body image

hi all! i was wondering how many of us have altered images of ourselfs. i am a size 4 but still see myself as a size28. any ideas on how to get over this? i am already seeing a therapist. thanks heather

OMG.... you went from a 28 to a 4... How in the world could your mind catch up with that. First off big time congratulations, you must look wonderful. I have heard that it takes us twice as long to get our heads around where our bodies go. Try to take a picture now and compare it to a then picture. One tip with this, find your before picture and try to duplicate it because at least in my mind when they are not similar I think that it is the camera playing tricks on me and I really am not thin.... My mind just wandered back to what it must be like to go from 28-4. I have gone from 26 to 12 and haven't gotten my head into that. donna

i had a lady ask me where all of me went...i told her i didnt think it went anywhere...until i shop for clothes and go to the big girl sizes...and then turn out buying a 1,2, or 3...it blows my mind...where did all my body go..of course when i see the skin i sooooooooo remember what life was like when it was all filled up...never wanting to shop for an out fit...never wanting to be seen..or heard most of the time...i still dont see the tiny person i have become..which apparenty i made it to tiny...i have some size ones that are big on my waist now...i think it depends on the garmet i guess...size 2 unually fits perfect ...and actully they are hard to find..i used to have a hard time finding clothes that would fit my body...cuz it was large....now im at the other end of the spectrum...amazing what a year can do......keep up the good progress people ..im more of a lurker around here...but am so proud of all of us... stay strong with the holidays coming up....stay healthy jenniferr

WOW! How awesome it must be, from a 28 to a 2!!! I cant even imagine! But then, I couldnt imagine myself at a 12-14 either, which is where I am now. I look in the mirror, and dont know this person! Im starting to like her though! It is a big change though, when you go to buy clothes. I still am afraid to buy the smaller sizes..like I dreamed all this or something! Im almost 60 years old,,and this is a whole new ballgame for me.:-0 Congrats on the great success! I read on one of theboards, and my Nutritionist sayss, it takes a couple of years sometimes to get used to the new body image. We were big for so long,,, Hang in there,,,,you are amazing!

Heather, I so get what you are struggling with and have gone down less sizes than you; from a 24-26 to a size 8). My mind is so confused. I see my reflection in windows and in my mirrors(My bathroom has a whole wall of mirrors) and do not know who that is. I am looking for a good therapist( I live overseas and finding a good english speaking therapist who understands eating disorders, WLS and body image issue is a challenge) but I am trying. I like what Donna said about the picture thing as I found pictures of me 6-12 months prior to surgery and if I took them in to work to show people who did not know me prior to surgery, they might not know it was me!! I have a hard time with the differences but the pictures HELP. Let ME know if you find anything that works.... I know TIME... BUt I am so impatient to get beyond that. Thanks for the post. Jacqueline

Sounds like I am not alone but unfortunately I don't have any good advice for you. I went from a size 28 to 4/6 and I just don't see it. I know logically in my mind that if I can fit into a size 4 I CANNOT be fat but I still look at parts of my body and hate them. Mostly my hips/butt/thighs area which I have always hated even prior to becoming heavy so I guess it is no surprise that those demons are still there. I am trying hard to just accept my body the way it is. I really love my boobs now that I have had them done, if I could just get a thigh lift or lower body lift I think I would feel a lot better but I just can't afford it. I guess loose skin is better than filled up skin though....Congrats on your success. Pictures are usually my best way to see my progress, sometimes I sit and look at pictures of myself for an hour or more. I'm sure it seems conceited but honestly I'm just trying to wrap my head around the physical changes. Some day I'm sure we'll see what everyone else sees but until then we just have to remind ourselves that what we do see is not reality and not try to lose any more. I am healthy and even "skinny" now according to all the charts and everything so I know I don't need to lose more weight I just have to work on my brain now.