How Sam Got Her Mojo Back Samantha Martingano

How Sam Got Her Mojo Back Samantha Martingano

For many, unintended weight gain is a consequence of poor eating habits and a lack of exercise. In these instances, the solution is within their control – a change in lifestyle. But then there are those times when life throws you a curve ball and wrests control from your hands.

Samantha Martingano has experienced both scenarios in her life. “Working long hours, exercising less and a lack of meal prep contributed to my initial weight gain. I then experienced a string of surgeries and accidents – a hysterectomy, a tumour removal, a fractured ankle, a scar repair on my abdomen, a fractured elbow, and eye surgery – which kept me out of the gym.”

CANCER SCARE

However, it was in December 2015 when Sam’s life was forever changed. “I was diagnosed with a brain tumour. While likely benign, it was already causing terrible headaches and interfering with my speech. My neurosurgeon advised me to schedule surgery within six months while it was still relatively small and easily operable.”

Sam did just that and in April 2016 she had a craniotomy to remove the tumour. “The surgery went extremely well, but then I started losing my speech as a result of focal seizures, which are common following brain surgery. I was placed on a high dose of anti-epileptic medication, but still spent four weeks unable to speak,” she recalls.