A woman who lost 200lbs has shared the dramatic difference her weight loss has made to her face – and the reasons behind the drastic change.
Savannah Silbernagel decided to start her weight loss journey after worrying about developing diabetes or heart problems, and being “fetishised” for her larger body.
At her heaviest, the 27-year-old weighed 332lbs, or 23-and-a-half stone and refused to date.
READ MORE: ‘I got brain tumour the size of orange after using contraceptive jab’
But after dropping down to 125lbs, just under 9st, life has completely changed, with Savannah left almost unrecognisable, and finding love for the first time.
“I truly feel like I am getting a second chance at life,” Savannah, who works in marketing and lives in McDonough, Georgia, US, told Need To Know.
“I never wanted to go out or leave the house because of how embarrassed I was of how I looked.
“I am definitely more of a go-getter now.
“The small things mean a lot, such as walking up stairs and not huffing and puffing, not being scared a clothing store won’t have my size in stock.
“I don’t feel uncomfortable being in a crowd now, like at a concert I would feel bad taking up more space, people acknowledge my existence now.
“I kind of feel like I am living my early 20s in my late 20s right now, because now I want to do everything that I could not before.
“Like go to country concerts, go out with my friends, go swimming in front of people – I hadn’t worn a swimsuit in 10 years until this past summer.”
One of the biggest changes in Savannah’s life since her weight loss has been getting her first-ever boyfriend.
Before meeting her now-partner, Savannah experienced a series of unfortunate dating issues – and she admits her previous weight made it more difficult to form relationships.
She said: “The kind of men I like didn’t like how I looked at 332lbs, and the men that did want me usually had a big girl fetish.
“I would never let myself be the centre of that and feed into someone’s weird big girl fetish.
“It sounds awful to say but whenever a guy did like me when I was big, in the back of my mind I would kind of think, ‘Is something wrong with them?’
“Usually if they were interested in me, they weren’t interested in my heart, brain, or soul, they were interested in my body.
“I didn’t like the thought of being fetishised, so I never really tried to date before I started losing weight.”
Post-transformation, Savannah says she still found dating “scary”, however.
She added: “You never know how people will react, usually they would take it very well and be supportive or they would start looking at me and treating me like how guys would treat me when I was big.
“Like a total shift in demeanour, it was weird to see in person.
“I guess it was a good thing to bring it up so it would weed out nice people from not-so-nice people early on in dating.
“I remember last October, I was talking to a guy and he all of a sudden ghosted me… his brother’s girlfriend reached out and said it was because of my loose skin and apparently he said he would tell everyone about it.
“It was absolutely mortifying.
“Another time I went on a date in Atlanta and I wore a modest dress that had tank top sleeves and I could tell the guy was just staring at the loose skin on my arms from time to time.”
However, Savannah emphasised that most people are much more respectful towards her now – which is bittersweet.
She added: “It’s awful to say, but I feel like I am treated more like a human now after losing weight.
“There is a stark difference in the way I’m treated.
“I am definitely respected and taken more seriously now which is a shame to say, I feel like all people of all sizes should be respected.
“I hate hearing fat jokes because that was me only two years ago.
“I’m so grateful I found my boyfriend.
“He is super supportive of my weight loss journey, has nothing bad to say about what I look like, and has a good heart.
“We go to the gym together and we both eat a high-protein diet.”
She opted to undergo a gastric bypass at Piedmont Atlanta, a hospital in Georgia, in December 2023.
Before her surgery, Savannah had several screenings, including a psychological evaluation, a sleep apnoea test, an endoscopy and sessions with a bariatric nutritionist.
She also had to provide a primary care clearance letter from her doctor and attend three months’ worth of weekly video calls with a diet and exercise coach.
Savannah completely overhauled her lifestyle, working out and lifting weights four or five times a week, eating a high-protein diet and rarely drinking alcohol.
She said: “It is my absolute worst fear to gain my weight back so I really stick to my diet and lifting weights.
“This has not just been a weight loss journey, this has been a whole lifestyle overhaul.
“It is never too late to achieve your goals.
“Don’t let your present self keep you back from your dreams – you yourself are the only thing holding you back from being your best self.
“Not even talking about weight loss, it can be anything.
“Get over your mental block and show the world how awesome you truly are!”
Savannah’s diet
– Breakfast (8:30am) – burrito (chicken, cottage cheese, spinach, and corn in a low-carb tortilla).
– Lunch (12pm) – chicken or steak with greek yogurt or cottage cheese.
– Dinner (7pm) – steak and fresh mozzarella/ steak with a sunny side up egg/ keto pizza (low-carb tortilla, marinara, chicken, cottage cheese, spinach, and fresh mozzarella), or some type of lean cuisine.
– Snacks – Barebells Protein bars, rice cakes, protein pudding or Quest crisps.
– Drinks – water, zero sugar soda, coffee and Alani Nu nutritional drinks.
– Cheat meal (once a week) – Sushi..
– Vitamins – bariatric vitamin, women’s daily vitamin, collagen, fibre, and iron.
READ MORE: ‘I was misdiagnosed with cancer after doctors found my leg riddled with tumours’
