Fighting Obesity
Dr. Tro Kalayjian Gives Patients Hope and Plans
I found myself at medical school at TouroCOM at 350 pounds and completely bewildered. I just didn't know how to lose weight. And it was challenging, because the standard advice was-- eat less and move more. And that advice never worked. And I went back to the medical textbooks and started to look into the literature-- what works and what doesn't work.
When you look at the data, usually the diets that are lowest in processed carbohydrates and lowest in sugars help people lose weight and fix their diabetes. So I started right there. And since then, I've lost 150 pounds. There's a lot of things that drive obesity and disease. Stress can lead you to eat. People can lead you to eat.
So a big part of what we do here is we give people hope that you can do it. And we give them a plan, which is not-- eat less and move more. We work with our patients to look at the whole body, look at the whole situation. Is there a hormonal reason that they're hungry or eating? Is there a stress reason that they're hungry or eating? Is there a psychological reason that they're hungry or eating?
I think it's difficult for most physicians who are not overweight or have not been overweight to relate to the struggles of somebody who is obese. And I think that that makes the divide between a patient and a physician even more paramount and even more difficult. And it becomes a barrier to getting good care.
One of the most important lessons I think I learned at TouroCOM was having empathy for the patient, understanding their struggles, and being able to meet them where they are. It's something, I think, TouroCOM instilled in me.
When patients seeking to lose weight meet Tro Kalayjian, DO, (Class of 2011), they meet a knowledgeable and caring doctor who personally understands how difficult it is to fight obesity.
“There’s a deep emotional and psychologic level that goes along with obesity,” explained Dr. Kalayjian, medical director at Dr. Tro’s Medical Weight Loss & Direct Primary Care. “If you’ve been shamed your whole life for being obese this carries a lot of emotion. Our goal is to help patients lose weight and let their bodies heal as their bodies were meant to heal. This is consistent with the tenets and lessons we learned at TouroCOM.”
Dr. Kalayjian, who is board certified in internal medicine and obesity medicine, began medical school weighing 350 pounds. “I was totally bewildered,” recalled Tro, whose parents suffered from diabetes and high blood pressure. “I didn’t know how to lose weight. The standard advice of eat less and move more didn’t work.”
During his rigorous medical education and with the encouragement of his pregnant wife, Dr. Kalayjian began digging into the literature about obesity. “When you look at the data usually the diets that are lowest in processed carbohydrates and lowest in sugars help people lose weight and fix their diabetes,” said Dr. Kalayjian.
With a new diet and a healthy work out regime, he managed to lose 150 pounds over several years and keep the weight off. His research also led him to his specialty in obesity medicine. “I think it’s difficult for most physicians who are not overweight or who have not been overweight to relate to the struggles of someone who is obese,” he explained. “I think that makes a divide between a physician and patient even more paramount and even more difficult and it becomes a barrier to getting good care.”
At his new practice, Dr. Tro’s Medical Weight Loss & Direct Primary Care, Dr. Kalayjian approaches each patient by looking at the whole picture with regard to their weight: from social pressures to psychological reasons and genetic factors. “We give people hope and we give them a plan,” he said.
“One of the most important lessons I learned at TouroCOM was having empathy for the patient and understanding their struggles and being able to meet them where they are,” continued Dr. Kalayjian. “That is something TouroCOM instilled in me.”
