mambomama

My name is Nancy and I am 49 years old. I have been overweight most of my life. I was born and reared in Peru where very few around me were overweight. I was the only child I remember ever overweight. In 5th grade, I was put on my first diet and I began running for exercise. I lost about 10 pounds. A few months later, my family moved to the USA (my mother was American) because my dad had a brain tumor. At almost 11 years old, we visited for three months with relatives and friends and during that time, I gained 30 pounds. This intersected with puberty and my struggle with obesity has continued since that time.

My highest weight in highschool was about 170 pounds and fortunately I was able to lose about 15 pounds my senior year and was thrilled! I was in a healthy mode for the next 10 years but it was a struggle to keep the weight off although I maintained about 155 for those 10 years. I was an avid exerciser and always watching everything I ate. I also felt heavier than everyone else. I did not know it then but I had hypothyroidism and polycystic ovarian syndrome since those early years during my teens, which contributed to the fatigue, weight challenges, etc.

Around 29 years old, I got married and by then I had a growing ovarian cyst that eventually got as large at 28X17cm! However, it was misdiagnosed as "Fat" and this growing abdomen was devastating to me. At 220 pounds, I had surgery and after that worked hard to maintain around 200. I did not gain during my pregnancies, but did gain a lot during breastfeeding which continued for 6 years (2 children). Unfortunately, it was not until much later that I got diagnosed with PCOS and Autoimmune Thyroiditis hypothyroidism and a fat metabolism disorder (lipomatosis).

In 2005, I got a trainer and started exercising. However, with a stressful and demanding job and by then not the best eating habits, I continued to gain to 282. Finally, with a change in my thyroid medication (50% increase in dose) I lost 11 pounds with no other changes. At that point (2/2009) I went to a bariatric MD who said I would never lose on my own given my metabolic issues and that even with surgery, I would not get much below 180. I was really mad at him.

I enrolled in a university weightloss program and over the next 9 months, lost an additional 30 pounds or so. I then did the HCG diet with injections and had good success. However, with the second round, the physician mixed the dose wrong and gave me a diluted solution so I was taking sub-therapeutic doses and feeling really hungry. Once we found the mistake (after a month) the damage was done and something happened to my appetite where I craved carbs etc. The next year Jan 2010 to Jan 2011 was the most difficult.

Over that year, I struggled with weight gain because of my cravings. THis was a new phenomenon for me. I had never lost much weight before this success but I had also never quickly gained weight. I still exercised 5 days a week but was gaining. I went to jamaica to build a house for a poor family and actually gained weight despite the fact I never had sweets or seconds the entire week. I went to a weightloss spa last August 2011 and did not lose even one pound. My body was in the fight of its life to hold on to the weight and I was losing the battle.

I went back to a bariatric MD in November 2011 and had a real struggle submitting to the diet over the holidays. I felt very stressed over this! I did get approved and was sleeved March 1. Since then, I have lost ALL hunger and cravings! It is a 180 degree difference. Now I am at week three and have lost 13 pounds. This may seem low to others, but for me, I am thrilled!!!!!