Charity lost 109 pounds

Charity lost 109 pounds with weight loss surgery, regular exercise and healthier eating habits. She’d been overweight since childhood and was facing a number of life threatening health concerns. Check out her transformation story.

I want to share my story and my struggles with being overweight.I have been a big girl all my life. I started gaining weight in the 3rd grade and continued from there. I was talked about in school due to my weight, so I always kept my distance from people and so I didn’t have to hear negative comments.

In high school, I was put on high blood pressure medication. During my senior year, I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. 4 years after high school, I got pregnant with twin girls and it was a very high risk pregnancy.

After I had my babies, I tried so many different diets. Nothing seemed to help or I wasn’t strong enough to stick to a program, so the years went by and I gained and gained. It got to the point where I had to take insulin shots. I was also on 4 blood pressure meds and 2 heart medications.  I even went into congestive heart failure. I felt like I was at death’s door.

As a result, I made my mind to do something about my health. I was too young to feel like this or to look like this, and knew that my kids and my family needed me. My doctor finally told me that weight loss surgery would be the best choice for me or I risked dying. I made the decision to have gastric bypass surgery in March 2015.

Before surgery, I weighed 368 pounds. A year later, I weigh 259 pounds. I am happy with the decision I made. I no longer have heart problems or diabetes. I still have high blood pressure, but only take 2 pills a day now. I must say that I love the new me. I get compliments every day and that makes me feel so good. I still have a ways to go reach my goal weight of 175 pounds, but I am working hard to get to my goal. For me, surgery is just a tool. It’s up to me to do the rest.

I work out at least 3 times a week, maybe more, depending on my work schedule. I do Zumba on Monday and Tuesday and on the other days I walk 3 miles or jog. I changed my habits by eating the right portion sizes. I stopped going back for seconds and thirds. When you have gastric rny, you have to stop eating bread, pasta, and anything that has lots of sugar in it. I was very addicted to sweets, but after having my surgery I don’t crave them as much. If i do eat something sweet, my body will let me know. (It says, “Hey that’s a no no.”, i.e. I will feel sick for a couple of minutes.) I now eat lots of veggies and fruit. I have to have 60 to 90 grams of protein daily, which I get from my meat, like fish, and chicken. Those are the only meats I like to eat now. I’m learning how to cook healthy meals for me and my family and it is so much fun, because I love cooking and trying something new.

The most important thing is that my family has been apart of my journey and they have been supportive. I love my new lifestyle. A lot of people would say that surgery is an easy way out, but it really isn’t. It was my only option after trying everything else and being at death’s door. I had to keep in mind that I have twin girls who need me more than anything.

Instagram: @scece_2001