Comfort

Hey everyone!

I don't know if anyone remembers me. I was quite active at the beginning of my journey and then life took over and school took over. My weight loss has been very slow. I think that is because I still suffer from my BED and look to food as comfort. So I eat, small portions sure, but I still eat.

However, I am comfortable. I can go into any store and find clothes that fit me. I wear a size 14 jeans. I can put on leggings and a t-shirt and look great. I have been with my girlfriend for 6 months. I have a new kitten. I want to continue to lose weight, but it is getting harder. I stall for months and then lose 10 lbs. I am afraid of getting too comfortable and not losing the weight or getting to the goals I've always wanted.

Struggles:

• Eating foods I know I can eat a lot of...crackers, bread, etc. They don't fill me up as much as proteins but I continue to chose to those foods because they make me feel happy.
• Snacking. Eating a small portion meal but then going back after an hour to eat more. Then more. Then more, until I have eaten almost as much as my girlfriend.
• Not exercising. In the cold weather, I have found it difficult to make it to the gym and I know it's vital to my health so I plan to make it a priority once school is back and i am on campus again.

Wins:

- My collar bones!! I can see them everyday, and they make me feel like this was worth it. Haha, I know that's strange but I always measured my health with my collar bones. Couldn't see them? Needed to drink more water. I see them everyday now so I know that I am hydrated and getting to a healthy weight.

- Realizing that, yes my weight loss is slow, but I will not gain this back like I know i would have without surgery. When I was on OptiTrim, I lost 30+ lbs but once I came off it, I gained it all back. I know that it is possible for my weight to fluctuate but not to that extreme.

I am ready to get back on my grind, and make this year the best one yet. I am a healthy 23 year old, I am going to graduate college and move in with my girlfriend, I am going to do things that I couldn't before.

And I am so f*cking excited.

Thanks for listening!

A

Nice note "A"

I am very excited for you and hope all your dreams come true. Some feedback on eating habits. I would be careful in thinking that the surgery will always prevent you from over-eating. That is not always the case. I have heard stories about friends that have had the sleeve procedure and they come to find that they can eat carbohydrates without feeling like they are over-eating. I had my surgery on Nov. 29, 2017 so I am very new to this, but the program that I am involved with, stresses the importance of eating food in a certain order so that I do not get caught in the cycle of feeding my body empty calories by eating a lot of carbs. They could not explain to me why some people are able to unlimited carbs but I thought I would share with you what I have been told. One of my friends that had the sleeve procedure 2 years ago has started gaining weight again. That is when it becomes more difficult because your stomach will stretch; might not be a lot, but it can stretch. What is sad is this person that I know is now looking back to fad diets for weight loss. That seems counter productive to me considering the severity of the surgery that we have elected to complete. Just thought I would share my thoughts that I had when reading your post.

Matt

Thank you for this! The kindness and guidance is something I really needed.

Are you working with a therapist to address your BED and emotional eating?

yes

Welcome back.

If you aren't, it would be wise to work with your medical team to deal with your BED and emotional eating. Weight loss, and maintenance, are only going to get harder as you go on. Getting your brain sorted out will help.

If you aren't already, it might also help to log everything you consume because that will show you exactly what you're eating and help increase your awareness.