Weight-Loss Story:
Kathleen Borders

Age 0, from n/a

Today I weigh 137lbs. Just 6 years ago, in 1999, I weighed 305lbs. I
lost 168lbs over a 2 year period and have kept it off for 4 years. Fat
is definitely a family affair for me....all the women in my immediate
family as well as my extended family are obese.

How I Got Fat
I grew up in a family, that while we weren't poor by any means, there
wasn't much left for outside entertainment. Food was a necessity and
always available, it because our entertainment, and our celebratory
activity. It became my way of managing emotions both good and bad.

When I was in High School, I wanted to be popular. I thought I was fat
when I wasn't. I struggled to stay too thin, sometimes not eating for
three days or exercising compulsively. After high school, I landed in an
abusive marriage, so I ate to comfort myself, to self medicate, to enjoy
myself, to get back at him. From age 19 to 34, my weight climbed from
135lbs to 235lbs.

After my divorce in 1993, life didn't get suddenly better the way I
hoped it would. I continue to manage my emotions with food and added
excessive alcohol consumption to the mix. My weight escalate to 254lbs.
My father died in 1998, with the stress of his illness and my decline
into alcoholism I relied even more on the comfort of food. In 1999 my
daughter got married. I was looking at the photo's with my mother and
saw one of her and my daughter and another woman....I said who's
that....my mother said "you dear". I didn't even recognize myself I
weighed 305lbs and wore a size 28/30 dress.

What I Did
I made a half hearted decision that I needed to do something about my
weight. I say half hearted, because I had tried many times through the
years to diet, once even losing 100lbs just to gain it all back plus
more! The employee health nurse at the hospital wear I worked as an
administrative assistant, was starting a lunch time walking program.
When I showed up on the first day...I was the only one. She and I
walked everyday for thirty minutes, she began to ask what I ate for
dinner the night before and made subtle suggestions about how to reduce
the calories and fat. Before I knew I was making those changes without
even thinking about it. I dropped 50 pounds pretty quickly. I was
motivated.

I began to walk every morning before work, slowly I increased the
distance and amount of time I spent walking. I made additional healthy
changes in my eating habits, I did some counseling to learn better ways
to deal with emotions, I learned to get involved in activities, build
better friendships, stopped drinking, when places and did things that
did not involve food. By early 2001 I was down to 137. I've kept my
weight steady (with in a few pounds) of that weight since then. I am
proud of myself, it was a big job. I am asked frequently if I had the
bypass operation...I feel sort of offended by that. Unless you have a
serious health condition and need to drop the weight NOW, I think it's
the easy way out. You don't have to learn why it happened to you. You
don't heal what's really wrong.

After Thoughts
When asked what was different this time, why a diet worked, why I am
motivated to exercise everyday....I give the credit to learning about
what made me eat, what made me hurt inside, what kept me from seeing
what I had become....to counseling and the healing that took place in my
heart.

After packing around that extra weight for so many years, that my skin
had been over stretched and would not shrink back. Insurance does not
usually pay for it's removal, but with the help of my physician and a
wonderful plastic surgeon named R. Garr Cutler in Eugene, Oregon, my
insurance authorized a procedure called a "belt lipectomy". The excess
skin was removed all the way around my middle. It is not just a little
plastic surgery....it's major surgery and very serious business. The
procedure took 5 1/2 hours in the operating room, I lost a whole unit of
blood, I was in the hospital nearly a week, the pain was the worst I
have ever experienced and I could not return to work for 6 weeks. It
was worth it....my belly is flat as a pancake, I can actually see my
belly button and my pubic bone, my bottom doesn't look like a lumpy sack
of potatoes anymore. I don't look like a super model, but, it's
certainly an improvement.
If I Can You Can--Anybody Can
If you're out there struggling with your weight......seek more than a
diet......get some help to dig down deep in your heart and find out
what's driving your hunger. Give your kids a fighting chance at stopping
the cycle of obesity, set a wonderful example for your family and
friends. You can do anything you want to do....if you want it bad
enough! I'm living proof!




Based on 15492 votes, this diet story has an overall score of: 6.88

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(#1) safeword posted on Apr 22, 2008 (IP: 68.186.14.133)

poster #7 is from florence and has a charter email address

(#2) Anonymous posted on Jan 30, 2008 (IP: 206.228.222.38)

Very motivational! What a great story.

(#3) master2u posted on Jan 26, 2008 (IP: 68.186.14.133)

good job kathy....hopefully you give someone some motivation.....been in your area several times...dont know how to get ahold of u

(#4) You know who posted on Nov 09, 2007 (IP: 76.105.203.64)

Given that you stole expensive perfume from me in my home, I wouldn't believe a word you say. I notice you've changed your phone #'s and e-mail after robbing me...

(#5) Anonymous posted on Oct 03, 2007 (IP: 65.242.133.66)

awsome.... i just hope i can be on here some day...

(#6) Kevin posted on Aug 21, 2007 (IP: 74.92.163.1)

"what a crock! i have seen you recently and you are right back up there." Whoever anonymously posted this lie is a coward, and has serious emotional problems. Not only that, they are not very bright, because IP addresses can be traced. I saw Kathy yesterday, and she looks great! She is a true, real-life weight loss success story, she should be on Oprah or something.

(#7) Anonymous posted on Aug 21, 2007 (IP: 198.107.18.117)

"what a crock! i have seen you recently and you are right back up there. shame, take this 'message' of or admit you gained again.....false hope is all you give others" I need to respond to this comment.... #1 IP address can be traced and I will find out who you are....I don't know why you'd want to say hurtful and untrue things about me but what ever! #2 I currently weight 168 pounds...yes I gained some of the weight back....life happens! I still consider myself a weightloss success story, I have kept off more than 130 pounds of the weight I lost for more than 6 years....look up the statistics on weight loss and you'll see that I've done a great job. I'd like to take off about 10 or 15 pounds but I'm ok with me if I don't...I've found a wieght that's ok with me. I try to eat healthy, exercise regularly and not obsess about the number on the scale. #3 I did it and continue to do it with out the assistance of weightloss surgery...no lap band or bypass here...I'm really proud of that! #4 I refuse to allow you, who ever you are to take any part of my success away from me! 168lb compared with 305lb.....I don't think I'm "right back up there" so you can stick it where the sun doesn't shine.

(#8) Anonymous posted on Jun 16, 2007 (IP: 68.118.78.22)

what a crock! i have seen you recently and you are right back up there. shame, take this 'message' of or admit you gained again.....false hope is all you give others

(#9) Anonymous posted on Jun 13, 2006 (IP: 208.58.60.254)

It was a great story, but lacked clear guidelines

(#10) Anonymous posted on May 23, 2006 (IP: 129.44.10.108)

Wow. This story is VERY touching and really hit a note close to home. Thanks for sharing!

(#11) Anonymous posted on May 01, 2006 (IP: 172.184.115.94)

I wonder if I were to check in with you now, would you still be a success story? After a few years we seem to let life nibble away at the edges of our resolve.....

(#12) jennyfer posted on Apr 28, 2006 (IP: 24.175.228.216)

i am so proud of you and hearing your story makes me try harder to stay on my diet ive only been on it for 3 weeks and already lost 12 pounds and need a lot more to go

(#13) Anonymous posted on Apr 18, 2006 (IP: 24.236.183.206)

WOW! AM I ever proud of you! you can do it!!!

(#14) LASHAUN posted on Apr 17, 2006 (IP: 216.130.129.72)

ENCOURAGED ME TO KEEP STRIVING TO ACHIEVE MY GOAL THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR STORY....

(#15) Anonymous posted on Mar 13, 2006 (IP: 68.116.16.98)

Thank you for sharing your amazing sucess! I am smiling ear to ear. It IS possible!

(#16) Anonymous posted on Mar 12, 2006 (IP: 4.88.167.237)

Hope my skin will shrink back, I don't want that surgery after I go from 385 (fat all my life) to goal of 141

(#17) Anonymous posted on Mar 10, 2006 (IP: 207.200.116.69)

How inspiring! Thanks from a fellow Oregonian.

(#18) Anonymous posted on Feb 28, 2006 (IP: 69.156.12.140)

wow! i feel really proud of u because you took a deicision that sounds very hard to make. sometimes, i think i'm over weight but after reading your story i sound underweight weird huh

(#19) Anonymous posted on Jan 20, 2006 (IP: 216.228.47.148)

Wow, you are right about digging in your heart. Most of us eat for SOME reason and it's great to put your finger on it. Thank you for sharing and it's wonderful to hear you have the strength to keep it up!

(#20) Anonymous posted on Dec 23, 2005 (IP: 63.19.236.130)

Way to go! Thanks for sharing.