Not Everybody Is ASlacker

Tonnenator

I just wanted to take a moment and tell you all what has happened to me in the past couple of years. It has been surreal.

See, I am diabetic, and have been trying very, very hard to lose weight. I mean, my gosh I am here on MyFitnessPal. I haven't always been faithful with it, but trust me I am a food Nazi, and a walker and dancer.

For example, in the past year, I got my insulin reduced from 40 units per meal down to 20, and now I'm on a "slide" of 6 units to 10 per meal. That's pretty amazing. They also reduced my long-acting by 10 units.

But there are people who aren't diabetic but think they know everything, and think they have the freedom to say something to diabetics if they put something in their mouth that they don't think they should have. Now granted, I have since gone gluten free and low sugar - I mean REALLY low sugar - as in I mostly eat Stevia and nothing else with much sugar in it at all except light yogurts because of what I'm about to tell you. But as a diabetic, it's almost impossible to eat a balanced diet and be completely sugar free. Sugar is in everything, from milk, (which I no longer drink) to fruit, (which is vital to a diabetic's diet).

Our last Pastor would ride my butt if I got something sweet from the breakfast area for Sunday School, and I had to explain to him - over and over - that they had us coming in at 9 in the morning for practice and we never had time for breakfast. In fact, when my husband was laid off, we didn't even HAVE breakfast on Sundays. We had nothing in our house that was breakfast-worthy. Yeah, I could have maybe had some plain toast. But anyways....I told him that unless he wanted to be calling 911 from me passing out on the stage, to lay off of me.

We eventually changed churches and there was this lady, and we were at a potluck, and I grabbed ONE.....one inch by one inch brownie for dessert - and she JUMPED MY CASE.

At the time, my belly was getting bigger....and bigger...and bigger. I could no longer wear my jeans and I was in a size 28. I guess that's why everybody felt the need to jump my case. I was getting exponentially bigger, and they all assumed that I was lying about my diet and exercise. They were constantly giving me unwanted advice.

It was irritating.

So eventually I started to look pregnant, and I gained 25 lbs in one semester of college, despite taking 4 dance classes a week at BalletMet here in Columbus and walking all over campus with a backpack all day. Which was NOT muscle gain, like some of them said. See, people DON'T know what they think they do. They're not doctors.

So I finally went to the doctor. The E/R actually, because we have no health insurance. They said I wasn't pregnant. That was a huge disappointment. But they DID say that the Cat Scan showed something called ascites, which is fluid in your abdomen. They sent me home scratching their heads and telling me to follow up with my doctor.

So my big belly was all WATER.

Long story short, I ended up finding out that I had stage 4B endometrial cancer. I have had five surgeries since January. One on my pinky which our son accidentally crushed in the van door, then the pericentesis which is where they drain out the fluid, then a D&C and biopsy, then a full hysterectomy via up/down incision with 33 staples, then a root canal.

And let me tell you all something.....

.....when they drained that fluid, they took out 9 liters. I was awake for the whole thing, and I watched them drain out 9 liters. 9 liters! That's like almost 3 gallons! It weighed 45 pounds. I have lost 5 more or so on my own since then, but I'm not supposed to lose a whole lot during chemo.

So you see, you never ever know what's going on with someone. You shouldn't judge and assume that if they're gaining weight, that they're lying or in denial. They might have a thyroid problem, a problem with their amygdala in their brain, or they might have cancer! You just - never know.

Lolmankey

That's awesome that you were able to get it taken care of and I'm glad it was actually just water, so your work was actually paying off, it was just hidden by the water.

At my old church everyone just watched this man year after year get heavier and heavier until he died of health complications due to his obesity at age 46. Makes me sad to think about. A few times someone would make a light joke, but no one really said anything serious that I know of when he'd be drinking soda or avoiding the salad on Wednesdays, we just let him eat himself to death. I know my reason for not saying anything was because I thought it was none of my damn business. I wonder if the people at your church were only on your case because they care about you. I used to get so mad at my grandpa when he'd imply that I was big or was eating too much. I know now that I'm 100 pounds lighter that he just was worrying about me. Some people aren't tactful in the ways they show they care.

Great job getting your insulin reduced and it sounds like you're right there with your diet and meal planning. I bet it feels great walking around with 45lb less of water in you!! Keep up the awesome work and I hope the best for you.

christinamthompson94

Tonnenator, will you message me please? I am type 2 diabetic, liver problems and I believe battling with ascites. I have some questions please!!! Thank you!!!!

JDixon852019

Those people are jerks. You can loose weight while having occasional treats.

Stop caring about what strangers could be possibly thinking about you too. There is no need to justify anything. You owe them nothing. Heck, most don't even have an opinion about you, you are just another person walking around to them. I don't speculate the eating habits of every person I encounter and I doubt you do either. It is a silly thing to be paranoid about.

Jruzer

This post is from 4 years ago. According to MFP, the OP's last visit here was 18 months ago. You may need to find other ways to reach her.