Page 102 - South Mississippi Living - July, 2019

HEALTHY LIVING gastric sleeve PURSUING A
HAPPIERR
HEALTHIE
Lucedale couple loses weight together with the help of South Mississippi Surgical Weight Loss
story by Kelsey Sunderman-Foster photos courtesy of Jera and Jacob Havard
era and Jacob Havard are a loving couple from Lucedale whose stories have a common thread.
TOGETHER
Life
Both grew up struggling with their weight, but never allowed it to define their relationship.
At just 19 years old, Jera lost her mother
unexpectedly. “Through the grief and caring for my family in her absence, I ended up gaining 100 pounds,” Jera said. “I had never been happy with my body, but
at my highest weight of 350 pounds, I realized that something had to change.”
At the time, Jera was considered pre-diabetic and struggling with anxiety and depression. “My husband, who has always loved me regardless of my weight, suggested I seek weight loss surgery. He knew that being overweight was only worsening my depression and anxiety issues,” she said. “I also knew that if I was to get pregnant at such a high weight, I would be putting the health of both the baby and myself at risk.”
Jera was the first of the two to undergo weight loss surgery. After consultations with the team at South Mississippi Surgical Weight Loss, she opted to receive a gastric sleeve. Later, Jacob would opt for the same surgery, also performed by Dr. Payne.
Jacob had struggled with similar issues, and after seeing his wife’s success knew that he wanted to pursue a happier, healthier life for himself as well. “As a young
adult, I developed type 2 diabetes,” Jacob said. “When I was told it could be reversible with weight loss, I knew something had to change. I also suffer from rheumatoid arthritis and the extra weight was only making my joint pain worse with each day.”
Since their surgeries, the two are well on their way to reaching their goals. Jera has lost over 90 pounds, 46 inches and 4 clothing sizes. “Before surgery, I wore a women’s plus 26 or 3X, and now I am down
102 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • July 2019
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