A Little About Courtney

As a child growing up I was a stick with a butt. My nickname, bubble butt, was accurate to say the least.  It wasn’t until I hit puberty (in the 4^th grade I might add) that my weight exploded. I went from a kid’s size 11/12 to a junior’s size 6. I was 110 lbs by the 5^th grade and it only went up from there.

By the time I was in junior high I was 150 lbs. I was a cheerleader and really active so it kept my weight gain at bay.  In high school I gave up cheering to be a band/theater member and ballooned to 175. At the same time I also dealt with the loss of my mother and grandmother less than 6 months apart.

I began to handle my stress and emotions in not so healthy ways. I started smoking on a regular basis around this time and buried my emotions under a bad attitude and food. It wasn’t until my senior year of high school that I started to get things under control.

When I met the man of my dreams soon after graduation I weighed 160. Soon after I became pregnant and had our first son in March 2005. I gained 45 lbs while I was pregnant. After I gave birth I managed to lose all the weight except 15 lbs. At 175 I didn’t feel all that uncomfortable. It was a weight I guess I was just use to.

Less than a year later, in April 2006, I gave birth to our 2^nd son. This time I only gained 25 lbs during my pregnancy and lost all but 10. At 185 I felt a little self conscience but was still ok. I had an IUD placed at my 6 week check up and this is where it all gets a little confusing for me.

From 2006 to 2009 I gained 21 lbs. I wasn’t eating any differently, I wasn’t doing anything differently or so I thought. I read a lot of articles from women who had IUDs who were experiencing the same problem. A friend of mine had even had her weight balloon while having her IUD. Also as a mother of 2 that were 11 months apart I was constantly busy. I never had time to stop and think about what I was eating or when or even how much.

I guess most mothers can relate to the concept of eating when, where, and what you can. Looking back I realize that it was probably a combination of all these things that caused my weight to balloon like it did.

In February 2009 I found out I was pregnant with our 3^rd son. At 206 lbs one of the first things my midwife said to me was she didn’t want me to gain more than 15 lbs with this pregnancy. I agreed that I would try. Turns out I didn’t have to try. I had a normal pregnancy, felt fine, and only gained 18 lbs. So imagine my surprise at my 6 week check up when they told me I weighed 196!

Somehow during those 9 months I had actually lost 10lbs. But that is where it stopped! Dead cold STOPPED! It wasn’t until we moved to South Carolina in 2012 that I found myself losing weight again.

I am now starting this journey at 188 lbs with the goal of getting back to my pre-pregnancy weight of 160. It’s going to be a long, long road. Along the way I hope to end my relationships with many of my vices including smoking, which just may be the hardest battle of all.

I hope along the way I can document the difficulties and triumphs, so that one day I can look back on them and laugh. And maybe just maybe learn a few things about who I was and how I became so strong.