Just took my last pre-op pics, and they are so depressing.

Thank you!  I knew you all would understand.

Christi, much as you hate the pictures, in a few short months from now you'll be SO GLAD you have them!  Because when your eyes can't recognize the loss, they'll recognize it in the side-by-side before and after photos!  So just put them away for now.  Pull them out in 3 or 4 months and lay them down by your monthly photos.  It doesn't hurt so much when you realize you aren't there anymore!

Thanks for the encouragement.  This is a great site for support!

(((Christi))) This was a great post, thank you for sharing! I have had a day here and there where I am like "hey, I am feeling good about myself today, maybe I should take the pics" but then I just don't want to face the naked truth, so I can totally relate to your feelings. But, you challenged me to take my pics, so I will do that tonight. Thank you Christi. Anxious for you to begin your post-op journey!

Well, I hope you didn't react as poorly to your pics as I did to mine.  I'm better now, and I am glad I took them.  Thank you! 

Hey Christi!!! Like everyone said, we all go through this at one point before surgery.  But once you go through the surgery, you will be soooo happy!!!  I remember asking myself the same questions you did on many occasions before surgery.  Now I ask myself, why didn't I do this sooner!  BUT, God has a time and season for everything and when everything is to happen.  We are all here for you if you need support or just to vent!!! HUGS!!!

Thank you for understanding.  And hey, congrats on getting under 200!!!!!!!

Oh Hon!  We all understand!  Hang in there!  WooooHoooooooo!  Your day is near!  Then those pictures will be a thing of the past!!!  You will become who you were meant to be! 

A day when my outside more closely matches my inside?  I can't wait!

Fortunately/unfortunately, our brain somehow protects us and allows us not to see ourselves as others see us.  We get an image in our mind of who we are and our brain allows us to keep on thinking that even when we really needed to see the truth.  At 331 pounds I had no idea I was HUGE, I knew I was bigger than most of my friends, but I didn't understand the difference until I saw myself in my niece's wedding pictures and it was at that moment I knew I had to have surgery regardless of what my insurance said. Like others have said, you will be SO glad you took those pics.  Mine serve as a reminder of how far I've come versus how much I have to lose.  And even though I'm really struggling with being on a plateau for self-inflicted reasons, I look at myself and see a HUGE person still - but I just need to pull out my "before' pic and realize that I really have accomplished a lot in a very short amount of time and it will help pic up my spirits! By the time you read this, you'll already be done with surgery and on your way to the new and improved Christi!  Fasten your seat belt girl, because as slow as you think it's going now because you're forced to adjust minute by minute, soon enough you'll be 6 months out and wondering how you got there! Good luck with your journey, it's long and troublesome at times, but ENTIRELY WORTH IT!