Hello,

I have recently turned 40 and have decided to make some changes in my life. Maybe I shouldn't even have joined here. I have failed so many times at diets. I have been on a diet at least half the time since I was 11 years old. A few years ago I decided that fat or not the yo-yo dieting I had been doing my whole life was really bad for me. So I decided to stop. When I diet (or do most anything) I get totally obsessed/fixated on it. I cannot help weighing twice a day. The only way for me to resist the temptation would be to give my hubby tge scale batteries to hide from me.

So this time I am NOT focusing on the weight. I am NOT counting calories. I AM exercising and have cut most processed foods out of my diet. As a result I have tons more energy, my physical endurance is much greater, and even more important the crushing depression that I have been living with for years and years has lifted. I can smile and laugh again, and it's a wonderful thing. And I have lost 14 pounds in a month.

In order to be "healthy" by a doctor's criteria I need to lose around 100 pounds. That would be nice, but I am looking at weight loss as a side effect of living better. That is the only way I can cope.

I am hoping here I can find others who are trying to change their lives in similar ways who I can share support with. I feel like I am doing this alone, and it is hard not to feel like I am punishing myself when my husband and son eat whatever they like. It is hard to remember that eating what they eat for me will send me back to the bed with crushing sadness. I hope I am in the right place here.

Welcome Christa! There's a wide variety of approaches here. Unless something is downright unhealthy, I've never seen an approach that wasn't suppored by the community. I LOVE that your depression has lifted and you're feeling more energetic and more alive overall!

It was really great to see your post. A couple of years ago I could have written almost the identical post. The past 6 or 8 months though I've struggled with keeping my head in the right place for me. It would be great to have someone who is on a similar path so that we could remind each other what we're working toward!

Probably the biggest difference is that I am counting calories and have been from the very beginning. I'm trying to use them as a tool though and not as a weapon against myself. Between falling back into some not-so-great habits and then using the calorie counts to obsess over, I've gotten into a couple steps forward, couple steps back mode.

Thank you for the reminder of something that is (to me) so basic - if I eat good healthy food and in the right amounts for my body, the weight will take care of itself.

Here's to healthy eating and happier bodies for both of us!

Yay! Thanks for the welcome. Congrats on all the success I see you have already had! It's really nice to have somewhere to find people who are in the same boat/battle as me. It's a little weird for me to be big now. I moved from Texas to the Netherlands a few years ago. I went from being tall for a woman at 5'10" to being average height and in a place with very low obesity rates. I feel quite out of place. I started at 310 this time, but my highest weight was 340 a few years ago when I was working at a really toxic job.

Hi Christa
Welcome and blessings to you in your journey!!!

Wow Christa! Texas to the Netherlands seems like it would be major culture shock! How long have you been there? At 5'5" I'd probably be an absolute shrimp there. Especially since I doubt I'm actually that height. I was always a bit shy of that and age shrinkage probably hasn't done me any favors.

I may have missed it in my initital reply but 14 lbs in a month is wonderful! Even better though is the improved way you're feeling! I'd say it's a win-win all around.

Toxic jobs can be killer for everyone. I think though when you're the kind of person who gets obsessed/fixated you carry it home with you and it become a 24/7 thing. You get home and are too wiped out to fix a meal - so you end up with a lot of restaurant meals, take out or processed comfort foods.

Over the past few months I've seen a lot of people here who aren't doing a commercially available plan. I started a post today for those of us who are doing our own thing so we can talk a bit about what we're doing and support each other.

Link to the post: http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/supp...g-support.html

Christa- I just joined, but I think you could have written my intro. I just want to make healthier choices. Losing weight is cool and all, but feeling good about my choices is the goal. I hope we can help each other.
Emily