This is my story. I'm sharing this with the idea that maybe, just maybe there are others out there that might be going through this same thing or are considering taking the steps to start a life change. I won't promise anything except to always be 100% honest and I invite any and all readers to feel free to share their thoughts and stories if they've a mind to!
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I grew up the fat girl. You know what I’m talking about, whom I am talking about, right? From the age of 10 my stepmom told me how fat I was. She would have me stand in front of visiting adults, turn sideways and show them how my back was curved from being overweight. (her words, not mine) By the age of 12 she decided I needed to diet.
From 12 to 16 I remember being put on any and all diets that came down the line. The grapefruit diet (yes that is a real thing and not just a bad meme from the 80’s), the all protein diet, the salt free diet, the minimal calorie count diet. There was one where you had to weight every bit of food that went into your mouth, it was more about the size and weight than the actual calorie counts. There was always some kind of restriction that she had me following.
The funny part of it was after all that counting, measuring, weighing, etc. we still had ice cream just before bed and homemade bread and cinnamon rolls and cake and cookies and…. Well, you get the idea.
By the time my senior year of high school rolled around and my first part time job with it, I wasn’t home much for her to monitor what I did or didn’t eat. My diet went from bad to worse. I skipped meals, ate a lot of junk and drank a lot of soda. Working at a local buffet style restaurant where the soda and snacks were free didn’t help.
Flash forward a few years and my diet was still horrid but working 2 jobs and living from check to check kept me moving physically so the weight was stable. I carried a few extra pounds around the stomach and thighs but I could keep up physically with life so didn’t think much about it.
A few more years pass and I move away with my, now, husband. He was smart and finished college and could provide for us both so I became a full-time couch potato. The good part was that, with his influence, my daily diet straightened out a bit. The bad part… other than housework, my activity level dropped to roughly that of a terminally lazy sloth.
Three years into our time together we were surprisingly blessed with our daughter. I actually lost quite a bit of weight during my pregnancy. (all hail morning sickness… or in my case, all damn day sickness for almost 6 months). Once our daughter arrived I was busy taking care of her so my activity levels went up and stayed up for quite a while.
A month or so after my daughter turned a year old, I was diagnosed with M.S. Thus, began my time of living life pissed off, depressed and the slide down the slippery slope of weight gain and poor health choices began. I figured I was already broken and useless so why bother with trying to take care of myself. As long as I kept up with my child and she was happy then to hell with the rest of it.
I wish I could say that eventually I straightened out and turned around. I continued the horrible cycle of fad diets and bad choices. Atkins, Weight Watchers, Curves, Slim Fast…. Etc. I continued to try them all and failed every time.
This story could continue on, but you get the idea of where I am coming from so we will jump to my present day. The last couple of years have been rough. My husband had a heart attack, he is also a 2-time cancer survivor (he’s not even 50 yet). We were both found to have majorly high blood sugar and A1C counts so both of us were put on insulin.
While we have been able to kick the sugar monster back into hiding, my weight is at an all-time high. The disregard for my personal well-being is a habit that has become ingrained and with the help of some good friends and a major dose of common sense I have finally reached a point in life where I want to change things. I want to make progressive, positive changes towards being a healthier me.
Enter a very special friend and her amazing ability to not only keep me thinking positively but also keep my wandering head in a semi-straight path. The biggest thing she has done for me, besides being an amazing source of support and warm fuzzies, is introduce me to a new ‘tool’ in weight loss.
This tool is called “Plexus”. Having run the gambit of diet aides, I was skeptical until I started reading up on the products. They are all natural, and unlike the snake oil sales pitches that most wonder products try to catch you with, these state quite clearly that this is not some wonder drug that will magically melt the weight off while you sleep. What they do promise is that if you are willing to stick to your program, work consistently and diligently then they will be able to help you achieve your permanent goals.
I like that they don’t make false promises. I also like that they are an all-natural line of products. I LOVE the support of the Plexus community as well as my friend and advocate. She is available to me whenever I need her. If I have questions and/or concerns she is willing and able and happy to talk with me and help me work through them. If she doesn’t know an answer she will tell me up front and go find the wanted information and bring it back to me.
So, I’m starting a new chapter in my life. I am committing myself to making myself healthier. I am going to keep track of the whole process and journey here. I will promise here and now to always be honest and open to discussion.
Until next time,
Slainte!
