HBO’s four-part series, “The Weight of the Nation”, says a lack of exercise, genetics, an overabundance of sugar and food marketing cause 78 million Americans to be obese and morbidly obese. But HBO missed something significant — the link between obesity and adverse childhood experiences. For millions of people, it’s more important than all the rest.

More than six million obese and morbidly obese people are likely to have suffered physical, sexual and/or verbal abuse during their childhoods, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s ACE Study. It’s likely that millions more can point to other types of childhood trauma – including loss of a parent through divorce, living with an alcoholic parent or a mentally ill family member – or other traumatic experiences such as rape or assault — as a starting point for their weight gain.

I wrote this for someone who was going through love withdrawal symptoms, by remembering something similar that I had experienced.

A love that felt so true and strong,

A love that could not be,

but for a time,

A love that felt like fate and destiny.

A song for constant strangers,

and unrequited love.

A song for heart connections,

suddenly dissolved.

My life was changed the day we saw’

that brilliant shining star.

We witnessed it together.

Me here.

You so distant, so far.

Although I never met you,

I thought you really cared.

The ecstatic joyous feelings

I thought we really shared.

I thought I really knew you,

and that you really cared.

This love, this poignant feeling.

This pain of loves descent.

From soaring heights to emptiness,

A gift of love now spent.

From bliss and happiness,

to bruised heart,

questioning what it meant.

When all was said,