Hi. I'm Branden. I'm a 35-year-old college student/aspiring writer and I'm severely obese. Boy, I really hate that term. It only describes me but doesn't define me. I've struggled with my weight since puberty...

My mother was petite and heavy, 5 foot 3 and about 200 lbs. She was always on a diet and when she's on a diet, everybody in the house was on a diet. My father, on the other hand, was very slim, 6 foot 2 and 165 lbs. I got his height but her weight problems. We tried juicing, fiber tablets, Dexatrim, Xantrex, Weight Watchers, Slim-Fast, the 3-day diet, the 14-day herbal cleanse, the Adkins' diet or Fit for Life as it was called back then, Body Tiddy, the Hollywood Diet, the cabbage soup diet. You name it, we've tried it.

During my freshman year of high school, I was able to get my weight under control, my mother and I would get up early before school and go to the park. I ran 5 miles while she walked 2 with a relative. I manage to maintain my weight between 150 to 160. I was 5' 10".

Four years later, in July 1996, my mother died and my life changed. I was uprooted from Georgia and moved to California to live with my brother. It was a very hard transition. I turn to food for comfort and gained about 20 lbs.