Of the following, do you believe there was a cause for your weight problem?

I've thought about this a lot, as I'm sure we all have. I think I've narrowed it down to the weight being the perfect excuse not to participate. I've always had issues with social anxietey and also perfectionist tendancies. Being overweight was always the reason I gave myself for not going out there and trying and possibly failing.

My mom actually blames herself for my and my siblings eating habits and disorders. I was a diabulimic and my younger sister was a bulimic. My mom says that because she spent so much time dieting when we kids were really young, we got it stamped into our minds that to be successful in life, you have to be thin.

I'm not sure if I actually believe that, but I think it did play a part in my eating habits at least.

I think genetics is a big thing for me, personally. I am really big boned and at 5'7 and 180lbs, I look pretty ok. You can actually feel my ribs right under the skin on my chest, with hardly any fat, even though my chest size is a 38/40"! My legs are just under 44" long from hip to toe as well, so I think I'm pretty well proportioned for what I've got. I used to be really skinny and small as a child, but once I hit 12, I started ballooning. I went straight from a size 16 kids to a size 10/12 juniors pretty much over night.

I voted other. I was heavy because I was deliberately, purposefully blind to the bad choices I made every day. I was heavy because I ate too much of the wrong foods everyday. Now, I eat more aware of what and how much I eat and try to make healthy choices most of the time.

I never lost the baby weight and my baby just turned 20 and is having a baby on December 24th!!

I simply made wrong choices in food. Too much sugar for instance.

Wrong choices for many reasons so I answered psychology.

It all started when my dear brother was born and I was no longer the darling of the family!

That's 60 years ago and I'm not over it yet and the family who were "darling" me are all gone! I guess it's time to get over it, right?

I think of it as a combination - I come from large people, so to at least a small degree genetics might play a role in it. I also come from a family that ate whatever they wanted to, ate large portions, went out to eat on payday, had a candy bar every single day, etc. I think the bulk of my er.. bulk came from psychological reasons - abuse from men, unhealthy relationship with food, a desire to make myself undesirable and thus invisible...

Why have I maintained all this weight? Other: pure denial and laziness.

all of the above?

I put genetics, psychology, environment, and biology. Here's why:

Genetics: I inherited my dad's bone structure and fat distribution, which made me genetically prone to being bigger in unfavorable areas. Any time I have any extra weight, it shows in my face and my stomach.

Psychology: This one plays a big role for me. I was a fat kid in middle school and got tormented for it, so I had eating disorders from the ages of 15 through 18. I didn't completely stop my eating disordered behavior until I moved down to Florida to be with my girlfriend, who worried about me so much and made me eat. I decided that I had been depriving myself of yummy foods for so long that I went on a big ol' binge and gained about fifty pounds in around six months. Then, my weight leveled out, and while I stopped binging, I still ate more than I needed to - AND I was no longer physically active. When I was thin, I lived in DC and walked everywhere, plus I was very busy and involved with so many things that I conveniently "forgot" to eat. My relationship with food has never been healthy until now... it has always been attached to feelings of guilt mixed with feelings of pleasure and satisfaction.

Environment: I packed on all the weight when I moved in with my girlfriend, who loooooves to cook. She's Puerto Rican, so food is LOVE, and if I didn't want to eat something she made, she'd pout at me, get sad, and say, "What? You don't love me?" And then, even if I was full, she'd put more food on my plate because she looooooves to FEED ME! I think her mother does the same thing to her father... and he's HUGE, too. Plus, I heard for some very peculiar reason that people who move down to Florida from parts further north gain weight. I'm not sure why, though.

Biology: My biological make-up doesn't like being skinny. Some people truly are meant to be skinny, and I'm just not one of them. Yes, I was skinny for 4 years, but unnaturally so. As soon as I started eating again (and eating like a normal person, which really isn't healthy at all), I gained all the weight back AND THEN SOME!

I put outside influences as the closest thing I could come to referring to stress. I gained about 50 pounds in 1998-1999 during the most stressful time of my life.

I chose other but would like to have seen the option of All of the Above.

I think you can choose more than one option. I did ... psychology and other.

The only genetic thing with me is my Dad's pot belly, which, when I diet, goes away.

I blame nothing but my own laziness and lack of motivation to maintain a respectable weight. Well, that and eating from boredom.

I voted other. I was thin until I went to college. I always claimed or owned my weight problem because I ate too much and some family genetics. I never blamed anyone but myself. I often said I am overweight because I like food and I like to cook etc. I now, after some therapy and a statement my mother made realize that it a combination of things. My mom's statement years ago was " Have you ever thought that a lot of your weight problems might have something to do with your husband." She meant the marriage relationship as my husband is supportive of weight loss, not a sabatoer, nor is he overweight but is an emotional abuser and does not love unconditionally! I found out I was taking too much responsiblity for everything.
I have lost 50lbs since last March and maybe 30 the 2 years before that. My husband is currently moved out of the house, the 3rd time in 4 years.... I have not resorted to overeating. I exercise everyday. The stress of this is incredible. He has threatened me with divorce for years. This time he may get his wish, therapist claims he is never going to file, it is my choice. I choose to be myself, thin.

I have been on this board since the 90's, mostly lurking and I have to say the support here is incredible. I am alone at home again, I don't work outside the home, no kids, just me and the dog. Thanks to all!