Woman loses 500 pounds NO SURGERY

hoppyfrog

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She'll be on "Oprah" this week:

http://woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7406916

Like more than a quarter of men and women in Michigan, Nancy Makin was obese.

But at more than 700 pounds, hers was an extreme case.

and

Then a gift from family brought Nancy Makin out of that isolation. Her sister gave her a computer.

and

"Faceless strangers helped save my life because the anonymity of the internet allowed me to connect to people who wouldn't ouf of hand reject me because of my appearance," Makin said.

Now with people to talk to, she began to lose weight naturally. Makin figures she lost more than 100 pounds without even noticing.

...she just found herself with emotional connections that replaced her desire to constantly eat.

much more at link
 
It makes me think of the Skinner Box where a mouse pushes a lever to get food. They use the same experiements with cocaine and monkey's push the lever to the point of abandoning food... addiction. She might have found a replacement addiction (the attention/positive feedback) from the computer world rather than food.

That's just wonderful. Not only does she gain confidence, but she loses weight to maintain the confidence -

:)
 
I think that was a wonderful story hoppy. I love talking on the internet because it's not important who you are, what you look like, how much money you have/don't have, etc. You get to know people on a real human level, like here at WS, from the hearts and minds. That's what makes us the people we are. People need to be in contact and connect with other people. Loneliness is probably one of the saddest human conditons for anyone. I'm so glad she didn't give up on herself.
 
wow, that's a Stunning weight loss--good for her--I'll have to catch that oprah show
 
I hate to say it but I hope she always has a computer because addicts substitute one addiction for another. Her food addiction was replaced by the computer. I pray she keeps the weight off. What an accomplishment.
 
That makes me so happy for her, and it gives hope to people who have given up
 
This lady needs to understand that she saved her life. This is a wonderful story of courage and truimph. God bless her.
 
I also hope that she's not addicted to the computer or doesn't get addicted to or hurt by some man she met online. It's great that she lost that much and improved her health.
 
I also hope that she's not addicted to the computer or doesn't get addicted to or hurt by some man she met online. It's great that she lost that much and improved her health.

I think she'll be better off - at that weight, she wouldn't live very long. Now she can. Once she realizes she CAN get off her butt and do stuff, she'll be hiking and climbing mountains or riding a bike or something she couldn't do before. :)
 
This lady needs to understand that she saved her life. This is a wonderful story of courage and truimph. God bless her.
She did save her life. You can be addicted to the computer and to food, too. It takes a heck of a lot of effort to any weight much less that much weight. Does she exercise? I need to read the article more thoroughly to see if she does. :eek:
 
That's just weird because many people state that after getting a computer and spending time sitting online they usually gain weight.
 
I'm watching Oprah and there are many women on who are so pretty, and are recovering addicts. First food, then drugs, alcohol, etc. They've had gastic bypass surgeries, lost over 100 lbs. to a normal size, and then became alcoholics or sex addicts or addicted to something else.:eek:
Carnie Wilson shared her story.
I think Carnie is such a beautiful person, inside and outside.
Her story of becoming physically beautiful after her gastric bypass then drinking heavily every day and almost ruining her life again was so sad.
She's clean and sober now, and has a beautiful baby and seems happy. She said that her addictive behaviors were a way to deal with life's problems instead of facing them. She and most of the other women say they are in ongoing therapy after rehab.
Addictions are so complex and destructive.

It must be hell to have gone through the expense, pain and eating style changes of a gastric bypass or succeeded with a huge weight loss through another method, like the lady who utilized Internet support, and find that there is still an empty place of pain inside. Her story received so much publicity. I hope she and others in a similar place are dealing with life head on and sober.
 
Sitting in front of the computer just seems to make me get fatter! ;)

I'm glad this worked for her! If, like some posters say, she's just changed addictions, this one has to be better for her in the long run.
 
I watched her on Oprah. She also said that she would smoke 3 packs of cigs. a day.. There was a few others on there who lost massive amounts of weight also and I was just amazed at all of their stories and they told just how much food they used to consume when they were big. It was almost unbelivable. Their stories definately brought much hope to me and my stubborn 20 lbs I need to lose lol...
 

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