Patrece S.
Hello! My name is Patrece. I am 42 years old. A wife, mother of two children (both now
young adults), and Grammy of 2 awesome grand babies! I reside in the beautiful state
of Colorado with my husband and 3 fur babies (dogs).
I have personally struggled with my weight for over 20 years Prior to having children I
weighed in at about 130 lbs. It's strange really as I look back to that time. I was never
really aware of the fact that I was thin, healthy and fit. I just was what I was. I graduated
from high school in 1983 at the age of 16. I married at age 17, and became pregnant
with my first child at the age of 18, and my second at age 20. By the time I became
pregnant with my second child I was weighing in at 168 lbs. My metabolism was all but
non existent. I divorced my husband about one year after the birth of my second child.
By this time I was weighing in at 203 lbs. The more I gained, the less active I was, and
the more I gained. Several years later at age 31, I met my current husband. At that time
my weight was up to about 220 lbs.
At the age of 40 I was weighing in at 255 lbs and just as miserable as I could be. Thats
when I began looking into weight loss surgery. But another event occurred in the life of
my husband and I that could have never been foreseen. On July 9th 2007 my husband
was involved in a construction collapse at his job. He was basically crushed and injured
head to toe. No one ever thought he'd survive. I thank God he did. But as a result of
that tragedy, my husband was completely blinded and had numerous other injuries, that
will always cause him tremendous pain and difficulty in life. It then became clear to me
that I had to do something about my health, and soon. I knew I would need to be alive
and healthy to be there for him for many, many years to come. One year after his
accident (July 21, 2008) I finally was able to go ahead with the surgery, and by then I
was 41 and up to 270 lbs, struggling with health issues, lack of energy, constant fatigue
and pain, a complete lack of self esteem and was saddled with a constant feeling of
shame. Caring for my husband was not an easy task, given that I was so exhausted and
felt so horrible constantly due to the obesity and the related health problems that had
arisen. I couldn't even really play with and enjoy my grand daughter, and I was only 41
years old! In all honesty I often thought that I felt twice that age at times.
Throughout the entire 20+ years outlined above, I had tried just about every diet plan
known to man, I had also gone through a weight loss plan that my doctor put in place. I
was put on prescription weight loss medication, exercised, you name it...only to fail over
and over again.
As I researched weight loss surgery, I learned that some people just do not respond to
traditional weight loss efforts. I knew that for me, this surgery would be the tool that
would lead me to success in achieving a healthy weight and the ability to really "live" my
life again. I also knew it would not come easy. It would require much effort and
dedication to make the necessary changes in my life, that are essential to long term
success and maintenance. I also learned that solid support & staying informed and
educated is an extremely important aspect to long term success. But what I also
learned, is that these things can be difficult to come by on a good quality level. That is
when I decided that I wanted to do something to help others in this area.
On July 21, 2008, I was given the gift of a new chance at creating a healthy and full life.
Something I had lost so many years before. This gift is precious to me. I will never take
it for granted. I will respect it and treat it with full responsibility & total appreciation. It is
up to me to make sure that this tool I was provided with will serve me well for the rest of
my days. I fully intend to do just that! I am also devoted to helping others do the same!
