My Body Was The Reason For An Hours-Long Flight Delay. It Changed How I Traveled For Years.

I got the travel bug fairly early. I was 12 when my mother told my brother and me she was sending us to Kenya to live with my aunt for two years. My mom is from Mombasa and wanted us to experience our Kenyan heritage and culture as first-generation African Americans.

My mother didn't take the trip with us, so we were unaccompanied minors traveling with a flight attendant. It felt so grown-up to sit in large first-class seats, enjoy all the soda we wanted, and eat first-class food.

That trip and the experience in Kenya put an insatiable love of travel in my soul.

As an adult, I could travel as much as I wanted to. My first adult trip was as a 19-year-old traveling from Milwaukee (where I was born and raised) to New York. What should have been an exciting experience turned into my worst nightmare.

I got on the flight and sat in my seat. As I tried to put the seat belt on, it didn't fit across my body. I tried to contort my body, shift my position in the seat, and suck in my belly to the extreme, but the seat belt would not click closed.

As the flight attendant passed, I whispered and asked if I could get a seat belt extender. She didn't hear me, so I repeated my request. She responded in what felt like amplified theater mode, "The seat belt doesn't fit; you're going to need a seat belt extender." I could feel all the blood in my body rushing to my face as I felt outed and exposed.

What made the situation worse was that the plane had no extra seat belt extenders onboard, as they had already handed out the few they had to passengers. They called in to have one brought down from the terminal.

I waited, and the whole plane waited with me. The flight was delayed for hours while we waited for the seat belt extender. It felt like everyone was looking at me with rage and hate when they realized I was the holdup.

As time passed, it took all my willpower not to run off the flight. The seat belt extender arrived hours later, and we took off on the most uncomfortable flight of my life. I didn't want to move a peep or talk to anyone.

Sadly, that wasn't my only embarrassing seat belt and extender incident. I had a repeat of the seat belt extender experience on trips to Sydney and London.

After these incidents, I decided to put travel on hold because of my weight and how I saw myself. I told myself I was too fat to travel. I didn't travel again for 12 years.

Around my 32nd birthday, I had an opportunity to travel for my business. I had started a corporate consultancy that provided live training. A company in Paris booked me to train their team, which meant I'd be back in the skies again.

This time, I was prepared. I purchased my own seat belt extender on Amazon, booked first-class seats for the extra width, and booked the flight days before in case I needed to bail — I wouldn't have another seat belt extender incident.

I also "large-person proofed" my entire trip. In addition to first-class seats, I booked a hotel room and an Airbnb with more space and king-size beds.

These changes made travel more comfortable for a while, but my mental health was not in a good place and deteriorated with each trip. I had not addressed my biggest issue: I hated myself.

I let myself get to 425 pounds (at my heaviest) and had yo-yoed with losing and gaining weight for years. For years, I couldn't look at myself in a mirror without crying. I knew I wouldn't be able to travel if I didn't address my terrible self-image.

Six years ago, I got serious about my mental health and fixing an issue that was bigger than needing a seat belt extender. I started seeing a therapist and got the mental health and self-image help I needed.

My wife has loved me in every body shape and supported me in therapy. Through therapy, I was able to see I was more than my weight and what my body looked like.

The sessions, along with travel, healed me. I healed through travel. I gained a new perspective on life by hearing the Maui ocean waves, riding camels by the Giza pyramids, and kissing the love of my life on top of the Eiffel Tower.

The travel experiences with therapy helped me learn to love my body where it's at and travel while working on getting healthier. I learned to love Kimanzi for who he is.

Since then, my wife and I have taken dozens of trips. I've gotten healthier and love myself — every part of me. We also sold our possessions and became full-time digital nomads, traveling to 20 countries.

I've lost weight, but I'm still a heavier traveler. The difference has been learning to love my body despite my weight. I now travel comfortably as someone who's 300 pounds and travels full time.

I'm not trying to glorify being overweight but to encourage those who are larger not to let their weight keep them from exploring the world. There are practical solutions, such as purchasing a seat belt extender and booking wider seats and accommodations, but life is short.

Travel can add so much culture, beauty, and delicious food to your life. I will experience all of it while working to become a lighter traveler.

Kimanzi Constable is the author of four books and a writer whose articles have been published in CNET, Fortune, AskMen, Forbes, Business Insider, SUCCESS Magazine, Parents, Travel & Leisure, CNBC Make It, Black Enterprise, Conde Nast Traveler, and 60 other publications and magazines. He’s a business owner and global traveler who has traveled to 88 countries. Follow him on kconstable.com.Do you have a personal story you’d like to see published on BuzzFeed? Send us a pitch at essay-pitch@buzzfeed.com.