn't stop with the surgery itself. Now, she changes everything she does. She exercises, measures food, drinks plenty of water, and actively thinks about what is healthy for her...and it's paying off. At her regular doctor's appointment on February 25, she had lost a whopping total of 72 pounds since December 3!

"I have to be realistic about my ultimate goal and I want to weigh 140 pounds," she noted. "You know what I look forward to?" she asked, and then answered the question, "Wearing jeans. I want to wear jeans again," she laughed.

LIFE GOES ON

While Bultman looks forward to the day she can run, jump, and ride her bicycle, she is thankful for everyday she's been given a new lease on life.

"I'm putting a bicycle in layaway this weekend," she beams, and says she will be joining Curves for Women as soon as she can.

"I'm thankful for my husband Tim, he's my anchor," she said of her husband of 31 years. A man of few words, Tim said he is proud of his wife and supports her one hundred percent. "She's doing a good job," he complimented her.

(Editor's note: Char Bultman has agreed to let the newspaper chronicle her progress in six month increments.)

WANDA ENGLISH BURNETT PHOTO

Char Bultman of Osgood enjoys sitting in her easy chair reading, crocheting, and doing needlepoint. She also looks forward to the day she can run, ride her bike and play with her grandchildren.