Before and after, well at least 5 months after

To look at me now, one wouldn't think that I had the nickname "Skinny Minnie" growing up, but I did. Up until the age of 10 I could eat anything, and I never gained an ounce. I was literally skin and bones. Then nature played a cruel trick on me. My metabolism changed, and I started to gain weight. From then on it was up and down all through my middle and high school years. Now, I must say that with all the hype of media about body issues for girls, you would think it was something new. It's not. I went through High School thinking I was fat. Looking at pictures now, I can't imagine what I was thinking. I might not have been tiny, but I was in no way "FAT" I've spent pretty much of my adult life going on this diet or that to get into a dress or please someone else or look good for this or that event. I'm sure you can guess where this is leading. It never worked. Oh, sure, I would lose the weight, get to a point where I was starting to look good to myself, and then tire of the deprivation of those wonderful foods that I loved so much. And then, pack on the pounds as I indulged. Last February I went to the doctor for a check-up to renew my blood pressure medication. They did lab work, and I got a call at the end of February from the nurse. She asked me if I had a minute. Now, let me pause here to say that I have always been pretty healthy all through my life, even though I have spent a lot of it overweight. So imagine my shock when I heard what the nurse said. She told me that my lab work had come back, and that my blood sugar numbers registered as Pre-diabetic. I was told to go on a low carb, low sugar diet. WOW! Talk about a wake-up call. At this point, you may be thinking, "Didn't she know she was overweight?" Of course I did, but I had a mental attitude of "I like who I am inside, so screw the world, and their definition of beauty." There's nothing wrong with that attitude. It is important to love ourselves no matter what package we are wrapped in, but I kept "feeding" (no pun intended) that attitude as I ballooned higher and higher up the scale. When I got the call from the doctor's office, my weight was at an all time high, and 18 lbs. over the mental limit I had told myself I would never cross. The words I heard on the phone that day made me stop and re-examine my "attitude" I'm not stupid I knew that the weight I was at was unhealthy, but it took someone to tell me what I was risking to make me do something. I found out on a Friday, and that Monday I started my new life. I choose not to use the word diet. I have been on many "diets", and they have never held long term results. There's no magic formula,  no matter how many commercials you see or ads you hear that claim that there is. What has really made things successful for me this time, I think, is that I'm not on a diet, I'm not in a hurry, and I haven't set some unrealistic goal. I'm living a new way to preserve my health. Weight loss is just a perk. I'm not preaching, and I hope it doesn't come off that way.  Losing weight is not a race to the finish line, it's a journey to a better, healthier way of life. I'm still on my journey, and I just want people to know that it's not easy, but it's worth it! 40 lbs. so far, and I feel so much better, and so glad I started this voyage.