M. Groth
My journey started about 6 years ago with a comment from my oldest son, who was about 10 at the time.
"Mom, I don't want you to come to my school anymore because I get teased about how fat you are."
What a crushing blow to anyone overweight or obese...but a near-fatal comment from my own child's mouth. At that time of my life, I weighed in at a whopping 347 lbs. I was constantly being told, "oh there's no way you weigh that much!" or "but you have such a beautiful face (soul, heart, personality, etc)." Haven't we all heard those lines before?
Needless to say, I took the leap of faith, along with the loving support of my husband and two children, and had gastric bypass Roux-en-y surgery on November 7th, 2002. It was one of the best things I've ever done in my life. I had/have little to no problems since surgery and have lost 180 lbs to date (09/11/07). I still dump on sugar and fats, still watch what I eat, get my protein in first and exercise. I know my tool is still working to support the new habits I created after surgery almost 5 years ago.
I am proud of myself. I have more energy, more ambition, more creativity, more get-up-and-go, more faith....and most of all, I have happiness and self esteem. If I can do this, so can all of you...I have faith in your abilities to make a difference in your lives. Yes, there is light at the end of the tunnel and the journey begins with that first step forward...
I'm here to be a cheerleader, a shoulder to cry on, sounding board, or just someone that will listen with compassion. Please feel free to contact me...consider me your virtual angel.
