Why does it often take a personal experience, of the same sort, to have genuine empathy for others who have similar troubles?  Like the couple that can’t conceive children but certainly understands the emotions others feel in their situation.  Or, the crime victim who completely understands the pain and suffering that another victim feels.  But, with the weight-challenged (e.g people dealing with being overweight), much of society has little sympathy.  Including me–until recently.

I’m a man in my fifties, who had been blessed with a high metabolism, and good genes, plus a love of exercise, so it was no particular challenge for me to maintain my young adult weight of 175 lbs., all my life.  Then, something changed.  My doctors and I are not sure if there’s been a specific cause, though the superficial evidence points to my metabolism having been affected by a head injury I suffered almost two years ago.