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I want to take a break today from ranting about whatever stupid thing Donald Trump is doing and talk about something more personal: my weight.
Earlier this week, my governor, JB Pritzker, shared that he’s lost 80 pounds after going on a GLP-1. Millions of Americans have been through some version of that same journey, and I think it matters a great deal when our elected leaders are willing to talk openly about their struggles, whether it’s their weight, their mental health, or anything else they’re carrying.
And then I watched the Trump White House, the Republican Party, and the MAGA media machine spend the better part of two days mocking him for it. Mocking a man for improving his health. For doing the exact thing that so many people have spent years telling big guys like JB and me to do.
It was something to behold, because the people behind it have to be such sad, miserable pricks. And I don’t just mean the people who made the content. I mean everyone who engaged with it gleefully, as well.
I’ve always hated it when politics turns to mocking people’s appearance. I hated it when it happened to Chris Christie. I disagreed with plenty of what he did as governor of New Jersey, but I never thought he deserved to be ridiculed for his weight. Honestly, as a big guy myself, someone who once weighed 600 pounds just a few years ago, I found it inspiring to see somebody closer to my shape holding high office. I felt the same way about Governor Pritzker.
For those of you who don’t know, I’ve lost 300 pounds over the last couple of years. But that journey started somewhere much darker than I usually talk about. During the pandemic, I hit one of the lowest points of my life. The thought of killing myself grabbed hold of me so viscerally that I became afraid of what might happen if I was left alone. I will never forget looking at my wife and begging her not to leave for a trip to visit family because I was scared of what I might do to myself if she did.
That was the moment I knew something had to change. And eventually, I did.
Most of that came from hard work, discipline, and learning how to take care of myself. And yes, some of it came from a GLP-1. I lost the last hundred or so pounds on one. Earlier this year, I had surgery to remove 25 pounds of excess skin around my abdomen that was dramatically holding back my ability to do anything physical. A lot of you already know this part. The recovery was a complete and total nightmare.
So I have some personal stake in this. And here’s what I want to say: even in this era of politics, when it’s so easy to hate one another, when it’s so easy to make fun of Donald Trump’s weight or anybody else’s, we should try to be human beings first. There are plenty of reasons to hate what somebody does with power. We don’t need to hate them for being human.
I know that’s a little naive. There will always be nasty, cruel people who want to divide us that way. I’ve faced my fair share of attacks about my weight or my mental health from right wing loons like Laura Loomer. but I believe the world becomes a far more interesting place when people share their struggles instead of pretending we’re all perfect.
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I loved the videos AOC made about freezing her eggs from earlier in the summer. Not because it’s something I’ve experienced myself, although my wife and I have been through several rounds of IVF and many miscarriages. I loved them because I know there are people out there going through the same thing who now get to see a little of themselves in someone who could be a future presidential contender. That matters.
On the other side of it, I was extremely critical of Congressman Tom Kean when he disappeared for months. If he really was dealing with severe depression that required medical care, I wish he’d felt he could be honest with his constituents about it. Imagine how many people in his district, and around the country, could have been helped by hearing a member of Congress say, “I’m struggling, and I’m getting help.”
Every time someone like Governor Pritzker, or AOC, or even someone like me, comes forward to talk about our challenges with mental health or weight or anything else, the world gets a little better. And more to the point, it helps people. That’s the part that gets lost when vulnerability becomes something we punish.
There are people sitting on the fence right now, trying to decide whether to talk to their doctor about a GLP-1. People who want to be honest with their friends about their weight but haven’t found the words yet. People who know they need to take that first step, the one that eventually leads to losing 80 pounds like the governor or 300 like me, and who just need a little push.
You can be that push. All it takes is sharing a little more of yourself. Being vulnerable. Giving people that 5% of your life nobody likes to talk about, the 5% good and the 5% bad. You never really know who needs to hear it.
We spend so much of our time on trivia that doesn’t really matter. Meanwhile, the things we’re actually ashamed of, afraid of, struggling with, or trying desperately to change are the things we hide from each other. Maybe we’ve got that backwards.
That’s what I was reflecting on this morning, and I wanted to share it with you instead of ranting about stupid Trump shit for the thousandth time. Because every once in a while, I think it’s worth remembering that being honest about the shit we’re carrying might do more good than we realize. Don’t worry, we’ll keep doing that, and I’m sure we’ll be back to your regularly scheduled MAGA bashing tomorrow.
But this is what’s on my mind today. And Governor Pritzker, if you happen to read this: thank you for sharing a little bit of yourself. Somebody out there needed to hear it. I appreciate you all.
With Urgency,
–Mike
Congrats on your weight loss - however it was achieved. Obesity is a neuroendocrine disease and needs to be viewed as such. Bravo for speaking up. I use GLP-1 to lose/now maintain my weight loss. Life changer. I know people who must be on “the juice” but won’t talk about it. I wish fewer people were ashamed as discussing one’s troubles and solutions can encourage others to improve their health too.
Well written, well said! Great job with life.