Hello my name is Peter Welfare.

I have had the good fortune of using Dr Sandra Cabot’s QuickLoss program over several months during 2014. I say good fortune because everything that was happening to me prior to using this program was most unfortunate.

To give you some history, I have struggled with my weight most of my life. Food for me has been my comfort, my entertainment, my confidant. Ever there, food supported me through the lows of my life and celebrated with me during the highs. Those highs were starting to come further and further apart and my need to prop myself up with food during the tough times, was becoming coupled with a desperation ever more urgent.

My increasing weight began affecting my physical health. I was experiencing sciatic nerve pain in both legs that was excruciating. I was looking at a future life dependent on pain medication and surgery to relieve pressure on my nerves due to bulging disks. I was sick and depressed. I felt like my life was spinning out of my control. With the knowledge that I was also knocking on the door of type 2 diabetes, I decided to try something different. This took more courage than thin people might know. To try, really try, and to potentially fail in front of the people I loved, was a humiliation my fractured self-esteem was not going to withstand.

Driven more from fear of the life I was staring down the barrel of than a hope I dared not think possible, I began my journey.

My first three days involved a detox from massive amounts of sugar. Prior to this, I would quite literally drink between 5 and 7 thick shakes per day, every day. I bounced from sugar high to huge crashes in energy levels many times per day – it was like being on a rollercoaster. My body was adjusting to a big drop in sugar. It didn’t feel good. I wasn’t hungry but I felt like I was racing inside. With the support of my partner, family and Nutritionist Kylie McCarthy at Cabot Health, I hung in there.

The first thing that changed for me was that my energy levels stabilised. I can’t tell you what a relief that was – I could finally begin to function normally. I started to sleep more soundly. If that was all that happened to me that would have been enough but, as the weight started to come off, my back pain disappeared. At present, I am not on any pain medication and I have none of my old pain. I didn’t exercise at first as my back situation was too precarious. I actually lost 15 kg on the Quickloss Program before I started to do a bit of light exercise. All up I have lost over 20kg and I feel much healthier. I am enjoying life and I am very grateful for this opportunity I have been given.

Why QuickLoss?

That is an easy question to answer for me. Portion control was not an easy concept for me to master and I was not capable of managing portions in the early days of my weight loss journey. QuickLoss shakes not only kept me satisfied and assisted me in losing weight, they also took away the need for discipline in controlling my portion sizes. That was a game changer for me and got me through the early days when I would have certainly cheated by increasing the portion sizes.

Moving forward I am certain I will not go back to the excesses of sugar consumption. I have introduced exercise back into my life and I believe I have begun creating a new life that I do not want to lose. It has not all been plain sailing and I am still learning to deal with life without the crutch of a double cheese burger and fries. I do know that if I find myself slipping I have a great tool in QuickLoss to keep me on track.

Thank you Dr Sandra Cabot and her team of Weight Loss Detectives for helping me find a life worth living.