Re: A new person's intro. :-)

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Welcome to this group!!

It doesn't really matter how we came to find this group because we're all in

this together.

That surgery is NOT the easy way out from what I've read about it, that's

for darn sure.

There's really no " easy way " to lose the weight and keep it off, it takes

lots of dedication and diligence no matter what method we choose for

ourselves.

You are right in that the weight loss itself does not take away our

emotional states and the issues from our pasts or even recent presents. We

all have to make huge efforts to examine what makes us tick eating-wise in

order to reform those habits and triggers. Certain issues loom from our

childhoods or early marriage or whatever and we need to overcome some of

those patterns to be successful.

Good luck to you and keep posting okay??

in Calif.

A new person's intro. :-)

I'm not new to WW by any means. I first became a " Lifetime " member of

WW when I was 12. Yep, 12-- that's not a typo. I lost 32 lbs that

time. In high school I started gaining, and was off-and-on WW appx.

15 times from the time I was 18 until I was 26. At the age of 27, I

was at my highest weight of 354 lbs., and all was hopeless to me. I

literally wanted to die, and drastic times called for drastic

measures, so . . . I had gastric bypass surgery, and over the course

of a year and a half lost 191 lbs. The surgery was in many ways a

lifesaver for me, and I would do it again. However, one would think

that, following surgery, I would not have any more weight issues, right?

..

Some of you might think that I should go find a surgery support

group-- that since I took " the easy way out " (although I could argue

quite convincingly that there is NOTHING easy about being sliced from

sternum to navel, and STILL having head hunger issues!!!) I should get

support from surgery support groups. Believe me, I've been to WW

meetings even after surgery where I tell folks how much i've lost, and

I get lots of praise, and then I tell them how, and a hush falls over

the room and people stop talking to me . . . <sigh> . . .

Sorry for being so long of a message-- I've been thinking A LOT over

the past few weeks about all of this, and it's only started to make a

bit of sense in the past two days. I don't know if I wrote it in a

way that makes sense, but here it all is on your screen. (Sorry!)

Have a good day!

--

[Guest guest]

Welcome, ! I'm so glad you're here! It's good that you

recognize that a lot of losing is mental, not just physical. We're

here for ya!

in OKC <><

238/202.6/under 200

> Here is my introduction to y'all. I found this group a few days

ago,

> and I've been lurking. I'm planning on staying around for a while,

> though. I have the WW materials and will be doing WW at home

until I

> am able to afford face-to-face meetings-- then I NEED to get to

those.

> I need the accountability.

>

> Anyway, here's a bit about me. It's sort of long-- sorry!

>

> I'm not new to WW by any means. I first became a " Lifetime " member

of

> WW when I was 12. Yep, 12-- that's not a typo. I lost 32 lbs that

> time. In high school I started gaining, and was off-and-on WW appx.

> 15 times from the time I was 18 until I was 26. At the age of 27, I

> was at my highest weight of 354 lbs., and all was hopeless to me. I

> literally wanted to die, and drastic times called for drastic

> measures, so . . . I had gastric bypass surgery, and over the

course

> of a year and a half lost 191 lbs. The surgery was in many ways a

> lifesaver for me, and I would do it again. However, one would think

> that, following surgery, I would not have any more weight issues,

right?

>

> LOL. Of COURSE that's not true! Stomach surgery doesn't affect the

> head, and while having a smaller stomach makes eating large

amounts of

> food more difficult, I can still graze and make bad food choices,

as

> evidenced by the 26 lbs I've gained from my lowest weight. :-( So

> here I am-- trying to re-learn good habits, address the head issues

> that constantly plague me, and get back into a regular exercise

> routine. I also need to be accountable to myself for my food

choices,

> because " just a bite " can really add up if you're having 20 bites

in

> an hour, you know? WW has always been a rational means of eating

for

> life, and so I'm back. I cannot afford to attend F2F meetings, or

> enroll in WW online, but I have an old book (from before

FlexPoints,

> but it's a points-based book) and points calculator, and will use

> those, as well as online support, to stick with the program. My

> weigh-in day will be Monday mornings at home (once I get to a WW

> meeting in my area, I'll be going on Saturday AM's).

>

> Some of you might think that I should go find a surgery support

> group-- that since I took " the easy way out " (although I could

argue

> quite convincingly that there is NOTHING easy about being sliced

from

> sternum to navel, and STILL having head hunger issues!!!) I should

get

> support from surgery support groups. Believe me, I've been to WW

> meetings even after surgery where I tell folks how much i've lost,

and

> I get lots of praise, and then I tell them how, and a hush falls

over

> the room and people stop talking to me . . . <sigh> . . .

>

> *But* I find a lot of my issues, while the same as other people

with

> weight loss surgery, aren't dealt with properly on WLS support

boards.

> There are a lot of folks out there who have the surgery and fool

> themselves into thinking surgery cures all your food issues, which

it

> DOESN'T. There are folks who tell themselves they can eat all they

> want, and when they gain weight they just accept it as a " normal "

> effect of being further out from the surgery and don't address

their

> negative behaviors, even though they gain 60 lbs or more. Those

people

> then think they need MORE surgeries (revisions of the bypass, or

> plastic surgery) to lose MORE weight, even though they've ALWAYS

had

> the power to address their own eating habits. I do not want to

fall in

> that same trap. I need to be among people who DO hold themselves

> accountable for their food choices and lack of exercise, and DO

> SOMETHING ABOUT THEM. In that sense, I have more in common with

> y'all. If that makes any sense.

>

> Some things regarding my relationship with WW, and weight loss, are

> different this time around, I think. I know myself better than I

ever

> did before, and I *like* myself more now than I did at my heaviest.

> It's easier to take care of your body if you like your body a

little

> bit. It's also far, far easier to change my eating habits right

now,

> with only 30 lbs to lose, than it was at my heaviest.

>

> Also different is that I'm slowly moving away from the idea of me

> being a fat person. This may not make any sense, but I think for so

> long my identity was wrapped up in being a fat person. It was who I

> was. I'm starting to believe that I can be something OTHER than a

fat

> person (i.e., a " normal " sized person), and I'm choosing to look

> towards that future, rather than stay mired in the past. They say

in

> defensive driving that you steer your car in whatever direction you

> are looking. In the past, I've always looked at being fat-- of

course

> I'd return to a fatter weight, no matter how much I temporarily

lost!

> Now, I'm looking in a different direction. I want to be " normal " .

>

> I also know that, in the past, I used my fat as a shield from the

> outside world. It was my protection. I'm allowing myself to be more

> vulnerable, and although it is a struggle at times, I know that the

> vulnerability is a trade-off for the obesity. One can hurt me, but

> the other can kill me. When put in those terms, it makes complete

> sense to welcome vulnerability. ;-)

>

> And, as I stated above, I'm journaling. Talking to friends and my

> husband about food issues (also have a history of eating disorders-

-as

> if I needed any MORE complications to my story! LOL). Mapping out

a

> course of action. Taking responsibility for my choices. Only

weighing

> in once a week (in the past, I've used the scale being " down " as a

> license to eat more--ack!). I'm hoping these make me a success in

my

> goals-- the first to become more physically active, the second to

cook

> more healthfully for my husband and I, the third to get back to

> wedding weight, and the fourth to surpass the wedding weight and

lose

> the additional 6 lbs to my WW goal.

>

> I'm looking forward to getting to know you all. I also want to know

> more about the various challenges and how to get involved. :-)

>

> Sorry for being so long of a message-- I've been thinking A LOT

over

> the past few weeks about all of this, and it's only started to

make a

> bit of sense in the past two days. I don't know if I wrote it in a

> way that makes sense, but here it all is on your screen. (Sorry!)

> Have a good day!

>

> --

[Guest guest]

~ Welcome to the group. I hope that you find that you fit in quite

well here. I myself do not hold any judgements against you for your

choices and think that it is great that you are furthering your journey to

a new and healthy you!

look forward to learning more about ya!

Ang

At 05:13 PM 2/17/2004 +0000, hellerd2003 wrote:

>Here is my introduction to y'all. I found this group a few days ago,

>and I've been lurking. I'm planning on staying around for a while,

>though. I have the WW materials and will be doing WW at home until I

>am able to afford face-to-face meetings-- then I NEED to get to those.

> I need the accountability.

>

>Anyway, here's a bit about me. It's sort of long-- sorry!

>

>I'm not new to WW by any means. I first became a " Lifetime " member of

>WW when I was 12. Yep, 12-- that's not a typo. I lost 32 lbs that

>time. In high school I started gaining, and was off-and-on WW appx.

>15 times from the time I was 18 until I was 26. At the age of 27, I

>was at my highest weight of 354 lbs., and all was hopeless to me. I

>literally wanted to die, and drastic times called for drastic

>measures, so . . . I had gastric bypass surgery, and over the course

>of a year and a half lost 191 lbs. The surgery was in many ways a

>lifesaver for me, and I would do it again. However, one would think

>that, following surgery, I would not have any more weight issues, right?

>

>LOL. Of COURSE that's not true! Stomach surgery doesn't affect the

>head, and while having a smaller stomach makes eating large amounts of

>food more difficult, I can still graze and make bad food choices, as

>evidenced by the 26 lbs I've gained from my lowest weight. :-( So

>here I am-- trying to re-learn good habits, address the head issues

>that constantly plague me, and get back into a regular exercise

>routine. I also need to be accountable to myself for my food choices,

>because " just a bite " can really add up if you're having 20 bites in

>an hour, you know? WW has always been a rational means of eating for

>life, and so I'm back. I cannot afford to attend F2F meetings, or

>enroll in WW online, but I have an old book (from before FlexPoints,

>but it's a points-based book) and points calculator, and will use

>those, as well as online support, to stick with the program. My

>weigh-in day will be Monday mornings at home (once I get to a WW

>meeting in my area, I'll be going on Saturday AM's).

>

>Some of you might think that I should go find a surgery support

>group-- that since I took " the easy way out " (although I could argue

>quite convincingly that there is NOTHING easy about being sliced from

>sternum to navel, and STILL having head hunger issues!!!) I should get

>support from surgery support groups. Believe me, I've been to WW

>meetings even after surgery where I tell folks how much i've lost, and

>I get lots of praise, and then I tell them how, and a hush falls over

>the room and people stop talking to me . . . <sigh> . . .

>

>*But* I find a lot of my issues, while the same as other people with

>weight loss surgery, aren't dealt with properly on WLS support boards.

>There are a lot of folks out there who have the surgery and fool

>themselves into thinking surgery cures all your food issues, which it

>DOESN'T. There are folks who tell themselves they can eat all they

>want, and when they gain weight they just accept it as a " normal "

>effect of being further out from the surgery and don't address their

>negative behaviors, even though they gain 60 lbs or more. Those people

>then think they need MORE surgeries (revisions of the bypass, or

>plastic surgery) to lose MORE weight, even though they've ALWAYS had

>the power to address their own eating habits. I do not want to fall in

>that same trap. I need to be among people who DO hold themselves

>accountable for their food choices and lack of exercise, and DO

>SOMETHING ABOUT THEM. In that sense, I have more in common with

>y'all. If that makes any sense.

>

>Some things regarding my relationship with WW, and weight loss, are

>different this time around, I think. I know myself better than I ever

>did before, and I *like* myself more now than I did at my heaviest.

>It's easier to take care of your body if you like your body a little

>bit. It's also far, far easier to change my eating habits right now,

>with only 30 lbs to lose, than it was at my heaviest.

>

>Also different is that I'm slowly moving away from the idea of me

>being a fat person. This may not make any sense, but I think for so

>long my identity was wrapped up in being a fat person. It was who I

>was. I'm starting to believe that I can be something OTHER than a fat

>person (i.e., a " normal " sized person), and I'm choosing to look

>towards that future, rather than stay mired in the past. They say in

>defensive driving that you steer your car in whatever direction you

>are looking. In the past, I've always looked at being fat-- of course

>I'd return to a fatter weight, no matter how much I temporarily lost!

>Now, I'm looking in a different direction. I want to be " normal " .

>

>I also know that, in the past, I used my fat as a shield from the

>outside world. It was my protection. I'm allowing myself to be more

>vulnerable, and although it is a struggle at times, I know that the

>vulnerability is a trade-off for the obesity. One can hurt me, but

>the other can kill me. When put in those terms, it makes complete

>sense to welcome vulnerability. ;-)

>

>And, as I stated above, I'm journaling. Talking to friends and my

>husband about food issues (also have a history of eating disorders--as

>if I needed any MORE complications to my story! LOL). Mapping out a

>course of action. Taking responsibility for my choices. Only weighing

>in once a week (in the past, I've used the scale being " down " as a

>license to eat more--ack!). I'm hoping these make me a success in my

>goals-- the first to become more physically active, the second to cook

>more healthfully for my husband and I, the third to get back to

>wedding weight, and the fourth to surpass the wedding weight and lose

>the additional 6 lbs to my WW goal.

>

>I'm looking forward to getting to know you all. I also want to know

>more about the various challenges and how to get involved. :-)

>

>Sorry for being so long of a message-- I've been thinking A LOT over

>the past few weeks about all of this, and it's only started to make a

>bit of sense in the past two days. I don't know if I wrote it in a

>way that makes sense, but here it all is on your screen. (Sorry!)

>Have a good day!

>

>--

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

- I'm Cheyenne, 27. I started WW (doing it at home like you)

in October (?) for the first time. I've been overweight most of my

life and I'm finally SICK of it! lol!

Your posting was very interesting to me. My best friend (about the

same size that you were I'd guess) just told me that she's

considering gastric bypass surgery. Exercise and WW have not made a

difference. I did a little research on my own and it does

require a lot of self control so you don't continue to overeat and

stretch your stomach. I never realized that!

Anyway...happy to have you!

Cheyenne

high-233

before WW- 217

now- 185

goal- 140