Body image issues and weight loss

Nrd1213
Nrd1213 Posts: 3
in Motivation and Support
I lost 130 pounds using this sight, but it still feels like I can't wrap my head around my new body. Anybody else have these feelings?

Replies

  • flitabout
    flitabout Posts: 200 Member
    It isn't my current weight loss that got me it I have had 4 kids since my original loss. But I just felt sorta outside of myself. Yes I could fit into a size 8 but I still felt like an 18. When I looked in the mirror I still felt like 180 even though I was 125. It didn't help how fast I lost the weight and I wasn't trying to lose it in fact I did in 2 months. I think it is harder to see what you have done when it happens really fast. It took me a couple years to feel pretty and slim. Right about the time I got the depo shot and gained 30lbs in 3 weeks, was when I finally learned to except my new body. Because I had to bust my *kitten* that time to get it back!
  • Nrd1213
    Nrd1213 Posts: 3
    Thanks, at least I'm not the only one. I have been up and down on the scales a lot in my life. I just want to make it stick this time.
  • Smokey19
    Smokey19 Posts: 796 Member
    I've lost almost 100 lbs., but I still feel like I weigh what I did at my highest wt. (mentally, not physically). What helps me is looking at pictures that I've taken along my journey and I can see the difference. I also concentrate on how I feel now and what I can do now that I couldn't do at 300 lbs. I am physically disabled so there are still a lot of things that I will never be able to do, but I can walk without breathing hard and I can tie my own shoes, etc. Look in the mirror and tell yourself how beautiful you are...say it out loud several times a day and anytime you feel yourself slipping.
  • aricakaye
    aricakaye Posts: 10
    I also have this problem. I have lost 42 lbs in a little over 3 1/2 months. I have worked my butt off to lose it and for some reason my mind still sees myself as the same weight I was. I can fit into a size 6, and I barely have any clothes that fit, just the ones that I recently bought since I am at the size I want to be. Even though I put the old clothes on and see a huge difference to the point that some just fall off of me, I don't see myself as the size 6 woman I have become. I have talked to several of my friends about this, b/c I don't want this to become an issue and get to the point where I am losing too much weight. Physically I am told that I look amazing and I want to believe I look amazing, but mentally I just don't see it. I am hoping with time, b/c I have lost it in such a short period, that my brain will catch up and I will be happy with the person I see in the mirror. In the end I am extremely proud of what I have accomplished, I never was a runner, and now I run 5 miles, and I never thought I would get any smaller than a size 10, and I am now a size 6, so I am just trying to focus on the positive and see where that leads me. Good job on your weight loss!!! :)
  • melzielkie
    melzielkie Posts: 90 Member
    Absolutely! I love over 100 lbs in 8 months and even though I look like a whole new person I still have days where I just feel fat and uncomfortable in my body. Looking at my before and after picture definitely helps!
  • xstarxdustx
    xstarxdustx Posts: 591 Member
    I lost 130 pounds using this sight, but it still feels like I can't wrap my head around my new body. Anybody else have these feelings?

    Yes. Overweight my entire life. 86 lbs down but it's hard to 'see' it. I'm starting to look at old photos and compare them to what I look like now. I can see the difference in size from the photos, read the numbers on the scale and clothes, but even then, it's hard to 'feel' it, which is the whole 'brain hasn't caught up' yet part, I suppose. Hang in there, you're definitely not alone.
  • MissFuchsia
    MissFuchsia Posts: 523 Member
    I struggled with body issues for a long time. I've lost 100lbs and it's taken nearly a year for it to sink in. I'm still insecure about my body but I'm happier now than I was last year :)
  • CassandraChloeJ
    CassandraChloeJ Posts: 47 Member
    I struggle every day with the fat girl mentality. I still even choose certain activities based on what I would have done 111 lbs ago. I know I have changed and look so much better but all I still see is the old "fat" unhealthy me. Take lots of pictures and compare the new with the old. I post a lot of my pics on Facebook so that I get the recognition from friends. It helps. They never fall short with compliments. :) If you can't tell yourself every day how beautiful. amazing, skinny you are then acknowledge your accomplishments (running, breathing, weight loss lbs, no more pain, change in the size numbers etc...) until you can see the beauty. I can only hope that in time I can accept it too. I think it will come with time. It is easier to change physically than mentally. I have also decided to focus on activities, strength and toning and the health aspect rather than the size and lbs lost numbers. Your body is amazing just give your head time to catch up.
  • Alexandra289
    Alexandra289 Posts: 330 Member
    I know the feeling. I might be a completely healthy size but I'm still the fat teenager inside. I scrutinise every outfit and picture to see how slim my waist and thighs are and beat myself up if they look too big or if 'm wearing an outfit that doesn't show off my weight loss properly. Or if I look slim in a picture I convince myself it's just flattering. That sounds so illogical, but think I worry that people will think I've put on weight or something. And I feel like I don't really know what I look like. Basically, I can't get used to my size some days and still feel like I look big. But some days I feel really good about it. Just want to feel good about it all the time!!
  • aricakaye
    aricakaye Posts: 10
    I know what you mean when you talk about the outfit not showing off your weight loss properly. I will go through so many clothes, and think to myself that this looks so cute on that girl, but I don't want to wear it b/c the thought that goes through my head is, people are going to think I am fat!
  • Nrd1213
    Nrd1213 Posts: 3
    It feels a lot better knowing that I'm not alone. I still sometimes find myself picking out clothes that would have flattered my old body or grabbing a size bigger than what I really need. I've been maintaining for a month now, and I feel a lot better already. I've been up and down on the scales a lot in my life, but I've never been able to maintain for any great length of time.
  • mbh194s
    mbh194s Posts: 1
    Totally there. I haven't lost nearly as much as you (congratulations, you winner, you!), but despite the incredible number of compliments I get from coworkers and family members, I still look in the mirror and see problems. I have wondered if part of it is that I spent so long critiquing my body and shape that now it feels odd to not do that.

    Whatever you do, be proud of what you have accomplished. Look at the reality, is what I keep getting told, anyway. If your clothes are smaller and your shape is smaller and you have more energy, you are doing great things for yourself. If you are not focused on what's good, it will easily sink into focusing on what is lacking. And for me, anyway, that's the downward spiral.
  • jewell4791
    jewell4791 Posts: 1
    I've lost 68lbs and I'm down 5 sizes and I felt great until about 2 months ago. I thought I hated looking in the mirror before when I was bigger but now I hate it even more. I'm ashamed of how I let myself go. Now that I have lost weight my body is droopy in areas it wasn't before I gained this weight. I'm exercising but things aren't going back to the way they were. I don't feel beautiful ever. I still use clothes to camouflage my body. Is this all in my head? Is this party of the nor knowing how to accept my new body? I'm not done losing weight but I'm afraid if I keep going u will look worse. What is wrong with me?
  • ElliottTN
    ElliottTN Posts: 1,614 Member
    I actually have very similar issues. I still see myself as I did at my heaviest. When I look at pictures they look completely different than what I see in the mirror. My problem areas stand out like crazy to me. I know I'm completely ****ed in the head bc I can look in the mirror and take a pic and not move and it looks like two different people to me. I'm also the type that won't ever be satisfied. Always something to improve, always something lacking. I guess the big difference is that it more or less motivate me to keep my head down working rather than depresses me at this point. I've always been so much more critical of myself than anyone I know so I know I will probably never be completely satisfied but at the end of the day, I'm actually ok and have come to terms with that.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    It took me a year to drop 50 pounds and it took my brain another year to catch up with the reflection in the mirror.
  • sassabella
    sassabella Posts: 98
    I'm also the type that won't ever be satisfied. Always something to improve, always something lacking. I guess the big difference is that it more or less motivate me to keep my head down working rather than depresses me at this point. I've always been so much more critical of myself than anyone I know so I know I will probably never be completely satisfied but at the end of the day, I'm actually ok and have come to terms with that.

    Yeah I get where you are coming from with the never being satisfied. I am my worst critic and I guess I've always cared way too much about what people think. I'm slowly getting over my anxiety (which I have had for a long time) and started trying to work towards what I want and stay determined. I've had friends that have been quite unhealthy in the way that they think about weight loss so I'm making sure I don't make the same mistakes and I can do it healthily and happily and maintain.
  • Wardisis1
    Wardisis1 Posts: 1
    Body Image takes a while to change. It is a function of the brain and survival. We tend to think we are bigger than we are as a means to survive in "the wild". With a dramatic weight loss, it takes a while to adjust to the image in the mirror as well as the amount of space that we take up. By looking at your image in the mirror every day, gradually you can adjust to the change and the real size. Notice how much room you now take up on a chair. Also check your thoughts. Thinking you are large or "fat" is habitual and may be from childhood. Telling yourself your real weight in the present is helpful and turn the negative thoughts around to accept your new size...even if you cannot praise yourself, the journey begins with acceptance! If we can at least accept our size and new image, we can learn to honor, respect and then love ourselves. It is one day at a time, one pound at a time and one thought at a time that permanent change can happen. Affirm your self worth also with attributes and qualities other than size. It is the whole person approach that gets you to the finish line. Acknowledge your accomplishments on the journey to permanent weight loss and weight management. It is something to be proud of! You can learn to be your own best friend!
    Susan K. Ward
    bodyimage360.com

Categories