An overweight woman who shed a whopping 129lbs has revealed her weight loss led to the end of her marriage after her husband demanded a divorce when he realized she no longer had to rely on him.
Content creator and podcast host Kellie Wilson, 34, from Oregon, started to gain a significant amount of weight after being diagnosed with autoimmune disease lupus, as well as rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia – a condition which causes chronic pain and fatigue all over the body – in 2014.
Practically bedridden, Kellie turned to food to comfort her growing depression. Platefuls of pasta and late night binges on Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and cookies led to her weight spiraling out of control. At her heaviest, Kellie weighed 270lbs and struggled to fit into size 18 clothing.
As a result of her increasing weight, and the symptoms of her illness, Kellie was often left unable to walk more than a few steps before her legs gave out – so husband Mike, 32, who Kellie met in 2007, became her caretaker.
Transformation: A woman whose weight ballooned after she was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease has revealed how she managed to shed 129lbs with the help of surgery
Struggle: Kellie Wilson, 34, from Oregon, turned to food for comfort when she was diagnosed with lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia, in 2014, and her weight soon shot up
New lease on life: As a result of her weight gain and her autoimmune disease, Kellie (pictured recently) was left unable to walk more than a few steps without her legs giving out
Kellie tried a number of diets but found that she would lose upwards of 20 pounds before relapsing and putting the weight all back on again.
Being unable to exercise due to her ongoing health problems, Kellie knew that a more drastic option was required if she wanted to change her life for the better.
In October 2018, Kellie arranged a meeting with a bariatric surgeon to discuss options for weight loss surgery and in April 2019, Kellie underwent a vertical sleeve procedure in which 80 per cent of the stomach is surgically removed to suppress a patient’s appetite.
Remarkably, immediately following her operation, the pain she had been feeling all over her body due to her numerous health conditions had disappeared, something that the surgeon operating put down to the anesthetic potentially changing her body’s chemical makeup.
Whilst Kellie does still occasionally have flare ups related to her chronic medical conditions, these are now a rarity as opposed to the norm and she has managed to come off the eight pills she was taking per day to manage her pain. As a result, Kellie feels that her mind is much clearer and her mental health is better than it has ever been.
Since her operation, Kellie has managed to lose 129lbs, and now weighs just 141lbs. She amazingly fits into a size two and receives plenty of compliments from her friends, family and those in the weight loss surgery community online who say that she looks incredible and is an inspiration.
Support: Kellie was forced to rely on her husband Mike, who she met in 2007, for almost everything, and he even had to carry her to the bathroom on occasion
Enough is enough: Having tried to lose weight through dieting, Kellie decided to take more drastic action, and in 2019, she underwent weight loss surgery
Way to go! As a result of her weight loss surgery, and a strict new diet, Kellie shed 129lbs and began to take control of her life again
No longer being bed bound, Kellie is now able to do simple things that she was unable to do before such as taking out the rubbish and sorting the recycling. Whilst this new-found independence has changed her life for the better, it has also changed the dynamic of her and her husband’s relationship.
With Kellie no longer relying on Mike to take care of her, tensions rose within the relationship, culminating in Mike asking Kellie for a divorce at the beginning of 2021.
Whilst the separation has been devastating for the couple after 14 years together, Kellie says that she is discovering more about herself than ever before and feels for the first time in a long time that she is in control of her own destiny.
Kellie has even started a podcast with her friend Melanie Gottfried, 34, who also has undergone weight loss surgery, in which the pair talk about the ups and downs they have faced in the aftermath of their procedures.
‘I met my now-ex when I was just twenty and gained what I would call ‘happy weight’ because we were comfortable around each other and loved going out for dinner,’ said Kellie.
‘My weight really started to increase after I was diagnosed with lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia in 2014.
‘I had to quit my job as I was bedridden and could hardly walk without falling. My ex would sometimes even have to carry me to the bathroom.
‘A lot of the medication I was taking to manage my illnesses contributed to weight gain and I also comfort ate to try and suppress how bad I felt about myself and my life.
‘I was eating to cope with the fact that I was stuck in bed in my twenties while all of my friends were out enjoying their lives like I should have been.
Difficulty: While Kellie felt better than she had in years after her surgery – her husband Mike struggled to come to terms with her new-found independence
End of the road: With Kellie no longer relying on Mike to take care of her, tensions rose within the relationship, culminating in Mike asking Kellie for a divorce at the beginning of 2021
Moving on: Despite her marriage coming to an end, Kellie says she feels better than she ever has thanks to her healthy new lifestyle
‘I would order a McDonald’s meal but add on extra burgers and fries and just gorge on it all in a matter of minutes.
‘The only option I had to interact was if my friends wanted to come over and hang out at my bedside.
‘I would eat so much pasta and sugary foods as a way of coping and would go to the kitchen when no one was around and I would eat a whole tub of Ben & Jerry’s with crushed cookies in it.
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‘I looked at myself in the mirror and didn’t recognize myself anymore because I had gained so much weight.
‘It was so debilitating that I just wanted it to be all over.
‘Before I was diagnosed, I would go through periods of dieting and losing twenty or thirty pounds and then would stop and gain it all back again and more.
‘I think I even did Weight Watchers three times in total.
‘There was a moment I went to my little sister’s birthday and got all dressed up and felt good about myself for the first time in years but afterwards, I looked back at the pictures that were taken that day and hated the way I looked.
‘I knew I needed to do something more dramatic to change my life.
‘In October 2018, I contacted a surgeon for the first time to discuss options for weight loss surgery, not knowing if I was even eligible and by April 2019, I was going under the knife.
‘After the surgery, I woke up and the doctors asked me to do laps of the room as part of my recovery. By my third lap, I realized that I wasn’t in pain anymore.
‘It was like a miracle. I had been taking eight pills for my pain everyday for five years.
‘I asked my surgeon and they said that sometimes if you go under anesthesia, your body chemistry can change and you can go from having significant pain to no pain at all.
‘Before my surgery, my fibromyalgia got to the point where people couldn’t touch me because it hurt so bad but now about 80 per cent of the time I feel great, although I do still occasionally have bad days.
‘The biggest change as a result of my weight loss has been the relationship between me and my soon to be ex-husband.
‘I was very dependent on my husband before my surgery and after, I just wanted to be independent and make my own decisions.
‘When you have been living with a certain dynamic between you for so many years, it can be really tough to change that suddenly.
Incredible: The weight loss has helped to ease the symptoms of Kellie’s autoimmune disease
Up and at ’em! Kellie is now able to lead an incredibly active lifestyle with minimal pain
Unhealthy: Before her weight loss, Kellie’s diet consisted of lots of pasta and fast food including McDonald’s, Taco Bell, and ice cream – totaling roughly 3,000 calories per day
Evolution: Now, Kellie follows a protein rich diet consisting of cheese, salami, chicken and protein shakes – totaling 1,000 calories per day
‘It’s really hard to go from that role of caretaker to someone not needing you in that way anymore.
‘The weight loss and the podcast became such a big thing for me and he felt that I wasn’t invested in our relationship anymore.
‘As heartbreaking as it is because we were together for 14 years and I really do love him, the divorce isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
‘It is certainly one of the most difficult things to happen as a result of my weight loss.
‘Now little things like taking out the trash and doing the recycling are weirdly exciting.
‘I really like now having control over my own life when for so long, this was not possible.’
Before her weight loss, Kellie’s diet consisted of lots of pasta and fast food including McDonald’s, Taco Bell, and ice cream – totaling roughly 3,000 calories per day.
Now, Kellie follows a protein rich diet consisting of cheese, salami, chicken and protein shakes – totaling 1,000 calories per day.
Kellie hopes that her podcasting will allow her to educate others on the benefits of weight loss surgery whilst dispelling some of the myths and misconceptions surrounding it.
‘I’ve had a lot of people thank me and say that I’ve shown them that weight loss surgery isn’t as scary as they first thought,’ said Kellie.
‘There is a lot of scaremongering around it and it to be able to educate people about the options available and the process is a great thing.
‘My surgery has allowed me to regain control over my life and whilst this has not always been easy, I’m now finding out more about myself than I ever have in my life.’
Source: Daily Mail
