There have been several turning points in my life. Joining football in high school was one. The day I learned my mother had died was another. Yet another is coming. I've decided to seek stomach surgery to aid in my weight loss. I'm frustratd, and have been for several months. I've attempted to stick to my limited-calorie diet but too often I find myself hungry all the time, and often start eating without even realizing it. Also, my attempts at exercise and are even less fruitful, as back and joint pain have become too great for me to do as much as I need to.

This has been a long time in coming and I've thought about it a great deal. Since March, when I spent 10 days in the hospital, I vowed to never let this get out of hand again. However, it has happened before under the same conditions- I managed to escape staying at the hospital for more than a night then, but who's to say I'd escape again? I still haven't fully recovered, otherwise my legs would have turned back to normal. Frankly, I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired, and my mind is made up. Too many things have become difficult or even impossible and I don't want to live this way anymore. I want to live a normal life again.

I'm going to be expounding more on this as I learn it. I will be calling the surgeon soon, so expect more soon. I hope everyone can support me in this decision. Thank you.