*sighs* Well I'm only 18(almost 19) but have been overweight almost all of my life. I've tried many times to lose weight and get in shape but I always give up. Every once in a while I get these little kicks of confidence that make me think I can do it, but most of the time it just seems impossible.

Losing the extra pounds isn't my only struggle. I'm also suffering from depression that stems from my weight. I'm a highschool dropout.(mainly due to being taunted about my weight) I'm ashamed when I think about all of the things I've let my weight take away from me. Dating, prom, graduation, basically any kind of enjoyable life at all. It has to change. I can't go on like this with the excuse that I'll "try again tomorrow" knowing full well that I won't.

I can't afford to join any diet plans or support groups so I've pretty much been on my own- which is why I'm so glad I stumbled across this place. I'm hoping to find some kind of motivation to get my life together.

I somehow managed to lose about 25 lbs a couple years ago and have kept it off. That's a pretty big accomplishment but it seems to get lost when I look in the mirror.

I'm currently at 5'5" and 203 lbs. My goal weight is 125 lbs.

Before the weight issue, if you haven't already, get your GED! You don't wanna wait until you are 19, or even 20. It gets harder for every year you put it off. Start now...get the GED and try to go to college, while you're still young.

Now, being young isn't the only thing, you also need energy to do this. And being overweight, you most likely don't have all the energy you could have. At 37, I felt like I had the energy of a 45 or 50 year old. Then I lost weight. Now at 39, I feel like I have the energy of a 25 year old. So what did I do? I went back to school at night. LOL

You have to motivate yourself hon. I don't really know what to tell you to get you going. For me, it was bending down to tie my shoes and being so out of breath that I couldn't finish a sentence to my hubby that decided it for me this time. It has to be a change in lifestyle, but you have to start. If being so ashamed of what others think can make you drop out of school, it should be enough to motivate you to change your lifestyle, wouldn't you think?

But losing because of what others think often fails. What do you think? Well, you've stated you're ashamed. So losing weight will get you to not be ashamed of yourself. That's the motivation you have to go with. You have to lose weight for you, not anyone else. Now, you can do little motivator tricks to help you along, but unless the real motivation is there to get you started and keep you on track, even little tricks won't help.

Have you ever tried exercising? You get going for awhile then taper off or just quit altogether? Before you quit, if you notice a tapering off, change your exercise routine. Spice it up with something different, or try a different time and/or location. Keep doing that til you find an exercise routine that lasts longer than the others, one that doesn't start tapering off.

One of the tricks I used was to reward myself early with a nice new outfit that I really wanted. But I bought it one size too small, so that I worked hard to fit into it. And I'd hang it where I'd see it daily. Then I'd do it all over again with another outfit. But again, I was already motivated, losing weight, and exercising when I started doing this. You have to get motivated and get started. And whenever you find yourself making any excuses, remind yourself why you're doing it and make a renewed effort.

The biggest thing is don't beat yourself up when you slip a little too. That's one huge detriment that causes many people to fail. You start beating up on yourself for having desert one night and you carry that depression into the next night and overeat because you're depressed. It's a lose-lose situation. Just remind yourself if you slip that it's one time and tomorrow's a new day.

hi punkin welcome!
im 33 but am 5'4 and i have the same target goal

Hi Punkin
Im new here to, I am 49 and have 25 to 30 lbs to lose,I have suffered with depression for many years but finally gave in to let medication control it a few years ago. I to realized that most of my life had passed me by, whether its a weight issue or some other issue ,low self esteem is the end result. People can be cruel under any circumstance when they don't take the time to understand and look whats on the inside of another. I also get those spurts of confidence and determination ,but it dosen't take a lot to set me off track ,sometimes just a comment I find upsetting spins me out of control ,and I sabatoge all my good intentions.I think at any age we all suffer from the same things and our responses are the same. I used to struggle everday to find some of the happiness and experiences I had lost but it was a waste of time.All you can do is live today and look to the future experiences you will have ,and you will.You are very young with a whole wonderful life to live and you should do that for yourself ,no one else.You do not need validation from anyone ,to find your own happiness,because you will struggle your whole life waiting for it. I know you can do this if you have kept 25 lbs off thats a great accomplishmet ,all you can do is take one day at a time and if you fall one day try again tomorrow.You will find once you
stop beating yourself up and acknowledge that you are a wonderful person on the inside good thing will start to happen on the outside .Don't let any more experiences pass you by waiting for your weight to change live your life for you and everthing will fall into place .People will be people thats out of your control ,just be happy and know that you are worthy of everything good in this life regardless of size and shape.Having said that this will be a wonderful place for you to find the support you need in your weight related challenge,I wish I had known about this a long time ago.And by the way its never to late to change I have just learned how to work this computer only a few months ago and I will continue to learn as this has opened up a whole new world for me .So don't give up sweetie just keep your head up and look to better days and they will undoubtedly come.If you would like to talk I would love to hear from you .I hope that you are having a wonderful day.

welcome tea rose!

Hi Andrea
Thankyou for welcoming me in,I look forward to talking to all you lovely ladies, I think this will be a nice experience for me ,everyone seems so kind here.I have tried to chat but I can't seem to get anything but a blank screen ,do you have any helpful advice how to get there .This is all new to me ,so if you could it would be much appreciated

everyone is great here! as 4 chat... sorry dunno. i never used it.