The things we see that seem to stick in our minds

Tweet

I mentioned a few days ago that we spent hours last Thursday at the hospital for my son. For a time, we were in a waiting room, then we were moved to a private room (I have no idea how we got that lucky, but we did!) While we were in the waiting room, there were the usual people with common ailments, one poor fellow had broken his arm and it was so swollen I don't know how anyone could do anything--we heard him say he didn't want to go to the ER, so he waited two days. Good grief. Not long after we arrived there and before we were put in the private room, a lady was wheeled in, in a wheelchair. This was the absolute largest and widest wheelchair I have ever seen in my life--and it held one of the largest people I have ever seen, at least to my knowledge. This woman couldn't have been 30 years old. A man, I presume her husband, was with her, as was a toddler that I assume was theirs. The poor guy was pushing the wheelchair and trying to keep the toddler on her lap--but she didn't have a lap, and he kept slipping, so he would stop and prop the child up again and so on, over and over. As soon as they were settled in the waiting room, she told her husband that the scales she was weighed on had to be wrong, as they said she weighed 672 pounds. He told her they were bariatric scales, and yes, that was how much she actually weighed. She said she didn't weigh that much, they were all against her, and she would find another scale sometime soon. She wanted to go home. Her husband wouldn't take her, as her lower legs were leaking fluid, her excess body fat was causing her lymphatic system to drain and leak. Both of her legs were huge--they were bigger around than I am...but one leg was so huge I can't even describe it. It didn't even look like a leg. This is serious and needs immediate attention, evidently the husband knew that and told her they weren't leaving, she needed a doctor. Then she wanted to order pizza and breadsticks--in the ER! They were only there maybe 5-10 minutes before she was taken back with him following. She was still begging for pizza or a sandwich or some food, any food, as she felt faint from hunger. I had to wonder about her off and on for several days. A person has to wonder how a young woman with a family could let herself get into that condition. Of course, I don't know her or her life, etc...but to think you couldn't even stop thinking about food long enough to go to the hospital is so sad. And she has a little one to think about... For the record, I am not making fun of her, or of any obese people. I just thought it was so sad, I wanted to cry. I wonder why people don't get help of some type when this happens, it seems many of them sit inside and hide. Do you think someone like this is just addicted to food, or ?? Supposedly some people do this as a result of childhood trauma. I don't know, I am no doctor...I just know it was so sad to see. Picture from Health and Fitness website