December 2000: Well, going into my third month after surgery I have encountered one of the temporary side-effects: started losing my hair pretty rapidly. My 3rd month checkup also showed I was low on B12 and have to get vitamin booster shots. And a unexpected "twist": Water aerobics has become my new addiction (in place of eating big meals).

For several years I have tried every diet out there. My weight drop and ballon back every time, at one time even losing 100lbs, but always gaining it back and then some. I finally accepted that I was, as they say, a Big (Beautiful) Woman. Then on August 22nd, 1997; I was blessed with my daughter, Emma Joclyn. Suddenly my weight problem was no longer just a point of vanity and my acceptance of who I am, but an actual obsticle to my health and my ability to fully enjoy my new role in life as a Mother of the sweetest angel of a Daughter. In May 2000, I discovered Weight Loss Surgery, and read everything I could find about it - both the technical aspects, what it can and can not achieve, and testimonials of those who have had the surgery themselves. It was a chance from God, allowing me to get a new start on my life.