success stories

Sherry
Statesville, NC
Weight Lost: 140 lbs and counting

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It was August 2002 and I was desperate. I had been overweight all my life and was no longer able to ignore the toll it was taking on my 40+ year old body. With a family history of diabetes, heart problems and high blood pressure waiting in the wings, I knew I had to do something, but how do you turn around a lifetime of bad habits! Like so many others, I had tried all sorts of programs and quick fixes, and I even lost weight, but each time the weight came back.

At my top recorded weight, I was 352 pounds. By the time of my physical before starting the OPTIFAST program, I had already been treated for endometrial cancer, high blood pressure and depression. My blood panel from that day came back with four warning flags: cholesterol (246), triglycerides (177), LDL (166), and HDL/LDL ratio (3.7). My blood pressure registered 150/92 and my weight 323 pounds. It didn't take a medical degree to know I was in serious trouble. So I made one of the toughest decisions I have ever made and signed on for the OPTIFAST program.

I won't say it was always easy, but it certainly wasn't the horrible ordeal I imagined. To begin with, I wasn't starving. Sure, I got hungry, but not that all-consuming "I-have-to-eat-something-or-die" kind of hungry you get on so many fad diets. From the first day, I spaced my meal replacement drinks through out the day on a very specific schedule. Within the first week, it became the most natural thing in the world. It was so easy! I didn't have to obsess about food all the time. And my energy level not only didn't drop, it got better-probably because my body was finally getting the kind of good nutrition it had been missing.

I quickly learned that OPTIFAST is about more than just losing weight. It's about making changes that impact you for a lifetime. That bit of magic didn't occur overnight, but through a powerful combination of medical monitoring, solid nutrition, focused education and the support of the OPTIFAST staff at Northlake Weight Management Center.

From the very beginning, OPTIFAST was not only giving me a way to lose weight safely and rapidly, but preparing me for the day I would go back on "real food". As one session leader was fond of reminding us, you can eliminate alcohol or cigarettes from your life, but you can't eliminate food. You must learn to deal with it, because three times a day you have to let the tiger out of the cage. OPTIFAST not only gave me a way to deal with that tiger, but taught me on how to lead a healthier, thinner lifestyle.

I lost a total of 140 pounds and I have kept it off for three whole years. It has been an interesting journey with some strange and moving side trips-like the day I finally dropped below the 200 pound mark on the scales (something I had not seen since I was twelve years old), or not recognizing my own reflection as I walked by a mirror, or learning to shop in the Misses department not the Plus sizes. Now when I go into a restaurant, I don't worry about whether I can fit into a booth. Seats at the movie theater are much more comfortable these days.

Since this all started in 2002, my life has changed in other ways. I am more physically active, have more stamina and a new confidence in my abilities to achieve my goals. And I am in the best health I have ever been. All those improvements were made possible when I finally achieved a healthy weight-for a lifetime. Thank you OPTIFAST and keep up the good work!

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