Turning Crappy into Happy!

Can you remember the last time you were hungry? I mean seriously hungry. Maybe you were on a too strict diet? You had missed breakfast, lunch and dinner? Or  fasting for a medical or religious reason? That awful, painful, gnawing sensation in the pit of your stomach. You maybe get the shakes (some people do) Your concentration levels are non existent and all you can think about is your next meal. People are asking you questions, they are asking you to perform specific tasks like 'Please tidy your room' but all you can think about is food because the pains are getting worse and you now feel sick with hunger. You look around for something to stop it all. Soap, tissue, frozen food anything to make it go away.

Can you Imagine this?

Imagine your whole life revolves around food. Not because you are a chef or a restaurant owner but because your daily routine is centred entirely on what you will eat that day, more importantly, what time you are going to eat. Now imagine that you hate feeling like this. That you fight this feeling until it saps all your strength but no matter how hard you try, it will not go away. Is there any point in subjecting yourself every minute of the day to a challenge that will never be defeated? Imagine also knowing that if you do not fight, you will probably die of an obesity related illness. Imagine that from the day you were born, this was going to be your destiny. A continual fight for a normal life, every single day. 

Could you do it?

Imagine that your daily routine is so centred on the next meal and by eating that meal, your pains, emptiness and anxiety levels will disappear for a few minutes and bring tremendous relief. Now imagine that for some reason your breakfast is delayed. The first meal of the day that you so depend on has been pushed back another 30 minutes or there is no time given. Your disappointment is huge. You have been telling that horrible pain in your tummy that it would soon be fed and would go away for a little while. You have repeated this since you woke at 4 am with the same pains. At six am whilst showering and getting dressed. At 7.30 am you are promising the pain in your tummy that it won't be long because breakfast is at 8 am. Your anxiety levels are now bouncing around the ceiling and your nerves are like an over taut nylon string, ready to 'ping' at any moment. Then you are given the worst news possible. No food yet. 

Would you get cross?

Imagine that you could easily put on weight by just eating  portions of 'normal' food. A stone in a weekend. 

Imagine being on a STRICT diet all your life. A diet that never satiates and you still can so easily put on weight.

Imagine being surrounded by other people who are able to eat bigger, tastier and sweeter foods than you.

Imagine your day to day living with stress levels so high that normal functionality is almost impossible on some days.

Sounds like something out of a weepy movie doesn't it. Unfortunately these conditions are alive and well and affecting 1 in 10,000 to 30,000 people worldwide. 

The constant hunger is a small part of a very complex and difficult syndrome. 

So maybe next time you see someone who is extremely overweight or possibly looks perfectly normal in every way but they are behaving in what society deems to be totally unacceptable. 
Try not to stare or point or make assumptions. Our PWS people suffer enough.

Turn crappy into happy and smile. You have no idea how much a smile can matter!

My beautiful daughter


Welcome to Prader Willi Syndrome