Stephen: "I had the surgery for multiple reasons. My health progressively got worse and worse over a relatively short period of time. I had one of those conversations with my doctor where, 'You're not gonna be alive in the next five years if you don't do something and do something quickly.' And I have four kids at home, so I did it for myself. I did it for my kids. I did it for my family."

Karen: "I had the surgery because my weight had over the years crept up to the point of 300 pounds, and I knew that it would just be a short period of time before my health would start failing. And there were days when I just didn't feel good, and things started to not feel right. And I knew at that time that I had to do something to get my weight under control because everything I had tried prior to that was a short-term success and ended in failure. And for me, I have had just a 100-percent lifestyle change and have no regrets whatsoever."

Teresa: "Just like Steven also, a wakeup call at the doctor's office when he told me also that I was morbidly obese. All the medication I was on, it was a struggle—a big struggle for me. And I wanted to be around to see my children grow up. I have two boys, so that was a big factor. And I needed to do what was best for my family and my family needs me there. So that was one of the reasons I had the surgery."

Melva: "I can relate to all of y'all, the same reason, it was for my health. My father had died at... at a very young age due to complications of being diabetic. And when I turned 30 I was also diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. I was on tons of medication and I couldn't get it under control, and I realized that in order for me to have a better quality of life that I had to do something because I was overweight. And my father didn't suffer from obesity at all. And for him to have had died due to the complications of having the disease, I realized that my risks were even higher. So I knew I just wanted to be healthier, and the gastric band was the only answer for me to accomplish that."