Hi guys -

I need your help! Please tell me how I can get over the horror of posting progress photos here. I'm getting to the post in my loss where I need to take a progress picture. I'm nearly 30lbs away from my "before" photo. (I have none at 302 only 293) but I'm really squicky about posting here because well ANYONE can see them.

It's not like people IRL don't know I'm fat, but I'm shy to begin with and if anyone ever sees the photos that I know IRL then they know the exact # of how bad I got. Heh. It's just embarassing

I know it's stupid, so please talk me into it. I want to post photos because looking at everyone's before and afters really helps motivate me, and I hate when people cut their heads off in photos heh, so I don't want to do that.

Did anyone else feel this way and how did you get over it?

Please help the helplessly shy one with your wisdom!

-muse

Muse -

I don't typically respond too much, but I read your post and thought I would chirp in. You should be darn proud of yourself. It's one thing to post pictures and be embarrased, but you are doing something wonderful for yourself and really who cares what you once weighed, look where you are headed and not to your past.

Angie

No one here, of all places, will judge you for your weight. They want to celebrate with you, celebreate your progress..It gives US hope to see other people succeeding

Oh, I'm not worried about you guys! I'm happy to show you all photos I think sometimes a photo to go along with a name helps you get to know/remember people better and be able to better appricate their journey.

I'm just worried about people I know in person or knew... but I guess if they end up here they also need to loose weight, so it shouldn't be a big deal. I don't know why I'm being a dork about it.

Yeah, I thought about that. Quite a bit. Sometimes I worry people IRL will find me and judge me. Especially my students.

So, I assume it WILL happen one day, tho I may not know about it. I try to therefore say things that, if others I knew heard about I wouldn't be (too) embarrassed. And yes, that's me with my face and weights plastered everywhere. I decided that my weight isn't WHO I am, and if someone I know in real life figures it out, well, I am just going to be okay with it.

If they judge me knowing my actual weight, they were probably judging me anyway, when they were just guessing.

However, you will be less likely to find me talking about my sex life in any detail -- just in case my students stumble upon it! In which case, hi guys... why aren't you studying??

Yeah, I hold back on saying some things, although now that I think about it I've basically also annouced to anyone that may stumble upon my account that I take depression medications.

My family surely doesn't know about that.

Hi Mom and Dad (wave) I'm okay.... really! promise!

Okay enough sillyness out for my walk now.

-muse

Hmm well I think that's a reasonable reason to be a little bit hesitant in posting a photo of yourself.

Personally I think you should make the choice for yourself. If you feel comfortable posting a photo, do it. If you don't, then don't. And either choice is OK, I think.

Muse, I have an idea. How about just not putting in the weights? First picture, caption could be "Beginning." Second picture, "Beginning Minus Thirty" then "Beginning Minus One Hundred" (or whatever). Keep notes for yourself, tho, and when you want to, go in and replace the captions with numbers. Alas, I have no pics of beginning weight. I don't even have one now. I'm just going to have to recruit a friend to be my photographer!

Shellie - great thought but the ticker would give her away.

Muse - I'm guessing that the only people who would venture onto this site is someone who is looking to lose weight. If they happened to run across you (and seriously, what are the odds??? how many people do you know???) then I would think they would be thrilled and want to call you right away to talk about what they're trying to do. Don't be ashamed of who you were. She made you who you are today.

I was very, VERY reluctant to post my photos. For the very same reasons as you. I've been so open and honest here, just pouring out my emotions, if any one I knew were to bang into my here, I think I just might curl up and who knows what.

But I had gotten soooo many requests to share some photos and after having a particularly NSV couple of days and then "speaking" it over with some of the mods here, they said that maybe seeing my pics would inspire someone, I said, "What the heck". That was about 3 months ago and so far, so good. At least as far as I know.

I do LOVE looking at photos, for one they are so very motivating and inspiring and I also love putting a face to the people with whom I "speak" with here on 3FC.

I'd certainly love taking a look at yours, as I'm sure we all would ..............

Often I see people post photos where they cut off the head or blur out the face, then no one really can know for sure if it's you or not...

If a person knows you, they probably already know what you've looked like at different weights. Chances are slim someone you know would see you, and even slimmer they would be negative towards you. We're all here for the same reason!!

I agree with the post above me as well, there's nothing wrong with not showing you're face if you aren't comfortable with it. That wouldn't mean you weren't proud of your weight loss.

When I reached my goal, I was still a little hesitant to show my before pic. It wasn't that I was afraid someone I knew would see it and think OMG, she was fat. Everyone already knew that. I guess I was just afraid someone would recognize me and see my ticker weight. For me, it was more of a denial thing, I didn't want anyone to see my beginning weight. But, I've had my pic. up for over a yr. and haven't met a single person that I know, so all is good. Plus, I'm more confident now that if anyone I know does see it, they could say "yeah, Lily Used To Be Fat". But, USED TO BE is the key word here.

I would say post the pictures and anyone who stumbles across this site would do so trying to lose weight anyway. And somebody who looks for weight loss sites to make fun of people losing weights has some serious issues and who cares what they think anyway? If you're not comfortable with somebody you know finding your picture online, and I've had those concerns myself, I would take the pictures from the neck down like some people do.

Speaking of pictures, I ought to post some pictures myself, since I'm almost halfway to my goal.

This thread and the "omg vacation photos" thread inspired me to peek at my own photos ("before" and "after losing 10% body weight").

And HOLY CRAP! What a difference! I'm giddy at the change just that 32-pound difference made...the second 10% photos will be with 61 pounds gone. Now I can't wait to lose those 4 pounds!

Dudes, even if you can't bear to look at them (it's taken me nearly 8 months to be willing to look at them closely) have them taken! Upload them to your computer and just let them sit there. You don't even have to look at them, ever, if you want. Man, am I glad I bit the bullet and had my sis take those.


ETA: And umm, regarding *posting* them…in time, my pretties, in time.