[NewDay4MeToo]

I remember watching Oprah one time and she was talking about how when a person is overweight, it is just an external manifestation of an internal problem.

Due to a number of circumstances in my personal life, I am doing a lot of re-evaluations of me. I think that I had completely let my life just slack off. Maybe it's just now that I am really coming into adulthood (24) that I am realizing there are huge parts of my life that only I am responsible for.

But there are other things that I have let slide, like relationships with family and friends. I don't consistently keep my house clean enough, either. And I still do stupid things like staying up till 4AM compulsively reading forums, or during the school year, studying super late after procrastinating. (grad student)

I realize that looking at too many things at once is too overwhelming. Just looking at the 55 pounds I want to lose is daunting.

So, I decided to take care of my weight and personal health first. Those are big things, and I think they will help me have a better outlook on life in general.

I guess I'm wondering if I'm alone in this. Does anyone else feel like her weight is only part of the problem? What other kinds of things do you struggle with?

[HDStreetBob]

Perhaps everything snowballs...

I know that for me -the more I weigh the less energy I have, the less I want to do, the worse I feel, the
more I withdraw from life etc. I have been procrastinating a lot lately on issues and it leaves me in a
constant state of panic and rushing to meet deadlines.

I cannot get ahead.

[blondie728]

hey girlie, im a fellow hoosier! i am just now coming to grips with trying to regain some control over my life. the only thing i can control is what i put in my mouth. as for the rest of it i have in the past dealt with periods of depression and severe anxiety. and then hypothyroidism really threw me for a loop, gained 40 lbs in 5 months and felt like crap for 6 months and surgery. i feel i have been downsliding my whole life. and it just gets harder the older you get. i have never loved myself....slowly in the past month by eating good food and exercising and medication i have finally started to feel better. YOU have the power to help yourself. you can reach out for help, especially here. i think i would have given up already without these folks. I've weighed over 200 lbs since i was 13.

My first goal was to weigh under 200, now i really want to create a healthy life for myself. i've spent too many years thinking there was no relation between my weight and health and moods. i think everyone that has a weight problem is emotionally related in some way. we can reclaim our lives , we are stronger than the food. The journey is long and hard but the past is worse. i hope that makes sense... and i hope it brings some amount of comfort or empathy. we are here for ya.

[sierra_ttw]

I've noticed a big relationship between controlling my eating and controlling my spending. I used to be terrible with money, and was always buying stuff I didn't need or would never use, just 'cause I felt like buying something. Since I've started managing my eating, though, I've been spending far less, and am making much smarter choices about money.

[DeafinlySmart]

For me, I think of out of control eating as being the one part of my life I wasn't having to think about (not a smart track). I was getting married, having a baby, moving all over the country, having more kids, being a stay at home mom, marriage, getting a degree, having to fix problems in my family and my inlaws realm, learning to deal with bipolar, getting a career, etc, etc, etc. There was an endless sea of adult things I had to control or manage. Some were within my realm of control, others were not. Each time I got pregnant I would crave food. Soon I was eating epic portions (under the guise of pregnancy) and afterwards I would never stop. I was dealing with new babys and that was something I didn't want to have to think about.

I will tell you the worst was when I learned (after my 3rd child) that I was bipolar. I was overwhelmed with everything. Nothing was within my control. Now that I feel better about that diagnosis, I can start to take control of my life (eating) a little more.

I will also say, the need to take control of weight loss comes abotu 2-3 years after each child is born. I have no idea why. Maybe they become a little independent at that stage and I can let my focus go somewhere else.

[BellaLucia]

I have schizo-affective disorder and I gained weight because of the medication. I just started the South Beach Diet and the size 14 pants that I couldn't even get over my legs fits. It's a tight fit but hey a fit is a fit. I'm also a jobless college graduate which sucks. I am going back to school in January and plan to finish my Master's in a year so I can start working. I for one cannot wait till January when I complete my weight loss and get back to school. Good luck to each and everyone of us. May God help us.