KimberlyF.

Hi Friends, My name is Kimberly and I am a 43 year old women from Massachusetts. I'm a mother of three beautiful children and the proud grandma of two fantastic boys. I started this journey in Sept of 2012 and I've just received my surgery date which is August 5th 2013. My starting weight was 275 and my current weight is 218lbs. I'm 5'2 inches tall. Some back round info about me. I've struggled with weight my whole life. I can remember in high school I was always much heavier than my girlfriends and felt not so good about myself. Time went on and I was blessed with my children, but I was under that age old myth that It was ok to eat whatever I wanted because I was "eating for two" so I put on even more weight with each child. I would emotional eat, happy, sad, mad.... you name it food was my go to, my best friend. It wasen't until my 4 year old grandson started calling me "Big Grandma" to distinguish between his other grandma and myself that I knew I had to do something. For years I had convinced myself that I was not that big, I was just chunky and "big boned", when reality is I'm morbidly obese, but no more, I was going to take control of my life and not be a slave to my weight anymore. The Weight Management Program at Bay State Hospital in Springfield, Mass has given me a second chance at a healthy life. I've learned how to eat healthy foods and make good choices. To have proper portion control and incorporate exercise in my life. My decision to have Gastric Sleeve surgery was the best thing I could do for myself, its put me on a track to a more healthy and happy me. I want to be here to watch my children and grandchildren grow up. I don't want to sit on the sidelines anymore because of my weight, I want to participate in life today. I'm excited to be on this journey and look forward to sharing some of my experiences and to read about other's who have been on the same journey. Thanks for reading. God Bless.