Texas man couldn’t fit in his car, so he began working on himself

“Anything pre-2000 that has a carburetor, he can pretty much fix,” said Colton, who lives in Conroe.

He has worked on cars alongside Edward since childhood — and it didn’t take long for them to get the Mustang purring again.

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The only problem was that Colton could barely fit in the vehicle to take it for a spin.

“I knew it would be a tight squeeze from the beginning,” he said.

But it was worse than he expected.

“My whole left side was up against the door,” Colton said. “The steering wheel was in my gut. It’s a standard, and I looked like a T-rex trying to shift.”

At that point, he weighed 478 pounds. “I knew I needed to do something,” he said. “I needed to lose weight.”

Colton had tried exercise and dieting before, but it never stuck. His doctor told him he’d be a perfect candidate for bariatric surgery.

It was an easy decision.

“I needed a life change,” Colton said. “I weighed the pros and cons. I needed something so I could get down to the weight I wanted and stay there.”

His father provided him with encouragement that helped him seal the deal. “The whole time, he has been in the back of my mind,” Colton said. “It helped me make the decision.”

He met with bariatric surgeon Dr. Jason Balette at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Medical Center. Balette founded Balette Bariatric Center and is also a member of the practice Surgical Group of The Woodlands.

On Colton’s first consultation, Dr. Balette walked him through different bariatric surgery options. Colton settled on a gastric sleeve, a procedure that removes a large portion of the stomach. “That is by far the most popular option today,” Balette said.

Unlike a gastric bypass, the sleeve does not require rerouting the intestines, which improves the safety of the procedure, Balette said. “We go in laparoscopically, and it’s minimally invasive.”

The portion of the stomach that is removed produces hormones responsible for cravings, the surgeon added. Patients feel less hungry – and also eat less.

The hospital offers comprehensive care, including staff dietitians who who develop nutrition plans, and support groups, Balette said.

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The goal is to keep the weight off for the long term, he explained.

“Once they become our patients, we consider them our patients for life,” Balette said.

Colton’s surgery was performed in April 2021. By his 23rd birthday on Nov. 3, he had lost 200 pounds.

“Before Christmas, I was down 250 pounds,” he said.

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Now he weighs about 198 pounds.

“I’ve blown past the doctor’s goals and my goals,” he said. “Now it’s just maintaining.”

Colton sticks to a high protein, low carb diet. He eschews sweets and carbonated beverages.

“You just stick to it, and you don’t over eat,” he said. “My stomach is a quarter of the size it used to be.”

And if he does eat or drink too much, Colton knows right away.

“It basically feels like getting punched in the gut,” he said.

Now, he says he feels more energized. “I am definitely 100 percent more active,” he said. “I get around with so much ease.”

And he can easily fit in his Mustang.

“That car has been a blast,” he said. “It definitely feels good to get in and drive.”

But his health goals go further than the car now. Getting into the car, however, is no longer his main weight loss goal. Shortly after Colton’s surgery, his father’s health started to decline. Edward’s blood work revealed elevated liver enzymes, indicating damage to the organ. His gallbladder was also inflamed.

The doctor removing gallstones took a biopsy of Edward’s liver — and diagnosed him with Stage 4 cirrhosis, liver failure.

“That was a big shock,” Colton said.

The only option was for Edward to register for a transplant. He was added to the waiting list on June 13.

In the meantime, Colton learned of a family friend in need of a new liver who was able to receive a living-donor transplant from his daughter.

With this option, a surgery removes a portion of the living donor’s liver, which is then given to the patient in need. The donor’s remaining liver regrows and returns to its normal size within months.

Donors need to meet two main criteria: having the same blood type; and a BMI of 32 or less.

Colton qualified for both. His BMI is currently 30.

“He realized that if he got healthy, it could help his father get healthy,” Balette said. “That really pushed him into high gear.”

Colton began testing to prepare for donation, which would take place in San Antonio. Colton traveled to San Antonio to stay by his father’s side.

Everything was falling into place for Colton to become the donor he could not have been only a year earlier, when they were awakened one day in mid-June by a 1:30 a.m. phone call. Together, they listened as a woman on the other end of the line said, “We have found a liver for you.”

“It was a heck of a thing to wake up to and cry about,” Colton recalled.

On June 16, around 11 p.m, Edward was wheeled in for transplant surgery, a day before his wife Carrie Lowe’s 52nd birthday.

Edward had a new liver in time for Father’s Day — and his son couldn’t be more grateful.

“I felt like I was on cloud nine,” Colton said.

Edward returned home to Conroe on July 2 and he and Colton are already working toward new goals: Regaining Edward’s health, and fixing up their newest project car — a 1968 Camaro Edward purchased shortly before his health began to fail.

“It’s been on standstill for a while,” Colton said. “And that’s probably the first thing we’ll start doing when he’s better.”