Angela Reveals 90-Lb Weight Loss After Surgery
A whole new woman! 90 Day Fiancé star Angela Deem revealed her impressive 90-pound weight loss and opened up about the five surgeries she underwent in order to achieve her newly slimmed-down figure.
The TLC star, who documented her love story with husband Michael Ilesanmi on the reality TV series, explained why she decided weight-loss surgery was the best option for her to lead a healthy lifestyle.
“I’ve always wanted to enhance my look for Michael because of his age, but this journey — people need to know — I felt like I would have died without the weight-loss surgery,” Angela told Us Weekly, mentioning her 32-year-old hubby. “I worried, if I don’t get on the table, I’m gonna die.”
The 90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days alum explained that she realized her weight had been taking a toll on her health shortly after her last trip to Nigeria to visit Michael, which is when the couple tied the knot in January 2020.
“I noticed when I went to Nigeria last time I was just putting on weight … I said, ‘I’m getting bigger or swollen.’ I mean, I think I gained 20, almost 25 pounds,” she told the outlet in an interview published on Wednesday, March 17. “It just hit me all at once. … I couldn’t even walk in the grocery store with the kids to get groceries. I was out of breath.”
The Georgia native initially planned to undergo gastric sleeve surgery, then decided to undergo breast reduction surgery and liposuction all in the same day because she didn’t want to go “back and forth” to see her surgeon, Dr. Michael K. Obeng, in California. But there was another unexpected procedure that needed to be done while she was on the operating table.
“The bad thing was during the surgery … they found, you know, hernias and stuff. So, I actually had five surgeries in one day. I was under anesthesia for, like, six hours,” Angela revealed while adding that she felt she was “strong” and was “going to be all right” after undergoing several surgeries at once.
The mother of two — she has two daughters from a previous relationship, Scottie Deem and Skyla Deem — admitted she wasn’t nervous until the day of her operation, which took place in August 2020. “I was still ready, but started thinking, ‘What if I don’t come out of anesthesia?’ I’m always working doubles and you know, sleeping three hours, but as you get older, these things start clicking in your mind because your age is telling you, you’re not as young as you used to be,” she explained.
While Angela admitted the “first three months” after her surgery were “the hardest” of her life, Angela is happy with her journey and her results.
“There’s benefits behind doing it for myself because it also benefits the grandkids being around me longer and [Michael] and I being together longer,” she explained. “I did it for myself to stay alive … and [to] benefit the ones I love.”