Weight Watchers - Slow down as you near your goal?

I've been going to WW for 9 weeks now. My losses have really started to taper into such small numbers I feel discouraged.
Week 1 - 3.8
Week 2 - 4.0
Week 3 - 1.6
Week 4 - .8
Week 5 - .4
Week 6 - .2
Week 7 - Even
Week 8 - .4

It's been -very- hard for me, to work so hard at this and see such small results. My last weigh in, they told me that as I get down to where the body hits its healthy weight, that it really slows down. That the last 10-15 lbs comes in .this - .that losses. That I shouldn't expect to lose a pound or more a week from this point on. Good grief!

Is this true? Have others experienced this? I am still 18 pounds away from my goal weight, and I cannot bear the thought that at this rate, it would take me another year yet! What the heck!?

What can I do to help make things perk up a bit?

Hi there, I found that I plateaued about10 pounds from goal. The next few pounds were very, very slow. The last 5 pounds took me 4 months to lose. I would lose one week, then gain the next. I found that the more weight that I lost, the more the slightest thing would make me gain. Water retention at the time of the month never used to make any difference to my weight loss in the early days, now 2-3 pounds up for almost a week. The best advice that I can offer you is not to lose heart. Stick with it, through 'fat and thin'! Those last few pounds will shift eventually. Keep in mind how you looked and felt at the beginning of your weightloss journey, and how good you feel now - that should help your motivation. Remember all the other golden rules too, drinking all your water, watching your portion sizes, journalling etc. Some of these things can slip a bit when you've been following any kind of weight loss programme for a while. Be honest with yourself. If you can honestly say you've been doing the best you can do, then you will get there in the end. Be patient and good luck!