Carol,

I feel for your health issues. I truly do.

As I said in my article, I didn't think it was okay for anyone to shame or insult me when I was overweight--and I was overweight or eating too much and not exercising enough.

It should go without saying that there are factors, such as life saving medications, that can lead to weight that are beyond our control. That should be self evident.

Almost all medications have side effects, which forces us to make a decision about the lesser of two evils. Do we want the condition--or the side effects? Sometimes it's not an easy choice.

However, in the vast majority of cases, losing weight is the healthier option, and in these cases it should never be viewed as a permanent state.