I was always a chubby little girl. Luckily, when I hit 13, I started to become taller and I began to notice that I lost my chubbiness. I kept my weight under control until I was 17 and my grandfather passed away. I come from a very close-knit family and it hit us all very hard. We all became very depressed and, to help out my grandmother, I offered to move in with her so she wouldn’t be alone. I enjoyed my time with her, but, after a while, I started getting bored and found myself watching a lot of TV and snacking on lots of junk food. The more I’d eat, the more weight I’d gain. When I became a size 16, the weight really started to bother me. Then, when my mom offered me some of her old clothes, the problem really sank in.

My mother had also recently gained weight and she began searching for a way to help us lose weight. I knew that I needed help because at 17 I already felt like I was missing out on so much. I was not getting invited to the cool parties that I had wanted to go to and when I did get invited, I couldn’t wear the types of clothes I wanted to.

By getting the procedure done at the same time as my mom, we were able to support each other in our weight loss journey. The people at Slimband have been very helpful, but mom is really the one I look to as the person who gave me a chance to get my social life back. I cannot ever remember a time when I’ve had more cute guys looking at me and I can once again buy cool clothes that I can wear to parties. From 175 pounds, I’m now down to 135 pounds and I know that this time the weight won’t be coming back. Thank you mom!