I bought some new clothes yesterday. It was about time, too! If it hadn't been for my aunt giving me some clothes that were too small until recently, I'd probably have nothing to wear at all right now. I stopped at home around lunch time after picking up a few things, and decided to put on one of the new outfits before heading back out for more shopping.
I ended up finding a pair of boots that I'd absolutely fallen in love with, but they had kind of a hefty price tag so I decided to text this photo to my husband (who was still at work) so I could get his opinion:
Now granted, I
am wearing a new outfit, and I didn't bother including my face since I was focusing on the boots I wanted, but I was shocked when he later told me how he didn't recognize me at first! It took him a minute to realize that I was the "model" in the photo and that it wasn't some random online picture I'd found of the boots in question. What eventually tipped him off was my phone case.
He didn't tell me any of this until after he got home, so I went back to take a closer look at the photo.
Uh, wait a minute, is that really me?! 
I'm so used to being . . . oh, I don't know,
round and lumpy, and the figure in this photo looks practically
normal. 
He pointed out that he sees me every day so it's hard to notice the gradual changes, but that shot woke him up to how far I've come.
While he's fully supportive of my efforts to get healthier, he's been indifferent to my weight. He often tells me I'm sexy no matter what and that he'd love me just as much if I ever shot back up to my highest or worse. But now he's like, "Woah, you've always been sexy but now you're
really sexy!"
I was at 285 when we first met (down from 360, he never saw me at my highest aside from photos) so he's only witnessed nearly 60 of my 130 pounds lost:
56 pounds, baby!
The photo on the left was taken on our first vacation together (in 2008), and it's interesting how cropping my own face off allows me to see my progress more objectively. I think I remember reading somewhere that victims of anorexia and bulimia don't recognize how thin their bodies actually are when shown photos of themselves unless their face is cropped off! I also remember reading somewhere that if you're having problems seeing your weight loss progress, to line up before and after photos with the face cropped off so your brain doesn't automatically fill in what you're used to seeing. I guess that disconnect is needed in order to see your body objectively.
So I had a pretty awesome day yesterday! I still have a long ways to go but I feel more accomplished than ever, and it's proof to me that even slow progress is worth all the effort since it's still progress.
My husband is now joking that he has to catch up with me (we've both been losing) so we can be "equally hot."
P.S. I did end up buying the boots.
My Own Husband Didn't Recognize Me!
