As I explained in my post on Friday, this profile is about two weeks late but I hope you’ll still enjoy Lainey’s profile. She was an easy character to come up with because she’s every girl in developed countries rolled into one. We’re all flawed - in our own eyes - whether where twelve, sixteen, twenty-two, forty, or older.
Like many women, myself included, Lainey struggles with her weight. She eats fairly healthy and is active, but no matter what she does, she can’t drop below a size sixteen. For the most part, she’s happy with herself but deep down, wishes she knew what was wrong.
Because I’ve struggled with thyroid issues for so long, I’m 95% sure I’ll try to raise awareness for this condition with this story. Thyroid-info.com cites a study funded by Knoll Pharmaceutical Company estimating the number of undiagnosed cases in the USA to be in the neighborhood of thirteen million.
Hypothyroid Mom has a list of reasons why so many aren’t being diagnosed, including outdated lab ranges, which vary greatly depending on the lab. Then you have doctors who refuse to treat a patient if their TSH is below 10. She has another article (here) that tells what the new ranges should be 0.3 to 3.0. That’s a lot lower than the old standards … and a whole lot lower than 10!
So I think this is a great subject to deal with in my book, along with self-acceptance/love.
With that said, you’ll find Lainey’s profile below. And don’t forget to visit my Weko Series Pinterest page if you’re interested in seeing how I see her and the other characters. I’ll be doing shorter profiles for the secondary characters in this book.
Name: Elaine Marie Lawson
Pronunciation (if applicable): Lane - ee
Title: Ms.
Nicknames: Lainey (see above for pronunciation)
Sex: female
Race/species: Caucasian
Age: 26
Mental age: 35
Height: 5′ 6″
Weight: Refuses to tell me – but she wears a size 16
Eye color: blue
Hair color/length/style: sable brown, hangs just past her shoulders and is fairly straight
Skin color: slightly tanned
Glasses/contacts: no
Physical details
Eyes: a little larger than average, thick lashes
Nose: straight, not too wide
Body/build: wears a sixteen but is toned and athletic
Physical flaws: overweight and can’t get rid of 40 pounds no matter how hard she tries
Scars: lower right abdomen (appendix), faint scars on right ankle from dog bite
Tattoos: none
Piercings: ears – single hole in each
Birthmarks: mole at base of neck near left side, small one that looks like a faint hickey near left collar bone (she hides it with collars, scarves, or concealer)
Temperament
Sanguine: 25%
Choleric:
Phlegmatic: 75%
Melancholic:
Most prominent personality trait: Determined
Best traits of their personality: Is dependable, hardworking, focused, caring
Worst traits of their personality: works so hard so she feels better about herself, secretly jealous/resentful of women with ‘good’ figures but won’t often admit it – even to herself - because it makes her feel petty.
Current faith/religion: Christian
Current superstitions/quirks: loves shoes, purses, and hats,
Marital status: Single
Occupation: Trainer for Four Quarters Steakhouse
Good qualities: Responsible, reliable, great friend, honest, hardworking, eats healthy and works out regularly despite weight issues
Bad qualities: Won’t admit it but works so hard to try to win approval because no matter how much she claims to be comfortable in her skin, she feels a little inferior. Leaves her little time for friends, family, and a social life.
Special skills: problem solving, resolving conflicts with the people she trains
Hobbies: loves to read, crochet, and bake things
Parents: Hugh and Sheila Lawson
Siblings: Younger sister, Chantel, younger brother, Kevin
Favorites
Meat: grilled chicken or steak
Veggie: broccoli
Fruit: apples
Dessert: strawberry fluff
Snack: popcorn
Breakfast: french toast and bacon
Lunch: BLT, onion rings, lemonade
Supper: swiss steak, mashed potatoes, gravy, broccoli, and fruit salad
Beverage: water
Surgeries: appendix, tonsils
Injuries: broken arm (fell out of tree at thirteen)
What scared him/her as a child: putting on shorts or a swimming suit because she found out at an early age that while not all classmates were mean, some could make the life of a slightly overweight kid miserable.
It took a little thought to come up with a song that was perfect, or as close as I could get to perfect, and this is it…
Photo credit: Pixabay.com
