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"I Owe It to the World for Saving Me"; What is Lap-Band Surgery?; Jumpstart to Skinny

Aired May 11, 2013 - 16:30   ET


DR. SANJAY GUPTA, HOST: Hey there and thanks for joining us.

Another busy, busy news week here.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie reveals he underwent an operation to lose weight. Some say it's a step closer to a 2016 presidential run. We'll look at that and I'll also explain what's involved in the operation.

"Biggest Loser" trainer Bob Harper is going to stop by to share his three-week plan for super charged weight loss.

And "Elementary" star Jonny Lee Miller's 15-mile ultra marathon to try and save the life of a 4-year-old boy named Jonah.

But first --


REPORTER: What did you think when you saw your parents?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go ahead. You can say that.

ALICIA KOZAKIEWICZ, KIDNAP VICTIM: I was very, very happy and relieved.

REPORTER: Did you give them a big hug?



GUPTA: In the cap there, that's Alicia Kozakiewicz. She's 13 years old at the time, just set free by an FBI raid. She's been kidnapped by a 38-year-old man. She was sexually assaulted, she was held prisoner in his essentially home made dungeon. And that was 11 years ago.

She's here with us today.

She runs the Alicia Project. It's an organization devoted to protecting children from predators.

And also here with us is our friend Jeff Gardere, a clinical and forensic psychologist. Thanks to both of you for joining us.


GUPTA: I have daughters. And I'm just watching that, how was that for you to watch now? I know a lot of time has passed. But I wonder just the impact to look at that clip.

KOZAKIEWICZ: That was really hard to watch, because I don't think I have actually ever seen that clip, and to see my dad be so protective, and so guarded. That was interesting to see.

GUPTA: You looked to him when you were asked the question. He said it's OK to talk about.

Are you still -- how are you today? Are you still haunted by this?

KOZAKIEWICZ: I certainly am. I have my good days and I have my bad days. There's a lot more good days though. I still have nightmares and flashbacks.

GUPTA: Do you -- and we're going to bring in Jeff Gardere in a second. But these women, everyone around the world has been following the story. You have a better idea than most of what they are probably going through now. I mean, it's unimaginable for everybody.

But what would you describe their sentiment to how they're feeling now?

KOZAKIEWICZ: In the video, you can see how clearly happy I am. I have a huge grin on my face. And that's how I imagine how these girls feel right now. Just so happy and so relieved and so excited to have their life back and be back with their families. But that's shadowing the pain a little bit.

Certainly, they are going to have so much pain and they are going to likely suffer from PTSD, and nightmares, and flashbacks. And that's really OK because they have been hurt. Showing a moment of weakness does not mean that you are weak.

GUPTA: You know, sometimes, we call it the heroic period. This period now where there's a lot of attention. As you said, the smiles.

But, you know, as a lot of this becomes more of a reality, it might be more difficult.

Jeff, I mean, you --


GUPTA: -- what would you say to them if they were here? How would you describe what their therapist, what they would be going through?

GARDERE: Well, to enjoy the happiness, that's certainly real and it does counter a lot of the PTSD and depression, the anxiety, the anger and so on. But you're right, both of you. The reality does begin to set in that there is a different reality. There is a world that you have to transition back into and now that you are out of that horrific, traumatic situation, you are going to have the flashbacks and the intrusive thoughts and trying to avoid anything that reminds you of that situation. That's when the real hurt actually takes place. While you're in there, you are surviving.

Now, you're out of there and now you have to begin to process it. And that's a healthy thing that we do with therapy. But it also re- traumatizes you as you get to that point of where you can live what would be considered a new normal. And I love what you said that there are really great days and some days it's a little bit dark. That's the reality. It's not a fairy tale.

GUPTA: As you can see, having a conversation like this, I think, is hard. I mean, you know, I don't know how -- what was appropriate in terms of how people asked you about this or talked to you about it. I know this is something you deal with. I mean, you're trying to help other people.

But is there a right way? What should people be saying to these women, do you think? Their friends, their family.

KOZAKIEWICZ: Outsiders really do need to respect their privacy. For my family, it was -- it was so difficult. The media was very invasive. And that was really hard.

So, we unplugged the phone, turned off the television and really tried to ignore it as best we could. Ignore what other people were saying and really live through our experience with it.

GUPTA: You know, Jeff, we are the media to some extent. And I think -- to the extent people can learn something from this, it's part of the reason we continue to talk about this. But, you know, what do you think is the most helpful thing for these women now? I mean, if people are talking to them about it, is there a right way? Is there a wrong way? How do they approach this?

GARDERE: The most important thing I have seen people like Alicia, Jaycee Dugard, Elizabeth Smart, they are giving words of wisdom. They went through it.

Just like the veterans of war who go through PTSD, they say great, thank you, give us the treatment, but they want to be with other people that have experienced that, because only they know. So, that's one important thing.

But specific to your question, what do these young women need to know, what do we tell them? We love them. We support them. As they go through the rituals that perhaps sustained them in those horrific situations, they will relive some of those things, maybe sleeping on the floor, appetite issues. You know, not trusting, being very hyper aroused with people around them, startled easily.

That it's OK to feel that. We will support you no matter what. We are going to give you the space and we are there and we love you. And that's how you give them that warm environment that allows them to go through the therapeutic process in dealing with a lot of the outside forces.

I must say, I congratulate you on making this much more instructive and supportive as far as the media. And that's what the media needs to do.

GUPTA: I completely agree. And again, when you are parenting and watching your father with you in that clip it's very touching.

GARDERE: Thank you.


GUPTA: Thank you, Alicia, Jeff. Appreciate it.

To learn more about Alicia's work as well, protecting children from predators, log on to

And still ahead on SGMD, more Americans are choosing surgery to lose weight. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, well, he did it. I'm going to explain how it all works. That's next.



GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: The decision that I made was that I tried a whole bunch of other things. They hadn't worked. This was an opportunity to try something different.

And I'm doing it for my long-time health. This isn't like to feel better tomorrow. This is about being healthier for the rest of your life and try to extend your life for as long as you possibly can.


GUPTA: Big move by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie this week. Made big news. Going public about his decision to undergo a serious weight loss operation earlier this year. The governor is just one of more than 200,000 overweight Americans who turn to surgery each year to try and lose weight.


CHRISTIE: The steps I have taken recently are for me and for Mary Pat and the kids.

GUPTA (voice-over): Governor Chris Christie's lap-band surgery is considered minimally invasive. Here's how it works, a band filled with saline is wrapped around the upper part of the stomach to create a small pouch, sort of like tying a belt around the stomach to restrict the amount of food the stomach can hold, so people will feel full quickly, eat less and hopefully lose weight.

It can be an effective method to sort of get you back on track. In fact, studies show 80 percent of lap-band patients lose at least 30 percent of their excess weight and keep it off for a year. But keeping the weight off permanently is dependent on lifestyle changes that patients need to make for life.

If Governor Christie goes back to eating the same amount of food he consumed pre-surgery, the lap-band can actually stretch and many patients gain that weight back.


GUPTA: Of course with any operation there are serious risks and post- surgery complication concerns. Any operation like this should be considered as a last resort measure. My next guest said she knew she needed to have surgery to save her life. You're going to recognize her as my colleague, Holly Hughes, frequent on-air contributor for CNN and HLN.

Take a look at her back in 2006. This is Holly at her heaviest. Since then she had gastric bypass surgery and lost 155 pounds.

You know, I saw that picture, Holly, for the first time today, you know? When you look at that picture, what do you see? What do you think?

HOLLY HUGHES, LOSS HALF HER BODY WEIGHT WITH GASTRIC BYPASS: You know, it's the strangest thing. I always sort of knew I was fabulous, right? The amazing thing is after surgery, everybody else starts to agree with you, because you know who you are as a person.

GUPTA: That's interesting.

HUGHES: It really is about perception. So, you know, I went to law school. And I'm a lawyer and I'm practicing and I'm doing my thing and I'm thinking I'm really accomplished. But you hit a point in your life where you realize, that's nice, but my health has suffered. And I have not concentrated on my health like I concentrated on my career.

GUPTA: Right.

HUGHES: So, when I look back at that, I think, best decision I ever made. Best thing I ever did for myself.

GUPTA: How quickly did you start losing weight?

HUGHES: Immediately. You just absolutely start losing immediately. Within the first four months I was down 50 pounds.

GUPTA: Is that right?

HUGHES: Yes, it just starts coming off.

GUPTA: And I'm sorry -- you know, we have seen dramatic transformations from other well-known personalities as well. For example, Sharon Osbourne, Star Jones, Al Roker. They all had lap- band. Al Roker had gastric bypass as well. What I found interesting is that all of them are quite public about the fact that the operation alone wasn't enough. And I guess that's what you are alluding to as well.

HUGHES: Absolutely. You have to be in a mindset. Talk about perception. You have to be ready to change your own perception.

You know, I didn't just get here overnight. It's not going to get fixed overnight. But this was a great catalyst to get you started quickly.

But you have to take it seriously. If I was going to undergo major surgery, because there is risk in everything, right? If I'm going to undergo major surgery, I'm going to take it seriously. I'm going to exercise. I'm going to take my vitamins religiously, and I'm going to be extremely careful about what I put in this body, because now, I've got this great jump start.

GUPTA: Right.

HUGHES: But it is incumbent upon me to continue to do the right thing.

GUPTA: As you said at the beginning, you were fabulous before. You're fabulous now. You look fantastic.

HUGHES: Thank you.

GUPTA: Thanks for joining us.

HUGHES: Absolutely.

GUPTA: Love watching you on TV.

HUGHES: Thanks.

GUPTA: Thank you, Holly.

Now unto the power of memory. How that power works. We understand largely due to a neuroscientist named Eric Kandel. Eric was born in Vienna. Dr. Kandel, his family fled to escape the Nazis. And at one point, he wanted to be a psychoanalyst, but he eventually found his life's work deciphering the way our memories are made, revelation that brought him the Nobel Prize in the year 2000.


DR. ERIC KANDEL, NEUROSCIENTIST: The brain is the most complex object in the universe. We are at the beginning of an enormous journey, but very much at the beginning.

My name is Eric Kandel. I'm interested in the mechanisms of memory storage. Rather than studying the most complex memory we had to take the simple form in a simple animal. Human memory is more complicated than memory of the snail, but evolution is very conservative. If it finds some set of mechanisms work, it tends to retain those mechanisms in perpetuity.

This marine snail is marvelous. They have the largest nerve cells in the animal kingdom and one can see them with one's naked eye. My colleagues and I found that learning involves alterations in the strength of communication between nerve cells.

So, short-term memory is a functional change. Long-term memory is an anatomical change. As I tell my friend if you remember anything about this conversation you will have a different brain than you started out with before the conversation.


GUPTA: Eric Kandel.

And up next, another man's life's work. "The Biggest Loser" trainer Bob Harper, he joins me to discuss his three-week plan for super charged weight loss.


GUPTA: You know, I spent a good part of the week in Florida training with our Fit Nation Six-Pack. We are less than four months away from our big triathlon in Malibu. I've got to tell you after what I saw this week I'm positive they're all going to be ready.





GUPTA: April there is our tough as nails Fit Nation coach.

My next guest just wrapped up season 14 of "The Biggest Loser." I'll tell you, he's helped hundreds of people shed tens of thousands of pounds.

And Bob Harper's new book is called "Jumpstart to Skinny."


GUPTA: "Jumpstart to Skinny" in three weeks. I got a lot of questions. I've been reading the book.


GUPTA: Congratulations on getting it done. First of all, where did the idea come from?

HARPER: I found that people are very goal-oriented, right? I'm going to work with a bride and she's going to do whatever it takes to look good on that wedding day. And what I don't want that bride to do is do a master cleanse or anything really crazy that they are just drinking, you know, lemon water with maple syrup and cayenne pepper.

It's like, I'm going to give you a set of rules that are going to be extreme and that are going to be aggressive but they're going to be as healthy as we can possibly do it, and get the results that I need you to get.

GUPTA: And, you know, I mean, the weather is getting warmer. So, a lot of people are thinking about this, even if they weren't getting married, or have a big event.

They just -- they would love to get a jumpstart for the season. So, let's break down some of this. Salt, first of all.


GUPTA: We eat too much salt. Everybody pretty much knows that.

But you say take it a step further in terms of cutting it back.

HARPER: Yes. I really do believe that, again, we, as athletes -- we need salt in our diets, of course, when we are working out. But I think so many people are eating such highly processed foods and having so much sodium every single day. If I can drastically cut that, there's going to be water weight right there that's going to be able to -- you're going to be able to see visually.

So, it's like -- I have to think about here is this body. How can I get them to drop as much weight as possible? If I cut their salt, I'm going to see results really quick.

GUPTA: And you say a gram a day.

HARPER: Absolutely.

GUPTA: Sugar -- again, we eat too much of that as well. Let's talk about sugar in terms of processed food, but also in terms of fruit.

HARPER: Yes. I eat fruit every single day. However, if I'm going to -- if I have to get ready for a photo shoot or I've got, again, that person that I'm trying to get weight off, I'm going to cut out -- in "Jumpstart to Skinny", I say, in the final week of the three-week program, I'm going to have you cut out fruit completely, because again, it's another little shock to the system that's going to get you that extra little edge.

GUPTA: Then the calories overall. This is a big one.


GUPTA: And I will preface by saying you have been a proponent of saying you actually have to eat to lose weight. I have heard you say it. I believe that as well. You don't want to put your body into this sort of starvation mode, because you will start to hang onto fat. This is counterintuitive.

But what about calories? HARPER: Absolutely. It's been my mantra since I have been in this business that you have to eat to lose weight. Now, with that said, we have a program set up that it is going to be aggressive. We have to think about being an athlete.

And calorie restriction is going to be beneficial at this time. For a woman, 800 calories. For a man, 1,200.

GUPTA: So, you do this for three weeks. The concern a lot of people have is they do this, they may have success. But then, how do they maintain it?

HARPER: Here's the deal. This book is specifically for a program. It is for that person that's got a special event. My book that I wrote before this was "The Skinny Rules." And you go back into those skinny rules where it's much more manageable.

And you get to bring your calories up more but you are still working out. It's a nice transition. I don't want someone to go into something that's so aggressive that all of the sudden, they just have to go far off left because they have been so far off to the right.

GUPTA: In terms of order of things, you say to exercise before you eat.

HARPER: I really like -- here is one thing I tell people. People are always looking for an excuse. It's like, well, I have heard that I've got to work out in the morning. I can't work out in the morning. So they're never going to work out.

So, I try to tell people, the best time to work out is whenever it fits into your schedule. Now, on this program, I want you to get up in the morning before you have that first meal. I do want you to go on a low intensity walk, about 45 minutes, have a shot of espresso or double espresso, whatever you want. And get that little boost of metabolism right there, a little boost of energy. Then, you're going to get there and then you're going to start to get that body moving.

It really sets up a routine. Everything I have done with every athlete that I have worked with is give them routine. People like routines. They like rules. They like to be told what to do.

I love to tell people what to do.

GUPTA: You love it.



GUPTA: And we've got a check of your top stories just minutes away. But, first up, see what TV Sherlock Holmes is doing to help scientists find real clues to cure a rare disease, before it's too late. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) GUPTA: Last weekend on SGMD, we introduced you to a little boy named Jonah. He suffers from an ultra disease called Sanfilippo syndrome. But he's got an ally in actor Jonny Lee Miller. He's right there on the blue shirt. He ran a 50-mile ultra marathon last Saturday to raise awareness and funding for urgent research.


UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well done! Let's go, Jonny!


GUPTA: As you see right there, Jonny made it. And he told me, you know, when you set your sights on a cause like this, there is no backing out. It's just too important. I can tell you first hand, running with a real sense of mission, it can be very fulfilling.

So, here is an idea for you today. Find something you love to do and do it for a cause. There are crowdfunding Web sites like Crowd Rise, GoFundMe, Fundly and GiveForward. They can help you raise money.

Jonny did it for Jonah. So, who will you help to chase life?

That's going to do it for SGMD today. But when you get a minute, check out this -- the featured Fit Nation section of the CNN iPad app.

Right now, keep it here for a check of your top stories on "THE CNN NEWSROOM".