LizBrown
I am a 25 year old mother to four beautiful children,and wife to one amazing man. 
I have been overweight since I was around 9 years old. Don't know exact weights from my early childhood,but by the time I was in a senior in high school(2004),I was 5'2" weighed 200 lbs. The extra weight seldomly made me feel insecure as my friends and family and boyfriend at the time made me feel perfect and I felt fine. I was too busy hanging with friends,working,going to school and EATING to realize my weight was becoming a HUGE problem.
Fast forward to me graduating high school and meeting the love of my life,my future husband 
a yr later(2005). A yr or so after that I am pregnant with my first child(End of 2006). I weighed 196 when I got pregnant with my son. I only was able to carry him for 6 months and then went into premature labor and had him(Weighed 204 right before having him-May 2007) He only weighed 1 lb 7 ozs....Long stay in the NICU for him and in the Ronald McDonald house for my husband and I. SO much stress..he was so very sick and still has alot of special needs relating to his prematurity. 4 months later(Sept 2007),we took our lil guy home from the hospital at 8 lbs!! During those 4 months of misery and stress when he was in the NICU I gained 21 lbs! So that took me up to 225(Sept 2007)! Heaviest I had ever been so far. I yo yo dieted for the next yr or so bc after all I am the QUEEN of yo yo-ing!! My weight went down to 210 or so and would shoot back up. Tried hard at first but at any sign of struggle or plateau,I would give up and gain it right back..
Fast forward to December 2008-I asked my hubs for a babygirl for Christmas and he sure gave me what I wanted!! LOL. Found out I was pregs again in January 2009. Weight at that time was 230. Lost weight during my pregnancy(216) and carried her full term. After having her(August 2009,she weighed 7 lbs 11 ozs) I gained up to 240 in the next 3 months!! Then I tried SOOO hard to lose it and keep it off!!! I lost 40 lbs and got down to 200 lbs in 2 months! I felt awesome! Then I started slacking like ALWAYS. The minute I stopped getting on my treadmill 3 times a day,I gained 30 of those lbs back in 2 months taking me back up to 230! At this point it is literally draining me and I am remembering being a senior and wishing I would have changed my lifestyle and way of eating before I started having children...
Fast forward to a couple months later...BAM I'm pregnant with twins?!?! My daughter was only 9 months old at the time we found out we were expecting again...Totally unexpected. I knew I NEEDED to work on my weight. I went from 230 to 280 during my pregnancy with my twins and in January of 2011 I gave birth to two beautiful,healthy babygirls weighing 6 lbs 13 ozs,and 6 lbs 15 ozs. Got my tubes tied! YEA!! 
In my 6 weeks of post partum-I lost 50-yes 50lbs all the way back down to my weight before I got pregs with the twins(230). It was most likely due to breastfeeding,swelling going down,and never having time to eat,having 4 kids 3 and under! 
Well as time went by and I got used to having this crazy lifestyle and I got all the kids on a nice set schedule..I found time to eat! And since having the twins in January,I have gained a total of 34 lbs taking me to my all time heaviest ever. 264 lbs..Does anyone else see something wrong with this picture?!?! I gain the weight that stays on AFTER I have my babies!
Growing up I remember eating as a stress reliever of sorts..now it's more out of convenience..like not having(or making) the time to make a healthy meal and just shoving whatever I can into my mouth when I'm hungry! I need to change and I need to change fast. I am so very sore after playing with my kiddos all day,feeding babies,changing diapers,the works..I get VERY VERY out of breath just from sitting on the couch and turning to grab a diaper off the back of the couch and put it on my baby. As I am writing this I am literally in tears bc I just can't believe I have let this happen. I have 4 children looking up to their super obese mommy..I'm ready,so ready for a big change and to put forth the effort to change my way of living. I haven't been to a general dr since I was a minor! Only to my Obgyn for my pregnancies...
Next week I have an appt and I am def going to talk to my new doctor about getting the help I need. I feel like I am trapped in this fat... Over the years I have tried every diet and diet pill fad out there. I've tried just cutting down dramatically on calories,cutting any fried and processed foods out,along with sodas or any drinks other than herbal green tea and water. These things work at first but I always start slackin just a lil,then BOOM there is the weight right back and then some!
So other than being being very overweight and not happy with it at all,I enjoy spending time with my family and friends,taking care of my children and keeping my husband happy and content. I love love love to take pics of my kiddos and edit them in photoshop when I have time which is not often lol. And I now love this website. It seems to be a great place to come and vent,get valuable and reliable info on WLS,and gain friends that are gong through or have been through the same things I am. I really love lookin at the before and after pictures,it makes me so happy to see all those lives turned around and healthier! Such an inspiration! I'm looking forward to meeting many new friends here at OH and taking this journey to WLS and changing my life and that of my family as well!
