Olga Hernandez, a 41-year-old mother of three from Tucson, Arizona, has undergone an incredible transformation after losing half her body weight.
At her heaviest, Olga weighed 405 pounds. Her weight gain began in her late teens after she became pregnant at 17.
Over the years, she turned to food for comfort, consuming large portions of fast food, like KFC, and snacks, including six family-sized packs of Doritos weekly. This unhealthy lifestyle led to health warnings from her doctors about the risks of diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol.
Determined to change, Olga began her weight loss journey in 2013. She adopted a healthier diet, exercised regularly, and eventually underwent a gastric sleeve procedure.
This surgery reduced her stomach capacity to just 8 ounces, helping her shed pounds more effectively. By six months post-surgery, she had already lost 90 pounds. Over time, Olga slimmed down to 189 pounds, dropping seven dress sizes.
However, her significant weight loss left her with large amounts of excess skin, particularly around her stomach and arms. To address this, Olga underwent several surgeries.
In April, she had her first skin removal operation, which included liposuction and an arm lift, removing 10 pounds of excess tissue.
Then, on October 28, she underwent an eight-hour procedure in Tijuana, Mexico, where surgeon Alejandro Galvez removed a 17-pound flap of skin from her stomach. Altogether, these surgeries cost Olga $24,000.
Although the recovery process has been challenging, Olga describes the transformation as life-changing. She is now wearing medium-sized clothing and feels more confident than ever.
She is excited to wear a tight-fitting, A-line sweetheart wedding gown for her upcoming wedding to her fiancé, Daryl Auclair, on April 28, 2018.
Daryl, who has supported Olga throughout her journey, is thrilled with her progress. He believes the surgeries have opened a new chapter in her life, both physically and mentally.
Olga says the thought of walking down the aisle in her dream dress brings her to tears of joy.
“My skin had become insanity. I had to tuck and roll and hide and I wore compression garments to smooth it out.
“I had a terrible top area of skin above the vagina area and I had to wear long shirts to try and cover it up.
“I became insecure and was constantly critiquing my body. I thought it was disgusting. I didn’t want that for my wedding day.”
Olga piled on the pounds in her late teens after falling pregnant at 17 ( Image: SWNS.com)
Her flabby arms (left) and after the operation (right) ( Image: SWNS.com)
“When I first saw the pictures it made me cry. I knew the flap was big but I couldn’t believe it was me.
“It has been completely life-changing. I’m excited for life now.”
Olga piled on the pounds in her late teens after falling pregnant at 17 and later comfort ate to cope with depression and traumatic memories of childhood abuse.
Doctors warned she was at risk of developing diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol and advised her to lose weight ( Image: SWNS.com)
In a typical day she would eat a breakfast burrito first thing before gorging on huge KFC meals with sides for lunch and hearty home-cooked dinners like chicken and potatoes.
She also munched through six sharing packs of Doritos a week and hoarded food, tipping the scales at 405lbs at her heaviest.
Doctors warned she was at risk of developing diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol and advised her to lose weight.
Olga Hernandez and fiancé Daryl Auclair ( Image: SWNS.com)
In 2013 she began to lose weight through dieting and exercise before having a gastric sleeve which restricted her stomach capacity to 8oz.
On the day of surgery, in December 2013, she weighed 378lbs, or 27 stone.
Within six months she had dropped 90lbs, or over 6 stone.
In April of this year Olga had her first surgery to remove excess skin – liposuction and a vertical arm lift which removed ‘side-boobage’ fat and 10lbs from her arms.
In 2013 she began to lose weight through dieting and exercise before having a gastric sleeve which restricted her stomach capacity to 8oz ( Image: SWNS.com)
Olga before the skin removal on her stomach ( Image: SWNS.com)
Then on October 28 she had an eight-hour operation, conducted by surgeon Alejandro Galvez in Tijuana, Mexico, to take away the excess skin from her stomach.
Her string of surgeries have cost her $24,000 – around £17,900.
She said: “I was very nervous going into surgery. They wheeled me in and the next memory I have is waking up in hospital at 10pm thinking, ‘Where am I?’
“It has been a crazy few days. I’m shocked at how tiny I am. I put on a sweater, a size medium, and that was loose on me.
“It is the weirdest feeling in the world. I never ever in the world thought I would be a size medium.
“I’m in total shock. The surgery has been completely life changing.”
Her string of surgeries have cost her $24,000 – around £17,900 ( Image: SWNS.com)
Olga, who has three children – Helana, 23, Eryka, 21 and Khristopher, 20 – now faces up to six months of recovery and is set to tie the knot to Daryl on April 28 2018.
Once the swelling goes down she plans to buy a tight-fitted, A-line sweetheart wedding gown – something she never would have been able to wear before.
Olga added: “When my fiancé first saw me he said ‘wow’. He constantly tells me he looks amazing.
“I never would have been able to reach this point if it wasn’t for the surgery.
“The thought of walking down the aisle in my dream dress makes me cry tears of joy.”
Once the swelling goes down she plans to buy a tight-fitted, A-line sweetheart wedding gown – something she never would have been able to wear before ( Image: SWNS.com)
Daryl, Olga’s partner of five years, added: “The excess skin around her tummy has been a major problem for Olga, but it is finally gone.
