Weight Loss Surgeries Help Woonsocket Couple Have Child

November 21, 2017 5:46 pm

By: Tim Studebaker

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – After years of wishing for a baby, Sindia and Luis Hernandez are finally enjoying their first little bundle of joy.

Luis says, “God’s been good. I have my baby right here.”

It’s been a long road for this Woonsocket couple to get to this point. Like many Americans, they found themselves struggling with their weight. At one point, Luis weighed 550 pounds. Sindia weighed 410 pounds.

Sindia says, “I had high blood pressure, and I had chronic asthma. I was always in pain.”

The health risks associated with obesity are scary enough, but on top of that, they wanted to have a baby. For years, they weren’t having any success. Plus, a pregnancy would be risky.

Dr. Siva Vithiananthan, Chief of the Bariatric Surgery Program at The Miriam Hospital, says, “When you deliver the baby, an obese woman will have trouble delivering the baby and may need c–sections or [have] complications of delivery.”

So, they decided to take a drastic action to tackle their weight. In 2015, they each had bariatric surgery at The Miriam Hospital in Providence. That, combined with healthier eating habits, helped them lose a combined 465 pounds.

Sindia says, “I don’t have high blood pressure. The asthma has been controlled.”

Their health has improved, and just a month after doctors cleared them to start trying again, Sindia was pregnant with their baby girl, Grismel. Grismel is 9 days old, and they’re getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving with a new baby, and a new outlook.

Luis says, “It’s not about the feast and what you eat. It’s about the gathering of the family.”