Elation

My name is Sharon and I am soooo excited to be here with all of you guys as support.  I haven't always been overweight.  When I went off to college I was probably 130 lbs and a size 6.  I had always been thin and able to eat whatever I wanted to.  I gained the Freshman Fifteen and many, many more.  It didn't help that my roommate and I lived on Mexican Food and Brownies.  Don't get me wrong, it was the time of my life.  I met my husband there as well as the best friends a girl could ever have.  They will be my friends for the rest of my life.  Here I am now 31 (almost 32) years old and I am now 5'2" and 200+ lbs.  I used to feel so confident and now I spend most days trying to figure out if I'm the fattest person in the room.  At work, I still play the role of a tough and confident woman but inside I am anything but confident.  My husband, who happens to be my very best friend and most likely my biggest supporter is of course skinny.  He has the energy of the Energizer Bunny.  He works out, he runs, he is planning to run a marathon.  I can't run from the house to the mailbox!  I want to though.  Hell, I just want to be able to run a 5K and I will!  If my husband has to drag me by the arm or pull me behind the car, I will complete a 5K!  I have so many reasons for having this surgery.  First and foremost, I want to be healthy.  I want to not spend my days thinking about how much I hate the way I look.  I want to look cute in jeans!  I want to be able to tie my shoes without grunting :-)  I want to have normal sized boobs.  I want to go the gym without feeling like I am wasting my time.  I want to go to a job interview without worrying that I won't be considered because I'm overweight.  I want to visit my hometown without hiding from people I used to know because I'm ashamed of how fat I've gotten.  I want my husband to be able to carry me.  I could go on and on.  I started this process in April of 2009, and a long road it was.  It was submitted to Aetna insurance on January 8th and I got a call the morning of January 11th from an angelic voice saying that I had been approved!  I have a strict no crying rule for myself, but I teared up a little.  My appointment with Dr. Spaw is January 27th at which time my surgery will be scheduled.  I am consumed by researching this site and talking about the surgery to whomever will listen. I know my husband and friends are sick of hearing it, but I don't care.  This is a big deal for me and I plan on enjoying the ride!