So Obsessed!

With the dang scale.  I even have the professional separate platform version which cost $700.00 used at WW and J**** Craig which weighs to the nearest  1/10 of a pound.  I weigh myself 3 or 4 times a day and then my eating subconsciously revolves around that number.  I get down if it's higher, even 1/10 of a pound higher.  I realize this is not normal and in fact mentally unstable behavior.  I HAVE to stop.  Also have to stop the measuring.  Just don't know how...I do get a "high" when I see a certain weight at night knowing I'll probably lose 2-3 pounds by morning and reach a new "low".

Blatant OBSESSION! 

Help!

 

Hi LadyBug,

You are not the only one out there. When I wake up in the morning and I weigh myself and if I weigh one pound heavier, my whole day is shot. I'm depressed to the point I will either over diet or binge. Usually lately I'll eat something I shouldn't. Goes to show old habits die hard. I'm trying to not obsess over the scale but I to weigh myself 4 to 5 times a day. And when I weigh at night I can usually tell what I will weigh in the morning. Or if I get up in the middle of the night and go to the bathroom I will sleep longer if it seems I wont hit the number I should. (being sleeping burns fat) I think there are others out there like us. My DS and weightloss is all I really think about all day long. I really don't have any other interests. I'm just so focused on getting to goal. I cant wait for the day I'm there and weight is no longer the main topic. I have heard people say its a freeing feeling.

I don't care what the damned thing costs...stay off it for the next month. If you can't, have someone take it and lock it away. Get away from it.

Do NOT weigh again until you see a doctor for some reason. Also only measure ONE time a month...same day. I use the date of my surgery which was the 24th...so that was the day I measured. Once a month first year, then once every three months second year. Now it's more like once a year,

You also need to talk to someone about this obessive behavior...as it can spill over into other aspects of your journey.

I was weighing every day, counting carbs/fat/protein etc through logging, stressing over the multiple months of stalls - and I was not happy. 

Then it dawned on me.  The whole reason I got this surgery was because I was soo sick and tired of watching every calorie, every carb, every gram of fat, counting minutes of work outs every night and calculating calories burned.  Before surgery it consumed my life.  And now it was doing it again.  So I just quit it.

I don't weigh more than once a month, I don't log my food any more.  I focus on my vitamins, getting in enough protein, and living the way I always wanted to live - without obsessing on my weight every day. 

Take the scale to your friend's house, your parent's house, your sister's house.  Don't have it in your home or you will use it. 

Thanks so much jashley. I was afraid to post because I thought I'd get a lot of criticism. I so appreciate you and others being real and honest. I'm going to give my scale to a friend and weigh at her house once a month.

I can so relate with this....  I did this kind of behavior when I starved myself, was bulimic, and anorexic after the bulimia..... sad, obsessive, crazy days.  Once your obsessive, there is no getting completly over it, at least for me anyway.  One of the things that has helped me having the DS is the fact its the first time that I have had something that helps me loose weight without having to do these compulsive crazy things....like.... starve myself, weigh myself constantly, think about it all day as if my life, or mood depend on it.  I finally feel a sense of freedom.  I can eat and still loose weight.  As long as I follow the rules I WILL loose weight.  The part I struggled with in the begining was the fact its going to take TIME.  Im dont going to loose 22 pounds in two weeks, starving myself and loosing all my hair..... Like I used to.  Yeah, thats right, my motto was always, "Im either bald and skinny, or fat with hair".   I have no choice, Im now like a regular person, Im loosing it slowly, and as of yet my hair is still intact....lol  Its a great feeling.  I always think of a remark that I read on hear when I am starting to get impatient and maybe not loosing as fast as I would like.....Someone said remember its a marathon, not a sprint....  Thats my new motto....  I find myself saying it to myself a few times a day, and it seems to remind me of my DS, and how my tool is going to work for me in the long run....patientce...  I dont want to ever go back to that crazy life of obsessiveness, it was a hell that I want to forget.  Now with all that being said, Im not perfect...  I like you get a certain kind of high when I see that scale tipping downward, and have to admit that there are times when I want to go get back on it sooner than I should looking for that high that you get when you see it drop.  Ive done it, but what stops me from doing it again, and again is when I get that sinking, horrible, disqusted feeling with myself when I dont see the results that I wanted.  Uhg,  I just dont want it that bad to have to feel that bad all the time waiting for the moment of light that might peek through every once in awhile.   Patience,  Its a marathon, not a sprint...  Thats my motto!  Good Luck, You can do it. 

Oops...meant to reply to your post dustycroy and not create a separate reply. Anyway, I hope you get notice of my gratitude for your suggestions.

Thanks so much dustycroy...your post gives me inspiration. When I see it as a marathon and not a sprint, I instantly am able to push the obsessive weighing thoughts aside. Amazing! Hearing that you're able to stop weighing yourself when you think of the 'ugh' moments, also really helps. You're absolutely right in that the woowho moments are elusive and WILL come with patience and time.

Thank you so much for being so real.

My DS doctor gave me the very best advice ever.  Give your scale to someone you don't like very well.    I have a horrible relationship with the scale.  My parents committed some unspeakable acts of abuse with it and me growing up, and it messed me up for life.    I now only get on the scale maybe once every couple of months, or when I have to have a bit of a "come to Jesus" meeting with it after I feel my pants getting too tight.   I then get on for accountability, cut back my carbs, and walk away again.    I got on the scale twice this week, which must be a record for me, because i had plastics last week, and wanted to see what I'd lost.   My weight really varies due to water retention, so I have a pretty good ten pound which that I give myself due to this.   

When I had my DS, I followed Dr. K's advice and got rid of my scale.  I only weighed in once a month.   I let my clothes tell me how I felt.    There were times that it was around my monthly weigh-in time where I did not have access to a scale, so I'd just pull a scale off the shelf at Walmart and step on it, LOL!    

 

Ditto what SouthernLady said.  The scale needs to go.  Sell it on ebay.  Donate it.  Set fire to it.  Run over it with a car.  A scale that measures to the tenth of a pound only feeds your obsession.  It is a table of alcohol sitting in front of an alcoholic.  It is not good for you.

A person's weight, regardless of any surgery, fluctuates every day, and throughout the day.  That is normal.  A weight that stays constant and never fluctuates up or down, is not.

But you already know this.  Your comment, "I realize that this is not normal and in fact mentally unstable behavior," tells us so.  Know that you are not alone.  There are a lot of people who obsess about the scale, but a lot of people get down because they are in a stall, or feel that the DS did not work for them.  I think you are beyond that, and probably need the help of a professional counselor.      

I would not want to live a life where I was constantly thinking about food and my weight.  That life existed before my surgery and is in my past.  The DS should give you comfort that the days of fretting about your weight and measuring things are over.  You will be so much happier if you get some professional help and put this behind you.  I just don't think the suppost on these boards, which will always be here, will not be enough for you.