Models Shine as They Showcase Renewed Health
April 24, 2025
The outfits were red-carpet worthy. The audience was dazzled. And the glowing models all had at least one thing in common: As patients of South Texas Health System Heart’s Weight Loss Surgery Center, they’ve all dropped significant amounts of weight and were ready to rock the runway at our third annual Transformation Celebration fashion show.
This special event celebrates men and women who have transformed their lives through weight-loss surgery and a commitment to managing their weight through diet and exercise.
Weight-loss surgery: What do you stand to gain?
It’s true that the patients who walked the runway in our Transformation Celebration are proud of the way they look. But in addition to their new-found confidence to stand front and center on stage, they’ve gained something even more valuable: the ability to fully participate in what means the most to them about life.
For Phylisia Tamayo, that means having the energy to meet the demands of motherhood. After years of complacency with poor dietary and exercise habits, Phylisia had reached a peak weight of 265 pounds. “It made me not be able to be the best mom I could be,” she says. ““It’s emotional to even think about how sick I felt and how I normalized that.”
Phylisia’s turning point came when her doctor warned her that her weight was jeopardizing her life. “I knew right then that I needed to make a decision that was going to be permanent and long-lasting,” she says. Phylisia chose to undergo bariatric weight-loss surgery in August 2023. Today, she has lost more than 100 pounds. “Within a week, it just started melting off of me,” she says. “I am alive again. I am a totally different person mentally, spiritually and physically. I can be active and know that I’m going to be here for my son.”
Past Transformation Celebration participant Maria Selene Rojas was similarly motivated when she realized she didn’t have enough energy to play with her son. Maria Selene, whose weight had climbed to 208 pounds, experienced back pain in addition to problems sleeping. “I got tired of being tired,” she said. Now, 75 pounds lighter after weight-loss surgery, she’s keeping up with playtime. “I’m proud of the changes I’ve made to my health and well-being,” she says.
Health benefits of weight-loss surgery
These patients’ boosted energy is tied to the overall health benefits that shedding extra weight can bring. Weight-loss surgery in combination with healthy lifestyle choices can have the following positive effects on health:*
- Reduce the risk for type 2 diabetes
- Help control high blood pressure
- Reduce the risk for heart disease
- Help control cholesterol levels
- Alleviate sleep apnea
- Prevent urinary incontinence
- Alleviate knee, hip, or other body pain
- Extend years of life for people with severe obesity
*Source: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
The Bariatric Weight Loss Surgery Center at STHS Heart
The Bariatric Weight Loss Surgery Center team is staffed by board-certified physicians, certified nurses, a dietitian, and physical therapists, all dedicated to helping patients not only achieve their weight-loss goals, but also maintain them throughout their lives.
During weight-loss surgery, specially trained and highly skilled surgeons reduce the size of the stomach either solely by, or in combination with, rerouting the small intestine. Both techniques can help decrease appetite.
Find out if weight-loss surgery could be right for you by taking our health risk assessment.
Learn more about bariatric surgery at South Texas Health System Heart.
Individual results may vary. There are risks associated with any surgical procedure. Talk with your doctor about these risks to find out if bariatric surgery is right for you.