I've been overweight since I can remember. Being overweight as a child shaped me into being uncomfortable with myself and ultimately led to social anxiety. I grew up without having many friends (and none that were long lasting) and never having a boyfriend or any boy friends, for that matter. In 2014-15 I went through a deep depression as it was my first year of college and I had a lot of time to myself because I didn't have friends or anything to do. Around May of 2015 I decided to take my life into my own hands and told my parents I wanted the surgery. I am 20 years old and knew that if I wanted this, I was going to have to do it now. My mother was more supportive than my father (he is overweight and felt that I wasn't going to make the changes necessary) but they were both willing to do anything I needed. I began my six month period of diet and exercise in June and was exercising frequently but was not dieting. I gained 20 lbs during those 6 months and that scared me into thinking I wasn't going to be able to handle the strict diet after surgery. It's been a little over a month since my surgery and I have already lost 32 lbs. I am so grateful to say that I have been making progress I never expected and am beyond excited for what lies ahead!!!