Some of you may know me as Nik from Bariatric Foodie. But for right now I'm speaking to you as Nikki Massie: human, woman, mother and formerly obese person.
Did you go to your prom? I did! Here's a photo of me leaving for my prom.
Wanna skip the story and get your tickets now? No problem! CLICK HERE.
See that dress I'm wearing? It took a LOT of work to get!
But before I tell you about that let me back up a moment. I was born big at 9 lbs., 3.5 oz. I was a big kid who grew into a big teenager who grew into a big woman. When I was preparing for my prom, the formal-wear options for plus-sized young women were limited. The dress I'm wearing is one I liked but that originally did not come in plus-sizes.
I remember the day my mom took me prom dress shopping. We went to store after store and I tried to suck it in, hike it up, anything to make a dress look at least decent. My expectation that I'd actually look good was pretty low.
Eventually we ended up at a dressmaker who showed me pattern after pattern of dresses that resembled polyester tents. As my mom was complaining about the options, I began flipping through a traditional book of dress patterns and found one I loved. But it was not possible, said the dressmaker. The designer doesn't even cut the dress in her size, the woman whispered loudly to my mother.
Being the tenacious woman that she is, my mom copied down the pattern and catalog information and thanked the women for her time. Later that day she tracked down the number to the designer of the pattern. By the next day she'd called and made friends with him! Four days later she agreed to pay goodness knows how much money to have the pattern cut to my size and found a more understanding dress maker.
Her investment in me meant a lot. It's part of what gave me the courage to change my life. In 2008, I underwent gastric bypass surgery. Over the past six years I've lost a total of 155 lbs. Looking back on that picture not so long ago, I thought about how awesome it would have been to go to prom with this body and this attitude. At my actual prom I didn't dance much. I was self conscious. I barely smiled in my prom photo. I was uncomfortable in all the shapewear I had on and I didn't really feel that beautiful.
Since my surgery I've embraced a lot of things about myself. I'm not perfect and I never will be. But I love me! I have energy. I love to dance. I love to meet people and have a good time. And that's when it hit me. What if I could do prom over again as the new me?
And the idea of Bariatric Prom was born! I was pretty sure if I asked around I'd find some other post-ops who had similar experiences and I was right. And even those who had a great prom experience still wanted to have a formal night to get dressed up and celebrate their success.
So here we are, planning The Bariatric Prom. It will be held November 1, 2014 5 - 10 p.m. at Morganview Apartments, 1500 Pentridge Rd., Baltimore, MD 21239.
I'm beyond excited. I want to shop for a dress now! But I'm busy planning this thing!
Be sure to keep up with this blog for the latest information. We'll update it with the stories of folks who are coming to the The Bariatric Prom as well as announce sponsors, swag bag items and special deals for people who attend.
We hope you'll be able to join us for this special night.
