Diet & Fitness: Weight Loss: Weight-Loss Success Stories:

 Bernice M.

 I was always heavy, even as a child. I suffered from asthma and the medication was part of the problem with my weight. But because I stayed sick, my doctor kept me on the medication that kept me overweight.

 What motivated me to lose weight were medical challenges that began to interfere in my life (high blood pressure for one), and I have a child that I have to be here to raise. I was tired of buying oversized clothes and paying the price.

 I tried everything from over-the-counter diet pills to prescription diet medication, but I only lost 5 or 10 pounds. I also tried Curves and Weight Watchers and still no results. My final alternative was the Gastric By-Pass surgery, which I had 1 year ago. I achieved more results through this procedure than anything else I tried. I started out at 279 pounds. Since the surgery, I am down to 175 pounds. I've lost 103 pounds, and I feel great.

 Support groups and support from my family. Monitoring what I eat and doing what the doctor says keeps me in tune with my weight-loss goals. Knowing that if I do anything that I am not supposed to can cause major set backs.

 What helps keep me motivated is my 4-year-old son, and knowing that longer years have been placed on my life because of the weight loss.

 I handle setbacks by rethinking what I did to cause the setbacks, and how I can change what I did so that it will never happen again.

 My favorite "New You" moment is looking at myself, seeing the success of my weight loss, and knowing it was all worth what I had to go through to achieve it. Also going back to school and furthering my education to make a better life for me and my son.