Hi I'm 428 lbs! WOW first time I ever announced that outloud! I need friends & support please.

Losing2LIVE4ME
Losing2LIVE4ME Posts: 7 Member
in Introduce Yourself
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Hi there , yes I am 428 lbs. and Wow as embarrassing as that was to admit, it honestly feels good to say it! I'm 428 lbs. I'm 428 lbs. I'm 428 lbs.! I have hid myself for 20 years sad but true. The health scare I had 6 months ago has brought me here. My body swelled up to almost 500 lbs. from overloaded fluid retention. I went to the hospital not able to hardly breathe or fit into the ambulance gurney. I fell asleep at the hospital and woke up paralyzed able to hear and feel all around me but couldn't move an inch, with a tube down my throat. It was the most horrible feeling hearing my son crying praying for me but not able to wake up open my eyes to show him I was awake now after being out of it for a week. Spent two months in ICU doctors telling my family I had a slim chance to surviving. So here i am alive THANK GOD and I have lost weight down to what I am now..428 lbs. yes 428 lbs. Feels good to say it! So I need all your help and suggestions all welcome. I did my first exercises today of ZUMBA chair dance aerobics. They are on YouTube..and last as long as the song they do usually 2 and a half minutes so I just watched this awesome lady thru to make 30 mins of Chair Zumba Cardio and got to say it looked easy but for 428 lbs. my heart got going and I broke a sweat! Very happy to found that lady! I ordered kettlebells 2 (10 lb.) kettlebells to use the chair kettle ball work outs I found for strength training until I can get up and have more balance. I use a walker currently to walk 40 ft one way and back. I have bad knees so I have to set once I get to the other side for 30 seconds but i get back up and today I went back and forth 5 times. This is leaps and bounds for me going from lift chair to potty chair. Another sad but true. My Goal weight? 160 lbs. I need some friends please feel free to say something to me. I will consider you a blessing no matter what your size. I need some rooters and I will be your biggest fan too I promise! my body has decided I don't sleep at night and I have fought it for years but have decided to outsmart it and now I started eating backwards. My day starts at 5 p.m. eat my biggest meal, then snack at 9, then meal at 12 midnight, then mid snack by 2 , and last lightest meal all done eating by 4 am. I got to sleep at 8 to try to get the good sleep I need so it gives me 9 hours which allows me an hour of that with waking up to pee and the initial first 30 minutes to fall asleep. OH I use my ab doer routine 15 minutes a day. well starting tonight. I'm going to try all that and see how my body reacts. Hopefully I don't wake up not being able to move! All help and friendship welcomed and appreciated. Now if I can get the diet right! HELP!
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Replies

  • marekdds
    marekdds Posts: 2,231 Member
    Congratulations on making the decision to turn your life around. It isn’t easy, but it can be done. Don’t be too hard on yourself. We all have bad days. Get a nutritionist to help if you can. Sounds like you are on the right track, doing baby steps with the exercise until you get stronger. Gradually you will see results, losing 60+ pounds is a great start. This is a good community and there are loads of folks who have started where you are. Best of luck!
  • Soof65
    Soof65 Posts: 8 Member
    You have done the hard bit which is deciding to try and change your life. There is no point in lying to you, it won't be easy and some days you will feel like giving up. On those days just stick a message on the board and you will get support. I convinced myself for years that I wasn't clinically obese but am now trying to get down to a sensible weight. It's hard but stick at it! Varying your exercises helps, once you feel a little fitter there's nothing better than a walk to help you build up your strength, even if you do it a couple of yards/metres at a time. It's surprising how quickly you can build up a fair distance and sometimes it's just nice to get outside, even if it's raining - I have a sit down job in an almost windowless office and it's good just to see daylight sometimes! Good luck.
  • WandRsmom
    WandRsmom Posts: 253 Member
    You can do this! And we are all here to help. Good for you for getting started. That's the hardest part.
  • neugebauer52
    neugebauer52 Posts: 1,120 Member
    edited May 2019
    Everyone should read your story - very inspiring. I am now 415 days on MFP: stick with them, use their calculations, record everything you eat and drink. If you have some (previous) psychological damage, make sure this is addressed. Get a good doctor, who is prepared to listen to you and your needs. If you think a dietitian might be able to help, do it sooner than later. If you want to visit a gym, ask for someone who has been overweight before - the thin ones have no idea what you are going through. Try water aerobics - total bliss for your joints, your bones, your body, your mind. Just float about and enjoy. (My starting weight: 170 kg, 375 pounds. After 415 days: lost 33 kg, 70 pounds.) Welcome to the club! We can do it! Tried to send you a "friend request" message but was not accepted. Stay in touch.
  • Sirro712
    Sirro712 Posts: 2 Member
    You got this! Keep it up!
  • nuzziek
    nuzziek Posts: 69 Member
    You can do this!!! You should be really proud of yourself for taking the first step towards changing your life. I was very proud of you after reading your story. The hardest part is starting, so you're doing great already. You already got some great advice here. Water aerobics would be great for you, as would a meal delivery service to get you started. I also agree that a nutritionist and trainer would be a smart investment to get you started. Just remember to take it one day at a time, and keep checking in here for motivation and support. Patience and baby steps are key. You got this!
  • wobblemcwobbleface
    wobblemcwobbleface Posts: 87 Member
    hey well done for this step - you sound like your mind is now in the zone to sort out your life so well done for that. It will be a journey but you have taken the hardest step of all. Good luck with your journey - I look forward to hearing about your success as you move onwards
    W
  • rustyvicinie
    rustyvicinie Posts: 63 Member
    The first step is the hardest and you've taken it. All downhill from here! You can do this!
  • DKLI
    DKLI Posts: 63 Member
    Way to go! The first step can be hard but each day gets a little easier. Just keep looking ahead, you will do it!
  • jlstanch
    jlstanch Posts: 2 Member
    Awesome first step and amazing courage!!! One piece of advice is always move forward and never beat yourself up. I've done this way too much. After college I gained around 60 lbs and have been trying to loose it for the last 15 years (eek, first time I ever wrote that). I am on a good run now but holly *kitten* have i wasted time feeling bad about myself and getting frustrated over a lack of progress. In hindsight it was such a waste of time and worse counter productive, eg, keeping me in that downward spiral of feel like *kitten* eat like *kitten*. NO MORE!!

    Also, I realized will power comes in two forms. 1) The instant power to say yes or no, and 2) The long term persistence to keep trying even when the first form fails you. Both are built over time and neither is fool proof.

    Best wishes. Take it slow, make it fun, think about the long game and find folks to help you stay accountable. That's helped me.
  • neugebauer52
    neugebauer52 Posts: 1,120 Member
    Losing2LIVE4ME wrote: »
    Thank you all so much! WOW! I never been a part of anything like this , just hid out at home. Its easy to feel you are the only one going thru this nightmare when you dont see other people much and kinda hide out. HOW DO I ACCEPT FRIEND REQUESTS? I NEED YOU GUYS? neugebauer52 Im so sorry your friend request was not accepted. Im trying to figure it out. ANYONE? Congratulations to all your success! Wow I cant believe I got 5 replies and met 5 incredibly kind people already! I feel like a million bucks in heart. Thank you and please try to keep friending me until I figure it out. :)

    Hi, I don't think there is anything you can do with "friend request" set up. Seems to be some sort of software kink, I'll try again tomorrow. By the way, did a blood test today to compare my first one a year ago. Amazing to see all those improved results but it looks like that my thyroid still needs a little help and encouragement!
  • marekdds
    marekdds Posts: 2,231 Member
    I sent a friend request, you just have to accept it.
  • thesatchito
    thesatchito Posts: 5 Member
    Hey! I'm glad you made it through. My only advice as someone who once peaked at around 350lb is simple. JUST. KEEP. MOVING.

    When I thought of exercise I usually thought of being out of breath and wanting to die right then and there, however, if you ease in the sessions, you can make it enjoyable (or let's admit it, bearable at first) and you will be less likely to drop out or stop moving.

    Think about it this way, it's always better to move a little than not moving at all. I know that the bigger you are, the harder it is to keep up, but always remind yourself that you could be laying down, wasting away, but you're not! You're moving, walking, dancing, whatever you're doing, just keep moving. Just. Keep. Moving.

    You got this!
    m
  • AbandondedKSCharger
    AbandondedKSCharger Posts: 562 Member
    I'm so glad you chose to reach out, and say out loud your weight. It is so liberating! I am 57 years old, 5' 3" and weight 195. I want to get down to 170 by the end of the year and I can find myself dreaming of getting down to 140. But, baby steps. There's a lot of supportive people on MFP. Check in daily, share your thoughts, LOG your food and keep moving. Be patient :) You've got this!
  • chrissy66mc
    chrissy66mc Posts: 2 Member
    There's a saying : My race, my pace. Go at this weight loss at your own pace. Small steps are better than none at all. Your already on the right track, just don't give up! There is a lot of support out here and it feels so much better to know, you're not alone. No matter how much weight we're trying to lose, it's always better to do it with the help of friends. You got this! Never give up.
  • marekdds
    marekdds Posts: 2,231 Member
    This website is a valuable tool to keep tract of exercise and your food. Take full advantage.
  • FarmerCarla
    FarmerCarla Posts: 470 Member
    @Losing2LIVE4ME You're off to a great start! It may or may not always be easy, but perseverance will pay off. You and your loving son are going to be very happy with the results. :) God bless you!
  • Jamie2663
    Jamie2663 Posts: 779 Member
    Sounds like you are making the right steps. Congratulations on your accomplishments! Getting started is the hardest part :) will be sending a friend request
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    Good luck to you on this journey. :) Chair zumba is a good idea because it is easy on your knees.
  • Losing2LIVE4ME
    Losing2LIVE4ME Posts: 7 Member
    Thanks everyone! You are all AWESOME! This place is fantastic!!! I am up all night working so my sleep time is like 10 am till 6ish. Yesterday was the first day I slept 8 hours straight! I feel so powered and great tonight! I keep my computer signed on all the time. My work is online. I praise God for giving me the gifts he gave me to be able to do my job at home. God is my Rock so anyone on here thats just meeting me, I want you to know that. I love the lord and I love our God! I pray each of you do too. If EVER you need to talk and need some prayer I am always here as I have ministered to many and plan to continue it. I know that each and everyone of us goes through Tests.. and our Tests ARE our testimonies. I know God made me how he did and all of you with all your special gifts and I stopped loving myself. I stopped loving the beautiful child God created and loved. I have been to see someone about emotional hate I had for my body. They described to me that you have to look at your body as a beautiful creation of God that its so well designed how it tries to protect us. All the crash diets Ive tried, starving myself my body only tried to hold on and protect me..and well protect me it did with 428 lbs of cushion! LOL but all jokes aside I am going into this with the thought of filling me up with Joy. I have left myself be so down and negative about myself that I stopped going anywhere even when I could do it. Before all the weight came on. Then after I wanted to I was way too embarrassed. Gotta say the doctors I had to see did NOTHING for my self confidence. I had to go for a womans exam and REALLY hated to go being so fat. BUT I told myself, your health is worth more than 5 minutes of embarrassment. I left that doctors office in tears that tramatized me for 10 years. He walked into the room and asked me rude questions about my weight and then said ok lose weight and I will see you in a year. I said Im sorry , do you not do women exams, pap tests?? He looked at me and said, Look at you...Youre so fat, I dont even think I could examine you. It would just be a waste of both our efforts. Yours to try to lie back without passing out because you wont be able to breathe from laying flat on you rback and your fat choking you, and me trying to even get in to see anything in you which would probably be a false inconclusive test anyway. so like I said..uhhh Waste of our efforts. OH YES HE DID! The nurse in the room before he walked in knew I was absolutely embarrassed before and I was sitting on the table undressed waist down standard procedure and she assured me its gonna be ok and when he said that to me, she said to him very sternly doctor you just lost yourself a nurse because thats all I needed to see from you to know that I would never want to work for a heartless cruel human being like you. She ordered HIM out of the room , wiped my tears and helped me get dressed and we BOTH walked out together to my car where she gave me a hug and prayed for me. Very sad and it did something to me for the rest of my ten years, and I wasnt as heavy then as I am now. But that did me in to going to the doctors which is one of the reasons I ended up in resporatory failure and almost lost my life from fluid swelling my body to almost 500 lbs and I knew I couldnt breathe so good but I couldnt not bring myself to go see a doctor, I tried to fix it. The stress of it about killed my sleep so then I swelled worse and I blew up all that weight in a few weeks. I went by ambulance to the ER and fell asleep waking up paralyzed by the drugs they gave me to be sure I didnt wake and pull out the tube that was down my throat as pictured above my introduction post. I could hear my son praying and crying for me but I couldnt open my eyes. I was also abused and hurt by the nurses caring for me as I could feel everything but not speak or tell anyone anything and some hated their jobs taking care of me. When your this heavy your skin folds are very thin and fragile and I felt them taking wash rags to clean me and just ripping my skin. I cried so hard inside and tears did roll down my face alot my son said but the nurses said I was probably just dreaming..or the meds were causing it..and my son said oh no thats not right, somethings not right. I had to LAY LIKE THAT! I was in the ICU for 8 weeks. After I woke up they put a steel contrapment of a mask on me and tied my wrists down. There was no way I could figure to take that mask off and it was so loud and like a darth vader mask even trying to talk they couldnt hear me as i begged them to take OFF the wrist restraints that I felt like i was going to vomit which i did inside the mask and layed there until one of them came back to check on me half hour later. My son had left to go get a shower and come back.. SO after all that and I was able to sit up they decided to up my dieuretics and no exageration sucked me dry of fluids down to a dry weight of 384 which was serious dehydration and made me SICK. ANyhoo I wrote a whole book here. Sorry but its so emotional and I want others to know your health at ANY SIZE IS IMPORTANT! Before you say oh just this one time against the goal you set for you, think about me. I said that 100 times and sat on my butt afraid of everyone else and what theyd think and doctors words horror in my thoughts about me. YOU ARE WORTH MORE THAN THAT ONE TIME. IT IS ONLY A TEMPORARY FEELING! BUT TOO MANY OF THEM BECOME DANGEROUS. and then you start being embarrassed as the weight sneaks up on you! AND if you can exercise at all DO IT! If I knew then what I know now I would hav epushed myself at 200 lbs to get my *kitten* up and out of the house and take a walk with God and the earth instead of pitying me at 200 lbs! I WISHHHHHHH I was 200 lbs now!!!! Love to all. Thanks for reading my book. Thanks for being my friends. I need you so much in my life now and you are so appreciated and a blessing to me. THANK YOU
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,249 Member
    Sounds like you sure heading in right direction OP

    Well done and keep up the good work!! :)

    Can I ask one tiny thing, not meant to be rude, please don't take it that way...... could you please break up the text a bit with spaces and paragraphs
    I read it all but was a bit hard, I wear reading glasses and find large tracts of unbroken text hard to read.
  • jellybelly808
    jellybelly808 Posts: 1 Member
    Hi, I applaud you, it takes guts to be able to put your story out there. You’ve come a long way already. I am currently 306lbs when I started my weightloss journey I was 350lbs. I have good days and bad days but having a support network helps. Can’t wait to see your journey 💗
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    Welcome!
  • StocktonSue
    StocktonSue Posts: 8 Member
    Congrats on taking this journey on the road to a better life. And remember, a small victory is still a victory. A friend once said she wouldn't go on any program that only suggested a loss of a pound or two a week. I said, well you would be fifty or a hundred pounds thinner this time next year. She didn't see the wisdom in that approach and is even heavier today than when we had that discussion. I wish you well and will follow your progress. God bless you and yours. :)

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