I was always skinny. I was the skinny girl in a skinny family of stick people. Skinny dad. Skinny mom. Skinny sister. So when, in summer of 2006 (the summer before my senior year of college), my body went haywire and I gained 30 pounds in a three month period, I knew something was wrong. At that time, I worked at UNCA’s gym, and I looked like a giant blue blob in my standard-issue uniform. The thing is, since I was so skinny before (probably weighing an average 110-120 pounds since highschool), most people didn’t see me the way I saw me. Most didn’t even realize I’d gained so much weight.

After going to several doctors, I was diagnosed with a life-long medical condition that had triggered the weight gain. Over the next year (and a move to Flagstaff, AZ), I moved from doctor to doctor, realizing that this particular medical condition was correlated with a lot of other bad stuff other than the weight gain. High Cholesterol (Yes, I had high cholesterol at 21). Pre-Diabetes. A B-12 deficiency.

In Flagstaff, I thought I paid attention to my diet. I walked 30 minutes a day (going to and from campus), plus my regular exercising. I’d drink a Slim-Fast for breakfast. We bought our organic food from New Frontiers. But I wasn’t really thinking about quality or quantity. We still walked over to Chili’s two or three times a week for football, beer, and a feast. I got a M.A degree. I didn’t care much about the rest. I gained about ten more pounds in my time in Flagstaff.

I moved to Milledgeville. My daily walking to campus was eliminated. We bought an exercise machine to put downstairs. I was having a hard time making friends. I was having a hard time with workshopping. Derrick didn’t have a job. I had no motivation to exercise or eat right. I tried to find a doctor, but instead I found a monstrous woman who told me everything I’d ever heard from every other doctor in my life was wrong. I was really discouraged.

After a terrible Halloween, I decided that I would reduce my drinking. After a sober few weeks, I made the conscientious decision on a Saturday night to drink Bethenny Frankel’s Skinny-Girl Margaritas. Mid-celebration, I was the first person notified about my uncle’s death. Then, I drank some more. I had my last beer (a Pabst) on New Year’s Eve. I had gained fifteen more pounds during my eight months living in Milledgeville.

I don’t know what clicked (or snapped) after Christmas 2009. Uncle TJ dying? Milledgeville? The engagement in February 2010? Finally finding two doctors who seemed willing to work with me? But I decided I was going to lose weight and I did. In the past year, I have lost 30 pounds. I can fit into clothes again from my senior year of college. I might never be that skinny girl from before 2006, but I’m finally happy with my weight.

Derrick asked me the other week, why don’t you write a blog about all your food stuff. I’m like, but it’s too much! And now that I’ve been writing, I know it’s definitely too much. So over the next few weeks, I’m going to be posting a series of health-related entries. I hope the timing works well for those of you who’ve made New Year’s Resolutions to lose weight. But really, I don’t believe in New Year’s Resolutions—something that we work on for a few months and then give up, left only with guilt and leftover diet food. I believe that we should all work towards a more healthy us, and it’s definitely doable without sacrifice. I didn’t gain back a single pound over the holiday season, and if that’s not proof I don’t know what is! Happy New Year and Happy, Healthy Eatin’!