Before & After

For as long as I can remember I've always been overweight. I was always teased as a kid by being called 'fatso", "chubby " or "Frere Toc". One time I lost 25 lbs by following "You Can" and kept it off for about a year. However over the next several years I became a yo-yo dieter. I tried several diets including the rice diet, the grapefruit diet, pills, and those stupid shakes. None of them worked.

I became very depressed and didn't want to live anymore. I stayed at home feeling lonely and of course I turned to food. l ate and l ate until I reached 215lbs. I was even ashamed to leave my apartment.

The turning point of my life occurred October 1998 when my sister Paulette from Saint John introduced me to Food For Life. I said to myself I've tried everything else why not this one. So I tried it on my own for 2 weeks and lost 5 pounds. All encouraged, I decided to join the support group with Natalie here in Fredericton. She was just what I needed, humourous, enthusiastic, encouraging, helpful, energetic and I could go on and on. Food For Llfe changed my life forever.

I'm no longer sitting at home feeling sorry for myself. I've joined the YMCA and I exercise 6 times a week. I've lost 64 lbs. I still have those bad days here and there but I get right back on track. I feel energized, I eat healthy, I exercise regularly but most of all I feel like living again.

This past summer in July, I started a Food For Life support group in Campbellton and by the end of August we were up to 35 members. Being a teacher, I had to come back to my job in Fredericton. So Natalie and I encouraged my sister Monique to continue the group and it still going strong.

- Sylvie Essiambre, Campbellton

I have never been a tiny person and I had been putting on weight slowly but steadily over the years. I had tried to lose it on my own but never succeeded. The year I turned 40 I decided I would like to learn how to eat healthy. I knew Food For Life followed the Canada's Food Guide so I joined. I lost 31 lbs and have lots of energy. Being able tofit into smaller sizes is great!

- Tammy Fraser, Fredericton

I was a normal weight until I graduated. Then my weight problem started. From then on my weight was like a yo-yo. I kept trying to get down to a healthy weight by trying every diet you can name. After I had my two children I gave up for about three years. In '96 I was going through some photos and there I was. "Wow" I had got way out of control. That's when I heard about Cathy Hamilton and Food For Life. I told myself if she could do it, so could I.

Now l5Olbs lighter I am a new person. I have a new lease on life! I have had my weight off for a number of years now and I now direct the Grand Falls Food For Life Chapter! What a difference!

- Kathy Good, Grand Falls

The fact that I have lost over 60 lbs in a year and a half is amazing in itself, but when you consider the conditions in which I have lost it, the weight loss becomes a miracle.

I came to Food For Life in August '97, a little over a year and a half after the birth of twins, it was my fourth pregnancy. I weighed almost 2501bs. I was desperate to lose the weight but scared to believe that I could. It didn't take long to realize that by following the Canada's Food Guide to healthy weight loss, adding a bit of exercise, and drinking plenty of water, I could and was losing weight. With a little patience and a lot of gained knowledge about healthy eating, I was succeeding at weight loss and a healthier lifestyle in general.

This success has not been without trials. About six months into my weight loss, my two year old daughter underwent open heart surgery in Halifax. This was a very stressful month but I knew what I needed to do and had better coping skills to handle the situation. I still kept losing! Lift is still hectic as one can imagine with so many children, but the way I handle it has changed and that's what makes the difference. I'm glad I found Food For Life, more important, I'm glad I found me.

- Krista Foster, Fredericton

My battle of the bulge began when I was in grade 8 when I joined a leading weight loss program. I have lost and gained myself a number a times usually losing weight for special events - 9Olbs for a friend 's wedding in 1990, 45 lbs for my brother's wedding in 1993, 40 lbs for another friend 's wedding in 1994, 35 lbs for a cruise in 1995, etc. Some of this I was able to do on my own but I also attended a weight support group. I never did reach my goal weight and was within 5 lbs at one time.

Last October 1998, I decided to join Food For Life after my mother and father joined in Florenceville. I was aware of the Food For Life program because of the program Natalie operated in the Hartland area (my hometown). I knew the program was a healthy choice (I never tried any fad diets).

I have lost 80 lbs in the last year and have enjoyed the group support at the Food For Life meetings. I am lucky that I have a friend who is also on the program. This has made losing weight much easier. I feel that I am at a weight that I can maintain. Since I am a school teacher, I was away all summer. When I returned to work in September with a new wardrobe, tanned, and even healthier looking it was a real morale booster. Fellow teachers, janitors, district office staff and even my students, were all talking about me!

- Janice Shaw, Fredericton