She Lost 170lbs, But Still Wasn’t Happy. Until…
by Tera Warner
Hey there, Change-Seeking Survivor!
We’re rolling out more good news and life-changing stories as part of our commitment to getting you onboard our new 12-month program .
I’ve seen what a year of good support and quality programs can do for a woman’s life and I think it’s time you got a boost, too. 😉
Today’s story is from Caroline O’Connor in Dublin.
She came on board as a participant of our Virtual Retreat last year and quickly moved on to join our Certified Coaching team.
She has an inspiring story of weight loss, but it’s not what she lost that will inspire you the most, but what she found and how it happened!
Keep reading and you’ll see what I mean. 😉
“I Was Overwhelmed With the Fear of Being Alone.”
When people hear I’ve lost 12 stone (168 lbs), they usually want to know which “miracle diet” I used.
They’re rather disappointed when I tell them that my weight loss success isn’t a story of quick fix miracle products and a fast track approach to incredible weight loss. It’s the story of persistence, commitment, sweat, and a few years of dedicated effort to make things get better.
I was a chubby child growing up, but it got worse when the teenage years hit. Adolescence can deal a harsh social blow to chubby kids. Not having the tools to communicate or courage to stand up for myself, or the confidence to make better choices, I turned to food for comfort.
It was the summer of 2001…
I was 26-years old and my mum was dying of cancer. I had the frightening realization that I was going to be alone in the world.
Panic set in and I decided enough was enough. Looking around me it was clear skinny meant happy and therefore I needed to get skinny. Period.
My sudden determination to get thin wasn’t borne out of a noble idea to improve my health and fitness. It came directly from an overwhelming fear of spending the rest of my life alone.
So, I found myself again on the scale at my local Weight Watchers meeting determined that this time I was going to get to grips with my weight. I was going to be slim for the first time since I was born.
The wind was abruptly taken from my sails when I was told I had reached a weight of 26st 3.5lbs (367.5lbs)!!!
How could I have let things get so out of hand? Why didn’t I reign myself in at 17 stone or 22 stone? The disgust I felt in myself was overwhelming. It was going to take me years to get rid of all that fat.
The Slow Road, Not the Fast Track
I was desperate to shed the weight but had no clue about healthy eating.
I detested all vegetables except potatoes and would only eat those if they were deep fried. I desperately grasped at any new “diet” or “weight loss” gimmick that came on the market offering me a glimmer of hope that I could be slim. Each new miracle solution and fad diet got me back on a roller coaster of short term success followed by binge eating and more weight gain.
Then I discovered the raw, plant-based diet.
I was sceptical, but once animals, their by-products, wheat, sugar and processed foods were removed from my diet, the pounds melted away without effort. It’s common sense, really: if we eat the food nature intended, we have everything we need to fuel growth, fight disease, regenerate our bodies and restore our health!
I won’t pretend it happened overnight, but with persistence and discipline the weight dripped off and eventually added up to 12 stone (170 lbs)!!! That’s an entire extra body size!!
And while that’s great news, and it certainly is an impressive accomplishment, there’s bad news, too:
Skinny Doesn’t Mean Happy
I committed to getting skinny so I could find “happy,” and eventhough I lost 12 stone (170 lbs!!!), I still didn’t feel happy. I didn’t appreciate my achievement or feel more confident.
No matter how much weight I lost, it was never enough. 
I still felt unhappy, I just felt it in a smaller body. My weight had changed buy my sense of purpose, my confidence and belief in myself had not, so I continued to sabotage myself regularly.
When I joined Body Enlightenment’s Virtual Lifestyle Design Retreat, I was gaining weight again, feeling directionless, dissatisfied in my job, overwhelmed by debts, and hopeless about what I could do about it.
“That course got me unstuck and more!!”
I had a complete shift in the way I view life.
The content, the tools and the support of the other beautiful women taking part made it an amazing experience.
Once the course finished that’s when the real work began–applying the tools I’d learned, accepting responsibility for my situation and taking steps towards my goals.
Life’s obstacles are still there but I bounce back quicker from any setbacks.
I’m Not “Perfect” But I’m Comfortable With Myself Now!
A couple of months after I completed the course I stopped wearing makeup which I would never have had the confidence to do before as I was so self conscious about the rosacea on my face.
“I can be myself now! I am finally comfortable with who I am!”
I have thrown out the bathroom scale and appreciate my whole body including my stretch marks and squidgy bits.
While initially my goal was skinny at all costs, now I am more interested in health, preventing disease and developing my fitness. I have my attention on making life go right rather than obsessing about the number on the scale. I’m far from perfect but my “never give up attitude” has taken me this far and I’m wildly excited about where I’m going next.
I am proof that if you just keep chipping away at something you can achieve success because even if you give up on yourself (which I did many times), other people will come in to your life and help and inspire you along the way. 
The biggest difference in shifting my life, not just my looks, was having the support and care of other people who knew what it took and helped me get to the other side. They believed in me and did what it took to help me find something “skinny” never could…
...Happy!!
🙂
Whatever your goals for health and beauty, I’d love to support you on the road to happy, too.
One of my favourite quotes is by Abraham Lincoln “I may walk slowly, but I never walk backward”. That approach sums up the 12 month program perfectly and I promise that if you commit to 12 months with us I will walk with you every step of the way to a fabulous new you.
With confidence about your success,
Caroline.
What Do You Have to Lose?
Whatever it is you have to lose (pounds, insecurity, worry or self-doubt), stop “thinking” about how to make your life better and DO what it takes!! Spend two minutes and fill out the Personal Toxicity Assessment TODAY!
Meet with Caroline and take the next step toward your happy.
Love and hugs,
p.s.
A reminder about tomorrow night’s LIVE Teleclass. I’ll be sharing a backstage look at our new 12-Month Program. You can read all about that call and access the links for it here.
Come Ride the Highway to Happy With Us!
