Hi and

! These boards are a great place to get the encouragement you need.
As far as advice..... everyone has to find their own "thing". Some calorie count, some join groups such as weight watchers, there's south beach, others just work on cutting portions and adding exercise. What are you thinking of doing?
I guess the best advice I could give you would be to take things one step at a time. Every time I tried to lose weight before, I would jump in with both feet. I would cut out all my favorite foods, start exercising really hard and would burn out and give up.
This time I decided to go slowly and it worked! I started out by trying to cut some fat and calories from my cooking. Then added in more vegies and fruit and started watching portions. After some time, I started walking. I challenged myself to walk to the park, do 1 lap around and then walk home. It was only about 1 1/4 miles and I only started with 3 days a week. After I started seeing results it really spurred me on to keep adding in new challenges for myself.
It's taken me over a year to lose 85 pounds but I feel like I really have a handle on it now. The biggest surprise for me was that I found that I love to exercise now! I actually get grouchy when I can't get my workout in and I now workout for 1 1/2 hours 5-6 days a week! Believe me, it didn't happen overnight. It was a gradual build-up.
Try to figure out what little things you can start doing. Make them things that you can live with. You need to think of this as a lifestyle change rather than just a quick fix. If you bite too much off all at once it can be way too overwhelming!
Good luck with your quest! Read around the threads and join in where you feel comfortable.
You can do this!!!!!!