From 105 to 60 kilos: “That was a really tough road”

Susanne Peinbauer from St. Willibald weighed 105 kilograms in 2020. “And that at a height of 1.58 meters. Climbing the stairs was difficult for me, I had joint pains and felt unfit and bad”says the now 38-year-old.

She had never been that thin in her life. “I was a chubby child and already had ten to 15 kilograms too much in secondary school”. Two pregnancies – including a twin pregnancy – meant a few extra kilos. The native of Peuerbach wanted to get rid of this quickly with diets of all kinds. “Once I lost almost 30 kilograms and gained it again”she tells.

A renewed attempt, in which she again lost 20 kilograms, ended with the well-known yo-yo effect. “I really wanted to make it and not be perceived by people as ‘the fat one’ anymore.”

Therefore, Susanne Peinbauer decided to have a gastric bypass operation, which was actually supposed to be performed in March 2020. “By then I had already completed all my appointments with the dietitian and also the psychological report that is needed for this procedure”. But then the corona pandemic came and the surgery date was postponed to October.

Confidence in the Rohrbach Clinic

An acquaintance had recommended her the Rohrbach Clinic and primary school Gernot Köhler. “I felt comfortable there straight away, although I kept thinking to myself: hopefully nothing will go wrong, I have to be there for the children and my husband…”

The operation on October 27, 2020 was completely uncomplicated. “For the first three days I was only allowed to eat liquids – and in sips. That was all”. Four days in the hospital was enough for the mother of three. “After that I went home and learned to eat again. All pureed, by the spoonful – in the beginning I could manage three bites per meal, couldn’t tolerate many things and was in pain. The aftermath of the operation was really bad”. The close controls in the hospital gave her security. “But this time was not easy”. In return, she became lighter herself. The kilos tumbled. The overweight woman became a woman of normal weight. “And that was exactly my goal. In return I have accepted that I can no longer tolerate things like dairy, sugar, beef and soda and that sometimes my insulin levels suddenly drop and I get dizzy and nauseous.”

Walk, climb, hike

In August 2021, Susanne Peinbauer reached her “target weight” and today has around 60 kilograms. The woman who didn’t want to move much has become an enthusiastic athlete. “I really enjoy walking with my dog, hiking, climbing and going to the gym”, she tells. Her husband and children – 18 and 12 years old – are proud of what she has achieved. “It really wasn’t a walk in the park – the two tightening operations also involved a lot of pain”she says and means. “Surgery like this is really the last resort to lose weight – no one does it lightly.”

That’s why it hurts her when people whisper behind her back. “Many do not begrudge me my success and cannot deal with the fact that the gray mouse, who liked to hide in a baggy robe, has become a woman with a beautiful figure and healthy self-confidence. Friends have also turned their backs on me because they say I’ve changed too much”she says and looks for explanations. “People probably don’t know that such an operation is not done on the fly and that it has many limitations.”

No more cigarettes

Ultimately, her life would have changed for the better. “I no longer have joint problems and lead a healthier life”. It would have been extremely important that her husband always stood behind her. “Otherwise I probably wouldn’t have mastered it”says the hotel employee, who managed something a year ago. “I’ve stopped smoking.”