In Our Own Words

I, at 31 years of age, have finally decided weight loss surgery is the answer for me. I have decided to go this route for many reasons. I have had a weight problem my entire life. I have tried every single diet that has been out there and nothing to this point has really worked. I am tired of people judging me for what I am on the outside and not on the inside. My career options are limited as people consider me to be unemployable for many, many positions, even though I have a post-secondary education. I am tired of being the largest person in a crowd and tired of being publicly ridiculed in places that I go. I am tired of being afraid to fly because I either can’t fit in the seat or it would just cost so damn much because I have to pay for two seats. I have finally decided to do something for myself that is going to be just for me. Not for my family or friends, but just for me.

I had planned to go ahead with this surgery a few years ago and was on the road to doing that but then life was interrupted with a cancer diagnosis. I spent almost a year dealing with cancer and cancer treatments and I am so ready for a life change. I decided especially after my cancer that if cancer didn’t kill me that there was no way in hell I was going to let this fat kill me, so I am taking a proactive approach. I want to be healthy for me and set a good example for my two year old son. I want to be able to go walking with him and play with him and have the energy that a young man deserves from his mother. I want to set his life up for a life free from obesity if I can and I want him to grow up with the great self-esteem and self-confidence that I did not have. Finally I want my son to grow up with a happy, healthy mother who is confident and loves herself and a mother who is going to stick around for a long, long time.