Unit 5  Section 2Exercise 4 The experience of obesity Atul Gawande
In the following excerpt, surgeon/writer Atul Gawande speaks to a patient, Carla, who has had gastric bypass surgery and had lost 130 pounds. “She lost so much weight that she had to have surgery to remove the aprons of skin that hung from her belly and thighs down to her knees.”
He goes on to write the following about Carla:
“The changes weren’t just physical, though. She had slowly found herself to have a profound and unfamiliar sense of willpower over food. She no longer had to eat anything. ‘Whenever I eat, somewhere in the course of that time I end up asking myself: Is this good for you? Are you going to put on weight if you eat too much of this? And I can just stop.’ The feeling baffled her. She knew, intellectually, that the surgery was why she no longer ate as much as she used to. Yet she felt as if she were choosing not to do it.”
Study Question
- What is the cliché about obese persons and will power? Does this passage contradict that cliche? According to this passage, when does will power kick in?
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