Piece by: MILLICENT ATIENO

10 March 2023

• In a long emotional Instagram post, the mother of two shared contrasting photos of how she looked a while back versus her current body.

• She also disclosed that she has been body-shamed severally.

Maureen Waititu today revealed how she has managed to lose 22 kg through advanced Gastric Baloon Technology within a span of four months.

In a long emotional Instagram post, the mother of two shared contrasting photos of how she looked a while back versus her current body then captioned;

"I’ve been trying to type this and I am super emotional 😭 -I am also feeling very vulnerable to share but I owe so many of you who have been asking about my weight loss journey."

She noted that four months ago during her lowest moments is when she started the whole procedure adding that she is now feeling ready and comfortable to share her journey."Four months ago, during one of my lowest moments, I walked into @nairobibariatric at the heaviest I’ve ever been in my life. They held my hand helping me lose 22kgs so far through their advanced gastric balloon technology and now I am ready to share with you my journey with my followers." She added.

The influencer further revealed that her body has gone through a lot and she tried everything to keep fit and healthy from exercise and eating healthy but her asthma got worse making her gain more weight.

"My body has gone through so much in the last few years and at some point it just couldn’t take care of me-I did everything I could to stay fit and healthy but no matter how many times I worked out or how little I ate, I kept piling on the kilos. My asthma got so bad, my back hurt and my ankles couldn’t support me making me sedentary most of the time and consequently gaining more weight" She further explained.

She also disclosed that she has been body-shamed severally where women were commenting dismissive and negative things about her natural appearance which also led to depression leading to snacking a lot hence continued weight gain but she is currently happy and healed.

"The body shaming didn’t help either where people mostly women felt the need to keep commenting really negative things about my body.

As some of you may know, I was also treating severe depression and anxiety for some time and the medication I was taking would often leave me not feeling like myself thus I’d look for comfort through constant snacking and eating-but I thank God that’s behind me now as I am fully healed and the happiest I’ve been in the longest time 🥰" She added urging people to stop body shamming.

She also educated her followers on the Gastric Ballon process saying that, "Intragastric balloon placement is a non-invasive weight-loss procedure that involves placing a saline-filled silicone balloon in your stomach. This helps you lose weight by limiting how much you can eat and making you feel fuller faster (it’s not surgery).This procedure is not a shortcut to weight-loss and it needs a lot of sacrifice and discipline in order for one to reach their goal."

She concluded by noting that she has a long way to go in order to get effective results and will walk through the journey with her followers.