Article October 4, 2004 Issue

TOOK IT OFF—AND KEPT IT OFF

By Christina Camacho

After my first child was born, I lost all the weight I had gained—about 45 pounds. After my second child was born, I lost all but six pounds of the 45 pounds I had again gained. But after the birth of my third child, I had gained 60 pounds, and I became scared about my weight. Doctors had warned me that I might develop diabetes if I did not lose all the weight within five years that I'd gained during the pregnancy. I did lose most of the weight at first, but then I gained all of it back, plus several more pounds. At my heaviest, I weighed up to 220 pounds (nearly 90 pounds over my normal weight), and I had gone from a size S to size XXL. I felt miserable. My life felt out of control—I could not even climb the steps in my house comfortably or bend over to reach my feet. I had tried several diets, but none of them worked for very long.

In order to get a spiritual perspective on controlling my weight, I began to study the words heavy and light in the Bible and in Mary Baker Eddy's writings. A lot of times, studying key words in this way is very enlightening because really delving deeply into the meaning behind the words shows me what's going on mentally—and what I need to change.

My study inspired me to talk with a Christian Science practitioner, and to ask her to help me through prayer. She suggested that I also study the word control in the Bible and Science and Health, and she assured me that because I was made in God's "likeness," as Genesis 1:27 says, I was a spiritually perfect being.