Today is my 6 month surgiversary. It seems odd to celebrate a date where I voluntarily removed the majority of my stomach (like I’m celebrating the death of my stomach). To celebrate, I am starting this blog. I want to talk about my journey before the sleeve and after the sleeve, in a real way. I’m not going to pass over the frustrating or negative aspects. In fact, if you only want to read only positive posts, you should probably read someone else’s blog. I want to be honest with everyone that is reading this, and with myself. So, I’ll begin with the story of my life before the Sleeve. I am married, in my mid-thirties (Ssshhh…don’t tell!) and do not have any children. I can’t remember a time that I wasn’t overweight. I don’t remember ever shopping in the “normal size” section of clothing stores. Basically, I have been overweight my entire life. And, I have always “known” that I was overweight. I’ve done plenty of commercial weight loss programs. I joined my first one when I was teenager. I have started and then quit so many times that I have a graveyard of dieting materials in my bookcase. I was NEVER an athlete. The idea of getting up and running, even when I was younger, seemed stupid to me. Why would anyone ever do that to themselves? In the past few years, I tried adding exercise to my dieting. I even worked with a personal trainer for a while. But, nothing seemed to work. Ok, let’s be honest…I didn’t work for it!