“Mom, can you come in the pool with me?”

I froze.

I made an excuse… like I always did.

Truth is, I didn’t want anyone seeing me in a swimsuit.

I avoided beach days. I avoided photos. I avoided mirrors.

And if someone pulled out a camera unexpectedly?
I’d find a way to disappear.

What kind of mom hides from memories because of her own body?

Let’s be honest - at 214 lbs, I felt trapped in my own body.

The worst part?

It wasn’t just the number on the scale.

It was the quiet voice in my head whispering,
“This is just how it is now.”

And that scared me more than anything.

“Why isn’t this working for me?”

I whispered that to myself more times than I can count.

I was doing everything “right.”

Eating better. Moving more. Cutting back.

But the scale barely moved.

Meanwhile, other women my age seemed to drop weight just by trying a little.

Was my body broken?

Or was something inside me… just not working the way it used to?

Let’s be honest — I felt stuck in a body that didn’t respond anymore.

And the worst part?

No one could explain why.

I knew I had to figure it out.

Because I wasn’t ready to accept that this was just “how it is” now.