Something that made me go hmmmmmmm

Now how is this for turnabout .. The new beau in my life has shared a story with me in regards to self esteem . As it was told to me , as he was coming along in his youth and up until the last 6 years or so he suffered from the opposite that we have . For years he was skinny .. awkward and not thought of as attractive . When he looked in the mirror he seen nothing that was good looking .. only a skinny person .. and he hated it . It was not until he had shoulder surgery that he gained some weight , started weight training and put on some weight . He has done a remarkable job at sculpting his body now . He tells me that when he looks in the mirror he still sees that skinny , unattractive person and it is not until he takes a pic or looks at a current pic that he can see the new him . I found that bizarre .. but true .. as when I look in the mirror .. I can still see that huge obese person .. but when I see a pic .. I know that I am thin now . He was floored that we both have gone thru a metamorphis as such .. Weight was good for him .. Loosing was good for me .. I just found this interesting .. as we never really think of how thin people see themselves .. until we become one . The mirror can be decieving .. and is something as you go thru your journey you will need to overcome .. When someone tells you how good you look - or how thin you are becoming .. Believe them .. cuz it is true ! Things that make you go .. hmmmmm Natalie

Nat, Yep. Our minds can play tricks on us. I too still see that 316lbs guy in the mirror and I'm still not a big fan of cameras. (you probably guessed that with me dragging my feet for an update pic.) But I guess I'm coming around slowly. Last night I put on a tee shirt I use to wear all the time pre-op and I saw my reflection as I was walking into a building and thought to myself, "You need to donate this shirt to Goodwill. Its too friggin big." Then I stepped back from the door and held the shirt out with both my hands and thought "Damn! I use to fill this shirt to its stretched capacity!" Most of the time though I'm thinking, "That'll still fit.", and "Its not that big on me." Hard thing to get use to. Oh well. Just thought I'd share. Have a great day. Keith

Hey, Nat! My two best guy friends (they happen to be twins) had the same problem growing up. They were always involved in cross country in highschool and had a really hard time putting weight on. It always boggled my mind as to why ANYONE would be trying to gain weight! I guess its one of those "it swings both ways" kind of things. Love ya, girlie! LB BTW, they are still pretty skinny, but through the army they've mangaged to gain some muscle and put a little tummy on. They're so excited! ha!