If you are a regular reader, you may be familiar with an article I wrote about not judging people by their appearance or make assumptions based on weight. The main point is that one really doesn't know a person until they have walked in their shoes. I have a personal story to share with you when I have been the victim of such assumptions but on the other end of the spectrum in regard to weight.

When I was in my freshman year of college (living the glamorous dorm life), one day I began having weird stomach issues. I remember it like it was yesterday: once a month was "restaurant night"; this is where each dorm has dinner catered by a different restaurant. This was quite exciting since dorm food was less than delicious. Our dorm was catered by Fazoli's, and as I munched down on the spaghetti and breadsticks with glee, I started to feel very bloated as though I had to burp badly. When I tried to do so, large amounts of food would come up into my mouth causing me to either re-swallow mushy food or spit it out. "How weird!" I thought. I chalked it up to a normal stomach bug and had no doubt that it would go away in the next day or so. Well, several days passed and there was no sign of stopping. It was very confusing, embarrassing, and quite frankly scary for my young 18 year old body to experience.

Days turned into months and I began seeing doctors to try to get some answers. By this time, hunger was no match for the pain and discomfort I had eating and, ehem, going #2. So, I began to lose weight and quite quickly because I ate very little to deal with it as little as possible. I erred to mention that before this disorder came about, I had discovered my love for running that semester...back to that later.

While I was supposed to be doing all of the fun and studious activities of a college student, I was returning to Indianapolis almost every weekend to undergo creepy and sometimes extremely long tests to determine my problem. I would eat radioactive egg beaters and lay under large devices for hours so it could see what the heck my digestive system was doing. More weight loss. One particular test involved me having a tube threaded up my nose and down my throat and it attached to my belt for 24 hours. It was humiliating and I endlessly used throat spray. It felt like I was choking the entire time.

They determined that I had acid reflux disease (GERD) which isn't that uncommon to treat. I was taking lots of different medicines that didn't seem to do a damn thing, so clearly I had a particularly aggressive form of GERD. More weight loss. I was being asked by doctor after doctor if I was "sure" I didn't have an eating disorder, since these drugs were usually highly effective. More weight loss. I was the subject of an intervention from my girlfriends who told me that I would easily gain weight if I just started eating McDonald's regularly. I would still run a bit around campus to relieve stress but would get stared at due to my low weight. I would get winded when walking up the stairs to get to class, and my hair was getting thinner. I have many more stories but I think you get the picture.

At my lowest I was 90 pounds, and the only description I have for it is "forced anorexia". I was now in my senior year of college so this had been going on for some time. My husband, then boyfriend, once had some idiot ask him if I was a heroin addict. I was depressed and convinced I would live a short life. I almost gave up. Until one day I met a surgeon that believed (in) me and after having a dead gall bladder removed and another, at the time brand new, surgery on my stomach I was finally cured. I will never forget the first meal I had after waking from surgery. I cried; because it didn't come back up.

Steadily I gained back the weight, and slowly people apologized for doubting me. I wasn't mad at them; they were simply concerned about me and what I had was extremely rare, so I didn't blame them.

Today I am a healthy 125 pounds have ran 10 marathons, and own my own gym. I do not regret going through that experience, while very tough, because it gave me an appreciation for health and lot of empathy for those under (or over) weight and how it feels not only inside but emotionally when you feel labeled by society. In the seven years I have been writing this column I have never even mentioned this story but somehow felt it was time 😄

My last example is one that is occurring right now. My friend is currently being treated for stomach cancer and has lost a significant amount of weight. He is also an elite runner, and continues to run to feel alive and combat stress. I have no doubt that many look at him and think he has an eating disorder. He is not running to lose weight; he is running to stay alive.

So, we all must remember. Everyone has a story and most are not black and white; rather all colors on the wheel.