Betsy Yellon
4/29/2002
I am 42 years old, married for nearly 20 years (October 2002) to the love of my life, Jon, and have been blessed with a son, Joshua, who is 15 ½ years old (16 on New Years Eve!). I am 5’2 and weigh 298 lbs.
I work out of my home doing computer work and I also homeschool my son.
My family loves me just the way I am. They are very supportive of me in my search to lose weight and they are 100% on my side in whatever decision I make. It is actually a family decision, I would re-consider if either of them had any reservations.
I have been overweight since about the age of 11 years old. At this age, I was put on the drug Ritalin for ADD. Up until then I was very active and loved to run and play and be outside all of the time.
Looking back, I believe that I was over medicated. Back then this drug was unregulated (now it is considered a narcotic and the prescription is in triplicate and isn't so easy to get). Shortly after I began to take this medication, I was completely depleted of all my energy. I remember coming home from school and lying on the couch instead of going outside to play. As a result of non-activity, I began to gain weight. Of course, I'm sure that my food choices weren't always that great, but no different, I'm sure, than any other child my age.
Over the years I have dieted and dieted, to the point that I am now. I was told growing up "you have such a pretty face, if you would only lose weight". Wanting to "fit in" I tried and tried, to no avail, to loose that unwanted weight, so I could "be pretty". I find myself now wishing I had never dieted.
I am at the point in my life that I am miserable in my body. I am generally a happy person, and have a very healthy self-image. I have, for the most part, been nice to myself and loved myself just the way I am. That was not the story growing up, but I grew into that mindset since I had a husband who loves me just the way I am. He has never ever put me down or showed me any less affection or love as I gained weight. Even when I lost weight, he never treated me any different. Only to support me and be happy for me if that's what I wanted. He always sees me as sexy, no matter what I weigh. Wow, I guess God really did answer my prayer! I KNOW that I am blessed and thank God for that every day!
In Jan of 2000 and March of 2000 I became pregnant. Unfortunately, they were both in the tube (ectopic) and had to be surgically removed.
The first one was an emergency and it almost killed me (it is by the Grace of God that I am here, literally!). After 4 1/2 hours of surgery, they were able to save my life. The tube ruptured while I was talking to the surgeon and they had me in surgery in 20 minutes. It was like the show "ER". I have never seen people move so fast! Thank God that I was where I was, otherwise, the doctor said that I would have died for sure. I was hemorrhaging to death and apparently that only takes a matter of minutes. I told the doctor, afterwards, that all I had wanted to do was go home and lay down (while I was waiting for the test results). He said that it was a good thing I didn't go home, because even if I had called 911, they would not have been able to get to me in time.
The second ectopic was a few months later and it was suspected early on to be in the tube. I was given a shot of Methyltrexate to dissolve the pregnancy. I was in intense pain for about 12 weeks when I could no longer stand it. I went in for a lap procedure to remove the pregnancy from the tube and for a tubal ligation. The other tube was blown out in the first tubal, so there was only one left. I never wanted this to happen again, so I had them tie the remaining one off even if they could save it (which I find out later that they could not have). The lap took about 5 hours and later the doctor told me that there was so much scar tissue that all of my internal organs were stuck together and that is why I had so much pain.
During the recovery from the first tubal, I was watching the talk show Leeza. The women in the panel could have been me, literally (their story AND body shape). They all had PCOS (PolyCystic Ovarian Syndrome) and I realized that this is what I had suffered from all my life. This is why I had great difficulty getting pregnant, I had a horrible time loosing weight, I suffered from skin tags, excessive hair (under my chin) and male pattern weight gain (all in the mid-section, just like most men) and FINALLY I knew why I always had irregular periods (only one or two year).
After so many years of not knowing what was wrong with me, the puzzle pieces finally fit together. Unfortunately, I was un-diagnosed for such a long time (from puberty until the age 40), that there was extensive damage done to my tubes. It was really inevitable that, if I ever became pregnant, it would be in the tube. All I can say is that my son is a miracle!!!!
My reason for writing down about PCOS, is because if someone happens to read my profile, they may realize that they also have PCOS and seek medical treatment. The effects of PCOS can be dangerous if untreated, as can morbid obesity. If you think you have symptoms of PCOS, please seek out any and all information on it and seek medical advice. It is not curable but is only controllable by diet.
I need this surgery. I want to do this for me. I want to do this for my family. I think that they deserve to have a wife and mother that can be active and not be limited by my size.
