Views: 22
I Discovered Reslience
When I first picked up my prescription for GLP-1 medication, I had visions of myself gliding through grocery stores, casually bypassing the cookie aisle like some sort of superhuman being who possessed actual self-control. I imagined losing weight effortlessly, gaining boundless energy, and finally winning the nightly battle against those treacherous snack cakes that seemed to call my name from the pantry.
What I did not anticipate was discovering something far more valuable than a smaller pants size. Somewhere between learning to time my meals around potential burp attacks and developing an intimate relationship with my bathroom schedule,
I stumbled upon genuine resilience.
The Great Diet Disaster Hall of Fame
Before this journey began on Mounjaro and Zepbound, my weight loss history read like a comedy of errors. I had collected failed diets like baseball cards, each one promising to be “the one” that would finally transform my life. There was the juice cleanse that left me hallucinating about cheeseburgers. The keto phase where I convinced myself that bacon was a vegetable. The gym membership that cost more per visit than a luxury spa treatment, considering how rarely I actually showed up.
Each attempt followed the same predictable pattern: explosive enthusiasm, gnawing hunger, mounting frustration, crushing shame, and ultimately, a reconciliation dinner with a double cheeseburger and fries. The story I told myself was painfully simple: I lacked willpower. I was weak. I was fundamentally broken when it came to food and fitness.
The Biology Plot Twist
GLP-1 medication taught me something revolutionary: my struggle was never about character flaws or moral failings. It was about biology. My body was essentially playing a rigged game, and I had been trying to win with a deck of cards that was missing half the suits.
When you finally address the biological component, something remarkable happens. You realize that your entire narrative about personal failure was fiction. You were not weak or lacking in determination. You were simply fighting an uphill battle without proper equipment, adequate supplies, or even a clear understanding of the terrain.
Redefining What Strength Actually Looks Like
These days, resilience shows up in ways I never expected. It does not involve dramatic moments of white-knuckling through hunger pangs or delivering inspirational speeches to myself in the mirror. Instead, it looks surprisingly mundane:
Declining food that holds no appeal, rather than eating it because I feel powerless to resist. Recognizing actual thirst and responding with water instead of automatically reaching for snacks. Taking a 20-minute walk even when motivation is nowhere to be found, simply because I can. Weathering uncomfortable side effects without abandoning the entire process.
Real resilience, I discovered, is often boring. It lacks the drama of movie montages or the glamour of social media transformation posts. But it exists in these quiet, unglamorous moments of choosing what serves me over what feels comfortable.
The Setback Reality Check
Let me be absolutely clear: this is not a superhero origin story. I still have days when my brain reverts to old patterns like a computer defaulting to factory settings. There are moments when I miss the familiar comfort of emotional eating, or when I question whether this medication will be a lifelong commitment.
The crucial difference is that I no longer get stuck in these moments like quicksand. I acknowledge them, name them for what they are, and keep moving forward. Resilience, it turns out, is not about avoiding setbacks entirely. It is about refusing to let temporary stumbles dictate your future trajectory.
Finding Strength in the Strangest Places
When you are curled up in bed because you made the rookie mistake of eating something with too much oil, it does not feel particularly heroic while you are in the bathroom. But that moment represents genuine strength. You are enduring discomfort because you are committed to a path that matters.
Change is rarely comfortable. GLP-1 medication forced me to slow down, pay attention, and fundamentally rebuild my relationship with food, my body, and my inner dialogue. This process requires more resilience than any juice cleanse ever demanded. Trust me, I have done the cleanses. They were essentially expensive experiments in voluntary misery.
The Real Transformation Story
Yes, the weight loss has been significant. Yes, my clothes fit differently. Yes, I can now cross my legs without initiating what I like to call a “hamstring crisis.” But the most important changes happened internally.
I now believe in my ability to finish what I start. I trust my body again. I extend grace to myself during difficult moments. I can experience setbacks without the voice in my head immediately declaring, “See? You always quit eventually.”
That voice has finally been silenced. Because now I have concrete proof that I am capable of far more than I previously believed possible.
The Bottom Line Truth
GLP-1 medication did not just help me lose weight. It helped me rediscover something I thought I had permanently lost: the ability to keep showing up for myself consistently. Even when I am exhausted. Even when I make mistakes. Even when progress feels frustratingly slow.
This journey is not perfect. It is not linear. It is definitely not always enjoyable. But it belongs to me. And every step of the way, including the uncomfortable side effects and awkward adjustments, I have proven to myself that I can handle difficult things. I have also learned that bacon is really not a vegetable!
That is what resilience looks like in real life. Not flashy or flawless, but authentic and sustainable. And authentic is more than enough.
Leave a Reply