Confessions of a WERQaholic – Christine Hakimi

“I love every minute I’m with my WERQout classmates, they ROCK!” – Christine Hakimi

Christine Hakimi has been WERQing out with WERQ Instructor Karen Osborne at Four Seasons Association in Bloomington, Illinois since WERQ launched there in the Summer of 2011.  It was evident from the get-go that Christine was meant to WERQ. Her enthusiasm showed head to toe and it radiated from her smile.  Combined with cleaning up her diet, her WERQouts helped Christine shed 18 pounds and gain even more body confidence.

Christine noticed in August of 2012 that she just wasn’t feeling the same. It was evident in class – pains were radiating in her abdominal area and her smile disappeared. Karen and fellow class members noticed her level of effort and enjoyment plummeted from a 10 to a 2 or 3 and concern grew.

“I noticed Christine started choosing more lower level options which just wasn’t like her. She didn’t seem to be having as much fun either. Several times in the middle of class, she would stop movement abruptly clutching her stomach in pain. Then one day it was so severe that she ended up leaving class – she gave me the thumbs up on the way out, but the concern was still there.” -Karen Osborne

WERQ Instructor Karen Osborne (Left)
WERQaholic Christine Hakimi (Right)

After seeking medical attention and going through series of tests, doctors thought she had Ovarian Cancer. Surgery was scheduled on October 3rd for a complete hysterectomy.

During Christine’s absence, fellow WERQaholics asked for updates and rallied behind her with thoughts, prayers, cards, sentiments. Christine’s “spot” remained open – held by her classmates for her return.

Following her recovery, Christine made her comeback to WERQ in December welcomed with applause, hugs, and even some tears. Christine had requested two songs for her comeback classes – Michael Jacksons’ “Beat It’ in WERQ Old Skool and Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger” in WERQ. Somehow, those songs sounded sweeter after coming back from her experience.

“I love every minute I’m with my WERQout classmates, they ROCK! I Beat It and I’m Stronger than ever!” -Christine Hakimi