When this teen’s doctor told her that her diet was killing her, she underwent a dramatic transformation that you need to see to believe.
Many people struggle with their weight and follow a poor diet, but few have the courage to make the type of changes that Cassandra Hili, from Sydney, Australia, did. She recently shared her story with Cater’s Real Life, telling us all about what it took to change her mindset and turn her life around.
Throughout her childhood, Cassandra was always overweight.
By her teens, it had reached a breaking point. By the time she was 14, her doctors said she wouldn’t be able to attend her formal because she was morbidly obese. In fact, they warned her that her excess weight caused her blood pressure to be dangerously high, putting her at risk of a fatal heart attack without any warning.
When talking to Cater’s, Cassandra explained:
“My doctor took me aside and told me if I kept piling on weight I wouldn’t be alive to attend my year 10 formal. He said ‘you’re big, you’re heavy, you’re unhealthy – you could have a heart attack at any moment.’”
Unsurprisingly, these words hit Cassandra hard:
“Being told my weight would kill me was like being stabbed in the gut – it was such a painful thing to hear.”
Even this eye-opening statement from her doctor didn’t quite convince Cassandra to make changes.
To put her mindset at the time in perspective:
“At that point I had lost faith and didn’t care anymore. I’d been going to the hospital nearly every week since I was eight years old because of my weight and I had just had enough. Not only had I given up on my body but my doctors had started giving up on me as well – they said there was nothing I could do because I didn’t want to help myself.”
Cassandra was incredibly depressed, and no one thought she had it in her to make the needed changes.
“I was so depressed I stopped taking care of myself. I wore the same thing every day because it was comfortable and I never went out and socialized because I hated my body.”
Her doctor’s attempt at opening her eyes didn’t go as planned:
“So when my doctor told me I’d be dead before my formal I just thought ‘oh well, I probably wouldn’t have gone anyway.’”
Cassandra just felt like giving up.
While some of Cassandra’s weight issues were within her control, not everything was. At age 8, she discovered she was resistant to insulin after her parents were worried about her quick weight gain. This condition increases her risk of obesity, as well as type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance also makes it harder to lose weight and burn fat.
With that condition in mind, and her depression active, Cassandra was just too stubborn to change, despite knowing she could die. By age 16, she weighed 258 pounds. Her weight also led to bullying.
For Cassandra, the issue with food was never unhealthy food.
“I just had trouble with portion control and would always eat way too many carbs.”
This was worsened by the delicious fresh food from her family, which is Maltese and Italian.
“Depression got the best of me and food became my safety net.”
Everything changed right before Cassandra’s 17th birthday.
Before that fateful day, she struggled with daily activities. Even walking to the bus stop left her out of breath. The change all came thanks to Christina Aguilera and her performance in “Burlesque.”
“At the time of watching Burlesque my big dream was to be a professional singer and I was in love with the way Christina Aguilera performed and moved. I wanted to be her but I knew that would never happen because I was so obese. That was my lightbulb moment.”
After that, Cassandra did everything she could:
“I worked really hard every day and just never gave up. I never could have achieved what I have today without losing the weight.”
Today, Cassandra is a healthy weight and is now a size 10, a sharp contrast to her former size 22.
At 23 years old, she runs Millennium Communications, a PR agency. She eats well and stays active, with the occasional indulgence.
“My life has changed dramatically. I’m more confident, strong and determined than ever before.”
With such a strong example, anyone can find the inspiration they need to lose weight.
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