Cathy Spencer

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On December 20, 2023, I will be 19 years out from surgery. I'm still here.

It's been a tough, sometimes wild journey.  I've gone up and down a little, weight wise, for the past 15 years , but overall I've done okay.

I'll be forever thankful for this surgery. I would be dead by now without it.  

I am now 53 years old and beginning to experience issues related to aging. Whenever it gets annoying and frustrating, I remind myself to be thankful that I'm still alive to experience it. 

Life is an interesting journey. Not always happy and exciting, but oh so sweet and precious.

Live life to the fullest! Never give up. It's worth it in the long run.

I'm holding on and maintaining. The pic below is 2004 and 2014.  Ten years of the hardest, yet most satisfying, work I've ever done.

A BRIEF TESTIMONIAL

Thanks to Centennial's life-saving surgery, we made it to our 15th wedding anniversary. As things stood before surgery, our chances of living to see our 7th anniversary were slim, and our 8th probably would have passed without either of here to celebrate it.

Pic on the left was taken on our 6th wedding anniversary, 3 months before surgery. The pic on the right was taken on our 15th wedding anniversary, 8 years & 9 months after our surgery.

Thanks CMC Center for the Treatment of Obesity, and thank you Dr. Houston!

Wow, I can't belive it's been 2.5 YEARS since I've posted! 

Well, I'm still here.  I'm still fighing obesity.   A LOT of things have happened since I last wrote, and I will post a long entry about that in the next few days.

Stay tuned! 

CathyJean

I just passed my 4th surgiversary.  It's humbling and mind-blowing for me.  I wasn't supposed to be alive now, but here I am! 

For those of you waiting to have surgery, hang tough!  It's so worth it. 

For those of you who have had surgery but are struggling to follow the plan, hang tough!  It's so worth it.

Weight Loss and Self-control  
Confession:
All things are possible to me. I am a believer. I can do all things through the anointing, the burden removing, yoke destroying power of God. I am transformed by the Word of God. My body is the temple of the Holy Spirit Who lives in me. I was bought by the blood and death of Jesus on the Cross. I honor God and bring glory to God through my body. Like a boxer I handle my body roughly and with discipline. I will not be mastered by my body, but rather I master my body to bring glory to God. The Spirit of the Lord is in me and brings me liberty. I am free from the bondage of fleshly desires. I present my body as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable, pleasing to God. This is my reasonable service and worship to God. I prove and demonstrate God's will by managing my body correctly. Patience is completing and perfecting me so that I lack nothing. My God is not my stomach. My mind is not on earthly things. I glorify God in my eating and drinking. God is for me and He is freely giving me every good thing. I love God with all of my heart, mind, and strength. I overwhelmingly conqueror through Jesus.  

This confession was based on the following verses:

• Mark 9:23 (NASB) 23 And Jesus said to him, " 'If You can?' All things are possible to him who believes."
• Philippians 4:13 (KJV) 13 I can do all things through Christ (the anointed one and his anointing) which strengtheneth me.
• 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (AMP) 19 Do you not know that your body is the temple (the very sanctuary) of the Holy Spirit Who lives within you, Whom you have received [as a Gift] from God? You are not your own, 20 You were bought with a price [purchased with a preciousness and paid for, made His own]. So then, honor God and bring glory to Him in your body.
• 1 Corinthians 9:27 (AMP) 27 But [like a boxer] I buffet my body [handle it roughly, discipline it by hardships] and subdue it, for fear that after proclaiming to others the Gospel and things pertaining to it, I myself should become unfit [not stand the test, be unapproved and rejected as a counterfeit].
• 1 Corinthians 6:12 (NASB) 12 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.
• 2 Corinthians 3:17 (NASB) 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
• Romans 12:1-2 (AMP) 1 I APPEAL to you therefore, brethren, and beg of you in view of [all] the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies [presenting all your members and faculties] as a living sacrifice, holy (devoted, consecrated) and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable (rational, intelligent) service and spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].
• James 1:4 (NASB) 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
• Philippians 3:18-19 (NIV) 18 For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.
• 1 Corinthians 10:31 (NASB) 31 Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
• Romans 8:31-32 (NASB) 31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
  32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?
• Mark 12:29-30 (KJV) 29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: 30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
• Romans 8:37 (NASB) 37 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us

This was reposted on the CMC Yahoo group by a Bariatric Buddy of mine... I've written a couple mirror poems myself (you can find them down in my blog somewhere), but this one really touched me so I'm posting it here.  For all intense purposes, this lady read my mind....

THE WOMAN THE MIRROR

Walking past the mirrored glass,
I take a timid peak,
I see a woman staring back,
I'm too choked up to speak.

The puffiness, at last, is gone,
The skin pink and glowing,
The many pounds that melted off,
Finally, now is showing.

Hard to believe until recently,
This same woman was dying,
Stuffing the food to ease the pain,
Heartbroken and crying.

Life evolved around each snack,
She lived for every meal,
Anything to numb the hurt,
She didn't want to feel.

When did she get so pretty?
When did God remove the grief?
How did this miracle happen?
Who provided this relief?

What a gift! A second chance!
I thank God everyday,
For his grace in showing me,
There is a better way.

I walk, I dance, I make love too,
My heart is filled with gladness,
I'm out of bondage, I'm out of pain,
There is no room for sadness.

This woman in the mirror,
Smiles softly back at me,
She has good cause to be so pleased,
She's finally been set free!
  Author unknown

I know I haven't posted much this year.  For the longest time I posted at least once a week.  Why not anymore?  I've decided it's simply because this blog is just for my WLS related things, and honestly new and exciting things rarely happen to me anymore... at least WLS related.

But even this reflects back on the journey... That first year when things changed daily was so exciting!  It was easy to stick steady to the plan because it was so obviously working and I got instant rewards for good behavior.

Not so during year 2... or 3...or 4... or ever again.  However, exciting things do happen periodically.  I am at the point in my journey where I've got to commit to the long-haul... those life-long changes they warn you about way back at the beginning.  Now that I've got the weight off, I've got to keep it off... and those bad habits and issues just keep popping up their ugly heads.

But once in a while, something happens that reminds me why I got into this in the first place.  Friday was my 10th Wedding Anniversary.  Originally, way back when, I'd decided and planned to wear my wedding dress on my 10th to commemorate the first major milestone in marriage.  By year two of my marriage, my dress was WAY to small, so I gave up the dream.  After surgery I hoped I'd loose enough weight to get back into it.  Well, I did... and then some!  Now my wedding dress is too big.  

Since it was my 10th anniversary and my dress didn't fit, I decided to treat myself to a new one.  I got one.   I went from a specially-made-for-my-lumpy-body size 28W wedding dress to an off-the-rack smallish size 12 wedding dress!  I felt like a princess. 

We ran around all over town taking pictures.  We didn't do anything really special like have a party, but we did renew our vows again.  But even without all the pomp and circumstance, I can honestly say I enjoyed the day of my 10th more than I was able to enjoy my actuall wedding day.  I was so tired of standing that day... I just wanted to sit down.  I was hot and miserable.  The only thing that kept me going was that, well, it was my wedding day!   But on Friday, I had a blast running around in a heavy wedding dress. 

Yes, my journey to a healthy life can still have it's exciting moments.  But life in itself isn't always so.   When I'm going through the daily grind, I pray that I continue to reflect back upon my accomplishments and never fall back on old behaviors.

The journey continues!!!

When I was in college (the first time), my friends and I often went to Kid's Castle to play... blowing of steam and stress from a long day of classes.  I was fairly large, but still was able to enjoy the equipment on the “5-years-old and up” side (we figured college students qualified under the “and up” part).   Oftentimes there was a lot of squeezing through holes that were tight for me, but I got through them.  I continued to “play” there after classes until I left MTSU.

When we adopted our oldest daughter, we took her to Kid’s Castle. Now, by the time she came along, I'd gotten REALLY BIG and couldn't go into the equipment with her, on either side.  She was so tiny that she could get through the holes on the 2-5 years-old side… and got a huge kick out of going someplace Mom couldn’t get into.

I had just chased her into an opening that I couldn’t even begin to go through when she got her necklace caught between two boards and couldn't get out.  Mike and I were too fat to go in and get her.  I finally found an odd hole that if I went down into one opening and stretched my arms, I could get her loose. 

And then?  I got her loose, but I got stuck.  It was humiliating.  I had to wait until several college boys showed up and helped haul my carcass up out of there.  We haven't been back.  

This past Saturday was the first time I've been back since then, and I'm thinner than I ever was...

I faced my demons and went through the holes my daughter went through.  I even went down the “Elephant’s Trunk” slide that I’d NEVER been able to go down.  I got on the swings and the chains not only did not cut into my thighs, they didn’t even touch.  AND I got on the tire swing with my friend… two of us on a swing that I couldn’t get on alone before.

I can hardly wait to go play again. 

...the WOW Moments are over.  Right?   I mean, what else could there possibly be to experience?   

Well my dear friends, tonight I found out there IS more.  The adventures continue.  No, the moments don't happen as often as they once did... when things were happening so very fast.   

But tonight I had a WOW Moment that I never expected.  It blew my mind.  And I think maybe all the more spectacular for me since it's been so long and I'm so far out.   

Tonight I was rehearsing for the show I'm doing.  We choreographed the final number.      So there we are, dancing our hearts out... and the director gives the next set of moves... then two, just two very averaged sized chorus guys swooped over..... ............ ......... ......... .
........ .....you ready for this?   ............ ......... ......... ......... .......   

......they swooped over and PICKED ME UP!!!!  PICKED ME UP AND CARRIED AND SPUN ME ALL OVER THE STAGE BEFORE SETTING ME DOWN ON A BENCH!!!!!!! !!!!   

They scared the snot out of me!   I looked around frantically to see if anyone was laughing at me... or maybe it was to check and see it the guys had hurt themselves.. ...   They weren't even breathing hard!   I was so blown away.     

They picked ME UP!  ME!   The one who's always been biggest.   The tub of lard.  And you know what I heard them say to the director?   "She's so light and easy to carry, why don't throw in an extra spin? We still got 8 beats left."   

It was all I could do not to cry.  But not sad tears.  Tears of joy, shock, wonder.   

Wow.  Just Wow.

 
Here it is!  This was actually taken during the run of the show... and yes, I was supposed to have that look on my face!