Some stories are so crazy, they're outrageously difficult to believe. Mayra Rosalesused to weigh 1,200 pounds. She took up an entire king-size bed, couldn't stand because her legs wouldn't support her body weight, and was considered one of the heaviest women in the world. She became the poster girl for unhealthy lifestyles when, in 2008, she admitted to killing her 2-year-old nephew by sitting on and crushing him. Facing the death penalty in Texas, her trial was a circus, with media filming every minute of it -- from men cutting a hole in Mayra's house so she could be transported to court in a van to the woman facing capital punishment charges while sitting on a bed that was brought into the courtroom for her.
As it turns out, everyone was wrong about Mayra. And the 33-year-old has since turned her life around in a most inspirational way.
The thing is: Mayra wasn't guilty. She was covering for her sister, Jamie, who had been abusing her own child and is now serving 15 years for his murder. I'm having a problem rallying behind a woman who tried to hide her nephew's death, I admit. I would feel better about this story if she had turned her sister in from the beginning, but the truth is Mayra felt like she was going to die anyway -- she wanted to die -- and thought she would be doing everyone a favor by protecting her sister.
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I don't agree with her choices, but I can accept that Mayra has flaws and has since tried to learn from them and change her life.
And you can't deny she has certainly gone the extra mile to make those changes happen. The woman who was once nicknamed the "half-ton killer" immediately began getting healthy after her name was cleared of charges. She had to drop 600 pounds before doctors would even consider her for gastric bypass surgery and did so by working with an obesity specialist and eating a strict high-protein diet. In order to reach her current weight of about 200 pounds, she also had to undergo numerous other surgeries in order to remove excess skin and tumors.
Mayra is in the process of getting custody of Jamie's other children, who call her "mom" and who she says serve as inspiration for her to keep making healthy choices. She made a mistake covering for her sister five years ago, but has since admitted to her lie and proven she can take control of her life.
This video shows Mayra's incredible metamorphosis. Her story will also be shared in a documentary special called Half-Ton Killer: Transformed, which airs on TLC on December 4.
See this video on The Stir by CafeMom.
Do you think Mayra is an inspirational woman or do you find it difficult to forgive her past mistakes?
Image via YouTube