He Feeds Me

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“Where did it all go wrong, how did I end up here? These are the questions that I ask myself as the water begins to drip down my shoulders. My knees begin to ache as I feel the shower tiles cutting into my knees. My eyes begin to sting from the shampoo which keeps dripping down my face, but I don’t have a choice due to my weight, I cannot stand while showering. I can feel the tears make their way down my cheeks, how has this become my life?”.

Meet Bernice van Heerden – a pre-school teacher who made the decision to lose weight and live a healthier lifestyle so that she could be able to go back to work and literally take normal showers.
“The smell of freshly baked bread and slap chips begins to fill the air. It can’t be 17:00 already, I think to myself as I make my way to the kitchen. I remember the days when I used to come home from work, it all seems like a distant memory now. For the past few years, all I have been exposed to are the four walls of my house in Koffiefontein, Western Cape. ‘Mr X’ is already seated at the table picking slap chips out of the box. He always feeds me, he has been feeding me for the last seven years that we have been together. It all got out of hand when we got engaged and decided to move in together. 

I have always had the tendency to bury my emotions in food. When my parents got divorced, I stuffed myself with sweets and chocolates. When my best friend passed away, I didn’t cry like a normal person would, I ate. I can feel the tears forming again but I take a deep breath as I sit down at the dining room table. From the corner of my eye, I can see a tub of ice cream and the speckled eggs that ‘Mr X’ bought for me. He knows that I am upset about my family leaving to go back to Gauteng and how does he comfort me, he feeds me. He hates my family and I hate him for that.

Later that evening, I received a call from my mother. “If you stay with that man, you are going to die. You will die before you reach 30”, she said. By the time I hang up, ‘Mr X’ is sleeping and I also climb into bed with my mother’s words ringing in my head. This is when I knew that I had to take charge of my life, things had to change. It has now been almost two years since I received that life changing phone call from my mother. I moved back to Gauteng and my mother took the liberty of signing me up with The Diet Everyone Talks About – a lifestyle programme that has been tried and tested for the past 30 years,” says Bernice.

Bernice had a starting weight of 171.8 kg and has lost a fantastic 60 kg’s while on the lifestyle programme!

“My daily meals no longer consist of fatty foods and fizzy drinks. I now know the value of giving my body the nutrients that it needs. My cold leftover slices of pizza that I would have for breakfast have now turned into a healthy, tasty and nutritious omelette. I no longer linger on the thought of bread and slap chips. My weight loss is not thanks to a diet, it is the result of a consistent lifestyle change. The new family that I have at The Diet Everyone Talks About have taught me how to enjoy my food while losing weight. Thanks to their motivation and the support from my family, I have lost 60 kg’s! When I get invited to join my friends and family for lunch or dinner, I eat according to my new lifestyle programme. I am living a fulfilling life as a pre-school teacher and can now take normal showers standing up. Walking is no longer a problem and my face constantly has a smile and it is all thanks to my determination and the encouragement that I get from the team at The Diet Everyone Talks About,” concludes Bernice.