eeyore35
I guess the beginning would be a good place to start.
For as long as I can remember, I have been heavy. Pleasing plump, chunky, stocky, pretty plus......I could go on and on with adjectives. When I was four years old, my parents were told that I was overweight and the pediatrician sent me to a weight specialist. At 5 years old, the school nurse discovered the beginning stages of hypertension. I had chronic respiratory illnesses that caused a large amount of missed days of school. (Not to mention the days I didn't want to go for fear the kids would tease me.)
To overcome my weight, I became studious. I strived to make straight A's. I strived to be the best daughter, student, sister, friend, etc. I felt as long as the attention was the things that I did, not the weight, I could somehow put aside the fact that I was obese. I gained and maintained friendships because I made myself the typical funny, outgoing, chubby girl. A friend's mom once commented that I reminded her of Natalie from the Facts of Life. Natalie, couldn't have been Blair or Nancy, it was Natalie. I like the character of Natalie, but that just pigeon holed my place in the world even more.
Now, keep in mind, I am continually dieting through all of this. At 11, I joined the Diet Workshop. At 13, I joined Weight Watchers. I tried the appetite suppresent candies, the Cabbage Soup diet, weight loss instructions from my doctor, Slim Fast. Nothing would take the weight off and keep it off.
