Tina Minasyan shares how losing weight was just the beginning of her journey.
The first time I became aware of my weight, I was in fourth grade.
My weight skyrocketed and the first thing to go was my confidence.
Photo: Instagram/@TinaMinasyan
Not necessarily because it bothered me, but becauseI was constantly being judged and teased for my weight.
I went from being a social butterfly to being incredibly reserved.
I felt like my weight defined me.
Soon enough, I’d dug myself into a deep dark hole where I felt completely and utterly alone.
I spenta lot of time in therapy, which helped me cope with my feelings of depression.
But I was still desperate and impatient to lose weight.
I decided to take matters into my own hands and began dieting.
I tried every dietand I mean every single thing out there.
But my weight didn’t budge.
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During this time, I was working on getting my GED.
My desperation grew and I finally decided it was time to turn to a professional for help.
Undergoing Weight-Loss Surgery
By July 2015, I weighed 320 pounds.
I was 20 years old and only 5 foot 3.
My doctors classified me as morbidly obese.
My depression deepened and I started looking toward weight-loss surgery as a solution.
Now, many people think that weight-loss surgery is the “easy way out.”
But I’m here to tell you it’s quite the opposite.
Here’s the thing: Thereisno easy way out when it comes to extreme weight loss.
Yes, I’ve had surgery, which is something I’m very transparent about.
I still walked out of that surgery obese and had a long road ahead of me.
The Aftermath
The first two weeks of recovery were absolutely miserable for me.
When I was anxious, junk food made me feel better.
And when I felt helpless, my outlet was to just eat whatever I could get my hands on.
So I decided to cut all of these crutches out of my life.
I also started going to college during this time and found myself easing up on restrictive eating.
For the most part, though, I brushed it off.
I needed to learn how to focus on what I wantmostversus what I wantnow.
To date, I’ve lost 170 pounds and still feel like I have 25 pounds to lose.
My next goal is to establish a fitness routine and build that into my lifestyle.
Recently, I started going for long walks with my dog almost every day.
But in the future, I’d like to get into the gym and work on my overall strength.
