Elizabeth D.

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I originally posted this blog for other sights but thought I'd share it here since this is where it all started... Ok people... I've gotten a lot of wows and people in awe about the weight loss pictures that I have... First of all let me say: My heighest weight was 513 lbs. I was very unhealthy and at that point I could barely get out of a chair, much less move and really didn't care whether I lived or died except for my three young kids. Even then... I didn't want them to see me suffer, so when I got on the operating table to have gastric bypass surgery, everyone else was worried for me... I wanted to make it through, but only if it was going to help me improve my life. I have lost weight. I am down to about 190 lbs now. I am married to a great man that has loved me for 4 years now, James and I'm working on being a mother to my children... However.. the glamour isn't all that... there are SO many things to recognize before trying this extreme measure of weight loss... 1) Self esteem comes from within. If you don't have it, no one else can have it for you!! You hide it with your weight, and it doesn't just come back because the weight disappears, you have to WORK on it!! 2) Excess skin DOES happen.. If you look at my pictures it's everywhere in them... Especially my thighs and arms, and the only way to get rid of it is through surgical procedure. I've already had a complete lower body lift where they cut me completely around my hips and removed an apron of fat etc that totalled 15 lbs of skin!! 3) You may NEVER be happy with what you look like. Again going back to the self esteem thing.. I kept saying I'd be happy at 300, then 250, then 225 etc... now at 190 sometimes down into the 170s I'm still not comfortable in my own skin... I have a loving husband that supports me dearly but, it's a personal decision, and a personal problem. 4) If you've carried your weight over a lifetime, you will not automatically lose the aches, pains and sometimes health conditions caused by the weight and you can / may develope new ones. Your body has got to put itself through a MAJOR change to do this, and the only one who can control it is you... 5) The darker side.. If you've always been heavy, you start seeking what you missed by always being the "outcast" You seek the attention of others and thrive on it... Bars, clubs, grocery stores, gas stations, you'll be MORE aware of the looks that they're giving you post-op than the dirty ones they were giving you pre-op. Be very careful. While there's a lot of temptation out there, if you already have a partner, they love you for you.. and nothing can beat that! My man has loved me through fat and thick (I'm not thin yet) and he knows me better than any one of those guys that would just walk up to me and say "Hey baby can I buy you a drink" and while that may be flattering at first, it's a recipie for disaster in the long run!! So thank you all for your comments, but I do want to say that it does take a lot of will to do it the way I did.. and if anyone else would like any information on the surgery feel free to contact me or Obesity Help. Com it truely was a great guide for me on my journey through this mess. My biggest thing to tell parents, don't let your children make fun of fat people we can diet, and ugly comes from the inside out