I know it can seem like we're piling on negativity. We're not, we're just pointing out pitfalls we've all faced before. Almost everyone seems to start with the impression that one of the biggest obstacles is "lack of support," or "sabotage" from the people in their life.
But so often those words are thrown around too carelessly. People cannot read our minds. They can't be expected anticipate our needs and put our needs above their own (often people are unsupportive, simply because it's not a priority in their life, and many times it probably shouldn't be). And most especially, they will never know the right thing to say at the right time.
Even spouses don't do mindreading very well. If you need something from your husband you have to tell him what that is. And if he can't comply, then you've got to shut him out of your weight loss entirely. My hubby and I can't get in each other's weight loss or healthy eating even a little - because we hurt each other too much. Unintentionally, but "help" feels like criticism when you're emotions are rubbed raw from the stress of the weight loss efforts. It's hard work, and when you're working that hard, it's easy to misinterpret even the best meant advice.
The drastic changes of any lifestyle change are stressful - and stress and diet changes can trigger emotional reactions that would otherwise not be normal. You can be so emotional that NO response is likely to be seen as a supportive one. People are either overinvolved and controlling, or their indifferent and don't care about us, or they're sabotaging and enabling. No response is the right response when you're emotions are raw from the struggle. And weight loss is a struggle. It's hard work, and it triggers physiological changes (including hormonal stuff) that make misinterpreting intentions almost inevitable.
The truth is though that when you assume that others are doing the best they can - it feels like support. It's only when you're assuming that they have destructive motives or that they don't care about you that you feel you have saboteurs or no support.
It's mostly not the other people's real behavior that will drive you crazy - it's your interpretation of it. If you think you have no support - If you think that no one understands your situation, you will feel unsupported and sabotaged.
If you think that most people are trying to help (even if they're bungling it miserably), you will see and feel support.
Perception and interpretation become reality.