Did losing the weight make you Happy?

OP, congratulations on your weight loss so far and thank you so much for asking this question. It's been one I've been asking myself for a while now.

I have horrible self-esteem, and I know that's not going to go away with the weight loss. I've still not been able to discern much difference in the mirror, and I know that's all mental. But I've also felt much better with the greater amount of exercise I've been doing (just walking and a bit of body resistance so far) - I don't get as angry or frustrated with myself as I'm more capable physically and the mini-goals (both weight loss and fitness-wise) I've met have been a definite confidence boost.

I'm afraid I don't have any answers, indeed I'm asking the same questions you are. I'm not sure where the line is going to be drawn. But anything I've gained in the last six and a half months has been on the right side of the equation. And anything I can get right now is a plus.

Good luck on the rest of your journey.

Yes. I feel very proud od having achieved something I thought was impossible which is losing 70 pounds. I feel light, strong and confident. As for the rest of my life I feel it hasn't changed. I wanted to lose weight for me and did that.

Yes I am proud of myself and have more work I want to do that isn't weight related.

A few thoughts. Being fit will greatly improve your chances of finding a mate. Being able to buy clothes you like and look good in will make you happier than the shopping drudge when nothing cute looks good on you. Looking good at an event makes you feel confident and proud. research shows attractive and fit people get better jobs and are viewed as smarter.

so.. I think being fit makes for being more happy. is it the cure all to life? no. a magic bullet? no.

but just like being rich is better than being poor. being fit is better than being fat. money isn't everything… and looks aren't everything…but they make life easier.

My sentiments exactly...

Oprah Winfrey once said (about why people are overweight), "It's not what you're eating. It's what's eating you." Losing the weight will not fix the issues which caused you to turn to food for comfort. Find out what those issues are, deal with them, move on from them, love yourself, forgive yourself--and you can then find happiness (and will probably keep the weight off in the process). Good luck, and great work so far!!

You are gorgeous and you HAVE lost a lot of weight. If your friend had done this, you would be proud and happy for them. (See what I'm getting at?) don't minimize what you have done- whether it's losing weight or anything else. A good job is a good job- no matter who did it!

I have found in my lifelong journey toward healthy self esteem that self-help books are a godsend. During one of my lowest points, I dragged my depressed *kitten* to the bookstore and pored over all the books in the self-help/inspiration section until I found 2 I thought might help me (tho the whole idea seemed a little hippy-dippy to me, I was desperate). I went home, read them, implemented the changes, trusted the process, and reaped the rewards. It took well over a year, but at the End of it I was in a much better place. I've always been a researcher; I ask myself questions like:
-what do the experts say about this?
-what are the statistical chances of success with this?
-what are common risks/pitfalls associated with this?
- about whatever I am trying to learn/do/find out about. Knowledge is power. And so it was the same way when I wanted to become more confident, to like myself more. It's the same with my weight loss- I researched it (still am), came up with a plan, implemented it, I tweak it as necessary, and I reap the rewards. I do the same with my relationship. YOU must have a little of this in you bc here you are, having lost a significant amount of weight, and questioning how your brain and emotions will handle these changes, and wondering how your future self will deal with them.

Long comment short, no, weight loss won't make you happy by itself. YOU will make you happy. Bc you will figure out how to BE happy with yourself. All you gotta do is take a deep breath, figure out what you need to do to like yourself and your life more, then be brave enough to try and keep trying. And you WILL make it if you do that and keep trying. Failure only happens when one quits trying.

An aside on guys, from a girl who knows from personal experience----
You know when Mr. Right will come into your life? At the exact moment when you are way, waaaay too busy and happy doing your own thing to want to fool with him. That's what my mom told me (cliche I know) and she was SOOO right (I never believed her, tried so hard, got disappointed, rinse and repeat, and finally stopped worrying about him and got on with doing my own thing, and BAM- there he was). We have been married 10 years now, and I couldn't be happier, but when he finally showed up, I kinda told him to get lost at first bc I did NOT have time for all that falling in love stuff- I had PLANS. Luckily, he understood and appreciated a woman having her own busy life- in fact it kinda drove him crazy with longing. And really, the rest is history, and a happy one at that.

So, find out what makes you tick and you will be happy- the romance will take care of itself. In fact, most things will take care of themselves if you keep your happiness with yourself as a priority and remember to always be kind to you. You are soooo worth it.

Sorry this was so long. Good luck and you go on with your bad self!

I don't think it makes you happy if you have other things going on. But there are some things that definitely make me happy about losing weight - feeling confident, shopping for cute clothes, feeling healthy, getting off blood pressure and cholesterol meds, and small victories like that. So it won't take away unhappiness, but it will add some positive things that offset some of it. Good luck!

Weight loss by itself does not make me happy. Feeling like a super hero, sleeping like a baby, running circles around people half my age, touching my toes, chasing my dog, thinking clearly, reconnecting with my spouse having the energy to do whatever I want...That makes me happy.

No.

But realising that I can achieve something that previously felt so completely out of my control and reach has made me completely re-evaluate and acknowledge the fact that I am stronger than I thought, and capable of so much more than I realised. THAT makes me happy.

I want to disagree with everyone saying that you'll find a man when you lose more weight. I found the best man I'd ever met after I *gained* weight. However, I have found that losing weight makes me happier. Mostly because I feel better. Then it's because I can do more things that I love easier (surfing, yoga, etc). Third, it's because I feel more comfortable in my skin, and then I'm better able to express myself with people, and they get to see the real me and love me for that (instead of self-conscious me, who always seems shy).

Good luck with your weight loss. You're doing wonderfully so far.

I haven't lost as much as many on here but being 5ft it has made a substantial difference in my appearance. I am much happier than I was 15-20 pounds ago as I'm more body confident. I think confidence is the main thing that attracts a good man and right now I'd say my confidence is about 75% of what it should be. However that doesn't necessarily mean that when I drop the remaining 9-15 pounds I will be at 100% and my dream man will appear. Unfortunately life isn't that kind but the loss will hopefully make me more open to new opportunities and new experiences which may eventually lead to me meeting someone or at least making new friends.
In a nutshell - yes I'm much happier than I was 3 months ago, way happier than I was 6 months ago and about a million times happier than I was a year ago and a lot of this is to do with my body confidence.