[AussieDaria]

Hi, all

Yeesh, where to start. Well, first of all, I'm glad I found this forum. It's wonderful knowing there's other people who actually have REAL weight to lose, and the kind of work that entails. At work I'm constantly surrounded by people moaning about how they need to lose one or two kilos, and while I know their needs are as valid as mine, I just feel like saying sometimes, "ONE? One kilo?! Get over yourselves!"

But then, looking down the barrel of 50 kilos worth of required weight loss can make you lose your sense of humour a bit. And I don't actually say it, which hopefully counts for something.

January 1, 2007 marked the first day of the rest of my life. I've dieted before, and know that it doesn't actually work. What I needed was a complete lifestyle change. I was sick of the tiredness, the back pain... and the fact that I'd run out of off-the-rack clothes sizes.

First thing I did was see an endocrinologist, which was far and away the smartest thing I have ever done. A few blood tests later, plus the records from my gynaecologist, and he started treating me for PCOS - and all the nasty things that can go along with it. I had very high blood cortisol levels. I had high testosterone. I had considerably impaired liver function - which my GP knew about and had simply addressed by writing 'Alcohol Abuse?' in big red letters on my file, despite me advising him that I actively avoided alcohol because I didn't seem to be able metabolise it well.

Have you ever noticed that many doctors really don't care to bother when the case involves fat people? I've seen it too often.

Anyway, the endocrinologist was wonderful. He put me on Metformin, which, once I got past the gross side effects at the beginning, really seemed to do wonders for my life. With that, and diet changes, within a few months I'd started to get my glucose/insulin issues under control and life... completely changed. I hadn't imagined I could feel so good. All my adult life I'd been cursed with chronic tiredness and depression, and lo and behold, a simple tweak of body chemistry and suddenly I'm finding out that it really hadn't needed to be that way.

I could waste time feeling angry about that, but I'm too busy enjoying the novelty of a happy body that enjoys yummy-and-mostly*-healthy food.

Anyway, so far I've lost 30 of the 50 kilograms on my lifetime goal. If I can do the other 20 this year, that'd be great...if it takes a little longer I'll be disappointed, but I know it'll get there eventually because I really have made a total life change, not a diet change. But I didn't gain all this weight overnight, and I'm accepting of the fact that it won't come off that way, either. At the very least I can be happy that right now, I'm the lowest weight I've been in at least 12 or 13 years. That's something to be proud of.

Despite this giant introductory post you may not hear much more from me aside from the occasional congratulatory message, but I'll be lurking around the place quite a bit and absorbing the good attitudes that abound here.

Thanks to everyone for making this a place where people can really see that it CAN be done, and that no goal is impossible if you're prepared to believe in it and work at it. I think I'll like it here.


* Hey, I said it was a complete lifestyle change - and any lifestyle that doesn't have room for occasional pizza or garlic naan is no life that I want to be living!

[ellis]

Welcome to 3FC!
Wow, you've really come a long way... good for you! You've overcome a lot of hurdles.
Making lifestyle changes instead of following a "diet" is the way to go. You need a plan you can follow for the rest of your life, and it has to be your plan.

[srmb60]

Hi and welcome!

Lurking! But you have so much to offer! Just kidding. You go ahead and do whatever you are comfortable with, we're glad you're here.

[AussieDaria]

Thanks! I think this time on the weightloss treadmill, it's really going to work for me. If only I could break that 100kg mark.. I'm sitting right on the cusp of it and have been for a few weeks. Rotten place to hit a plateau!

I'm feeling a lot more confident since getting the first 30kg off - it's awkward being simultaneously very overweight and very tall, because you just take up so. much. space... no chance of blending into the background when you're effectively the size (and, in my case, shape) of a refrigerator. I still take up a lot of space, but it's noticeably better.

My goal weight (85kg) should put me around a solid size 16, which I think is fine for my height. I'll re-examine that when I get that far, as I might actually need to hit 80kg to make a size 16, and I'm more interested in the clothes size than the figure on the scales.

Size 16 represents liberation for me: I'll be able to shop in the mainstream sizes if I can get that far! I haven't been able to do that since high school, and I'm going to be 35 this year - so I've been in 'larger fashions' for more than half my life.

[srmb60]

I wasn't kidding about how much you have to offer. You do! Just look at that observation about clothing size and scale weight. Very smart!

Have you done some reading around about folks who are stuck for a while? They often just tweak a little something that makes all the difference.