MAKE THAT CHANGE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 59
with his nutritionist and closely followed her meal plan while walking laps through his neighborhood each day .
He lost 33 pounds during the first eight days and was taken off his blood pressure medication within three weeks . The cholesterol meds were next to go two months later .
But besides the numbers declining on the scale , Jacksic ’ s true moments of validation have come from surprising occurrences , like trying on the shirt and coat that he wore at his police academy graduation in 1994 when he was 28 years old and being able to button it without a problem . Or sitting in the driver ’ s seat without his stomach hitting the steering wheel . Or borrowing his partner ’ s motorcycle jacket while responding to a detail and fitting into the XL , even though he used to be an XXXXL .
And then , of course , there are the stares , smiles and nods that he gets when walking into a room and seeing people who only knew the old Jacksic , before he lost the 134 pounds and reached his goal weight .
“ It ’ s nice knowing that the weight ’ s gone ,” Jacksic states . “ The focus now is for a heathy , prolonged life . My biggest regret in this whole thing is that I didn ’ t do it sooner .”
Now , seven months post-surgery , when Jacksic responds to traffic details and is able to easily hop off his motorcycle and climb the hills of West Orange by foot without a problem , he thinks about how thankful he is for the friends and medical professionals like Nusbaum , who helped him make the change that he so badly needed . His greatest hope is that he can become that resource for others to let them know they don ’ t have to struggle anymore .
“ Dr . Nusbaum is impeccable , and his staff is top notch ,” Jacksic stresses . “ As officers , our job is often our life , and this has been a life-changer .” d
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60 NEW JERSEY COPS ■ FEBRUARY 2018