Documenting my bariatric surgery journey - why start now?

Why didn’t I start documenting my bariatric surgery journey from day one?

Honestly, the answer’s pretty straightforward: I didn’t want my journey to focus entirely on how my appearance was changing. If I’d shared publicly from the start, that would’ve been front and center, and I wasn’t ready for that. For the first year, my priority was my inner transformation—the mindset shifts, the emotional growth, and the rebuilding of habits. Those parts felt too personal to share right away.

I even skipped taking before photos! Not because I was avoiding my “before,” but because I had plenty of pictures from that time already. I didn’t want to fixate on constant comparisons. Fast forward to today: I’m a year out, 130 pounds lighter, and realizing it’s time to find and build a community to help me tackle these last 40-50 pounds, transition to maintenance, and continue solidifying a lifetime of healthy habits.

The focus is still not just about the physical change. It’s about sharing the full spectrum of this experience—the good, the hard, and the surprising—to remind others they’re not alone in choosing this path. So, here I am, ready to document, connect, and keep growing. Let’s do this together!