WLS Coach dies

[Guest guest]

This guy had the Gastric Bypass a couple years ago..he had a website

and sent out newsletters. I just received this newsletter, it was

written by his wife. Glenn died, it was not WLS related. As a

memorial of sorts I thought I'd share with you his wifes words:

Through Thick and Thin #50 P.S. (January 10, 2005)

A Post-Script from Glenn's Wife

or

The Blessings of 2 years in a Trim & Active Body

This is Kari Goldberg, Glenn's wife, writing this newsletter. I

have some

sad news. On December 19, 2004, Glenn died, doing what he loved

most -

walking on one of the beautiful trails here in the Pacific

Northwest. He

was happy, seemingly healthy, and enjoying being with a friend.

Literally

in the middle of a joke, he paused for a moment and then dropped

dead.

This was and still is a shock to all who knew him either in person

or via

the Internet.

I would have written sooner, but I wanted to have full information to

share with you. Of course, one of the first thoughts I had was - did

weight loss surgery have anything to do with this? Is this somehow

our

fault for making that choice? I now have the autopsy report and can

answer these questions with a very resounding NO! Let me explain.

Glenn died of a massive heart attack. It was quick and painless.

He did

not suffer. What they also found was that 3 of the 4 vessels

attached to

the heart were 80-90% blocked!!! I reminded our doctor that Glenn

had a

treadmill test just last March. Why wasn't this blockage noticed?

The

doctor said that the machine is not 100% foolproof, and that it

probably

did not pick it up because Glenn was so fit from having lost all the

weight and his daily walking.

Now, here's the kicker. First, I need to tell you that Glenn is very

good

about going for his annual check-up. Apparently, sometime between

the

last physical and 12/19, he developed a rapid form of acute

leukemia!!!

It was in all of his organs and blood! He had no symptoms. What

this

means is that it truly was his time to die. He was either going to

die in

a fast, painless way or a longer-term, chemo-filled, painful way. I

think

Glenn (or the Universe) chose wisely.

I specifically asked the doctor if the weight loss surgery was in

ANY way

responsible for Glenn's death. He asked me when his surgery was -

October

2002 was my response. He said, " Well, given what we know now in

terms of

vessel blockages, without the surgery in 10/02, he probably would

have

been dead by 1/03!!! The WLS gave him two years to have a trim

body, to

put food in proper perspective, and to travel to England, Cuba, the

Bahamas, Florida, and North Carolina. He was able to recently see

his

family and best friend. He saw our daughter's first professional

place of

employment. He played in the Atlantic. He was filled with

gratitude.

What I had been feeling was that Glenn was robbed of his life. What

I

felt after hearing the autopsy report was that it was truly Glenn's

time

(for whatever reason) to die. I'm still deep in sorrow but calmer

in my

heart.

Glenn was an organ donor, and therefore continues to give to

others. His

corneas have allowed two people to again see. Some of his bone was

used

to help with orthopedic reconstruction and dental surgery. And the

one

that would have touched him most is that all of that excess skin

(that he

hated so much and wanted the surgery to remove but we could not yet

afford

it) was removed and will be used to help burn victims heal. I am so

very

proud of this man.

Just today, I had the emotional energy to check his computer and

website

to see if there was any way for me to complete his WLS book. My

heart is

thrilled because the answer is YES! Glenn's memorial is Jan. 23rd.

After

that, I will begin the process. It was his passion to help those

with

whom he felt such a kinship. I am happy and honored to complete this

work.

If Glenn were standing in front of me right now and we were somehow

able

to see all that happened between his surgery and his death, I have

absolutely no doubt that he would choose the exact same path. WLS

gave

him a much fuller, more complete life. And he enjoyed every second

of it.

Death is always hard, but it is my strong hope that you will not

connect

Glenn's writings (and WLS) with his death. It was just his time to

go. I

feel blessed to have had 25 years with such a passionate, caring,

self-aware, communicative human being. It was a privilege and an

honor.

Kari Goldberg

www.weightlosssurgerycoach.com

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