“I realized it
was my mind and
not my stomach
that made me
want to eat...”
Cindy Patterson of Dunkirk found herself not able to keep up with her grandchildren and saw her peers decline in health. For years, she tried popular name-brand diets, which worked for a while but didn’t result in long-term success.
“I was not feeling well and worrying about the future,” Cindy said.
She had been talking about her weight with her primary care provider for years, and then was pointed to Core Life in August 2022. Cindy’s goal was longevity to be healthier so she could get on the floor and play with her grandchildren. She wanted to run and feel healthy, like her 91-year-old mother who takes water aerobics three times per week.
Knowing how many times she had started a weight loss program, Cindy dove deep into researching her options for medication.
“You name it, I have tried it through the years,” Cindy said.
Cindy said she loves to learn and to research things on her own, but also likes get input from other people. This was a crucial part of her weight management journey. She would read information then have one on one appointments with nutritionists at Calvert Health Weight Management or with Dr. Jessica Erisman.
“I have always been a deep thinker and I like to get other people’s opinions and I like to learn. If I can meet with a counselor and get a tidbit of knowledge that will help me in my personal knowledge, that’s what I crave,” Cindy said.
Cindy said the accountability was key and she felt she could be truly honest because the providers know the realities of weight management.
“I felt like she [Dr. Erisman] understood me when we talked. She was my accountability partner,” Cindy said.
Cindy said she learned how the medication can change hunger cue dynamics but that she also knew she needed to talk to someone about why she eats and to confront her addiction to eating.
“I realized it was my mind and not my stomach that made me want to eat because it was satisfying and made me feel good,” Cindy said.
Cindy lost her 19-year-old daughter in a car accident 15 years ago. “That changed me,” she said. “It made me keep eating to satisfy that sadness. Eating is an addiction.”
One of the bigger challenges Cindy faced was learning which foods are high protein and how to meet her goal percentages of fat, protein, and carbs.
“I knew carbs because I was on the Atkins diet, twice!” Cindy said. Her biggest advice to people starting on a weight management treatment plan is to learn as much as possible about nutrition beyond calories and to find an accountability partner.
As Cindy has lost weight and been on weight loss medication, her inflammation has drastically reduced. After two knee replacements, a shoulder replacement, and a hip replacement, she doesn’t hurt any more and can more easily garden in her yard. She can also walk through the zoo with her grandchildren when before, she would have opted out of a trip like that.
“The energy, mobility and the happiness, I’ve come around to a happy place. I’m pleased with how my body looks, except for the extra skin but I would rather have flabby arms and go on a field trip with my grandkids!” Cindy said, “I can live and do things that I was hesitant to do before because I knew I couldn’t keep up.”