Joining MFP made me realize:

We all need help sometime. That can come in many forms... An ear, a shoulder, someone to carry you, a sanity check, joyful distraction, new/previously unknown options, a hug, a hand holding, a psychologist, a psychiatrist, a doctor, an MFP post, an MFP message, and MFP romp with friends through the forums, a vacation/break, new job, etcetera.

It saddens me to think that some people think they can get through certain periods of difficulty in their life on their own, while ignoring signs that something real is wrong and getting worse. I used to be one of these people until the signs became too frightening for me to ignore--it took fear of a future very different from what I desired, to motivate me to seek professional help. Fortunately, there is no physical evidence of permanent damage... the brain is surprisingly resilient in some ways.

All the human interaction of counselors and psychologists helps, but there would be no real solution for me had it not been for my primary doctor. She was able to help me figure out the root of my anxieties, depression, and growing sense of hopelessness--a chemical shortage in my brain.

This has been a huge victory for me and my family and I do my best to not take a single day for granted (not that I did before).

Some days, I now feel like I am in my 20's... The medication I'm on to boost my serotonin levels provided a significant flip for me in some ways, but I'm also smart enough to know that part of my newly found zest in life has been boosted in affect by some of my MFPs.

To those of you who actually read this and are not repulsed, I thank you! To those of you straddling the fence on the question of help or not, I hope my story helps you decide and make the best choice for YOU!

Love and best of all things to every one of you. A special thanks to a select few and a very special one of MFPs for taking a serious chunk of edge of my usually too serious personality (8^***

^^^^^^He probably broke the character limit of this forum (AND OTHERS!) HEhehehe

That my lifestyle choices were an inpending train wreck of catastrophic proportions.

that people love telling me thier weirdest stories... and i like hearing them:/

How amazingly wonderful and supportive people can be.

I don't eat as bad as I thought

mattyc772014 wrote: »

and there are some really great people out in the world still.

So true!

Joining MFP made me realize that I am actually not Big Boned, I am simply fat

That my eating habits were WAY worse than I thought. And I'm not the only one...

That tracking everything is a pain in the rear end.... and then I eat a little Debbie cake anyway.

I had no idea about portion size

That I don't eat as much as I thought I did....

anadoesit wrote: »

Anything is possible if you commit to hard work CONSISTENTLY.

^ this

Most people in here are really nice people

That the internet is for more than just porn and cat pictures.

How much I hate not being in a wifi area and can't scan something I've eaten ahhhhhhh!