Finding that "Happy Place"...

Ok so I ran into a GF at the gym last night and she's a fellow WLS person. She had her surgery a little over a year after I had mine. We had the same doc and everything! So, we start chatting it up and she says "you look so happy...how did you get there...I mean I hate my excess skin and in my head I still see the FAT girl in the mirror". THIS BROKE MY HEART I mean really..she's beautiful, has a great career, a wonderful husband that loves her and always has no matter what her size/weight, 2 wonderful children...ya know the whole thing. I hate to see the pain in her eyes and she thinks that if she gets a TT (she's going to consult with the doc that did mine) that THEN she MAY be happy WTF This is what I told her.....

Happiness comes from within FIRST...I have always been a "happy" person and try to live a balanced life. I was happy at 330 just not healthy...so I made a change...but my weight is NOT what makes me happy.

It really made me think last night. I'm so glad I am happy...I MEAN REALLY HAPPY...BODY, MIND, and SOUL  

BUT too many of us are not happy...had/have unrealistic goals or thoughts of what life would be like "if we could only lose weight". PEOPLE life is what you make it....PERIOD.

Thoughts??? 

Thanks for posting this topic.  Before wls, I thought losing weight would really make me happy and I was wrong.  I was unhappy because all I did was constantaly worry about my size and I let weight over shadow everything else.

Since, I have learned to focus on me, the person that I am.  Losing weight has made me smaller and healthier, but it didn't make me happier.  Knowing WHO I am and WHO'S I am is where my happiness and joy comes from.

Peace and Blessings

Karen

Karen
Let me ask you this....haven't you noticed a difference in the way others see/percieve you since you hold your head high and exude confidence by your mental state and presence alone? People will only treat you the way you allow them to treat you...ya know?

Thank you for taking time to respond. So many of us are working on our bodies BUT we need to work on our minds too.

I love your smile girl...it says it all simply B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L

Yes, I do notice the difference and I notice that many try to figure out what's going on with me!

Thanks for the compliment

T...this just waaayyyyy too deep for my simple mind...

HUSH...come on jump in and give us a man's prospective on this topic..PLEASE

YaYa you are so very right.  Life is what you make it.

This journey is such a rollercoaster and it has such a emotional effect on us.
I really had to Find My Happy Place and decide to be HAPPY where ever I am.
It's about Loving me.  I may not be satisfied with my progress but I can be happy that I have the oppertunity and presence of mind to make and accept changes in my life. 

It's so hard to accept that we first allowed ourselves to become obease.  It's even harder to come to grips with why.  Then the process of change may or may not happen over night but it takes so much adjustment along the way.  Even when you get to goal you still have to continue to work your ass off to keep it. I guess that's why we call it  journey - there really is not a final destination. 

Some people may NEVER be happy with themselves because they keep moving the goal post.

***BIRDJACK***

Love the new avatar Madame!!! 

Thank you Mr. Handson Birdman

Ok now goals are a good thing...they keep us striving for improvement and no matter where we are in our lives there is ALWAYS room for improvement...I don't care who you are...

What you did was essential to living a balanced life....loving yourself and being happy with who you are and where you are TODAY. Each day we are given an opportunity to make choices that will change our lives...for the good or the bad...but at least we have a choice...what a true blessing.

I research WLS for 2 years before I went through with it and I have friends that are senior to me...that advised me on many issues. I decided that to me...WLS was 10% physical and 90% mental and I still say that to this day...always will. 

Thank you for taking time to post a thoughful and helpful response. I'm such an honest person that sometimes people don't know how to take me. See people SAY they want to hear the truth but most of the time they're really not prepared to actually HEAR the truth. So, often there is no gray with me...folks either hate me or love me BUT at least they can never say that I lied to them.