Embarrassment from old photos?

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  • HittingHerStride
    HittingHerStride Posts: 82
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    I have few pictures of myself from the past 5 or so years, all overweight people that I have heard say they hate having their picture taken. The only thing that motivates me to let my picture taken occasionally is so my kids can have memories of us together.

    The ironic thing is no matter what my weight has been I always felt 'fat' at the time I hated the way I looked but now I look back on photos of myself and think I was so attractive then I wish I could have appreciated it more then.

    It's about learning to live in the moment and appreciate what you have I guess
  • RAQUELINATOVAR
    RAQUELINATOVAR Posts: 221 Member
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    I have gotten lipo done after I gained weight. I just hated the way I looked so bad. It took me a good number of years to lose any weight till I got here. I started getting into it then got in a car accident. I am still working on it though. My sister got me to get the bodymedia at a discount since she already got one. I told my husband today that is the best giadget I have ever gotten in my whole life.
  • christine24t
    christine24t Posts: 6,064 Member
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    I went through and untagged a bunch of old photos!
  • Fairy_Farts
    Fairy_Farts Posts: 166 Member
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    You could burn the pictures. Pele will be pleased.

    That's true...Plus, it wouldn't be a bad idea to do an interpretive dance with a herd of naked mole rats.
  • reddcat
    reddcat Posts: 314 Member
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    There are no photos of me for about the last five years. Can't stand to have my picture taken! My husband jokes that my son is going to wonder where his mother was when he was growing up.
  • SkinnieFinnie
    SkinnieFinnie Posts: 145 Member
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    It's the opposite for me. I'm embarrassed when I see old photos because I used to be so small. I see pics of myself now & I try to figure out where I lost control. I was 107lbs when I was 16. I weighed 137lbs when I got pregnant with my 1st child at 20. I guess I lost control sometime after my daughter was born (motherhood has a way of doing that). At my highest weight, I was pregnant with my son. I weighed 204lbs. That is nowhere "normal" for me. I'm only 5' 4".. I started this weight loss journey at 188lbs..
    I say keep the old photos.. they give you hope & motivation. We can be our healthier selves! We're all in this together!
  • iamlottiebee
    iamlottiebee Posts: 33 Member
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    My weight loss has been so progressive, I think I slowly forgot how bad I was. But when I look at pictures taken of me from my late teens / early twenties I shudder! I just look at myself and think "why did nobody tell me I looked like that?". But I've had friends tell me since I've lost weight that they "never thought of me as big", I wave the photos at them going "REALLY?!?! THIS doesn't look BIG to you?!?!".

    So, I can see I've lost weight...yet, on the flipside of that, I think I still have a bit of reality distortion going on as to how much I have actually lost, because sometimes I'll compare my current size to another person and honestly believe I am bigger than that person and my BF will look at me like I'm mental and tell me I'm much smaller than that person. Still... I hate my fat photos...
  • HittingHerStride
    HittingHerStride Posts: 82
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    My son took prednisone for two years because of an auto-immune disease he has, it made him gain so much weight, not only do you look over weight but you look swollen. As a 15yo boy now you would think he would want to get rid of some of those photos from that stage in his life, but he finds them inspiring, it reminds him of his journey and how far he has come. A weight issue could do the same for many people, it's a part of you and it is part of what made you into the person you are today.
  • bets79
    bets79 Posts: 1
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    I cringe about my 'fat" pics... but I've come to realize its all about improving my self esteem... I remember pictures when I was 50 lbs lighter and at that time .. they were my fat pic's .... At this point I work on treasuring the memories and my rule of thumb is if its just me in the picture and I don't feel good about it.. I delete it (or rip it up) if there are other people/places I think twice....Great topic.. Thanks :smile:
  • downsizinghoss
    downsizinghoss Posts: 1,035 Member
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    I used to always avoid the camera. I still don't like having my picture taken but I don't hide anymore.
    It isn't because I have lost so much.

    My mom always thought she was too fat. I grew up watching her worry about it. As she got older it became more and more a reality. She never willingly allowed her picture to be taken.

    After she passed unexpectedly it became so hard to find pictures of her. We had to dig through so much stuff to find any and every bit of a memory we could scratch up. I won't put my kids through that. I became a ham again, just like when I was a kid and in shape.

    20-30 years from now, the overweight phase will be an important part of your life that led you to the person that you are now, and the person you will be.

    Why would you hide/destroy the eventual proof of your own amazing story? Who might you be telling that story to?
  • austindog2
    austindog2 Posts: 128
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    I actually didn't realize I had gained weight a couple of years ago until I went to the doctor this past summer. I was jokingly complaining about needing to get on the scale, and she commented that I shouldn't be; I had lost almost 30 pounds since my last appointment a year earlier! I hadn't realized how heavy I had gotten until I looked back at pictures from the previous summer -- I wish I knew how to post them! I keep the photos on my computer, though, as a reminder of what can happen when I 'fall off the wagon' and stop paying attention to my health and fitness. I jokingly ask my family members to let me know if I'm gaining weight again, but it's true - I'm not objective because I see myself every day.

    So aside from that personal story - YES! I am totally embarrassed by those photos and only use them to motivate myself to change my lifestyle :)
  • love22step
    love22step Posts: 1,103 Member
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    I'm probably not the only person who decided to lose weight because I hated the way I looked in photos. They're a good reminder now of what can happen if I'm not diligent.
  • Scorpioangel
    Scorpioangel Posts: 951 Member
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    For me I like to show my old photos because I never want to be that way again (I was 151 and looked really bad). What annoys me is when people say "oh you looked better there" even though my cholesterol was sky high along with my blood pressure!
  • mixedfeelings
    mixedfeelings Posts: 904 Member
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    I really have no photos of myself at my current weight, any taken when I started to gain just don't exist any more. I just hate my face when I gain weight. I'm looking forward to getting back to my old self. Eventually.
  • BrettPGH
    BrettPGH Posts: 4,720 Member
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    Just went through this today. I was on Facebook and I almost couldn't stand looking at myself. Crazy.
  • timmymon
    timmymon Posts: 304 Member
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    I was thinking this same thing the other day looking at my older facebook pictures. I asked my brother why he never told me I was so fat :tongue:

    They are all motivation now!
  • Sp1nGoddess
    Sp1nGoddess Posts: 1,138 Member
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    I have been known to destroy the evidence.
  • ihateroses
    ihateroses Posts: 893 Member
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    I actually had a breakdown last year and untagged myself/deleted all my "chubby" fb pictures...I actually don't even have an accurate "before" pic.

    I just got sick of all the "...woooowww...you definitely ummm...changed since high school"....

    I kind of wish I had not done that now so I can fully appreciate what I have accomplished.
  • nbsambucca
    nbsambucca Posts: 123 Member
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    absolutely! last summer I thought I looked pretty good....I didnt really look at pictures of me but when I was given a family photo taken last summer I wanted to cry!!! I cant believe I thought I looked good, and ugh So, that is my incentive. I have the picture up on the shelf and will take the same pose THIS year on vacation too. BUT I just tried on all my shorts from last year..the cute little ones that I couldnt close if my life depended on it, the ones my legs were too thick to squeeze into, and the ones I overflowed....guess what...they all fit!!! THIS will be a better picture!
  • mexy04
    mexy04 Posts: 96
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    I was actually going to post a topic about this. An hour ago my brother was going through my old photos and couldnt believe how fat i used to be. I bever look at these pictures and was ashamed that i had let myself go back then. It has renewed my fight for the perfect body. I'm never going to look like that again!!!!!!

    I empathized with those sentiments, but gosh look how strong you guys are to have come back from that threshold. That is awesome!! You guys are awesome!!

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