Remember when?

[Guest guest]

As many of you know, I have a website about my WLS. As a result, I get many

emails from folks on many different subjects. This is copied from an email

I received from a woman who wrote me last June. She was just starting on

the WLS journey. With her permission, I'd like to share this with you all.

Her thoughts and feelings are something that I think we have all felt. But

for me it was a reminder....about why I chose to travel this path. So when

we get hung up on this silly on-line spats....just look back and think how

far you've come.

I hope you all get something positive from this )

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On Tuesday I went to my first support group - it was interesting - a lot of

people at all different places - but if I ever felt I needed something to

cement my decision (which I didn't but I like to get as much reinforcement

of my decisions as possible) it happened at the support group. I saw a

woman there who had recently had her surgery - she looked so familiar to

me - took me a day to figure out where I knew her from - I don't know if you

ever attended Overeaters Anonymous but I had given that group 2 real

significant tries - the first about 10 years ago, and the second about 5

years ago - and she was in that group - both times. Unfortunately she had

gained a large amount of weight since I last saw her - she had been quite

active, small children, very active and organizing in OA - now she has to

use one of those hover around (3 wheel personal carrier things) she is

unable to walk & is missing all but 2 toes on her left foot).

I swear it was like coming face to face with my greatest fear - not the

weight per se but the loss of being able to be active. I was talking to my

cousin about it (she is supportive of my decision but at the same time

terrified - I on the other hand feel like a weight has been lifted off my

shoulders by making this decision). Cathy (my cousin) is very overweight as

well and she said she can't figure out how it gets to the point where you

can't get around - because she said she knows how much she eats (which is,

admittedly for both of us a lot) and we have stayed fairly stable (wt wise )

for a long time. And it came to me like a flash - I know that MANY times I

have to literally force myself to do things - it becomes easier and easier

to stay home, lay on the couch generally become hermit like - and possibly

at a certain point the inactivity catches up, and then more weight piles on

and it becomes a more vicious circle than ever before. For the first time I

saw that life !

(but is it really life?) as my future if I don't do this - the last two

years I have found myself withdrawing from the world. I still work like a

maniac but my social life is pretty much non-existent - something had to go

because I no longer could force myself to do everything - and I knew I had

to work -....so....the social activity went. What would be next? - my family

or my job? then what - then pretty much nothing. When I had gone to OA this

woman was significantly smaller than I was (and am) - scared me.....I saw

myself in 5 years. Anyway, sorry to ramble - but it was a light bulb

moment for me. I thought my greatest fear was being alone (that's still up

there but its not number one).

Sue

Open RNY 10/26/98

From 500 lbs to 161

Dr Barry L Fisher

Truncoplasty 8/9/01

Brachioplasty Thighplasty 4/3/02

Dr Weiland

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http://mygastricbypass.com

We are all angels with one wing - we need friends to help us fly.