My journey with Nuviva began the summer of 2013. I was healthy….perfect cholesterol and didn’t feel bad, with the exception of daily lower back pain, but could not stand the image of myself when I saw myself in pictures. I became the one in the crowd that always took the picture and chose not to be in them, changing Facebook so that no one could post a picture of me without my approval. I was at a fundraising event through The Brandon Chamber of Commerce (wherein I had just gone out and had to purchase something to wear….in a size 16) when I had an opportunity to bid on an opportunity with Nuviva through a silent auction. The evening was spent running back to the table until I knew that I had the winning bid.

Meeting with the staff of Nuviva was great. They were informative, happy and most of all…encouraging. The journey began…there were good weeks and then not so good weeks. The biggest lesson learned from the staff there was that it was OK to have a bad week, a bad day….they taught me, for the first time, how to get back on track, rather than always being focused on staying on track. I was making great progress towards my goal, had just started the third phase of my journey when tragedy struck. I very suddenly and unexpectedly was faced with the loss of the most important woman in my life…my mother. I called Jimmy that night in tears and he was there to listen and to let me know it would be ok. He told me to take what I had learned with me on my trip to deal with my loss and that there would be a time to get back. With amazement, I found that with all I had learned, I was able to make choices that supported my progress and yet also faced with the pasta deliveries that typically accompany a loss in the family, I was able to enjoy without guilt or weight gain.

It’s been a difficult time since, but at the end…I have completed phase one of my journey with Nuviva in successfully losing and maintaining a loss of 30 pounds…having to have purchased size 10 pants recently and I look forward to when, in the near future, I return to Nuviva to complete my journey and lose another 10-15 pounds to complete my goal. A huge thank you to Jimmy and his staff. What a great addition to our community!

Lynn L.