Individuals handle stress in various ways. While some people employ relaxing activities like long walks or conversations with friends to distract themselves from their problems, others engage in hazardous behaviors such as binge eating. People frequently turn to food for comfort, but while eating can temporarily improve their mood, it can also have negative long-term effects on their overall health.

Ashley Bratcher, a 27-year-old Texas wife and mother, gained weight because she ate unhealthy foods to relieve the grief she felt when her mother abandoned her and her siblings when they were very young.”If my mother had paid attention, I believe she could have changed a lot of things that were going on. As the oldest, I felt compelled to protect my brother and sister because they were so small. So I allowed that to happen to me in order to prevent it from happening to them,” she explained.

Ashley weighed 725 pounds when she decided she’d had enough. She enrolled in the TLC program My 600-Lb Life in the hopes of finding a way out of her situation, and she was connected with Dr. Younan Nowzaradan, one of the top weight loss surgeons in the field, who has helped hundreds of patients regain control of their eating habits and lives. Ashley was initially told that if she continued her current lifestyle, she wouldn’t live past the age of thirty.

It served as a wake-up call for her to take charge of the situation and begin her change. Ashley was unable to execute even the most basic activities. Rather, her 5-year-old son did everything for her: “He’s my legs; he helps me with almost everything. “Without him, I’d be lost.” When she initially appeared on the show in 2016, she said, “I’d be lost without him.”

She cared for her son as much as she did for herself.Ashley was placed on a calorie-restricted weight loss plan before Dr. Now approved her gastric bypass surgery. She stunned everyone by dropping an astonishing 123 pounds. Her operation went quite nicely.Ashley was able to regain control of her life when she lost 255 pounds. She elaborated to People: “This whole journey has been not only a physical rollercoaster, it’s been very a much an emotional rollercoaster.”

Ashley appeared in the 2018 episode of My 600-Lb Life: Where Are They Now? She disclosed to the audience that she weighed less than 300 pounds and had stopped eating food for comfort. She regained her confidence and was able to do everything she had been unable to do previously, including shopping and taking long showers.

Ashley uses her Instagram account to share photos of herself. Many people who admire her dedication and diligence are among her supporters. “Surgery is only a tool. “It doesn’t change your mindset,” she says.Ashley receives a lot of support from her husband, Jack, with whom she just celebrated their 12-year wedding anniversary.