Before I started my long journey throughout this programme my life had been hell all because the way I looked and how others around saw me. I got bullied at school not one day went by where I wouldn’t get called fat, ugly, worthless etc. The more these bullies called me those names I started to believe that what they were saying about me was true. This really affected my life and just took all the confidence I had left in me away. It got to the point where I wagged my classes just so I couldn’t face those bullies. I ate my lunch in the toilets just to avoid everyone and everything that surrounded me and I lost most of all my closest friends because I shut them out when they were just trying to help me. I was a complete wreck but no-one could even tell how I was feeling because I just hid my emotions away and fake smiled so everyone would just save their sympathy and get off my back.
One day I just got sick of being treated like I was worthless and decided to stop feeling sorry for myself and stop all the crying and complaining because that wasn’t going to stop all this mess going on my life. That day I saw an application form on the nurse’s desk that she had advertised to me long ago but I’d never thought of actually doing it and it was the Steps for Life application form. I told the nurse of how I was interested in applying for a spot in the programme and she gave me all the information I needed.
Later on that day I took the application form home and filled it out but I didn’t really have my family’s support on this because they didn’t take me seriously when I told them about this whole programme because I have never stuck to something I was passionate about and have never really been committed to anything I do.
The next day I had my interview it was full emotions for me because I had opened to my sister about what was going in my life that was something that needed to be lifted off my shoulder but when I got told that I was accepted into the programme right there and then at my interview I was just over the moon and felt so excited to start on this new adventure with people who understood the struggle I was going through.
From that day onwards my life changed around completely in between those twelve weeks. My family knew this was important for me and knew I was finally serious about something I really wanted to do so I had their full support through everything in this programme. Each and every week was a challenge for me physically and mentally but going back and remembering my purpose of why I was doing this programme just made me push myself harder every time a challenge was brought up.
This programme may have been the hardest and painful thing I have done in my life but if I really wanted to see results on the scales and mirror of course it was going to be hard and painful. I knew from the very first day we started it was going to be hard but what in life come easy? If you want something so bad you’re going to face all these obstacles you’re going to have to overcome things you have never done before but that’s what you have to do to reach your goal. I cried, I had the most dramatic moments during training where I just felt like giving up, I sweat my ass off as well. I was in so much pain but all of that pain was worth feeling because pain use to get to me so bad. Pain use to hurt and be my worst enemy I had to face every training but now pain is like my friend and I just love the feeling because it tells me I worked and tried my hardest through that training.
This programme has helped me and also my family members to change the way we live and the way we eat. Every week we learn something new about the foods we eat. What is good and bad for us to eat and much more nutritional information we need to know to help us with the food choices we make.
Over these past twelve weeks my life has been on a roller-coaster I’ve had ups and downs but mostly ups. It has changed me mentally and has definitely made me a happier person on the inside and on the out. It also has changed me physically bigtime before I couldn’t even run one minute straight without feeling like I was going to die now I can run twenty minutes non-stop without struggling to keep going.
This programme has helped me lift up the only bit of self-confidence I had left and has gotten the bullies from calling me fat, ugly and worthless to congratulating me on how good I look. My life is no longer a wreck ever since I’ve joined this programme in fact it’s the exact opposite it is the best I’ve ever been in my life and it has made me a whole different person. I learnt so much being in the programme I will use all the tools and resources I was given during the twelve weeks I have been offered and take it with me forever and use them to my advantage. Also the bond I created with all the other students and their families as well is irreplaceable they are like my second family now who will always be there for support when I need and I will forever cherish our memories we all made together.
This programme is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am so glad I got to be a part of this amazing journey with these amazing people. If you are reading this and you are thinking of joining this programme I suggest you go for it. What do you have to lose? And If you do get accepted out of the many who applied set your goals straight, know why you’re doing this programme and make the most of everything you are taught in this programme because you will never have the same support and resources you get if you do get into this programme.
Give your all at every session. If your purpose is strong enough then it will keep you going just go back and remember your purpose when you feel like giving up.
Lose Hehepoto - participant