My Journey to a Better Life
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Hi my name is Marcela. For those of you who don't know me, I am a 24-year-old Valencia College student living in Orlando as a Middle School Program Coordinator for The YMCA of Central Florida.
I have always been a heavy girl. All my life. When my family relocated from New York to Florida I noticed that I was different than most. I was made fun of a lot in school. Always being called a cow because I was big, and I was. By the time I was in 5th grade I was 120lbs and not even 5 feet tall. I started the 6th grade and the scale kept going up. As a kid in middle school, all you ever wanted was to fit in and I tried. I even went as far as telling my crush that I liked him. He said that he could never like a fat girl like me. His response crushed me. It made me feel embarrassed, alone, and ugly. That same year my parents decided that I needed help. The doctors would say that they couldn’t find anything that would be causing the weight gain. Fast forward to my junior year, I found out I had PCOS, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. The doctor explained to me that this was what made me gain weight. Because of the hormonal imbalance I would not be able to have kids in the future. I was 16 when I was diagnosed; although kids weren’t in my plans for another 10-15 years, it still hurt to know that I couldn’t have kids unless I did something to reverse it. By the time I was a senior I weighed 270lbs. As a graduation present, my parents paid for a surgery called Lipo-sculpture. The doctors guaranteed me that by doing this and following the diet that it would jump start my metabolism and start burning off the fat. After the procedure, I lost 37lbs and went to the gym almost twice a day 5 days a week for the next 3 months and stuck to my diet like never before. I saw no improvement, no weight loss and I was devastated. After that I gave up with trying to lose weight. When I was 22 I was diagnosed with Hashimoto Thyroiditis. This is when I decided that enough was enough and that I would start getting my life together. I’ve read countless articles where women have had the gastric bypass done and it has reversed their PCOS and I found a doctor that can do it for me. I saw doctor Dr. Fernandez in Tampa and we are currently getting prepared for the surgery sometime within the next 2 months. My only issue is that my insurance does not cover the cost and it would have to be self-pay. The surgery is $15,500 not including the doctor visits. I hope you find it in your heart to donate to my cause in bettering my life and health. Thank you for taking the time to read my story.
I have always been a heavy girl. All my life. When my family relocated from New York to Florida I noticed that I was different than most. I was made fun of a lot in school. Always being called a cow because I was big, and I was. By the time I was in 5th grade I was 120lbs and not even 5 feet tall. I started the 6th grade and the scale kept going up. As a kid in middle school, all you ever wanted was to fit in and I tried. I even went as far as telling my crush that I liked him. He said that he could never like a fat girl like me. His response crushed me. It made me feel embarrassed, alone, and ugly. That same year my parents decided that I needed help. The doctors would say that they couldn’t find anything that would be causing the weight gain. Fast forward to my junior year, I found out I had PCOS, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. The doctor explained to me that this was what made me gain weight. Because of the hormonal imbalance I would not be able to have kids in the future. I was 16 when I was diagnosed; although kids weren’t in my plans for another 10-15 years, it still hurt to know that I couldn’t have kids unless I did something to reverse it. By the time I was a senior I weighed 270lbs. As a graduation present, my parents paid for a surgery called Lipo-sculpture. The doctors guaranteed me that by doing this and following the diet that it would jump start my metabolism and start burning off the fat. After the procedure, I lost 37lbs and went to the gym almost twice a day 5 days a week for the next 3 months and stuck to my diet like never before. I saw no improvement, no weight loss and I was devastated. After that I gave up with trying to lose weight. When I was 22 I was diagnosed with Hashimoto Thyroiditis. This is when I decided that enough was enough and that I would start getting my life together. I’ve read countless articles where women have had the gastric bypass done and it has reversed their PCOS and I found a doctor that can do it for me. I saw doctor Dr. Fernandez in Tampa and we are currently getting prepared for the surgery sometime within the next 2 months. My only issue is that my insurance does not cover the cost and it would have to be self-pay. The surgery is $15,500 not including the doctor visits. I hope you find it in your heart to donate to my cause in bettering my life and health. Thank you for taking the time to read my story.
Organizer
Marcela Alejandra Vallejo
Organizer
Orlando, FL