Question:
Do you still feel fat?
I have had a great weight loss and my doc says I am doing just great, but today I feel FAT! I have not felt this way though out my weight loss. I just feel like I have gained the whole 120 pounds back. Am I Crazy? — peggyp (posted on January 12, 2004)
January 12, 2004
I am almost 23 months post-op and i still have those kinds of days,it will
pass, just keep yourself busy!!! :)
— bikerchic
January 12, 2004
Peggy- You really are not alone. For me, those "feeling fat"
days tend to correspond when I'm hitting other emotional lows. Kind of
like some sort of post-traumatic stress syndrome where the early stress
that's revisited is my former obese life-- so, when I encounter tensions
like I did when I was morbidly obese, my mind does flash back to those days
when I was morbidly obese and I then notice every misplaced bump, bulge and
sag. Fortunately, those moments grow further and further apart.
— SteveColarossi
January 12, 2004
Yes, and I'm 2 1/2 years post-op.
— LLinderman
January 12, 2004
YES. Everytime I look in the mirror I feel fat. UGH maybe it will change
after my tummy tuck .. I hope so
— Catherine B
January 12, 2004
I am glad that you posted this!!! I am almost 5 months out and have lost
about 65 lbs and yesterday and today I am feeling exactly like I did before
surgery. I was just thinking have I gained some weight back, but the
scales don't show it, maybe we need more exercise????? Good luck and great
weight loss, I am ready to be there. GOD BLESS!!
— Lisa W.
January 12, 2004
Just this weekend, I was complaining to another post op patient that I
still had so much more weight to lose and how I still feel so fat. I'm 15
months PO and she's 18 months PO. She said how if she never lost another
pound, that would be fine with her - she feels great. Finally we shared the
size clothes that we now wear with eachother. We both wear a 14! I probably
totally insulted her for calling a 14 fat, but yet I think she looks great,
but I don't feel like I look great. Good to know we are all crazy together.
— Yolanda J.
January 12, 2004
I think that about myself as well, Though I am only 4 1/2 months out, I
have lost 80 pounds, but I don't feel like I have lost anything. I keep
seeing how far I still have to go.......I think it is a mental trick. Evn
when I get to goal...I think I will always think of myself as
"FAT" I can look at others and see how great they look....just
not me!!!!
— jennap
January 12, 2004
Peggy,
I am over two years post-op and there are days when I feel enormous and
then there are days when I feel ok. Sometimes I look in the mirror and see
this huge body staring back at me and other times, I think I look pretty
good. So if you are crazy, I am too. By the way, I've been below my
surgeon's goal weight for me for almost a year so these strange feelings
don't die quickly.
— Patty_Butler
January 12, 2004
I feel fatter now than before surgery! I was in denial before.
— mrsmyranow
January 12, 2004
I am 2yrs 3 mos post op and, no I do not feel fat. Can't really say when I
lost that feeling...but I don't ever feel fat anymore. As a matter of
fact, I do not even think about my weight. That is the best side effect I
have received from this surgery....the psychological burden is finally
gone.
— RebeccaP
January 12, 2004
I don't feel "Fat" like I did before, but now that im gaining
weight back and see this saggy skin, I do get very upset. I just keep
telling myself the weight im gaining back (12# so far :o( )is filling up
some of this empty skin. I still thank god for WLS everyday, I am so much
happier! We all have bad days. I call them cute days and ugly days, my
husband knows to stay away on an ugly day lol Good luck!!!
— Sandy M.
January 12, 2004
I have reached goal and then some, but the fact that I have so much skin
makes me feel fat sometimes. I hate the way I look in pants with tops
tucked in because that tell tale roll is there. The skin will hopefully be
removed this summer, but it is a constant reminder to me. People tell me I
am too thin but I don't see it that way. I am large framed, so in my mind
I may be slim but never skinny. I will hopefully reassess after the TT. I
think it is hard to erase old habits and thought patterns. Believe me,
there are also times that I look in the mirror and say that it can't be my
reflection, then I look between my waist and knees and see the skin there
and it changes everything. Best of Luck!!
— Fixnmyself
January 12, 2004
No, you are not crazy...and apparantly not alone either! I can totally
relate to how you feel. I am almost 1 year out. I am 5'7" and weigh
137 pounds. I mostly wear size 4's and 6's and no matter what my husband
or friends say, I still feel fat most of the time! Like on Sunday, I was
kneeling on the floor in the nursery at church and looked down at my thighs
and was almost embarassed at how HUGE they were so I moved right away so no
one else would see. I know it must sound stupid...but all I can see is
fat. And on the days that I do manage to look past the fat...all I see is
the sagging skin. I sure hope this gets better before I drive myself
crazy. Of course, it doesn't help either that I haven't lost any weight
for 3+ weeks now. I just keep thinking that it would all get better if I
could just lose another 5-10 pounds...but who knows maybe it wouldn't make
a difference anyway. Good luck to you!
— eaamc
January 12, 2004
I think excess skin makes u feel fat. If your body is anything like mine
after 120lbs then it is having a schizophrenic moment. My body is very lean
and thin up top, but my lower tummy and thighs make me look fat. Or at
least in my head. I have a ton of excess skin on my thighs which when I
look in the mirror seems to make me feel larger than I am. The clothing
difference between my top and bottom is two sizes (10-12 top and 16
bottom). The skin is what causes the problem hopefully it will pass as they
say it takes a year before ur mind catches up with ur body.
— keishax
January 12, 2004
No, I don't still feel fat, but I can't stand the hanging skin I have on my
stomach...and my "derriere" could certainly use some contouring
and sculpting IMHO***smile****
Hadiyah, a.k.a.~~~
— yourdivaness
January 12, 2004
This is a fear of mine. I have not had surgery yet and I worry more about
this than the actual surgery. I was talking to my pdoc today about this
and he said that the surgery will take care of the physical aspect but not
the mental aspect. I said we would need to work on it and I was putting it
in his hands. He just nodded. The emotional aspect of WLS, I think, is
the biggest hurdle to jump. I really admire those who have not had any
trouble with this. Good luck on your journey.
— jeh
January 12, 2004
I think fat is a state of mind. I have lost 165# and am at goal. I wear a
size 12, but I still think of myself as fat, even though I'm not anymore.
I think, for me anyway, my brain just needs to catch up with my
body....Kelly 315/150
— klinzey
January 12, 2004
Just wanted to say that I sometimes feel like I am small and beautiful.
Then other days I feel like I am fat and ugly. Even though I have lost
82lbs, and wear size 4 jeans, I continue to have to work on the MIND thing.
It will tear you down if you let it. I was telling my sister that somedays
I can't see the results of having the weight loss. Now, I know that doesn't
make sense, but I can tell you it is a MIND thing. I once wore size 22
jeans. Hang in there. Janice
— betterfitness
January 12, 2004
I stll feel fat and see myself as fat. I still ahve a ways to go but I
have lost -143 in 6 mo. lost 33 inches. I was wearing a size 32 and bigger.
I am now in a 18/20 I started out 381 NOW I am 238 at 5 ft. 9. I know I am
thinnner but still see the BIG me!!!
— Janine Greenwood
January 13, 2004
I'm 4 months post-op, starting at 254 post-surgery. I've lost to 195 so
far, and would like to lose about 30 more pounds. I actually can say that
I have been relieved of my "fat" feelings. Right now, I really
feel great and like how I look. The only thing is, I'm a little more
critical of how I look in clothes. At the higher weight, if the clothes
fit and looked decent, that was enough. Now, I consider style, color and
fit much more than before. I don't think that saggy skin will be too much
of an issue for me - except for the "girls" - I'm not real happy
with how they're looking so far. That may be something I'll want to deal
with surgically later on down the road. But I can honestly say that I
don't feel fat anymore. I'm really loving this. Lap RNY 9/11/03,
254/195/???
— Carlita
January 13, 2004
This is a very common issue among WLS post-ops, even those much further
out. Remember, you had surgery on your body and not your brain.
Especially for those who spent the majority of their childhood and adult
lives overweight, the mental change and acceptance of our new bodies does
not come overnight. And with lots of hanging, saggy, baggy skin, its even
more difficult to see it. I did not spend my childhood or most of my adult
life obese, so I do not see fat anymore. I feel "normal". I find
it hard to understand how those who are size 4 or 6 or 8 can see themselves
as "fat", but its true. I've been told it can take up to 5 years
for it to sink in...
— Cindy R.
November 22, 2005
Hello everyone! I answered this question (as you can see) several
months/years ago and I didn't think I was fat then...but, I AM FAT NOW!!!
I'm reading about the South Beach Diet right now at the recommendation of
my friends on this website. They know how compulsive I am and how desperate
I am to get the weight off that I've re-gained. I'm also seeing a therapist
on a regular basis, so I should be right back where I was soon--at 126-132
lbs!!!!
— yourdivaness
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