How She Lost 143 lbs and How CWLI Helped Reach and Maintain Her Ultimate Goal… In Spite of Hypoglycemia and Congestive Heart Failure!
My weight has been a true lifelong struggle for me. I was always so overwhelmed when it came to losing weight. I would stick to something for a few days and tried so many different ways to lose it, but I had no idea how I would lose the weight, be a healthier me and more importantly, keep the weight off. I don’t know about you but I always dreaded doctor appointments because they would always say “losing weight will help you.” Oh how easy that was for them to say but so hard for me to even attempt!
When I was 19, I was diagnosed with hypoglycemia and was told that my pancreas overproduced insulin unlike diabetics who do not produce enough insulin. Oddly enough, food was to be my medicine. Anytime I tried to change up my diet to lose weight, I would feel horrible or feel like I was going to pass out after only 3 days of trying something new. At age 22, I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure and weighed in at 298 lbs. The doctor looked at me and said “ You are full of fluid and if you don’t lose weight, you will die.”
I proceeded to go on a year and a half journey to try and loose what seemed like an insurmountable and unattainable amount of weight just to try and be “healthy”. After a long and challenging journey, I lost a significant amount of weight. It made the doctors happy and I got myself out of the morbidly obese range.
In 2017, 4 years after being the lightest I had ever been in my adult life, I found myself back gaining weight again. The irony is that I was still eating relatively well and exercising 5 times a week! But I was stuck. This time, I blamed it on my “age”. “Ok, I’m over 40 now and this is just how it’s going to be. My metabolism has slowed down and I can’t lose weight. I guess I’ll just eat what I want, continue to be active and enjoy my life. I’ll just be happy with what I am.” In September of 2017, I went for a physical. I weighed 209lbs. I looked at my results and I noticed I was still considered “obese”. I looked at the doctor with tears in my eyes. I had struggled for so many years. I said “I am still considered obese?” I tell you, that hit me like a ton of bricks and I thought “I’ve worked so hard and gained some back but I’m still obese?”
Several months passed after that appointment and my dad passed away. I turned to food again. I thought to myself “Well. This is it. I just can’t do it. I am doomed to be overweight and secretly feel bad about myself but portray another person on the outside.” I had tried so many different plans. I tried the Daniel Fast, the cabbage soup diet, the military diet, low carb, carb cycling, I drank all kinds of teas and took diet pills. I tried Weight watchers, Whole 30 , Jenny Craig and spent so much money and time on things that didn’t’ work for me. I didn’t want to admit it but I was addicted to food.
One day, I was looking through Facebook and saw Carolinas Weight Loss Institute. I thought “Why not. I’ve tried just about everything else.” I went to my first appointment skeptical but hoping this would be the final time I would have to gain weight and go through this ever again. I stepped on the scales and I weighed 215.8lbs. My heart sank. I had gained more weight!
Fast forward to October 2018, after my 2nd protocol and maintenance completed and I’m down 60lbs with CWLI Transformation! I weigh 155lbs which I have never weighed ever as an adult and am in a size 8! I just cannot believe it! I cannot tell you how happy I am that I made that step and the commitment to myself and my family.
I am so happy and full of life now. I have energy. I don’t feel like I’m stuffed in a sausage casing in my clothes. I feel good about myself. I love to look at myself in the mirror which I never did before. I am full of such joy and hope. I have feelings I have never felt about myself, been a weight I’ve never been and fit into sizes I never thought possible. I just want to help or encourage someone. You don’t have to live this way. There is never a good time to start. I promise you can do it. One day at a time. Just one day. Take that day and get through it and then you can start over again the next day. Before you know it, you will be 8 weeks in and looking back amazed at what you were able to accomplish.
Dr Adkins’ plan has shown me that it doesn’t have to be because of my age or the fact that I’ve been diagnosed with something. I truly can lose the weight in a healthy way, change my thoughts and perception of food and learn to keep the weight off in a healthy way.