Do not let my story be yours...

Someone asked me if I felt better after losing all my weight, 114 pounds as of now.Here was my response.
I know the weight loss is great and good for my overall health, but just kind of sad thinking I would feel better after I lost so much weight. I have damage to my left side and always a tingling cold feeling especially in my hand and legs due to nerve damage, My balance is shaky especially when i look up or to the sides.
And even though, the medications I am on have come down, I am still very tired all the time. That being said, I know it is a positive thing losing weight and am thankful for the things I can do as my therapists I had after the stroke, told me a lot of people that had the type of stroke I had, do not survive, and those that do, many end up in a wheel chair. Right after the stroke, I was in a wheel chair and progressed to a walker, then a cane, and finaly nothing. I look at this diet like I did with my progression after the stroke. First to get out of the morbidly obese zone. the next step was to get out of the obese zone, then to get to the over weight zone and now i am about 8 pounds from getting into the healty zone.
But like i tell everyone here, do not concentrate on how far you have to go. Look at what you have accomplished. So do I feel like I wished I felt at this point, not really, but I am thankful for what may have been if I never recovered from the stroke and if I did not lose all this weight. I was told when you have a stroke, you are more likely to have another, so I knew being that heavy was something I could control, and did not want to go thru being in intensive care again for 2 weeks, or being in the hospital for 5 weeks. So if this inspires one person to do things that I did not, like watch your weight and watch your blood pressure, I feel this is helpful. I was the typical guy that ate bad, never went to the Dr's and figured, nothing would happen to me. Well it did and without warning. I went to lunch with a coworker, went to Target with her to get xmas decorations for our office, and just lost my balance and fell. I remember thinking that was weird. I got up, walked a little and fell again. I remember that is when they called an ambulance and a stranger sitting with me while my friend called for help. I was in no pain and did not know what was happening. I remember the paramedics getting there and nothing more for the next week until I had woke up, and remembering being upset not being able to do the tasks the therapists had me do that I knew a 3rd grader could do. And worst was having family not knowing if I would even survive. Pretty scary stuff.
I often think how my life would have been if I still lived in New Jersey where we grew up. What would my career have been? Would I have been married and had kids? It certainly would be different than it is now. That can be said for all of us. The choices you make determin your future. When you move, what college you pick, friends that you make or leave, will all change your future, and you will never know what would have happened if you made a different choice. I had the same decision when starting this, do nothing or do something. I knew the path I was taking, was not going to do me any good, and for that matter, I may not even been here writing this now. Or make the decision I should have done years ago, go down the positive path for me, to make the right decision. I hope this inspires or motivates just 1 person.So please, next time you are tempted by something, make the right decision, for your family, your friends and most of all YOURSELF!!! take care, my pals...p.s. - sorry so long...