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Soft-spoken and nurturing, Juanita Allen found her key to success was allowing her family and friends to support her instead of the other way around.
Before having the gastric banding procedure, Juanita was on medications for high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Despite having had surgery on both knees, she was still in pain. When she learned that she was pre-diabetic and would have to either make a change or begin taking medication for diabetes as well, she decided a change was in order.
The process, both before, during and after the surgery, has provided Juanita with the tools she needed to lose weight, get off all her medications and feel better about herself. In addition to continuing to eat well and exercise, Juanita credits much of her success to the people she had supporting her. "Throughout the process I've had tremendous support from my family and my coworkers," Juanita said. "They've all tried to watch what they've been eating around me, not eating things that I couldn't. They've encouraged me to go and exercise, even during times that I didn't feel like it. Through difficult times, I've been reminded to stay on a regular schedule for meals."
For someone who often did more for others than for herself, the surgery and her subsequent weight loss has given her a new perspective on herself. "I don't know that it's the surgery itself that changed me," she remarked, "But I think that it changed the way I felt about myself and my desire to take care of myself. Now that I'm healthier, I can take better care of the people I love."
