[babygrant]

My dad has gained weight, lost weight, gained weight, lost weight, gained weight. He's significantly overweight now. He has a huge stress level. He gets stressed about everything. He aims to please everyone else except himself. He works overtime at work all the time because he feels bad that his work can't find anyone else. He's off work right now because he just had surgery. So I was talking with my mom today and she said quietly into the phone "your dads blood pressure is high". I asked to talk to my dad. He just kept saying "it's high", I'd ask him for a certain number and he'd just tell me "it's high". Finally he told me "It's 180/90".

I'm so scared for my dad. He's only 53. He has four grandchildren under the age of 6. He has three children under the age of 30. My dad gets hurt and offended very easily. He knows he's overweight. He knows his blood pressure is high. I'm scared of losing him.

[mandalinn82]

I could have written this post. All you can do is try to be a positive role model, try to encourage healthy habits...but it's so hard to watch. Unfortunately, we all know you can't -force- someone to change before they want to.

Big This is one of my biggest issues (my dad is big, keeps gaining, and is diabetic and has HBP and I think is on cholesterol meds...so yeah, I understand the concern) and it's so difficult.

[rachiebach]

I understand completely. My dad is the same way. He went on a diet for a while and did really good on it (lost like 100 lbs). And then he got laid off. Now he has no health insurance so he can't do that diet anymore (it was supervised by a doctor). He's stressed cause he can't find a job still (it's been a year). He's going to be 58 on the 20th...and I worry all the time about him.

Maybe if you talked to your dad and phrased it as you did here-you're worried you'll lose him. He might be offended but: 1) he knows he's overweight and has high blood pressure, and 2) he wants you to be happy and not be worried about him. He might do something just to ease your mind, ya know?

As I've gotten older, the one thing that has been the most upsetting is realizing that I can't help the people that I love the most. It stinks but there isn't anything I can do to change it, ya know?

[babygrant]

My dad has been walking, but their eating SUCKS!! My mom works full time at a job she hates, she probably 4 or 5 days a week she picks up something at a fast food place. Quite often it's spaghetti, meatballs, and garlic bread. The rest of the time it's chinese food...and not healthy chinese food, it's the deep fried wontons, deep fried chicken balls, etc. We grew up eating like this. I still struggle with wanting take out. I would seriously eat fast food every meal every day in the week and not get sick of it.

I think the conversation actually might be with my mom rather than my dad. I know my mom will be more offended than my dad will, but I'm not willing ot lose my dad without a fight.

[Raichu]

I'm sorry, I wish I had words for you other than my father is significantly overweight as well and just has no desire to change his eating habits - he practically lives on Omaha steaks and probably hasn't seen a vegetable that wasn't a floret of broccolli in orange chicken in twenty years.

I imagine it must be really hard to take advice from your own children... I wish you good luck and I hope he recognizes that he has it in him to change just as we do!

[JulieJ08]

I worry about my dad too. A lot. But I don't believe I have any influence over what he eats.