3 years on Virta, and I’m still seeing improvements

By Kathy K., a Virta patient‍

I joined Virta’s clinical trial in September of 2015. I was just hoping that I would qualify enough or be allowed to "join" so that I could learn along with my husband, who had already been accepted into the trial. I wasn’t even thinking that I myself would be considered "sick" enough to be included. Well, sure enough, I was. I was prediabetic and had metabolic syndrome—something that hadn't even shown up on my radar before. I knew I needed to lose weight. I'd tried several methods before, with some temporary success. I was struggling with migraines, joint pain, fatigue, etc. I had almost accepted that this was just how it was going to be.

Fast forward two and a half years to winter of 2017. Our family is looking forward to the marriage of our first daughter, Avery in May of 2018. I'm doing some online shopping for my Mother of the Bride dress. There it is, gorgeous and everything I've envisioned for the big day. I ordered it in two sizes. After trying them on I returned the smaller of the two because it just didn't fit quite as nicely. I have been maintaining about the same weight for several months now and didn't want to gamble on losing the extra pounds by May. However, was I wrong! When it came time to have it shortened, the seamstress started pinning it in around the waist, the bustline, and zipper. "This is too big on you," she said. The size 14 that I returned should have been the one I kept after all.

I recently shared that NSV in the Virta private community. An NSV? Yes, Non-Scale Victory! I hope that you celebrate these victories yourself. The scale can hold us hostage to daily fluctuations and stymie our progress.If I've learned one thing on my journey, it's that slow and steady wins the race.

If it wasn't for the Virta treatment and all of the support and education, I would not have been able to enjoy this incredibly joyous moment in our family's life as much as I did.

I had the energy to do all of the planning and be as involved as my daughter wanted me to be. I've lost 65 pounds, am no longer prediabetic and have fantastic blood work that support this new lifestyle. At 49, I can truly say that I am excited to see what the next 40+ years have in store for me!