Andre is now an inspiration to so many others. Texas, USA: THIS SINGLE mum shared how she lost an incredible 108 pounds over the course of two years after medic warned she faced liver collapse and death if she refused to shed the fat. Her weight had a severe effect on her health causing constant pain and accelerating liver damage that was originally caused by an autoimmune disease. Resolution Specialist and mum-of-two Andrea Ybarra (37) from San Antonio, Texas started her weight loss journey in 2020, weighing 268 pounds at the time. She hopes by sharing her story she can help to inspire others facing the perils of liver damage to seek help before their lives are altered forever, or in the worst case, they die.
Andrea was consuming over 3,000 calories a day at her peak, but she cut this by over half to only 1,200 calories per day and reduced her weight to 150 pounds. At her peak size, specialist doctors told Andrea her weight was triggering her autoimmune flares which was significantly damaging her liver. Andrea was told she may not live to her 50th birthday and would one day need a liver transplant. Andrea underwent gastric sleeve surgery through the Bariatric Medical Institute of Texas on April 13th 2021. This is a surgery removed 15% of her stomach. MORE DETAILS ABOUT DIAGNOSIS AND SURGERY Since 2020, Andrea has gone from a dress size 20 or 3XL to a size 8, a UK medium. “Every morning, just getting out of bed was difficult,” said Andrea. “I stopped going around family and I didn’t do as much activities with my children as I should have. “When I was told I may need a liver transplant one day or may not live to see my 50th birthday, it felt like I was given a deadline and the clock was ticking. “I kept thinking about how every day that passed without changing anything was a choice and that I had to take control and at least try to do something about it. “The thought of not being around for my children was more than I could bare and I just knew I had to act quickly i