Like a majority of the stories I've seen on DDP YOGA, I was always an overweight child. I loved eating heaping spoons of macaroni and cheese straight out the pot while I was cooking it. Truth is, I've always had an addiction to food. As a teen and young adult, I yearned to be skinny behind the lie that I was comfortable with my body. I was a very insecure young woman and thought that no one liked a fat girl. After learning that the beliefs I held were completely untrue, I finally just became comfortable as the fat girl. I became more comfortable in my own skin as I grew into a woman, settled down, got married, and had a baby. 

I went through bouts of being fed up with my weight and the struggle of finding clothing that fit me, but never made a change. In 2016, my husband and I separated and I fell into my low point. With separation and joint custody, I would neglect myself when my son wasn't around. I tried to combat the depression and anxiety with DDP Yoga, which I was reintroduced to by my now long term boyfriend. He watched the Resurrection of Jake the Snake and suggested I watch it. I did. We both immediately downloaded the DDP Yoga Now app. I started the program, and about 4 weeks in, I quit; no reasoning, but just fell off the wagon. I became complacent.

During this time, a close friend of mine asked me to be in her wedding. Of course, there was no question that I was going to stand next to her while she pledged her life to the best guy in her life. In July of this year, I purchased the dress from an online boutique and knew that the dress sizes only went up to my size. I got the dress in and decided to try it on when I got home. I looked like a busted can of biscuits. I wasn't able to zip the dress at all. Calmly, I told myself that I needed to do something and I had no other option than to take better care of myself. 

I immediately stopped eating fried foods, which was what I had been doing for the past year. Fast food was the easiest at lunch time and when I was too lazy to cook, I'd just buckle the boy in the car seat and go get a burger and fries. None of that, now. I decided first, to go low carb/keto for my diet. I had to read every single label to see what was in what I was consuming. It was so alarming! Everything I loved was so horrible for my body. 

After 3 weeks of dieting and caring about my body more than I ever had, I was ready for another change: getting back into DDP Yoga, for real, this time. After a couple weeks, I noticed the scale saying 10 lbs down... then by the end of August, I'd seen that I was down 20 lbs! The video of Arthur that I'd seen several years prior finally seemed like it was obtainable. I never thought I'd be able to lose weight like this. I never thought that I'd be able to have any self control. The only way I ever thought I'd be able to lose weight and get healthy was with a gastric surgery. Boy, have I proved myself wrong!

 Along with loving myself into health through diet and DDP Yoga, I've gained respect for myself. I have a goal that isn't unattainable. I have a great support system through the program as well. DDP YOGA has such amazing and encouraging people in the program that have been where I am right now. It's incredible to be able to see people at different stages of the program who are on the same journey as me. It gives me hope that if I stay on track, focus my energy on my goal, anything is possible