Take off the Mask with CasieCasem

CasieCasem: 00:00

Hey, guys. It's Casie Casem with Change the Face of Depression. And this is my podcast, Take Off the Mask, also known as Totem. Take Off the Mask is a place where no ground is too deep. We have raw interviews with real people making an impact, impacting the world in a better way than the world impacted us.

CasieCasem: 00:20

Some of this is tough to hear. Listener's discretion is advised. For more episodes and to find out how you can help change the face of depression, check us out at www.change the face of depression.comorctfod.com. We're also on Facebook and Instagram. Hey, guys.

CasieCasem: 00:44

It's Casie Casem, and I'm here today with Scooter. This is our take off the mask segment for change the face of depression. And Scooter is gonna be talking to us. Today's topic is self image. I've known Scooter since middle school.

Scooter: 01:01

Yeah.

CasieCasem: 01:01

Like, 6th grade. 6th grade is when I met Scooter for the first time, and we have kept in touch over the years since then. You know, I stopped going to the same school as her in 8th grade, and then I started a new school my entire high school career.

Scooter: 01:17

And I was homeschooled. She was homeschooled.

CasieCasem: 01:20

So then Facebook, and we reconnected over Facebook. And then I watched Scooter's incredible journey with her self image and working on that and her weight loss journey. And that's what we're gonna talk about today is self image. So, Scooter, why don't you introduce us to yourself?

Scooter: 01:42

My name is Scooter. I, I decided to have gastric bypass surgery in June of 2016. Mhmm. The big moment was losing a good friend due to obesity, and I knew that I had children that I needed to be here for. So it's been a roller coaster ride of ups and downs, but it's ultimately led me to where I am today.

Scooter: 02:03

That's awesome.

CasieCasem: 02:04

You had gastric bypass surgery in 2016. Mhmm. So it was 2 years ago. How much did you weigh right before you got gastric bypass?

Scooter: 02:15

My pre op appointment, I weighed 3 £748. 348. Mhmm.

CasieCasem: 02:19

How tall are you? 56. 56, 348. I was morbidly obese.

Scooter: 02:26

My BMI was off the charts. They I had pre hypertension. I didn't have any other comorbidities, but because of me being over a £100 overweight, they it took me less than 3 months from my first appointment to being on the table.

CasieCasem: 02:43

Oh, wow. So they took that more seriously?

Scooter: 02:47

Yeah. Because, I mean I was 28 at the time. Yeah. So you know, it was it was something that needed to be done. It was, I was right there at the verge of if I don't do it now, I may not have a chance.

Scooter: 03:01

So, I weighed 348 when I had surgery. I had surgery June 21, 2016. And then as of right now, on a good day, I weigh £188.

CasieCasem: 03:12

Oh, wow.

Scooter: 03:12

So I've lost a 160 pounds in total.

CasieCasem: 03:15

In 2 years.

Scooter: 03:16

Mhmm. Well, yeah. Yeah. 2a half. Yeah.

CasieCasem: 03:19

That's incredible. That's a person. Mhmm. That's a person. Yeah.

CasieCasem: 03:24

Wow. So what was the lifestyle change like after surgery?

Scooter: 03:31

It was difficult because I've always had an addiction with food, and that addiction strain you know, it strung because I was an emotional eater. Mhmm. Food didn't talk back. Food didn't call me names. Food didn't get angry.

Scooter: 03:46

It was something that comforted me no matter what it was.

CasieCasem: 03:50

Mhmm.

Scooter: 03:51

And I had to learn that food was no longer I didn't live to eat. I have to eat to live now. Yeah. So I have to be very mindful of what I put in my body. There's some days that I don't think about it, and then I get sick.

Scooter: 04:07

And then there's some days that, you know, I do everything like I'm supposed to. I still have a balancing act, and there's things we all know that happen in life that you're like, whatever. I don't even care today. Yeah. So it the lifestyle changes to make sure that I don't overeat.

Scooter: 04:26

Mhmm. Because you can Yeah. But it's painful. And to make sure that you keep your, you know, your nutritional value where it needs to be. Because ultimately, this surgery has been a wonderful thing.

Scooter: 04:40

But if you don't keep your nutritional value and keep your vitamins like they're supposed to be, it can harm you a lot worse than anybody would ever anticipate because you don't absorb the nutrients. You don't absorb the vitamins the way you used to. So you have to be careful.

CasieCasem: 04:57

So you would classify food as an addiction for you? Yes. What did you when did you realize that you were using food as an addiction?

Scooter: 05:09

I probably when I was in high school, I realized that I ate too much all the time. Mhmm. And the reason being was because if I was happy, I ate. If I was sad, I ate. You know?

Scooter: 05:22

And it trying to pinpoint. When I turned 18 is when I started actually looking into gastric surgery.

CasieCasem: 05:31

Mhmm.

Scooter: 05:32

But it was so new

CasieCasem: 05:33

Yeah.

Scooter: 05:33

That a lot of insurances wouldn't pay for it. You know? And at 18, you can't go get a loan for $20. And having a child

CasieCasem: 05:43

You can't do that. You have a lot of bad choices.

Scooter: 05:46

Right? I was like, 18, got a credit card. That's not a good thing. You know, having a child already and just knowing ultimately, it was a mental thing.

CasieCasem: 06:02

Yeah.

Scooter: 06:03

It really was. I mean, I had lost the weight on my own, and then I gained

CasieCasem: 06:08

it back, and I

Scooter: 06:08

gained it plus some. And it got to the point where we me and my husband had a really good friend in 2015. The one that I mentioned earlier, he turned 31 in March 2015. He had a heart attack in June on a Friday. They put him on life support that night.

Scooter: 06:24

We had to say our goodbyes that Saturday, and then that Sunday, they pulled the plug. Wow. So

CasieCasem: 06:30

I'm so young.

Scooter: 06:32

That was my either do it now or this is where you're going to end up, which was really difficult because I'm like, did the pros outweigh the cons? Because you know what I mean? It's a major surgery.

CasieCasem: 06:46

Yeah.

Scooter: 06:46

The and by knowing that it was in my mind, it was the only way to get to where I needed to be. Yeah. Because I did I had finally recognized completely food wasn't addiction. Yeah. It wasn't like I said, I wasn't eating to make sure that I stayed alive.

Scooter: 07:02

I was just eating. Yeah.

CasieCasem: 07:04

Living to eat Right. Instead of eating to live. Yeah. Was there, like, a go to thing that you would or just anything? Like

Scooter: 07:13

my biggest things were like breads and pastas and sweets. Yeah. I was a major sweet addict and I think that's like one of the biggest things that have changed now. Because of the surgery, if you have too much sugar, it will make you physically ill.

CasieCasem: 07:28

Yeah.

Scooter: 07:29

So

CasieCasem: 07:30

With the surgery, it will make you physically ill?

Scooter: 07:32

Yeah. There's something called dumping syndrome. Basically, it can make your because your body absorbs things so much faster, that's why you have the nutrient problem that the sugar gets absorbed too fast. And if you have too many grams of sugar in a serving, you'll you can have gastrointestinal issues.

CasieCasem: 07:52

I'm not

Scooter: 07:52

gonna go into specifics. Oh, no. I know.

CasieCasem: 07:55

I know. I'm pretty sure that's actually, Yeah. Why I have some stuff.

Scooter: 08:01

You'll go like, I've had heart palpitations because of it. Like, I could feel my heart almost beating out of my chest.

CasieCasem: 08:06

Oh, wow.

Scooter: 08:07

And then you'll go into sweats. Like, almost like cold sweats. Like, just be sitting there and all of a sudden you're like, oh, no.

CasieCasem: 08:14

And that's how you just know that you're off balance like with your levels.

Scooter: 08:17

Exactly. What do you

CasieCasem: 08:18

do when that case happens?

Scooter: 08:21

Something that I've learned is like I keep a jar of peanut butter in my desk at work because if I do happen to overdo it on sweets and not realize it, a quick thing of protein will actually kinda help level it out faster. Oh, wow. I didn't know that. That's It it was a learning process because there was a point where I was like this at first, it happened a lot because you don't realize how much sugar is in Anything. No.

Scooter: 08:45

Because, like, I'm like, oh, okay. Well, I have a small glass of orange juice. Yeah. That was nope. I haven't drink orange juice in probably a year and a half.

Scooter: 08:52

Oh, what? Because I'm scared to because of how sick it got me the last time.

CasieCasem: 08:57

Oh, wow.

Scooter: 08:58

Now if you dilute it with water Yeah. But it's not No. It's just not the same. No. I think about it.

CasieCasem: 09:03

I yeah. Like, I think about it, you know, coffee and then I have coffee with my creamer. You know? Mhmm. But, like and then I I've tried to counteract it because I'm like, no.

CasieCasem: 09:15

I don't put any sugar or anything in it. But you look at how much creamer I'm using, like, how much sugar that is. And then, you know, I'm not a big breakfast person, but then I'll go to lunch and have, like, a soda with whatever that I don't pay attention to what I'm eating. And then you come home and then it's, you know, even worse or I don't have dinner. So that nutrient level, like, the odor that I'm getting as a person, I'm really, you know, sometimes you need extra.

CasieCasem: 09:41

Yeah. And when you're not putting the extra in your body for your body to make the extra,

Scooter: 09:46

like Your body doesn't like it. Doesn't like it at all. Getting old has really

CasieCasem: 09:51

sucks. Yes. That and, you know, I used to think that, like, if I didn't eat, like, if I didn't eat, then my body had no weight to gain. Like, if I didn't put fat into my body, like, my body had no way to produce fat.

Scooter: 10:07

But it still is that?

CasieCasem: 10:08

Yeah. That was something that I had to educate my it took a it took a lot of education on my end to figure that out because, you know, you wouldn't eat, and then your metabolism would slow down because it's used to not eating or not having to break anything down. And then you eat something, and then your metabolism's like, you know, wow. I have to get like, I let everybody go home for the day. You know?

CasieCasem: 10:29

So, like, then you get an order of 12 people that you have to serve and you don't have enough people to serve all these people. You know, all this stuff just goes everywhere and gets stored for later, and it just builds up and builds up and builds up and then you gain weight. And then you're like, I'm not eating anything. How am I gaining any weight? So it's, you know, it was the complete opposite for me.

CasieCasem: 10:50

Like, I had a I had an addiction, like, thankfully, and I'm so grateful that I I didn't develop, like, a full I guess I didn't develop, like, a full eating disorder. When we were in middle school together, like, after gym all the time, like, I remember I would, like, eat and then I would throw up. Like, I would I became I remember. Glymic. And, like, I I didn't I didn't stick with that.

CasieCasem: 11:20

Thank god. But I remember going through that in middle school too. You know? Like, it it self image is such as it's a tricky thing because society tells you that this is how you're supposed to look. Right.

CasieCasem: 11:35

Like, you're supposed to walk around looking airbrushed all the time. And, you know, Scooter, when we talked this morning, like, this is her only day off. And she came to have this conversation with us to talk about self image, and that was a huge deal for us as a cause. But at the same time, you know, this morning, I'm running around like a chicken with my head cut off. We just got back from Georgia.

CasieCasem: 11:58

We have the event coming up. Like, we're trying to do you know, everybody's doing all these things, and we're trying to make this work. And, you know, she's like, I'm just coming the way that I am. You know, don't worry about it. And I I'm saying the same thing.

CasieCasem: 12:10

Like, we're in our pajamas, but today is self image day. Like, it's not about looking the elite. Like, this is we're having this discussion. Yeah.

Scooter: 12:20

Dude, this is totally, completely raw. Nothing. I don't have makeup on. Apparently, I have my hair I don't have on. My hair

CasieCasem: 12:30

is oily and it's you know, it needs to be washed, but I'm you know, here we are, like, mothers of America. But this is a self image discussion today because for both of us, you know, we had two ends of the spectrum. You know? A food addiction, and then I had, like, a trying to constantly fit into that mold addiction.

Scooter: 12:56

And what's funny when you say that is it almost in a way kind of goes hand in hand. And the reason I say that is because I had a food addiction not only because of the way I was treated, you know, at home, honestly. Yeah. But also because kids looked at me. Casey was one of, like, the very few that looked at me and didn't look at me.

Scooter: 13:21

Like, she saw who I was, not what I looked like. I was the smart kid. Yeah. I was the overweight kid. I got picked on because of my size.

Scooter: 13:34

Yeah. And then I got picked on because, oh, you're the teacher's pet. No. I just I applied myself more than other children, and that's because that was what my parents my parents were like, education cannot be taken away from you.

CasieCasem: 13:46

Yeah.

CasieCasem: 13:46

This is

Scooter: 13:46

what you do. Yeah. You know? And

CasieCasem: 13:49

But I think, like, even from the outside looking in, it was almost a cycle. Like, it was this full circle. You know? Like, you the the food addiction caused you to not have a large circle of peers to do extracurricular things with. So that caused you to dig deeper into school, which was one of the only outlets that you had.

CasieCasem: 14:09

Right. And that, again, then circled into everybody picking on you even more because that just blossomed the education level. Exactly. You know, like, you dove into like, some people are unhappy unhappy in life, so they dive into work. Well, that makes them more successful because they're putting all of their energy into work instead of putting a balance into somewhere else.

Scooter: 14:33

It's a vicious cycle.

CasieCasem: 14:34

It is

CasieCasem: 14:34

a vicious cycle.

Scooter: 14:35

And kids are cruel.

CasieCasem: 14:36

Kids are so mean nowadays. I can't imagine like, I think about that. We have we were talking about, you know, now that we're adults and now that we're parents and we're past that adolescent stage, and we're still dealing with self image Mhmm. Issues. I mean, both of us before we even have this interview, interview, we're both apologizing to each other for looking the way that we're looking.

CasieCasem: 14:55

But, like, my god, man, you know, this is how I look. This is my face with no makeup on. You know, if I were and I'm, you know, if I were a gentleman and I didn't wear makeup every

CasieCasem: 15:06

day and this was just the standard, like, this is what you

CasieCasem: 15:06

would expect to see when you saw me. And

CasieCasem: 15:09

like, this is what you would expect

CasieCasem: 15:10

to see when you saw me instead of, like, oh, wow. That's Casey with no makeup on. You know? And I'm just like, don't even worry about it because I'm brushing my teeth and scraping my tongue and stuff in front of people on my videos. Like, this is just this is what we look like.

CasieCasem: 15:26

Hey. Happy Wednesday. Right?

Scooter: 15:32

But, you know, getting back to the whole food thing, you were talking about how you would have a soda at lunch. I can't even have sodas. Yeah. Like, what a lot of people don't understand with the surgery is they give you a pouch. You know, they cut your stomach.

Scooter: 15:45

They give you a pouch. It's probably the size of boiled egg. Oh, wow. That's what my stomach is now. And then they reroute your intestines and your other portion of your stomach is still there for digestion.

Scooter: 15:56

But that's why if you overeat, it hurts. Because it literally will start to back up. Things get caught if you don't chew properly. I can't have sodas because the bubbles, the carbonation, anything with carbonation can actually stretch that pouch

CasieCasem: 16:10

Oh, wow.

Scooter: 16:10

Over a period of time. And I I'm the type of person, the last person I talked to about, I was like, I'm not about that life. Yeah. I know. It's not worth it.

Scooter: 16:17

Going backwards Right. Over a soda.

CasieCasem: 16:19

No. It's not worth it.

Scooter: 16:20

And I sodas were a big part of me. Mhmm. Like, because I ran on, you know, caffeine. And, like, I never drank coffee until about a year and a half ago. As weird as that sounds because I was like, oh, it's disgusting.

CasieCasem: 16:35

Yeah.

Scooter: 16:36

Well, I had to start getting some type of caffeine to keep me going because mom of 3. Yeah. Working.

CasieCasem: 16:43

Yeah. You

Scooter: 16:43

know, in corporate world. And it's like, no. You've got to have something. But I haven't had a soda in 2 years. Yeah.

Scooter: 16:51

Because I'm like, it's just it's literally not worth it. I don't wanna go back.

CasieCasem: 16:56

So what is that process like? So you say, okay. So the pouch itself is like a boiled egg.

Scooter: 17:01

Yeah. It's like the size of a boiled egg.

CasieCasem: 17:02

It's probably too big. Like, probably about that big.

Scooter: 17:04

Anywhere from 2 to 3 ounces Yeah. At max.

CasieCasem: 17:07

And so what was so so educate me. What is the stomach like before that? So for instance, if you if I eat too much, I feel like it's expanding.

Scooter: 17:18

Right. You feel full. Yeah. Well, you gotta figure. You know, the stomach is a muscle.

Scooter: 17:22

Yeah. So it will conform, basically. You know? And the best way that it was explained to me is it takes 20 minutes for your stomach to send something to your brain to say, hey. I'm full.

Scooter: 17:36

Oh, wow. So You're eating So

CasieCasem: 17:38

if you 20 more minutes. But basically

Scooter: 17:41

So if you if you figure, if you in the first 5 minutes, you know, go to Golden Corral or a Chinese buffet. How much do you really eat in 5 minutes? Yeah. You know, you're cramming it in. Yeah.

Scooter: 17:53

By the time 20 minutes hits Yeah. You've probably eaten 3 or 4 portions. Yeah. And that's why you have the effect.

CasieCasem: 18:01

Yeah.

Scooter: 18:02

And it's we were I don't wanna say taught because it wasn't really taught. But, you know, you have to go through seeing a nutritionist. You have to go through so many different steps. They tell you, you know, you have to chew this amount of times. After a while, you don't have to count anymore.

CasieCasem: 18:21

Because it just becomes repetitive.

Scooter: 18:23

Right. And, like, now there's every once in a while where hunger is not usually an issue, but when it is, I will, like, scarf something and then I pay for it because I'm like, oh. Yeah. Why did I do that? But, you know, we as a human being, we don't think about it sometimes.

Scooter: 18:42

No. But, you know, you literally and not to go off subject, but, you know, my 13 year old, she's overweight.

CasieCasem: 18:50

Mhmm.

Scooter: 18:51

And she the good thing about this surgery is that she had to learn how to eat slower because me and her will sit with each other and she knows that if she sees me slow down She'll slow down. She'll slow down. Yeah.

CasieCasem: 19:03

It's a ripple effect.

Scooter: 19:05

Right. So it's just as one of those things of taking your time. Making sure you're chewing it the way you're supposed to. Not literally swallowing it whole.

CasieCasem: 19:12

Yeah. Interesting it. So

Scooter: 19:17

it's been a learning

CasieCasem: 19:18

experience. Yeah. The faster you eat, like, the less you realize how much

Scooter: 19:22

Right.

CasieCasem: 19:22

You're eating.

Scooter: 19:24

Exactly. And I mean, there was a point in time where, you know, I would drink. Like, I look back at it now, and I'm like, we me and my husband, we'd go to Applebee's, and I would eat half of an appetizer. I'd eat my full plate. I'd have 4 cups of soda at least.

Scooter: 19:40

Mhmm. And now it almost gets to the point where it's embarrassing. And the reason I say that is because, literally, I can go somewhere and I have a little card that tells me tells them, hey. I've had this surgery. You know?

Scooter: 19:54

Maybe this is the amount to give me. I can have I can get a kid's meal. Oh, wow. However, me being 31 years old Yeah. I'm like, I'm not getting

CasieCasem: 20:03

a kid's meal. It's prideful.

Scooter: 20:04

Yeah. You know? And then you sit there and you eat, like, 2 bites, and you feel you almost feel bad. Yeah. Like, you're like, what did I do that for?

Scooter: 20:15

I mean, granted, I take it home. My husband eats it. Yeah. He gets happy.

CasieCasem: 20:19

Go to waste.

Scooter: 20:20

No. He's happy because he's like, I get what I get, and then I get whatever you got later. Yeah. But, you know, it's at first, it was embarrassing because I would get the waiters or waitresses that would come and be like, was it not good? Oh, no.

Scooter: 20:36

It was great. Mhmm. Just can't eat it. Yeah. So, you know, it there's a there's a need there's a middle part that you have to understand and I personally would recommend this surgery to anyone that's serious.

CasieCasem: 20:51

Yeah. It's a lifestyle change though. I have another a girlfriend of mine, that was in Michigan when I lived there. And I left, like, right before she decided to get the surgery. So I saw, you know, online, she, like, journal documented everything videographically.

CasieCasem: 21:12

And the food choices that she had to drastically change, like, the small amount of portions and then her entire diet that she had to change was it was a massive change. It was an incredible change. But with that being said, it's literally a one day decision. Yeah. Just like with with any addiction.

CasieCasem: 21:32

Like, it's a one day decision. Like, you know, and I joke about it, but I I feel like I have an addictive personality myself. Like, I, you know, started smoking cigarettes. I didn't start smoking cigarettes until I was probably 23, maybe. You know, a lot of people start as soon as you're able to purchase them or before, you know, from peer pressure and stuff like that.

CasieCasem: 21:59

But I started at 23 because I had a a friend that was like, here, you need a cigarette. You know, like, you're too it's too much for me. You need to calm down.

Scooter: 22:08

You know?

CasieCasem: 22:09

Which ironically is not what cigarettes do at all. They just make you everything go faster, but it just makes you take a minute to shut up so you can inhale the cigarette. At. So, anyways, I did that for a while and I kind of, you know, I I had always wanted to quit smoking but then I enjoyed it so much honestly. Like I I hid behind it sometimes as an excuse to walk away or as an excuse to step away or it became a crutch or, you know, any of those things.

CasieCasem: 22:41

And I'm just relating cigarettes because that's all I can, like, you know

Scooter: 22:45

No. And it makes sense. I mean, I started smoking at 15. I was peer pressured.

CasieCasem: 22:49

Yeah.

Scooter: 22:50

And I wanted to be one of the cool kids and ultimately Cigarettes are not cool.

CasieCasem: 22:55

No. But I made a post on Instagram. I took a picture of Bug and I just, like, you know, doing a wellness Wednesday thing. I decided to go to the gym and I got on the treadmill and I started running and I made a joke that I quit smoking because I couldn't run anymore. Like, it had obviously, you know, impacted my ability to have endurance.

CasieCasem: 23:19

So I made a Facebook post and I was

CasieCasem: 23:21

just joking

CasieCasem: 23:21

about it, but I got so many positive responses. Like, I got so many people that were ended up, you know, interacting with that photo that I was just like, I mean, I might as well. Now at this point, like, I've been saying that I want to. There's no time like the present. So the next day, I literally just said I'm not gonna smoke.

CasieCasem: 23:45

Like, I'm not gonna light up a cigarette. Like, whatever you have to do to get it done, you just have to be in that 100% mentality though. Like, you can't do it because of someone else.

CasieCasem: 23:55

No.

CasieCasem: 23:56

Like, if you try to do it to appease anyone besides yourself, it's not going to be as as It's

Scooter: 24:03

not gonna stick.

CasieCasem: 24:04

It's not. It's not.

Scooter: 24:06

Because I've I've actually met several people, even people that started working where I have worked that have had surgery. Mhmm. They're 10 years out and they've gained weight back.

CasieCasem: 24:15

Yeah.

Scooter: 24:16

I can't.

CasieCasem: 24:17

Yeah. Well, there's no going backwards.

Scooter: 24:19

You know?

CasieCasem: 24:20

And that's the mentality you have to have every day.

CasieCasem: 24:23

Right.

Scooter: 24:23

And, like, there's some days that I'll come home and I'll almost be in tears. And my husband's like, what is wrong? And I'm like, I ate entirely too much today. I didn't do what I was supposed to. And he'll literally he'll sit down.

Scooter: 24:32

He's like, I need you to explain to me what you ate. Mhmm. And I'll tell him. And then he just looks at me. And he has his look on his face like, are you real did you really just say that?

Scooter: 24:44

Because it's like half of a portion of what I would have eaten before. Yeah. But to me, there is that big fear of I ate too much. The pouch is gonna stretch. I'm gonna go back.

Scooter: 24:59

Yeah. And you know as well as anybody, I fought Mhmm. My entire life. Mhmm. Not only my adult life, but my entire life of being the fat overweight kid and then the adult.

Scooter: 25:12

And, you know, they're like, we were talking about earlier, there's such a huge stigma. Yeah. Oh, she's fat. She's lazy.

CasieCasem: 25:18

Yeah. Yep.

Scooter: 25:20

Or they're fat. They're lazy.

CasieCasem: 25:21

Yeah. And like, all you eat is junk. Like, all you eat is cake and desserts and, like, you know, that like Matilda, you know, the one little boy that eats the chocolate cake. Mhmm. Like, that's the stigma, but that's so not true.

CasieCasem: 25:37

Like, I know so I know so many incredible individuals that just eat nothing. Like, they eat and eat and eat and they tried and it's just a metabolism thing. Like, that's just the way that they're made.

Scooter: 25:51

They they've actually proven it's genetics. A lot of times it's passed down and that's why I, like, get worried about my oldest daughter.

CasieCasem: 25:58

Yeah.

Scooter: 25:58

Because she looks Just

CasieCasem: 26:00

like you.

Scooter: 26:01

Just like I did. Yeah. You know? Such a stigma. And well, like a girl that I work with, she just had surgery in September.

Scooter: 26:10

She's from California. You know, California, they are big on vegetables and fruits and everything else. Like, if you were to see what she ate prior to surgery, it was definitely portion size.

CasieCasem: 26:21

Mhmm.

Scooter: 26:21

It was not what she ate because everything was healthy. It was just

CasieCasem: 26:25

She had an abundance of it.

Scooter: 26:27

Right. So, you know, I mean, it's not like you said, it's not necessarily what you eat.

CasieCasem: 26:32

Yeah. There's several different aspects that that go along with, you know, how the body works and what the body looks like to be able to to function the way that it functions. But that's always been a big stigma for you. How has your life changed now that you've had the surgery? Like, throughout the give me give me kind of an idea because it's been 2 years.

CasieCasem: 26:54

Mhmm. So how is that metamorphosed? How is it changed over the past 2 years? I don't hide as much. Mhmm.

CasieCasem: 26:59

I don't mind being seen.

CasieCasem: 27:00

I, I

Scooter: 27:00

started a new job in August of 2017.

CasieCasem: 27:03

And

Scooter: 27:13

right now, I'm actually in an interim senior position, which is one step under supervisor. I never would have done that before. I would have never put myself out there. I would have never shown what I could do because I didn't wanna be looked up. Yeah.

Scooter: 27:25

You know, I mean, like I said, stigma. It was one of those things. She's fat, she's lazy. Not necessarily that I didn't know what I was talking about, but it had been done to me before where, oh, well we'll use her on the back end and not give her a credit. So I had given up.

Scooter: 27:42

Mhmm. Like, I didn't wanna put myself out there. I was fine with just trucking along. Yeah. You know?

Scooter: 27:48

And when I started this new job and I had lost about a £140 at that point. And I was like, no more. Yeah. You know? When I got out of training, I was like, I'm gonna hit the ground running.

Scooter: 28:05

This is where I'm gonna be. This is what's gonna happen. And I have just completely outshined anything that I ever thought I could do. Yeah. You know?

Scooter: 28:15

Because you hear people we work in a big corporate building and you hear people, like, I was on the 2nd floor, and now I'm on the 3rd floor. And these people know

CasieCasem: 28:27

who I am. Mhmm.

Scooter: 28:28

I'm like, how? Because we were on the 2nd floor. How do you even know of me? Oh, we've heard of your work ethic. We've heard of this.

Scooter: 28:35

We've heard of it. Never before would that have happened to me, you know. I mean, things have changed as far as one of the biggest things like I talked to you earlier.

CasieCasem: 28:45

Big thing

Scooter: 28:45

is divorce after the surgery. Yeah. Because you change so much. Divorce after the surgery. Yeah.

Scooter: 28:47

Because you

CasieCasem: 28:48

change

Scooter: 28:48

so much, not just physically, but emotionally. Your mentality. Right. Your perspective on Because you

CasieCasem: 28:53

go out and do

Scooter: 28:54

things that you

CasieCasem: 28:54

would have never done before. And then that you're not used to getting. Yes.

Scooter: 29:02

And that's a big thing. Like, this is gonna sound dumb but we were at Wawa. Me and my husband, that's like one of the best places guys. The best place in now.

CasieCasem: 29:11

We just got Wawa's here not paying him any attention.

Scooter: 29:28

My husband gets upset. Like, when we walk away, he's like And I'm like, what what is wrong with you? What what what's the problem? He's like, he was hitting on you, and I'm standing right next to you. I'm like, he was what?

Scooter: 29:40

Because, like, literally, I was like, I don't know what you're talking about. He was being friendly which, by the way, is so odd now.

CasieCasem: 29:50

Yeah.

Scooter: 29:51

And I'll tell you

CasieCasem: 29:51

any attention like that.

Scooter: 29:53

Well, I'll tell you why I say that because like beforehand, and it's so funny because the tattoo artist that I had to the one that's on my arm, he had gastric surgery.

CasieCasem: 30:02

Yeah.

Scooter: 30:03

So me and him, it was kinda cool. It was like a therapy session.

CasieCasem: 30:05

You burned your entire life.

Scooter: 30:08

But he's like, you know, you start seeing and, yes, this is gonna sound really bad probably, but you start seeing how skinny people feel. Yeah. And I was like, what do you mean? And we're talking. And he's like, because now he's like, do you open your own doors anymore?

Scooter: 30:26

I don't. He said, how many times did you open your own door before? Oh, like, the things you don't realize is just walking into to a gas station or just walking into a store. Someone will now hold the door for me. Where before, they wouldn't even, like, look twice.

Scooter: 30:48

And, you know, you people are more willing to talk to you out in public than they were before. And you don't realize it, and then you start to get angry. Like, there was a point after weight loss where I did. Like, I this is gonna sound bad, but I hated people.

CasieCasem: 31:06

Yeah. Well, because because of how you realize how they treated you. Right.

Scooter: 31:09

Because. Because you go from you don't get seen. Yeah. To everybody sees you. Everybody wants to be nice to you and you get pissed off.

Scooter: 31:14

Yeah. Because you're like, why do you wanna be

CasieCasem: 31:22

my friend now?

Scooter: 31:23

I'm the same person inside that I was. I'm just a little more outgoing now. Yeah. You know, and it's agitating. Yeah.

Scooter: 31:33

It's gotten better now. I guess because I've gotten used to it. But there's just so many things that you don't realize. Yeah. Until you really truly look at it.

CasieCasem: 31:42

Oh, yeah. You know? I've heard I was listening to the radio. Now this is years ago but this is relevant. How even females, like, will change, and it doesn't have to be females, but I mean, just like a an individual can change hair color, and it would change an outside perspective of that person.

CasieCasem: 32:00

Like, you know, becoming brunettes or brunettes becoming blondes. Those type of outward body image stigmas, and it completely changes how people react to them.

Scooter: 32:11

For instance, I have dirty blonde hair. You can't tell it why because I started dyeing my hair red.

CasieCasem: 32:16

Oh, yeah.

Scooter: 32:17

Because I was like, I wanna be seen. Mhmm. Beforehand, I was like, nope. Not at all. I'll keep it the way it is.

Scooter: 32:25

Nobody looks at me. I'm fine.

CasieCasem: 32:26

Oh, yeah. So you've had a massive body change. Like, how is it for you to go shopping now? How is it for you to just

Scooter: 32:37

It's still difficult and I'll tell you why. Because I go into Walmart and I'm like, plus size. And then I'm like, wait a minute. No? Juniors?

Scooter: 32:47

I can go over there now. Like, I can wear, you know, size fifteens and juniors. I couldn't even wear that when I was 16.

CasieCasem: 32:53

Yeah.

Scooter: 32:54

Couldn't even wear that when I I don't even remember when I could ever wear juniors. Honestly, that's bad. But, you know, I mean, the shirts that I wear, I wear mediums.

CasieCasem: 33:02

Yeah.

CasieCasem: 33:03

I was

Scooter: 33:03

in a 5 x when I had surgery. The pants that I wear like these are a size 10 in women's. I was in a 28, almost a 30.

CasieCasem: 33:11

Yeah. You brought your pants.

Scooter: 33:12

I did.

CasieCasem: 33:15

You should go wrong. We'll edit this. I'll grab them.

Scooter: 33:20

This is what fits right before I went in surgery. Sorry, they're black but but I am literally able to fit in one pants leg.

CasieCasem: 33:31

Yeah. Like literally.

Scooter: 33:34

Like they they were huge and, like, now it's like, oh, look. I can almost wrap them around. That's incredible.

CasieCasem: 33:43

It it

Scooter: 33:43

brings into perspective everything. You know, because you like the biggest issue that I have now as far as self image is when I don't have clothes on.

CasieCasem: 33:59

Yeah. Because

Scooter: 34:01

I have a lot of excess skin.

CasieCasem: 34:03

Yeah.

Scooter: 34:04

Like, you know, I mean, £160 doesn't just disappear.

CasieCasem: 34:07

That's a whole person of skin.

Scooter: 34:08

And I mean, you can see it here and I have a lot of excess because I've had 3 children.

CasieCasem: 34:13

Yeah.

Scooter: 34:14

So we have the mama pouch and then the excess that I had. Yeah. And I've had and I have excess in my thighs. I've had plastic surgery consults but I'm a mom. Yeah.

Scooter: 34:27

And that stuff's expensive. Yeah. So it sometimes when I look in the mirror, I still see. Yeah. You know?

Scooter: 34:37

And but thankfully my husband is amazing when it comes to stuff like that. Because he's like, I wish that you could see what I see. Yeah. Because he's like, you're nothing like you were before. You're not.

Scooter: 34:51

Like, that's just honest. I

CasieCasem: 34:55

agree. 100%.

Scooter: 34:57

And he's like, you've changed so much. He's like, in in a good way.

CasieCasem: 35:03

Yeah. You

Scooter: 35:04

know, because there's a lot of people that have had this surgery and it might piss them off, and I really kinda don't care. But they have the surgery to get skinny so they can start looking Yeah. Well, that's what I mean, that's what

CasieCasem: 35:16

you feel like you're supposed to look like. Like, that feels like, you know, for me, from my perspective as an outsider, just completely my own personal opinion. You know, I saw you in middle school. Like, yes, we were friends. Like, yes, we did hang out, but I saw pain.

CasieCasem: 35:33

You know? Like, I saw a lot of shy. Like, I saw a lot of shadow. You know, like those those those are awful words to describe middle school and you and my, you know, remembrance of you but other than having, you know, makeup sessions in the bathroom.

Scooter: 35:58

That's what I saw. Right.

CasieCasem: 36:00

You know? And after that, like, that's the you're not this like, of course, you're not the same person you were in middle school, but you're not the same energy either. Like, you're not the same color. Like, you're not the same aura. Like, you're not the same any of those things.

CasieCasem: 36:17

Like, all of these things have changed in a completely different perspective. Like, to me, from an outsider looking from the outside looking in, like, you're complete you are a completely different person. It's like you got rid of that excess person. And now it's you're not only literally lighter, but you're metaphorically lighter too. Right.

CasieCasem: 36:41

Like, you have just, like, like, shed it, and then you just, like, blossom. Like, you just grew. And it's even though that it's not completely done, like, I know that you have your own stuff that you're still getting over, you know, with the skin and the difference of the heat. That's a drastic change. Like, that's a drastic change.

CasieCasem: 37:03

But you're like, it's incredible to see you now, like, from the outside because you're so willing to talk about it. You're so willing to wanna help do whatever you can to share your story and show people, like, this is where I was, and this is where I am now. And there's no going backwards and because I did it, like, you can do it too. Right. Like, I see that with you posting stuff, you know, of the babies on Facebook of, like, making sure that you teach them, like I know I didn't get the proper education on what I'm supposed to eat, but I'm gonna make sure that you do.

CasieCasem: 37:38

Right. You know, like, I'm gonna you know, you go to the gym with them. Like, you go outside and you do active stuff with them.

CasieCasem: 37:45

Which I

Scooter: 37:46

would have never done before. No. I mean, I think one of the most amazing things was when me and the oldest started riding bikes. Mhmm. And we would go out to the Baldwin rail trail.

Scooter: 37:58

Yeah. And the first day, we only went 2 miles in and we came back.

CasieCasem: 38:02

Yeah. Four

Scooter: 38:03

miles. But that's a lot. That's a

CasieCasem: 38:05

lot of that's a

Scooter: 38:07

lot still. But then the next time we went, I think we went 3 miles in and 3 miles out. That's 6. The third time my oldest child decided, oh we're gonna push it. Oh, yeah.

Scooter: 38:20

We went 7 miles in. She's like, mom, I don't know if I can get back. I was like, there's only one way back. Right. So we ended up doing 14 miles that day.

CasieCasem: 38:32

Oh my gosh.

Scooter: 38:33

And she was dying. Like metaphorically dying.

CasieCasem: 38:37

Right.

CasieCasem: 38:37

K. She

Scooter: 38:38

was she was okay. She was just hurting. And when we got back, you know, I still had to load the bikes up and everything else. And I was okay. Yeah.

Scooter: 38:47

I'm like, there's there's no way that would have happened.

CasieCasem: 38:51

Amount of adrenaline that you have.

Scooter: 38:53

Like, beforehand, I would have got 2 miles in and been, like, call somebody to pick me up.

CasieCasem: 38:59

Right. I would have been shocked at getting the 2 miles in. Right. Honestly. And that's incredible.

Scooter: 39:05

You know, a lot of people are like, well, what do you do as far as exercise and this and the other? Honestly, I don't own a regular basis.

CasieCasem: 39:11

Yeah.

Scooter: 39:12

And it's not because I don't want to.

CasieCasem: 39:14

I work. It's a balancing act. Yeah.

Scooter: 39:16

You know? And I think one of the greatest accomplishments that I've had is I do work 2 jobs. My second job though, I deliver packages. Mhmm. So it's 6 to 8 hours of constant.

CasieCasem: 39:30

Movement. Constant.

Scooter: 39:32

And I don't hurt. Yeah. And I don't like anymore. You know, at one point, it probably would have been like trying to suck air out of the ground. Not anymore.

Scooter: 39:41

So it's just it as silly as it sounds, it's an accomplishment. Oh, yeah. You know? So I I really cannot stress enough. You know?

Scooter: 39:52

There will will there will be people I talked to somebody and she agitated me. And I know she knew it because I went up to her and I was like, hey. You know? You've lost a lot of weight. You look really good.

CasieCasem: 40:03

Yeah.

Scooter: 40:03

Because I'm the type of person now, I try to find at least one good thing out of anybody. And if I can come connect with you and tell you that Oh, yeah. I will come I love your shoes.

CasieCasem: 40:13

Yeah.

Scooter: 40:14

You know, your blouse is gorgeous. Well, I went up to her and I told her that and she's like, thanks so much. I've lost x amount of weight. She's like, but I cheated. And I was like, what do you mean you cheated?

Scooter: 40:23

She's like, I had gastric sleeve surgery. I was like, number 1, I don't wanna ever wanna hear that come out of your mouth.

CasieCasem: 40:28

Yeah.

Scooter: 40:29

This is not cheating. Yeah. This is

CasieCasem: 40:31

No. I've heard that. See, this is in the this is gonna be a red flag. But this is, like, so so important, and this is my own personal opinion. It's the same gastric bypass to me for a weight loss is the same as somebody having a c section to become a mom.

CasieCasem: 40:49

Like, you're still a mom. That doesn't make you any less of a mom

Scooter: 40:54

at all.

CasieCasem: 40:55

And some people, just like with c sections, don't have a choice but to have a c section. And some people like gastric bypass, they don't have a choice but to do gastric bypass because, unfortunately, that's just how their body's made. Like, it doesn't matter how strict of a routine you have. Sometimes, unfortunately, that's just the route that you have to go. And that's not cheating.

CasieCasem: 41:18

Because after doing the gastric bypass surgery, the amount of lifestyle change that is an immediate requirement, that's tough. That's very difficult. Requirement, that's tough. That's very difficult to keep yourself accountable and dedicated to. Like, I would much rather not go to the gastric bypass surgery route if that was an option.

CasieCasem: 41:38

Well, I mean, clearly.

CasieCasem: 41:39

But, like, if I had to have one

CasieCasem: 41:39

of the Well, I mean, truly. But, like, if I had to have one of the 2 options because of the journeys that I've had to see of people doing that. That's not anything that I would ever want to take part of because of the amount of strength that requires from somebody that's dedicated to do it. That's absolutely not cheating. Like, that's a whole lifestyle immediate change.

Scooter: 42:05

Well, and it just it goes to show what society thinks because she went through the steps to do it. She had it done. Why should she feel like it's cheating?

CasieCasem: 42:16

Yeah. Or why should you feel like you even have to explain yourself? Why should you feel like

Scooter: 42:23

you're less of a person? Yeah. And, like, you could see it in her face when she told me because she didn't know I had surgery. Yeah. So I flipped it real quick.

Scooter: 42:32

Yeah. And I was like, you know, you didn't cheat. I was like, I had gastric bypass surgery. And she's like, what? Yeah.

Scooter: 42:38

That might be tiny now. I wasn't. That was huge, you know, to me. A lot of people are like, you were still beautiful. I didn't see that.

Scooter: 42:47

Yeah. I still have a difficult time seeing it, it, but it's getting better.

CasieCasem: 42:50

Yeah.

Scooter: 42:51

So

CasieCasem: 42:55

sweet. So when you decided to go forward with the surgery, how did your support system deal with that? Like, what did they how did they react?

Scooter: 43:08

My husband was all for it.

CasieCasem: 43:10

Mhmm.

Scooter: 43:10

Because like I said, the friend that passed away was someone that we had both known for, like, half our lives. Mhmm. Matter of fact, I don't know if you remember me bowling.

CasieCasem: 43:20

Mhmm.

Scooter: 43:20

Yeah. That's how I met him. That's how I met my husband.

CasieCasem: 43:23

Yeah. And she was I mean, she was even in elementary school, you're into bowling. Like, you were always you've been active. So just going back to that, just to highlight, I guess, is, like, you've never been lazy. Like, you've not been it's just how it happened.

CasieCasem: 43:38

Like, this is just Scooter's story.

Scooter: 43:43

Well, the guy that passed away got my husband into bowling,

CasieCasem: 43:46

so

Scooter: 43:46

that's how me and him met. So, you know, that was definitely difficult. So when he passed, me and my husband sat down, and I told him. I was like, I wanna give myself 6 months to try to do it on my own.

CasieCasem: 44:00

Mhmm.

Scooter: 44:00

Because I had done it in 2010. I had lost a £115 in a year

CasieCasem: 44:04

on my own. Oh, wow. How did you do that?

Scooter: 44:08

Was in the gym 3 to 4 days a week. Was eating minimally. I mean, probably not doing it the healthiest way. Then I ended up actually in I don't know if you remember it or not. I had a knee surgery in November 2010.

Scooter: 44:25

Well, I ended up with a staph infection. And I had 4 surgeries within a period of 2 months. I had a PICC line with antibiotics, so that actually made it where I couldn't eat. Mhmm. So I literally lost probably about 50 of those pounds from that period.

Scooter: 44:41

So once I started going back to work and I started eating again, I wasn't able to move because I couldn't bend my knee. I couldn't walk properly. I you know? So it started to come back, and then when it came back, it came back full force. Force.

CasieCasem: 44:54

Yeah.

Scooter: 44:54

Like, the heaviest I had ever been was £315. When I when everything was said and done, I was 3 25. Ultimately, when I found out I was pregnant with my youngest daughter, which is 4a half now, I weighed £330. Mhmm. When I had her, I was almost 350.

Scooter: 45:13

Mhmm. So, you know, there was I knew I could do it, but as everybody knows, when you get older, your body changes. Yeah. And it becomes more difficult.

CasieCasem: 45:26

Mhmm.

Scooter: 45:27

So I gave myself to 6 months, went to the primary care doctor. She put me on, adipex. Mhmm. Phenterine. Yeah.

Scooter: 45:34

Worked wonders till I got off of it.

CasieCasem: 45:37

Yeah. I'm sure. Atapix. I I took it just for fun once. Because it's like Atapix.

CasieCasem: 45:48

Oh my god. If you've anybody's ever tried Atapix. I'm not encouraging it

Scooter: 45:53

whatsoever. No. And don't take the pill and then drink a soda.

CasieCasem: 45:56

And don't do it under the table. Like, I did. That's that's what

Scooter: 46:01

I did, though. Like like, I did it legit, but I took the first pill. And number 1, you become very hot mouthed. Oh, yeah. And so I was like, oh, drink a soda.

CasieCasem: 46:11

Oh, yeah.

Scooter: 46:12

I thought my heart was going to explode. Oh, yeah. Please.

CasieCasem: 46:15

Like, I got cotton mouthy, and I couldn't stop grinding my teeth. Like, my jaws wouldn't stop contracting. That was I thought while my teeth were gonna break.

Scooter: 46:22

Oh, no. So when I got off of it, everything came back.

CasieCasem: 46:27

Mhmm.

Scooter: 46:28

So, ultimately, I went to my primary care doctor and I was like, look. You know the situation. You know why I wanted to do this. It's not working

CasieCasem: 46:37

Mhmm.

Scooter: 46:37

Because I can't stay on this my entire life. You guys only allow it for 90 days at a time anyways. Yeah. It's not gonna help me if I do it 3 months 3 months off, gain the weight back, and then 3 months dead.

CasieCasem: 46:47

Yeah. Yeah.

Scooter: 46:49

So she actually she was like, alright. If you wanna do it, find the doctor that you wanna do it. At the time, the insurance that I had, I had to go through UF.

CasieCasem: 46:58

Mhmm.

Scooter: 46:59

So I was like, I'll go to Gainesville, research both the doctors. He was the better choice. I went she had me do a sleep study

CasieCasem: 47:09

Mhmm.

Scooter: 47:09

Ahead of time because that's something that's required

CasieCasem: 47:11

in a sleep study. To sleep?

Scooter: 47:13

Well, they do a sleep study to see if you have sleep apnea. Oh. Because if you have sleep apnea, then when you do anesthesia, you have to be on a CPAP machine Uh-huh. Directly after. Yeah.

Scooter: 47:23

Because otherwise, you could ultimately dial nausea because you stopped breathing.

CasieCasem: 47:28

Yeah.

Scooter: 47:31

When did that? March 25th of 2016. I went and saw the doctor for my first consult. He was amazing. Literally left with a booklet.

Scooter: 47:43

This is what you need to do. Made all of my appointments. Did everything. I had to see a psychiatrist. You know?

Scooter: 47:49

And that was, like, my worry part.

CasieCasem: 47:52

Mhmm.

Scooter: 47:53

I was like, what if they don't clear me?

CasieCasem: 47:55

Oh, yeah.

Scooter: 47:56

Because I can go through all this other stuff

CasieCasem: 47:59

and be medically cleared, but what

Scooter: 47:59

if I'm not mentally where I need to be? Cleared, but what if I'm not mentally where I need to be? Well, went and saw the psychiatrist, and I was in there for a lot longer than what I should have been, and I was like, great. Not well, at the end of it, she actually told me. She said, I think you're a great

CasieCasem: 48:14

candidate. Oh. She's like, you're doing it for all

Scooter: 48:14

the right reasons. Yeah. You're great candidate. Oh. She's like, you're doing it for all the right reasons.

CasieCasem: 48:19

Yeah.

Scooter: 48:20

You know, because here I am, I broke down about Jimmy passing, and I broke down because I was like, I'm fearful that I won't be here to see my kids graduate. I don't want obesity to ruin me.

CasieCasem: 48:29

Yeah.

Scooter: 48:30

You know, I I'm the type of person I was raised. God does everything for a reason. Yeah. And I'm the type of person. If he's gonna bring me home Yeah.

Scooter: 48:39

It's not because of something that I can fix. Right. So, you know, she was like, no. I think you're a perfect candidate. She's like, give me x amount of days to get the report over there.

Scooter: 48:50

She got the report over there. They turned it in. And like I said, June 21st, I was on the table.

CasieCasem: 48:54

Okay.

Scooter: 48:55

I mean, it was literally March 25th June 21st. And the nurse that morning, it was so funny. She's like, are you nervous? And I had the biggest smile on my face.

CasieCasem: 49:04

Mhmm.

Scooter: 49:05

I was like, no. I'm ready. Yeah. Like, I'm

CasieCasem: 49:08

This is what I came for.

Scooter: 49:10

Yeah. This is what I'm here for. Well, you know a lot of people are like, like, oh, you're having surgery today. And trust me, I had 3 c sections. So I was like Yeah.

Scooter: 49:18

But I'm like, no. They I was so clear headed that morning that I was just like and I mean, trust me. You have to be clear headed to drive to Gainesville at 4:30 in the

CasieCasem: 49:31

morning. Yeah.

Scooter: 49:33

An hour and a half drive just to get the surgery.

CasieCasem: 49:35

Did you go by yourself?

Scooter: 49:37

No. Actually, it's funny because my support system was my husband and my oldest daughter because my middle daughter at the time didn't understand.

CasieCasem: 49:46

Yeah.

Scooter: 49:48

My mom, she didn't support. But the reason she didn't support is because she didn't want me to die on the table.

CasieCasem: 49:56

Oh, right. She was more scared of what could

Scooter: 49:59

have happened. And she literally, like, she didn't realize how bad I had gotten. Mhmm. So after I had the surgery, after everything, about 2 weeks after, she's she came to me, she told me, she's like, I'm so sorry.

CasieCasem: 50:12

Yeah.

CasieCasem: 50:12

And I

Scooter: 50:13

was like, for what? Because, you know, at that point, I'm like, whatever.

CasieCasem: 50:16

She's like, because I should have been behind you a 110%. She said, because just in

Scooter: 50:17

the 2 weeks, because I should have been behind you a 110%. She said, because just in the 2 weeks, I can see how much this has changed. And that's when I divulged a secret that not even my husband knew. I would literally, like, go to Burger King just to pick up a quick dinner

CasieCasem: 50:37

Mhmm.

Scooter: 50:37

For everybody. What they didn't see was I would go. I would order everybody's food, including mine, but I'd also get a large chocolate shake and a 10 piece chicken nuggets that would be gone before I got home. And then I would still eat, you know, the whopper and the large fry and the large soda.

CasieCasem: 50:56

Yeah.

Scooter: 50:57

And she just looked at me and she almost cried. She's like, I had no idea.

CasieCasem: 51:01

Yeah. Nobody did.

Scooter: 51:02

Right. I didn't want people to know that. Right. You know? And I was like, that's why you never saw a receipt when I got home.

Scooter: 51:11

I I knew how to not Yeah. Get caught.

CasieCasem: 51:15

Yeah. Quote

Scooter: 51:15

unquote get caught.

CasieCasem: 51:16

Well, it's an addiction. It really addiction you're gonna do. You have addictive

Scooter: 51:22

Right. So you hide things automatically because you're like, you don't wanna be judged. Yeah. But no. The everyone, including, like, everybody on Facebook was so supportive.

CasieCasem: 51:37

Mhmm.

Scooter: 51:38

And they have been this entire time. Like, I don't I don't do videos very often. Well, I don't think I ever do them, actually, because I don't don't like seeing myself like that. But, you know, I do my side by sides. Yeah.

Scooter: 51:51

And people were like, I'm so proud you made that decision. I'm so happy for you and this and that and the other. And without all of them Mhmm. Including you and including my husband and my oldest daughter, I don't know if I could've made it. Like, stuck with it?

Scooter: 52:08

Yeah. Because it's like you said, it's a lifestyle change. Yeah. And there are some days where I'm like, why did I even do this? Yeah.

Scooter: 52:16

And honestly, there were some days right after surgery. Well, why didn't I do this on my own? Yeah. Why couldn't I have changed what I ate? Why couldn't I have changed the portion size that I ate?

Scooter: 52:25

Well, hindsight is 2020. Right. I have done a lot of research for, like, after surgery.

CasieCasem: 52:35

Mhmm.

Scooter: 52:35

I'm a part of a lot of support groups on Facebook because the whole point of this is to understand what you're going through to also not just help yourself, but help somebody else.

CasieCasem: 52:47

Yeah. Each one, teach 1.

Scooter: 52:49

And, you know, I never realized that after surgery, there's so many people that really they were the same as me. Yeah. Why couldn't I do it on my own? Why did I have to have this surgery?

CasieCasem: 52:58

Why was

Scooter: 52:59

I a failure prior to this? Yeah. And there are actually hormones in your stomach that once it stretches out past a certain point that make you feel hungry even if you're not.

CasieCasem: 53:12

Oh, wow.

Scooter: 53:14

So that's why this surgery comes in handy because it literally cuts away Those hormones. That portion that has those hormones.

CasieCasem: 53:21

Yeah.

Scooter: 53:22

And I'm like, you know, after doing that research and understanding better, it's helped a lot. Yeah. Therapy's helped a lot. Figuring out why I ate so much. What did I go through that triggered my eating habits and stuff like that?

Scooter: 53:39

I think one of the biggest things is don't ever be scared to ask for help.

CasieCasem: 53:45

Oh, yeah.

Scooter: 53:46

You know? I mean, there was a point in time it was beat into me. Not beat, but Instilled. Instilled into me as a child not to trust therapists.

CasieCasem: 53:56

Yeah. Any other I had the same. I I honestly had the same I had the same feeling. Like you weren't an individual. You were

Scooter: 54:05

a file. Not just that, but anything that you tell them, they're gonna go tell somebody.

CasieCasem: 54:10

Yeah.

Scooter: 54:11

You're gonna get in trouble because you've divulged something that you shouldn't have and everybody's gonna get in trouble.

CasieCasem: 54:16

Yep. And it's a blemish on your server record.

Scooter: 54:20

Yeah. You know? And something like that will scare you, especially this day and age. You're like, if I slip up and say one thing wrong, so what's the point of going to therapy at that point?

CasieCasem: 54:29

Yeah.

Scooter: 54:30

You know? You go and you're like, I can tell you this, but I can't tell you this. I can tell you this, but I can't tell you that. That's just too much work. Yeah.

Scooter: 54:41

Because mentally, you can't handle it.

CasieCasem: 54:42

Right.

Scooter: 54:43

If you already can't handle something and then you're having to figure that out too. Yeah. It's like, what what do I do?

CasieCasem: 54:49

Yeah. That's too much to balance.

Scooter: 54:51

But finally, the beginning of 2018, I was like, I can't.

CasieCasem: 54:56

Mhmm.

Scooter: 54:57

I have I have to talk to somebody. I have to see somebody that can possibly help me help myself. Mhmm. Because I don't wanna be stuck in this. And that was one of the greatest things that I had ever done.

Scooter: 55:11

Mhmm. You know? And so I I fully encourage if you need help, go talk to somebody. Right. Absolutely.

Scooter: 55:20

You know what I mean? It doesn't have to be a therapist. If you have a really good friend that gives really good advice, you can be a friend.

CasieCasem: 55:27

Absolutely. But speak up. You know? That's the that's something that it took me, it took me also, something that it took

CasieCasem: 55:32

me it

CasieCasem: 55:32

took me also going, you know, and and being hospitalized and having to do my own personal therapy sessions that route for me to also have that stigma that you have about therapists and, you know, talking and and trying to go get help kind of transparent for me too. I felt the same way. Like, you couldn't talk to a therapist or psychologist or anything like that, and talk about anything that you've gone through, especially if it was, like, a destructive style of behavior. Right. Or if someone had done something destructive to you, that, you know, if you told somebody they would find out and, you know, the worst possible thing would happen.

CasieCasem: 56:18

Well, that's what therapists are there for. Like, that's their job is and you're, you know, protected by laws. Like, that's what HIPAA is there for. That's why these things are put into place is so things like that don't happen. But, yes, cognitive therapy, you know, I don't know if you guys have really paid a whole lot of attention.

CasieCasem: 56:41

Well, I'm I'm sure you have paid attention to my personal journey. And I did the actual medication route and things like that for a while. That didn't work for for Casey for the long run. It helped for the meantime, and it did what it needed to do during the purpose that I utilized it for, but that's not something that I personally feel like was the best route for me. So I do cognitive therapy, which is basically what Scooter and I are sitting here doing, and that's just having a conversation with

CasieCasem: 57:07

it would be more of

CasieCasem: 57:08

a of a life coach, a conversation with it would be more of a of a life coach lifestyle type conversation of someone that helps you sit and have a conversation for, like, an hour and you discuss what your challenges are and they help you to kind of go around that perspective and find a better way of making everything balance and making everything work and help you pick bite sized chunks and make sure that those are digested, you know, at that mentality, instead of doing too much and then you overwhelm yourself and you don't get anything done, a cognitive therapist is someone that's more of, like, a lifestyle coach, but they don't give you medication. So that's the route that I went. And so with that being said, you use those for that intended purpose is to be able to ask for help. There are resources that are put into place that you can educate yourself on, but that's also what we're here for is so that way we get that word out there that we're trying to end the stigma and there are resources that you can utilize that are put into place so we don't have to go the route that that we've gone, if that makes sense.

CasieCasem: 58:16

So if you could go back to yourself 2 years ago, I would say maybe a week's time before the the bypass surgery were to take place. What do you think that you would say to yourself

Scooter: 58:35

then? One thing is you should have done it sooner. Mhmm. Because I've been able to do so much more with my kids. Mhmm.

Scooter: 58:46

And I've been able to do so much more myself. Yeah. You know? And it held me back for a long time. Mhmm.

Scooter: 58:59

Probably a probably a week before my surgery was a really difficult time. The surgeon that I saw, I actually had to be on a 2 week liquid diet prior to surgery. Oh, wow. It was 2 weeks prior and then 2 weeks after was full liquids. And then, you know, you slowly start introducing other, like, soft foods and stuff after surgery.

Scooter: 59:20

A week before my surgery, I had completely broke because you don't matter what I did. Like, I I I completely broke. Like, I started on a Monday, and on that Sunday, I literally went to Burger King, and I got a Whopper with fries and a drink and I ate it all. That could have ruined me.

CasieCasem: 59:55

Yeah. From getting the surgery.

Scooter: 59:57

I'm sure. Not not necessarily from getting the surgery. And the reason I say that is because the whole purpose of that 2 week liquid diet is to shrink your liver. Mhmm. Because if you go in with a fatty liver or too big of a liver, which is what's caused from obesity and the things that we eat, they can't do it laparoscopically.

Scooter: 01:00:18

So instead of having, you know, the 5 little holes, 5 little incisions that I had, they would have had to cut me open. Oh. Which would have been a longer recovery time. It would have been more pain. It would have been there could have been a lot more complications with infection after surgery, you know, and everything else.

Scooter: 01:00:34

And And so, I mean, ultimately, if I could go back to, like, that Sunday, I'd probably smack myself and be like, no. You've come too far. You did it an entire week. What's another week? Yeah.

Scooter: 01:00:46

You know? I but I would definitely

CasieCasem: 01:00:50

How did you feel after you ate it? I cried. Yeah.

Scooter: 01:00:53

Like, I got back home, sat in my car, and cried. And, apparently, my husband knew something wasn't right because he came outside.

CasieCasem: 01:01:02

Yeah.

Scooter: 01:01:02

He didn't even know, you know, I didn't tell him that I left work. I didn't tell him that I was on my way home. He just he knew. Yeah. And he came outside and he opened the driver's side door and he's like, what's wrong?

Scooter: 01:01:13

And I just I had lost it. Yeah. You know? And he all he did was he hugged me and he told me he said, you've got one week. Make the best of it.

Scooter: 01:01:25

Yeah. And that's what I did. I made sure that I did not put a single thing in my body that wasn't on my pre op diet, you know. But it it will put a toll on you mentally. Yeah.

Scooter: 01:01:40

And ultimately, if I could go back to that day, like I said, I would have been like, no. You don't need it. You think you need it, but you don't need it.

CasieCasem: 01:01:47

Yeah. And What was that toll like going to that?

Scooter: 01:01:56

I felt like a failure.

CasieCasem: 01:01:58

Yeah.

Scooter: 01:01:59

You know, I felt like being completely candid. What the fuck is wrong with you? Yeah. Honestly. Yeah.

Scooter: 01:02:08

You know? I mean, why can't you go through this little portion? Yeah. What what is wrong? Like, it's almost hard to put in words.

Scooter: 01:02:20

But I ultimately, I felt like a failure. Like, I felt like You're disgusted with your Yes. Yeah. I was extremely disgusted with myself. I I'm like, you're 28 years old and you can't go without food.

Scooter: 01:02:30

And it wasn't even going without food. It was going without solids. Yeah. You know? And, I mean, it's apparent that your body can handle it because people can live on water and, you know, very minimal things.

Scooter: 01:02:48

So why was it so difficult for me to deal with it? Mhmm. And ultimately, you know, going through therapy and talking to people and doing the research, it wasn't necessarily because I was hungry.

CasieCasem: 01:03:00

Yeah.

Scooter: 01:03:01

It was mental. It was completely I needed something to fill some void that I had no idea was there. Mhmm. So it sucked. Yeah.

Scooter: 01:03:16

But, yeah, that would that would be the biggest thing is to, you know because at that point, I was nervous. And I would just have to go back and be like, don't don't worry about it. Don't do what you're about to do.

CasieCasem: 01:03:29

Yeah.

Scooter: 01:03:30

Because you're gonna regret it.

CasieCasem: 01:03:31

Yeah.

Scooter: 01:03:31

And that's what's sad like to this day I still regret it. Yeah. As dumb as that sounds, it's like I still had surgery.

CasieCasem: 01:03:37

It wasn't everything you wanted it to be. No. It wasn't.

Scooter: 01:03:40

It wasn't worth what I did to myself. Like it wasn't worth how I beat myself up after the fact. Yeah. That burger and fries was not worth any of that. Yeah.

Scooter: 01:03:50

So but yeah. That that's an interesting question. I would have never thought of something like that.

CasieCasem: 01:03:56

Yeah.

Scooter: 01:03:57

But, yeah, if I had to go back, I probably would've knocked the crap out of myself. Yeah.

CasieCasem: 01:04:01

I probably would have knocked the crap out of you too.

Scooter: 01:04:05

I'm shocked that my husband didn't. Yeah.

CasieCasem: 01:04:07

Well, he's a good man.

Scooter: 01:04:10

And not abusively but like, what are you thinking? Yeah. Yeah. You know, and I just to think of how many people, like, it's amazing. What?

Scooter: 01:04:22

How much support. Oh, yeah.

CasieCasem: 01:04:25

Oh, yeah. Sorry.

Scooter: 01:04:26

We accept Like, totally different spectrum on that one. But, you know, thinking about, like, that day specifically, he could have walked away. Oh, yeah. He could have been like, well, you're stupid. Yes.

Scooter: 01:04:40

I understand he's my husband, but anybody could have. You know? He could he could have been any the hell are you thinking? Why why would you do that? Why would you jeopardize this?

Scooter: 01:04:51

But instead, he was there.

CasieCasem: 01:04:53

Yeah. It was the reaction. It was it was how they react. It's never about like, it and that with that being said, I'm gonna go with that. You always hear about you know, you always remember how somebody made you feel.

CasieCasem: 01:05:07

Like, that's so important. That support system. Because, I mean, I know sometimes, like, I will put so much on my own personal self. And all it takes is, you know, it takes one negative person to destroy 7 or one negative comment to destroy 7 positive comments. And that's also with the reverse.

CasieCasem: 01:05:32

You know, it takes 7 comments to diverse one negative comment. And so for someone to be a positive source or for someone to have any type of a support system with a huge lifestyle change like that, especially, it's important. That's extremely important. How is your perspective on, I guess, like your everyday motivation gone? Like, you have a complete different outlook.

Scooter: 01:06:02

I do. I I really do. I you know, there was a point in time where I literally had to roll myself out of bed because I was like, I don't wanna do this anymore. Yeah. Just life.

Scooter: 01:06:13

Like, in general, you know, I don't wanna do this. I don't I'm fed up. I'm tired. My body couldn't really handle The weight.

CasieCasem: 01:06:22

You know, even working an 8 hour a day,

CasieCasem: 01:06:23

I would come home and

Scooter: 01:06:23

I'd have to go take a nap. Yeah. And you don't realize how broke down you are. Mhmm. I mean, I was twenty 8 with probably the body of, like, a 45 year old because of how bad it was.

Scooter: 01:06:41

My day starts now at 5 o'clock. Get up, get the kids up, get them to school, go to work, work 10 hour shift, come home, make dinner. Would have never been able to do that before.

CasieCasem: 01:06:52

Mm-mm.

Scooter: 01:06:53

You know, I number 1, I wouldn't have wanted to. I would have been like, mm-mm. Yeah. Not today.

CasieCasem: 01:06:57

Yeah. No energy.

Scooter: 01:06:59

No. You wouldn't have had any

CasieCasem: 01:07:00

energy. I had

Scooter: 01:07:01

no energy. I had no drive. Yeah. You know? I looking back, I literally had given up.

CasieCasem: 01:07:08

Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:07:09

The only thing that sparked anything was when Jimmy died.

CasieCasem: 01:07:12

Yeah. Because I was.

Scooter: 01:07:13

I was like, meh. I'm fat. I eat.

CasieCasem: 01:07:16

This is my life. It's not gonna be any different than this.

Scooter: 01:07:20

Exactly. And, like, looking back and we still have the issue now. And this is kind of a side note, but just thinking about the not having energy and not wanting to do things. We still have the issue of my husband will get up. Like, I'll be like, oh, you know what?

Scooter: 01:07:45

I'm gonna go make myself a sandwich. Oh, I'll get it. No. I can go do it. He had literally taken on caretaker.

Scooter: 01:07:55

Oh, wow. Because I remember, I'm hungry. Can you make me something? And he'd do it. Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:08:03

And he did it out of love. It wasn't because he was trying to enable me because he didn't realize what he was doing. Right. You know? And now, you know, oh, I'm gonna get up and get something to drink.

Scooter: 01:08:15

I'll get it. No. And it's been two and a half years and he still tries to jump and even, like, it it's bad because even my kids do the same thing. They're like, oh, I'll go get it. No.

Scooter: 01:08:26

Mommy can do it.

CasieCasem: 01:08:27

Yeah. Like, now I'm able to get up. Right. I'm able to get it for myself.

Scooter: 01:08:31

And I'm not hurting. I'm not like, god. From here to there's a really long way to have to walk to get something to eat or drink.

CasieCasem: 01:08:38

Oh, well. Yeah.

Scooter: 01:08:40

So, you know, my everyday life has grown.

CasieCasem: 01:08:47

Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:08:48

Because I just I have more energy. I had, like I said, I have more drive.

CasieCasem: 01:08:54

Oh,

Scooter: 01:08:54

yeah. I I want to do things. I want to get things done. You know, whereas you work a 10 hour day, you come home, and you're like, oh my god. Oh, yeah.

Scooter: 01:09:04

And I'm still tired, but I'm not usually, it's mentally exhausted, physically. Yeah. So I'll get home and I'll

CasieCasem: 01:09:12

make dinner. I'll wash dishes.

Scooter: 01:09:13

I'll do this. I'll do that. You know? And then before I know it, it's time to put the kids in bed. But beforehand, had I worked a 10 hour shift, I would have been like, nope.

Scooter: 01:09:19

You gotta do it. Like, I can't.

CasieCasem: 01:09:21

I'm going home and going to bed.

Scooter: 01:09:25

Yeah. So it it just there there's been a lot of change when it comes to everyday life. I wanna get up in the morning instead of just lay there.

CasieCasem: 01:09:35

Like, you wanna take part in the day.

Scooter: 01:09:37

Right. I wanna be present. Instead

CasieCasem: 01:09:39

of the day just taking part in Exactly. That's incredible. So today being Wednesday, January 30th, it's 2019. What do you think yourself 1 year from

CasieCasem: 01:09:57

right now would say to you?

Scooter: 01:09:58

1 year from now? Yeah. It's a really good question. Number 1, it's probably still gonna look back on this and be like, you actually did that? Yeah.

Scooter: 01:10:16

Yeah. The hope is look at how far you've come. Yeah. And not just physically, but career wise at this point because I'm trying to get better to where I'm at. And, you know, I wanna turn it from an interim position to an actual permanent position.

Scooter: 01:10:49

I know one of the biggest things that I even say to myself now, and I know I'll still say it then is don't ever forget where you came from. Yeah. But, yeah, I definitely a

CasieCasem: 01:10:57

year from now, I

Scooter: 01:11:00

would want for myself to be able to ask, you know, not just say to me, look at what you've done, but ask me what have you accomplished and me be able to answer and be like this. Yeah. You know, I don't want

CasieCasem: 01:11:22

to Be in the same spot.

Scooter: 01:11:24

I don't wanna be the norm anymore. Yeah. That that that's a that's a big thing for me. I don't wanna be the norm anymore. I wanna accelerate.

Scooter: 01:11:31

I wanna be where I wanna be. And that is I'm happy where I'm at, but it's not where I wanna be. Yeah. So definitely, if they were if I were to say anything to myself in a year, look at what you've accomplished.

CasieCasem: 01:11:46

So with that being said, the same question that I had earlier about what would you say to the person the week before you had the surgery? What do you think that person that you were a week before the surgery would say to yourself looking at who you are right now and how far you've come, what do you think they would say to you? You shouldn't have hid. Yeah. I mean, look at how I'm gonna cry.

Scooter: 01:12:18

The person a week before I had surgery, to me, would look at me now and be like, you know, this was always there. Mhmm. And once again, don't forget where you came from, but don't ever go back. Yeah. Yeah.

CasieCasem: 01:12:37

I'm sorry.

Scooter: 01:12:38

No. Today, I'm grinding.

CasieCasem: 01:12:41

No going backwards. No going backwards. Oh my god. I mean, like, literally, if I were you the same day that you ate that Whopper and fries. Like, if I were you that same day looking at you right now today, and that was 2 years ago, like, what would you say to me?

Scooter: 01:13:06

First off, you're an idiot. You know? I'd say it's proud. Yeah. Because you fought and you clawed and you did what you needed to do, and you're there for your kids more now than you were before.

CasieCasem: 01:13:25

Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:13:27

And you're not perfect but you're working on

CasieCasem: 01:13:31

it. Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:13:34

And to continue going in the direction that you're going. Mhmm.

CasieCasem: 01:13:40

Yeah. That's a great start.

CasieCasem: 01:13:48

It

Scooter: 01:13:51

it's hard to look at some of the pictures that I post.

CasieCasem: 01:13:53

Yeah. It's incredible for me to see some of those pictures.

Scooter: 01:14:01

It's difficult for me because I don't ever wanna delete those because that's me. Yeah. Well, it's not me now, but it was me. It's a part of my life and it's something that I am thankful for. Yeah.

Scooter: 01:14:17

Because it's made me who

CasieCasem: 01:14:18

I am. Yeah.

Scooter: 01:14:20

But it's hard to look at them because I'm like, you shouldn't have let yourself get that way.

CasieCasem: 01:14:25

Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:14:26

So, it's definitely difficult on both aspects. But it's sure. That's a

CasieCasem: 01:14:47

great story.

CasieCasem: 01:14:48

I can't tell you with sure. That's a great story. I can't tell you with words just how much of a drastic change I see in you and just your the way you hold yourself, your confidence level. It's a huge drastic change. And I appreciate that.

CasieCasem: 01:15:06

I appreciate you for being here today. I appreciate you coming and talking to us and sharing your story. Is there anything that you would like to share?

Scooter: 01:15:16

I guess the only other thing in regards to self image that I can really explain that's helped me, and we talked about it earlier. Yeah. Tattoos. Yeah. As dumb as that sounds, I knew when I had lost about a £100 that the first thing I wanted was a tattoo that made me.

Scooter: 01:15:43

Approachable. Not just approachable, but you know what? I wanna show off what I've done.

CasieCasem: 01:15:48

Yeah. Oh, yeah.

Scooter: 01:15:49

Because honestly beforehand, I would wear short sleeve shirts that were like this, but nothing shorter. Yeah. I wouldn't wear dresses because I felt like they made me look

CasieCasem: 01:16:02

huge. Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:16:04

Now my corporate attire consists of shirts that don't actually have sleeves and dresses that don't have sleeves. I just wear a blazer or you know, a sweater like a cardigan. But this is this was my £100 down and it brought meaning to me because it's like, you know what? I can show off my arm that I would have never shown off before.

CasieCasem: 01:16:33

Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:16:33

Because I didn't want to because they were huge. Mhmm. And then, I mean, I had already had this one, but this one was the latest one. And this one means a lot to me because it's something that I've always wanted. I and I don't have to be afraid Yeah.

Scooter: 01:16:48

To show them. For people to be like, oh my god. Let me see where beforehand I was very reserved. You know that. Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:16:54

Shy was me. And now I'm like, notice me. Yeah. I'm okay with it. Yeah.

Scooter: 01:17:01

So do what's best for you. Don't let society tell you what's best for you. Don't ever let anybody not understand your worth.

CasieCasem: 01:17:13

Yeah.

Scooter: 01:17:14

Because you know what? Just because that person doesn't feel that you're worth anything, lord knows there's 10 other people in line somewhere. They're gonna be like, you know what? Screw that person. That's the truth.

Scooter: 01:17:27

Because

CasieCasem: 01:17:28

It took a long time to see that.

Scooter: 01:17:32

Yeah. Because for every, like, every time that I can think of in my life where someone said something negative to me, to look at Facebook now and see how many friends that I have that actually connect with me.

CasieCasem: 01:17:46

Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:17:47

You know, whether it be through comments or likes or this or that or the other. It just goes to show that there's people and this was before surgery. They cared. Yeah. It was they didn't look at what the outside was.

Scooter: 01:18:04

So if you take nothing else away from this, never let anyone tell you you're worth anything less

CasieCasem: 01:18:13

Than what you are.

Scooter: 01:18:14

Than than what you are. And put yourself out there because it's worth it.

CasieCasem: 01:18:21

But the and going off of that, you know, there's so many things that I wanna bounce back off of with the tattoos. Scooter and I had started talking about that, for a second, and I was like, don't don't talk to me anymore about this because I don't wanna I don't wanna talk about it and not talk about it on the interview. She said that to me, and I resonated with that so much when I was in Michigan and I was in depression. Like, you know, my about, you guys know about. I was laying in bed, and I had an Audrey Hepburn picture, and I had a Marilyn Monroe picture.

CasieCasem: 01:18:58

And I got them when I was in Alaska. They're black and white, so they had mirrors around them. So they were, like, 3 d, and they both had the red lips. I was in love with those pictures. And I was laying in bed, and I thought I'm gonna get a tattoo of something.

CasieCasem: 01:19:16

I don't I don't know what it is, but I need to get a tattoo because I've got to draw people to me to notice me, to force me to put a face on for them to feel good. Like, I needed to do something for people to come and notice me, but I needed to do it for myself in order to keep myself accountable to be appearance worthy, if that makes sense. Like, I did it so people would come up to me, but I did it to hold myself accountable so that way I would want to, like, take care of myself enough to be comfortable for people to come up to me and say things. Like, when I was struggling with self care and taking a shower and being able to, like, put on clean clothes and just general self care and and taking care of myself, you know, I didn't have the best hygiene, like, at all. I was in capable of of those simple self care necessities that are everyday just things that people do that you're taught to do.

CasieCasem: 01:20:15

And in order for me to be successful, I felt like I had to bring something to myself to get myself out of that hole. And that's my Marilyn. Like, that's the story about my Marilyn. Like, I I love Marilyn Monroe. Like, I respect her as an icon.

CasieCasem: 01:20:33

I think she did a great service to women, especially in the industry, and she has got so many incredible quotes that you know? And she made an impact. But, like, I'm not a huge Marilyn, like,

CasieCasem: 01:20:43

obsessed fan. Like, some people are you know, you

CasieCasem: 01:20:43

would think that Marilyn tattoo. I got the Marilyn tattoo because I needed people to notice me. Like, I needed people to hold me accountable for myself. That's why I got that tattoo. So, and then, you know, bouncing back on.

CasieCasem: 01:21:08

Don't ever let somebody devalue your worth. Like, 2 years ago, you didn't realize your worth. Right? 2 years ago, I didn't realize my worth. You know?

CasieCasem: 01:21:24

It's all part of a a building experience. It's all part of a growth and a maturity experience that every single one of us go through. And this is why we're here is to share that experience with you guys. So that way, if you're going through that experience, you can see that someone else has also gone through an experience similar to yours. And we have a successful story, and we're telling you, like, how you can be triumphant on that story as well.

CasieCasem: 01:21:51

That's, like, what take off the mask is for. And unfortunately, sometimes you don't see your own self worth until you're put into situations where you're forced to see your own self worth. And that's what Scooter is trying to tell you is, like, when you're put in these situations and you see your self worth at that point, like, you're not able to see that you weren't valued until you see your own value. Like, once you realize your own value, you stop giving people discounts. And that's when you realize, like, who is worth your time and who's worth your energy and your space.

CasieCasem: 01:22:29

And, that is, you know, a blessing and a curse of a lesson that you learn throughout life changing experiences. But that's definitely a key is once you realize that people aren't treating you the way that you're supposed to be treated or the way that you feel like you should be treated, cut them out because behaviors like that don't change.

Scooter: 01:22:54

If you're being bullied, don't take it. Don't think, oh, it's just gonna blow over because not only do I know from experience, but my 13 year old has been bullied. And when I say bullied, I mean social media bully. Oh, yeah. And to see what it can do, not only to, like, what it did to me.

Scooter: 01:23:21

You know, seeing what it did to me was bad. But to see it done to a child and not only a child but your child, it's not fair. And it's not right. Don't ever think it's okay for somebody to call you fat. Don't think it's ever okay for somebody to call you stupid.

Scooter: 01:23:44

And you know what? When they do that, it's because they're trying to make themselves feel better. Yeah. And don't take it. Go to your parent.

Scooter: 01:23:53

Go to, you know, whoever is higher up. Don't let it go because that person needs to understand that it's not right. If you're on the fence of having this type of surgery, the thing that I would tell you is sit back and look at it as as brutally honest as it sound and and as bad as it possibly sounds. Do you wanna die tomorrow? Because I'm telling you right now at 3 £50, before surgery, if I would have had a heart attack, my body wouldn't have been able to bounce back.

Scooter: 01:24:36

That's what happened to my friend. He was £650. He had a heart attack. He knew when he left his house, he was gonna die. He told his parents, I just want you to know I love you.

Scooter: 01:24:49

He knew. Don't get to that point. Yeah. If food is an addiction, if you don't to go through surgery, I'm not saying you have to. It's not everybody's, you know, thing.

Scooter: 01:25:04

And I can understand that because it is extremely difficult. Go get help. They have programs. You know, you can see a psychiatrist. You can see your primary care, and they can work with you on to try to straighten out your diet.

Scooter: 01:25:19

They have weight management clinics now that don't use medication. They literally have a nutritionist on staff. They have a physician that is completely trained when it comes to, you know, what you can and cannot do, what you should be eating, what you need to change. They have a therapist on board. If you have a child that is overweight, they have the same things.

Scooter: 01:25:40

You may have to hunt for them. My oldest daughter, we found one here in Jacksonville. That's what she's doing. I had gotten to the point where the closest one was in Orlando, and I was going to drive 2 and a half hours because you know what? It's important.

Scooter: 01:25:55

Your body is going to go through so much because of your size. Mhmm. That it's not fair to you. Mhmm. It's not fair to your body.

Scooter: 01:26:06

It's not fair to the people around you because to bounce back of my husband was a caretaker and that's not fair. Yeah. You know, my children were quote, unquote caretakers when it came to, hey, get me food. Hey, get me this. Hey, get me that.

Scooter: 01:26:20

That's not fair. That's not what they're here for. They're here to be loved and to love you. And just seek help. Seek understanding.

Scooter: 01:26:30

Don't think that it's just you because it's not.

CasieCasem: 01:26:32

Yeah.

Scooter: 01:26:33

That I can give you a list of people that I know that have addictions. Food addiction is just as bad. Mhmm. My husband, honestly, if you go back 6 years ago, I'll never forget because this was one of the first major arguments we had. He told me he's like, oh being fat is just because you eat too much.

Scooter: 01:26:57

It's not a mental illness. I can tell you right now that perspective is completely changed because he didn't realize because he had never been around someone that had that issue. Yeah. It is a mental illness. It is related to genetics as well.

Scooter: 01:27:19

Maybe this is your quote, unquote endgame. Maybe you have to have surgery. Don't think less of yourself. Yeah. But just get help.

Scooter: 01:27:28

Yeah. Just ask. I mean, honestly

CasieCasem: 01:27:31

But there's a will. There's a way.

Scooter: 01:27:32

Right. And you would not believe how many people have either had a surgery and haven't said anything, or are contemplating the surgery, or will be willing to go with you.

CasieCasem: 01:27:44

Yeah.

Scooter: 01:27:45

To go through the steps that you have to go through. Because I tried to do that with my friend. Mhmm. I told him I was like, let's go to a seminar. Mhmm.

Scooter: 01:27:53

He went to a seminar, but it was too late. Don't make that choice. Don't make that decision. Too late. Make sure that you take care of yourself and you do what you need to do for you.

Scooter: 01:28:05

Don't let anybody else stop you. Because the biggest thing that I can tell you is if you wanna do it and the person that you're with or your friend your friend or whatever says, oh, no, and wants to be negative, once again, you need to cut people out of your life. I've lost friends because of this.

CasieCasem: 01:28:32

Yeah.

Scooter: 01:28:34

As stupid as that sounds, and I'm okay with that.

CasieCasem: 01:28:37

Yeah. Because they weren't weren't really a support system to begin with.

Scooter: 01:28:43

Just make sure that you keep people in your life that love you and truly support you for you.

CasieCasem: 01:28:49

Yeah. Yeah. You are who you associate yourself with. Whether or not you agree to their actions or how they treat other people or how they are as a person. Like, if you associate yourselves with them, that's you telling everyone that, you know, is around you is that that's the person that you see yourself most like.

CasieCasem: 01:29:08

That's who you associate yourself with. Guilty by association. So, you know, make sure that you are putting yourself in the right support specialist groups. So Well, thank you so much for hanging out with us today.

CasieCasem: 01:29:25

Of course. That was

Scooter: 01:29:26

Thank you for having me.

CasieCasem: 01:29:26

I appreciate it. That was awesome. That took a lot to a lot of courage to talk about that and a lot of courage to stick at it and a lot of courage to keep yourself accountable with it too. And I think what you're doing and showing other people that if you do it, it's possible to do it is incredible. I'm so happy and honored to have you here today.

Scooter: 01:29:46

I appreciate you asking me because it meant a lot to me too.

CasieCasem: 01:29:50

I'm so happy to hear that. I'm so I can't believe we've been friends for this long. It's awesome. But I can, but just the fact that it's such a big I haven't seen you since we were in, like, physically, like, in in person.

CasieCasem: 01:30:02

Like,

CasieCasem: 01:30:02

I haven't seen you since we were in middle school. Yeah. And the changes just in the way that you carry yourself is because I I never saw you in person at your highest. Right. Like, I saw you in person in middle school, which, I mean, if you honestly think about it, would be around about the same size that you are right now.

CasieCasem: 01:30:26

But with our heights and how we were as kids, like, you know, I clearly, you were heavier back then. Right. But I didn't get to personally see that transition. I see the energy. Like, I see the way that you walked here.

CasieCasem: 01:30:43

You know? Like, I see the way that you carry yourself and your persona, your personality, your characteristics. Like, all of that has changed. I haven't seen you in 13, 15 years, and all of that is completely changed because your happiness level is so elevated. And that is incredible to see.

CasieCasem: 01:31:04

So I'm so happy to see you at your best. I'm so happy to see you feel this good about yourself.

Scooter: 01:31:13

It's shocking, if that makes sense. It is. In my own right, like, to look in the mirror and see I'm literally not just looking there and going why anymore.

CasieCasem: 01:31:24

Yeah. Like, you feel good

Scooter: 01:31:26

I do. About

CasieCasem: 01:31:27

seeing yourself in the mirror. And that's literally that's all that matters. That's literally all that matters. Well, Skitter's gonna be there at the event. You guys make sure that you stop by and say hi.

CasieCasem: 01:31:40

You know, if you have any questions, if you wanna talk to her, she's here today. She's gonna be there at the event to be there to talk to you guys about any questions. Make sure you say hi. Tell her you saw the video. Tell her how proud you are of her.

CasieCasem: 01:31:51

I'm gonna get some shot video or get some pictures from Scooter and make sure that we post those so you guys can see the side by sides too. And, yeah, make sure that you don't be a stranger. Go say hi.

Scooter: 01:32:03

Definitely just walk right up to me and be like, hey. I saw the video because that'll make me feel good. Yeah. That'd be awesome.

CasieCasem: 01:32:09

So thanks, guys. And, we'll see you February 10th at Aveda. Bye. Bye.