co-morbidities

i wanted to share my successes and create a forum to discuss challenges and successes others have had. i have been overwieght to some extent most of my life, outside of a period in my 20s where i managed to keep my weight relatively close to or actually at my ideal weight. other than that, i have generally been obese and for well over 10 years now have been morbidly obese. over the years the negative effects of obesity began to pile up and my dr. regularly suggested i take action with my weight but i felt so completely incapable of tackling such a huge issue, it always just sounded like one of charlie brown's teachers to me. in the meantime, the medical treatments of all these co-morbidities piled up.

finally, earlier this year i decided it was time to finally look my obesity in the eye and do something about it. when i stated my current program i was at a bmi of 47.8, which is well over the threshold of morbid obesity. now i have cut it to 36.8 and am very close to having lost 25% of my body-weight and 50% of my excess weight. now, i feel and look a million times better and that alone makes it all worth it. however i want to break down the gifts i have given myself in terms of freeing myself from the list of co-morbidities i had developed.,

blood pressure: i had been on three medications and still consistently had high readings. now i am on a half dose of one of the medications and consistently testing normal. the prognosis for completely coming off it is very good.

sleep apnea: i had been on a cpap machine for a decade. while i loved my machine because it allowed me to sleep well, i love the fact that i can now sleep well without it! it is so liberating.

i had been on flomax to help relieve a chronic feeling of needing to urinate for 4 years. i am now off flomax and urinating normally without any problems.

i had suffered from chronic ankle and leg pains for over 6 years and had been treated with orthotics, physical therapy, and ankle braces. those aches and pains are all gone now.

my glucose level was reaching towards the diabetic threshold with my last reading as i began the program was at 109 and now it is at a perfectly healthy 84.

wow.

on top of that, i feel so much more connected with my digestive process, and realize that all those years i was over-eating i was constantly backed up and wreaking havoc on my digestive system. eating right might in fact save me from problems with/cancer of my bowel someday.

not to mention the overall relief i am giving all my organs from the stress of morbid obesity, high blood pressure, 4 different medications a day, and a high glucose level.

the last thing i'd like to say on the subject is simple. YAY!

hope others can share their successes as well, but i'd be interested in hearing challenges people are having, too...