Spotlight Reader – Introducing Tierney

My name is Tierney, and this is my weight loss surgery journey. I have struggled with my weight my entire life. From the time I was a child, about 8 years old, until my adult life I was always the “big” girl. Being overweight weighed heavily on my self-esteem, causing a lot of wrong decisions and pain. I knew I HAD to make a change.

As a child, I always felt like I could not control myself when it came to food. If it was on my plate, I ate it. I vividly remember forcing myself to not eat. I felt like I was starving all the time even when I had just eaten. I never understood the concept of eating until my stomach was “satisfied” because I always ate until I was stuffed. Other children would pick on me, calling me fat and so many other names. My childhood was severely wounded as a result.

When I became an adult, I found band aid methods to help me lose weight. Fad diets, weight loss pills and so many other things. They all worked temporarily but they never helped me with the root of my issues in my mind, in turn causing me to always regain the weight. On top of the mental struggles, I encountered some physical struggles that also caused my weight gain. Childbirth, PCOS and fibroids all caused rapid weight gain in my 20s. The peak of my weight gain came in 2020 when I gave birth to my 3rd child. Having Gestational Diabetes that went untreated, due to my doctor’s negligence, he was born at 11 pounds. I reached my highest weight of 282 pounds, and I looked and felt horrible.

In the summer of 2021, I decided it was time for a change. Although I’d heard of people having weight loss surgery, I never considered that option for myself, but it is literally the best thing I have ever done. I can honestly say that for the first time in my life, I feel beautiful. This journey is bigger than a number on the scale. This journey is about me learning to love myself for the first time ever. I am 6 months post op and am currently down 60 pounds from my highest weight.

I’d be lying if I said this was easy. I still feel the urge to binge eat and sometimes I try to give in to that temptation but through prayer and much support from my husband and my family, I am still conquering those emotions. I enjoy educating others on the bariatric process through my platform on TikTok and I also enjoy creating bariatric friendly drink ideas for my followers. Every day in this journey is a process. I’m learning new things and how to love me one step at a time. I wouldn’t change it for the world!

By the way, The BariGirls are glad we found each other.

Spotlight