I had given up that I would ever be a size 7 again. I was more like a size 16 and 18. I had gained 60lbs as a side of effect of medication. Well, it did increase my appetite and given that I’m an emotional eater, I solely blamed my weight gain problems on medication. I hated my body and felt so fat. I weighed over 209lbs. I learned to accept that I was overweight. Actually according to the body mass index I was considered obese at 5’5. Ten years ago, I stopped taking my medication because I was tired of being fat. I said, “I rather be insane than fat!” That was the worst thing I could have ever done. I went manic and got liposuction. I charged it on three credit cards. However, I became very delusional. I was psychotic for the entire summer even though I had gotten back on medication. As, the years went by my medication was changed, I gained all the weight back and even more. I was disgusted when I looked at myself in the mirror. However I said to myself, “I rather be sane and fat,” than “skinny and insane.” Over time, I healed from episodes and stepped into the road of mental health recovery. Although, I was doing fantastic in my mental health recovery there was one thing that haunted me. This was low self-esteem due to obesity. I had to discipline myself and say, “Enough! Stop blaming your obesity on medication! It’s getting old! Get off your fat butt and do something about it!” I saw myself on a television interview back in August 2012. I did not realize how obese I was until I saw myself on TV. People told me that the camera added 10lbs. As I heard on the show Friends, “Well how many cameras were on you?” Very funny and the absolute truth.

I decided that I was going to change my lifestyle and just be healthier. I began eating very healthy. No more french fries with ranch! Well, I will have a fruit instead. I began following the FDA food pyramid instead of following the latest fad diet. This included a lot of fruits and vegetables, salads and low fat vinaigrette dressings. My favorite is Marie Calendar’s raspberry vinaigrette. It only has 50 calories per serving. I eat a lot of grilled fish and chicken and when I have pasta it is wheat pasta. I eat whole grain cherrios, raw oatmeal and strawberry shakes. This helped me lower my cholesterol from 240 to 190.

I also started exercising on a regular basis. I don’t go to a fancy gym. That was expensive. I run and walk uphill 2 ½ miles 3-5xs per week. I enjoy getting fresh air as I exercise. I also have an exercise mat and do cruches and push-ups. Well, I’m thrilled to tell you that I lost 30lbs. I’m down to a size 10. I want to get out of the double digits. I’m going to lose 29lbs more. I tell people, “I’m not going to say that I WANT to lose weight. I’m going to say I’M GOING TO LOSE MORE WEIGHT! If you go on my twitter page you can view my TV interview and see how heavy I used to be and if you look at my most recent pictures, I’m sure you can see the difference. So if you find yourself blaming all your weight gain problems on medication like I used to for 15 years…stop and say ENOUGH!!! I’m going to get off my butt and DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! You will find how much happy and healthier you will be!