How I have lost 51 pounds since October 15th, 2002 and it is still OK to be fat or thin.

Update to my article of "Weight, it is nothing to be ashamed of.."

I have lost more than 51 pounds since October 15th, 2002. I now weigh 329 pounds as of March 26th, 2002. I can actually be weighed on a scale in the doctors office and they do not have to go and get the EXTRA 100 pound weight! THAT has always been a little bit embarrassing! I know I have lost more weight since then but how much I am not sure. For someone who is so very big I do not eat a whole lot. You can ask my sister, Julie, who weighs 180 pounds and eats twice as much as me and NEVER gains a pound!

My endocrinologist, Dr. W, was very proud of me for losing all the weight. She had stressed last time I saw her on Octber 15th, 2002 that I needed to get the weight off. I have lost the majority of my weight in the last 3-4 months. Some is due to depression, but I just started seeing a new psychiatrist in February 2003 and she prescribed Zoloft 200mg once a day and it took affect in March and I have been feeling much better. I have also been exercising before February 28th when I got really sick, and have been eating smaller proportions and eating more healthily. Every Friday night we have Salmon and pears and mashed potatoes or rice. It is a good meal. Mom and I take turns cooking it.

Because I had lost weight AND had not seen my endocrinologist in 5 months to get my thyroid tested, my thyroid hormones were ALL screwed up! It turns out, when you LOSE WEIGHT, the LESS thyroid medication you need! My tsh, t3 and t4 were way out of whack! She reduced my thyroid medication to .275 micrograms. I then got my blood drawn after the doctors appointment and a few days later the nurse called and said that that dosage would be correct for me for my size. Last October 2002 I weighed 371 pounds and was on .475 micrograms. So, when I was losing weight I was taking too much thyroid and my body was getting messed up. it was a nightmare and I was feeling the effects of it too!

Just to explain, I have had 2 operations on my thyroid. The first one was when i was 11 years old and they took 3/4th's of my thyroid out. My dad had had thyroid cancer. He is still living. I got my second tumor at age 29 years. They went ahead and just took out the WHOLE thyroid. There was not much left of it anyway. Both tumors were benign. My sister, Julie, had 2 tumors on her thyroid also and had her thyroid taken out with the second operation also.

Anyway, I am getting better! If I lose more weight she will re-adjust the medication. I see her again at the end of May. Bless her!

It has taken me a LONG TIME to REALIZE that it is OK to be the WEIGHT you are, but if you WANT to CHANGE it, then by ALL means DO! HOWEVER, you have to give it 110% of yourself to the project! Do not just do it partway! This means NO CHEESEBURGERS at McDonalds, NOT even just ONE a week!

These are SMART moves that I have discovered on my own. (Proportion control, eating healthily) People can tell you ALL you want to hear, but until you realize it for yourself, you will never lose the weight. It is a process.
Remember:You cannot do it all in one day! It took me 3-5 months to lose 51 pounds! So, gather your strength and get to walking!