Triumph Over Turbulence: Another Chance To Live
Many of us live with the adage, "You never know what the next day brings", and many of us fail to stop and smell the roses daily to appreciate all we have in life. In this transformation story, you’ll get a glimpse into the life of someone who thought tomorrow wouldn't exist; someone who watched as they almost lost their hope of a future. Many lessons are learned in this story. As we head into the New Year, hopefully, this story will remind us just how lucky we are to be alive. Maybe it’ll cause us to reflect on the past and envision the possibilities for the future. One lesson I learned from this story was to never ignore the signs your body sends out to you. This article also reminds us to not let the obstacles we face ever hold us back. We must pick ourselves up and constantly move forward, one step at a time. Here is a look into the life of Jessie Ladson who pushed forward with not only a pacemaker controlling his heart, but with love, determination, and a strong will to accomplish all the dreams in his heart.
RX: Jessie, thanks for taking the time to share your story with us all. Can you tell me a little about your background in sports and lifting?
Growing up I was always an active child who enjoyed playing sports and anything that had to do with being outside. It was not until the age of 16, that I begin to lift weights to further my performance as a baseball player. During my high school years while playing baseball, the interest I had in weightlifting began to grow more and more. I started competing in weightlifting competitions on the schools weightlifting team in the 169 pound weight class. As my passion continued to expand with this hobby, I decided to join the powerlifting team at the local gym. There, I competed in the 165 lb class as well. My best lifts in meets were a 485 deadlift, 355 bench, and a 395 squat; all raw lifts.
RX: Can you tell us a little about what happen to you at the age of 20?
At the age of 20, my life and body took a turn for the worse. My endocrine system began to shut down causing my body to encounter serious problems. At this time, I was not aware of the implications that were happening to me. The first sign I began to have was the loss of appetite and I started to lose weight. It was shortly after the first signs began to occur that my sex drive started to dwindle down as well. My girlfriend and I were curious about this and decided it was time to see a doctor. Blood tests were ran and it was discovered that I was suffering from endocrine problems. It was not long after this that I was placed on hormone replacement therapy. It was not a great feeling to know that I had to be given hormones at the age of 20 because I was not able to produce enough. But this had to be done since my body was beginning to suffer.
Approximately five months after I starting suffering from these problems, I seemed to be getting no better. Lethargy was beginning to get extensive and hard to bear with. I had lost fifteen pounds over six months period of time and was feeling that my energy was completely gone. Dark circles were setting in and I never wanted to get up or move. I was losing interest in everything and I was also becoming very frustrated and irritated with everyone.
I remember going to work one day and was told to go home and rest because I looked so bad. When I got home, I laid on the couch one day and remember my parents walking in, looking at me and asking me if I was feeling okay. My mother’s eyes were full of worry. It was then, that we all made the decision that I needed to be omitted to the ER.
Once we arrived at the hospital, the doctors knew I was in bad shape and rushed me into the ER within minutes. I do not remember too much as to what was done as my memory seems to become blurry after the first few days in the hospital. However, the doctors kept me in the room for thrifteen days running tests every hour of the day and night to determine what caused my body to shut down. About nine days after being omitted to the hospital, my heart beat dropped drastically to 23 beats per minute. I remember this moment very accurately. I was laying in the hospital bed and it was 1:36 AM and I was trying to get some rest. The nurse just left my room from taking more blood to run more tests just twenty minutes before. There was an alarm on the heart monitor that would sound off when I dropped to a certain heart rate. When I dropped, the alarm went off, but I did not move and wake up. My mother jumped out of the chair from sleeping, grabed my legs and began shaking me yelling” Jessie! Jessie! Wake up! Please wake up!”. It was not long before the doctors came in at full force and began hooking me up to more monitors and more IVs.
The next morning, the doctor came in to talk about my health and where it was heading. I remember crying to the doctor and everyone in the room saying “I just want to go home.” This was a horrible time as I felt I was not going to live to see another day. The doctors made the decision that in order for me to live, I was going to need a pacemaker. However, the only thing that was holding them back was my age, I was 20 years old. But drastic times call for drastic measures sometimes. The decision was made and a pacemaker was installed and I was released to go home a few days later.
When I got home, I remember weighing myself. I was 103 pounds. This means that I lost over 35 lbs in thirteen days! My body was in shock, I was skin and bones and in the WORST shape of my life. I remember looking in the mirror not knowing what to say or do but shed tears.
Over the course of several months, I encountered and suffered from two stages of depression; BAD depression. Family, friends, no one, ever recognized who I was due to the amount of weight that I lost. I knew that something had to be done and quick!
RX: After you decided it was time to pick yourself up and move forward what did you do?
I contacted a man who has changed my life FOREVER. His name is Shelby Starnes. Shelby took me under his wing and steered me in the right direction. He took complete control of my diet and training regimens for a long time. After time passed by, I remember telling Shelby that I wanted to do a bodybuilding show; although I was still very skinny. A lot of people laughed and spoke down upon me for setting this goal. However, there were only two people who supported me; Shelby and my girlfriend. When the time came to begin preparing for a show, I spoke with my cardiologist and he was not supporting the situation as he believed my body was not ready for it. As a result, I postponed my first bodybuilding show.
It is now 3.5 years since the event and my health is better than we all would have ever imagined. My bodyweight is 175 lbs and my cardiologist is amazed on how quickly and efficiently my body has recovered.
RX: That is fantastic! When did you finally compete?
On November 5, 2011, I finally reached my goal of doing my first bodybuilding show. With the help of my coach, friends on the forums, Needtobuildmuscle.com, and most importantly my fiancé, the journey to this event was something I will carry with me forever.
RX: What is in the future for you in the sport of bodybuilding?
I always get asked the question about what my next step is and where I am going from here. Right now it is a very important time in my life. I have been in a relationship with the most important person in the world for eight years now; my fiancé. The first step will be to give her my heart, my life, and my future on April 28, 2012. She has been MORE support than I could ever ask for. From there, I will work on continuing my off season and look to compete in a show late in 2012.
Before :
Last show, November 5, 2011:
RX: In the next few weeks you have something important that is going to happen that gives your story some closure..what is it?
I am schedule to have the pacemaker removed on December 29, 2012. I will be getting last minute tests run next week as a double check before the surgery; a pacemaker check and an EKG (Electrocardiogram).
RX: Jessie, we wish you all the best in your future endeavors in the sport of bodybuilding and a speedy recovery after your upcoming surgery to remove the pacemaker.
Please keep us updated on how you’re doing and please keep motivating others!
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