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Between October and April, Bill lost 100 pounds! His weight dropped to 235; he also went down 10 pants sizes. He was now in the best shape of his life! Just as things were going well for him, Bill was in a critical car accident that May. A pick-up truck hit him head on; the driver was blinded by the sun and did not see him. His car was crushed. He was pinned inside the car, and it took paramedics 45 minutes to free him from the car. He recalls that he could hardly breathe during the entire time. Bill suffered many injuries: three broken ribs, a severally sprained neck, a broken shoulder and facial damage, and injuries to his legs and back. He was in critical condition for the three days. At one point, the doctors thought they had lost them. But Bill battled back and after nearly three weeks in the hospital, he was released. Bill told both his doctors and paramedics about the kind of shape he was in a year ago and they all agreed – if he was still in that kind of shape, the crash would have killed him. He was so big that he would have been crushed and died before the doctors had a chance to save him. Throughout his stay at the hospital, Bill showed character and determination that he never had a year ago. Through his persistence, he was able to get a laptop computer and Internet access in his room so he could continue talking to the SparkPeople Community, while getting work done as well. As amazing as his weight-loss was, the quick recovery he experienced after his accident might be even more remarkable. The day he was discharged, he received the "Making a Difference" award at his church’s annual convention. The award is not even given out every year, but the church awarded it to Bill. He realized, more so than ever, how the change in his life had not only affected him, but others around him. |
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Motivation Articles › Inspiring Stories''How Weight Loss Saved My Life''The Story of Bill Smith-- By Zach Van Hart, SparkPeople ContributorSparkPeople advertisers help keep the site free! Learn more
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Zach Van Hart
Zach is a journalist who regularly covers health and exercise topics. |
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Member Comments
God really showed up. - 12/10/2009 8:36:56 AM
.God was certainly in that whole scenario for sure.... - 6/29/2009 9:03:43 PM
My friend wasn't even the most obese person I knew, but in the backseat by herself, the two other girls got out fine. They couldn't get my friend out and she drowned.
Every time I see an overweight person, I want to tell them this story.
I never do. I'm too afraid of offending them.
I am not so heavy that this would be a problem for me, but I worry for everyone I know who is obese. One of my closest friends is obese and I tell her about SP, but I don't think she's found it within herself to change yet. I hope she does soon. - 2/25/2009 9:12:58 PM