[Kimmie1989]

I have some clothes that I used to wear not even too long ago.... and in those days I felt FAT. But now, as I try to put them on and can't (even though I've lost almost 10 pounds so far on my journey) I realize just how wrong I was! I wasn't fat....... I could have lost a bit more back then in order to look my absolute best, but those clothes were size 6's ..... not fat by any means. I'd love to go back to that size now and I'm amazed that I was so unhappy with myself. I believe that once I lose 10 more pounds I'll be back into those clothes again.... and THIS time I promise I won't take it for granted!

P.S. The last time I wore those clothes was just last year. It's amazing how quickly weight can pile on if you let it!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Jelbb]

I agree. I used to think I was SUPER chunky. Back when I was like... 134 lbs. I thought I was FAT.
Seriously. By the time I was in my 170s, I no longer thought 134 was fat!!

Even now, I apparently have a really warped perception of what I look like. My mother and I were chatting casually the other day about how when I WAS back in the 170s, she was a little worried, since there are a few people in my family who are predisposed to being consistently over 200 lbs. She mentioned my cousin who's my age, and I was a bit shocked. I've never really seen my cousin as being much bigger than me, but when I said this, my mother and stepsister both were like, ".... are you joking?"
Apparently, my perception is so warped that other people can look at her and see that she's more or less 50 lbs heavier than me... and I look at her and think I'm about the same size... ?:?

Anyhow, CONGRATS on almost being able to get back into those clothes! Keep working at it!!

[WormwoodDoll]

Jelbb, I can relate. I always compared myself to be 10x bigger than someone and my DF or friends would be like "....seriously? You aren't that big AT all, you are smaller!". My mind is saying "That's not possible! She looks okay to me!".

[sleepandfood]

i definitely relate to this. my roommate in college i thought was super skinny and i always felt fat hanging around her. but we always borrowed each others' clothes, so we were the same size. it's crazy. i used to obsess about being over 123 when i weighed 125. i can't can't can't wait to see 125 again.

[sleepandfood]

also, severe cases of perceiving yrself as not what you really look like can be clinically defined as body dysmorphic disorder.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_dysmorphic_disorder

[TXJess]

When I was a kid I grew very quickly. At age twelve I was 5'6". I remember having to be weighed in gym class and was 130. I thought was terribly fat and overweight. It just devastated me that all the other girls were under 100 lbs not thinking of the fact they were at least half a foot shorter if not more.

I thought I was too wide, my hips too big, my thighs too chunky. Now I realize I was very healthy and wish they would have taken more time to explain healthy weight, BMI, body fat calculations etc. They just told you your weight and were done with it and thats all girls had to compare.

The summer after that experience I gained 20 lbs and then another 10 and another 10 etc.

I just remember that year being the first time I ever had a notion of myself as "fat". I don't know if I'll ever get quite that skinny again but I know I'll still be battling my perceptions of what I look like. Thirteen years of skewed ideas of yourself are hard things to change.

[kk140]

i can relate to this too.
When we're out and I see girls who seem to have a similar body shape/weight to me, i always ask my bf if that's what i looks like and he always tells me "are you crazy??"
Last week i saw a girl in a beautiful dress (she was overweight but looked absolutely stunning in it) and I asked him if that's what i looked like because i would love to own a dress like that to look as good as her and he told me "are you kidding? you are and always have been smaller than her".
I noticed a lot of women do this though. My mom always thinks she's bigger than she is too..

[MsDiana 08]

I always felt fat. But now I realize that I looked great and just didn't realize. Now I just wish that I still looked like that.

The funny thing is that most females look in the mirror and see themselves as being bigger than what they are.
I am opposite because I look in the mirror and think I am smaller than what I am. I only realize my actual size when I see myself in pictures...weird.

[Jelbb]

Originally Posted by MsDiana 08

I am opposite because I look in the mirror and think I am smaller than what I am. I only realize my actual size when I see myself in pictures...weird.

Ah, yeah, no, when I look in a mirror, all by myself, I (usually) don't feel that ridiculously huge. But I think my perception of my size is warped by having seen myself in all these photos that I HATE!!! Pictures are CRUEL, lol.

[misspiggy408]

Same here - i look at all my clothes pre-baby and they were size 7. I would LOVE to get into that size now!

[Mickeypnd]

Im weird. i have my good days, then. . . i have my bad days, and sometimes this all happens within the same day. i'll feel good about myself in the morning and by night, I'll hate my body.

If its just me staring at myself in the mirror, I'm ok and I don't think I look bad, its when Im around others I get this feeling that Im SO huge.

[soure1sl]

Originally Posted by Mickeypnd

If its just me staring at myself in the mirror, I'm ok and I don't think I look bad, its when Im around others I get this feeling that Im SO huge.

I am the same exact way! When I'm by myself I feel like I look okay, then I go out with my friends or go to work and I instantly feel fat

[Star2Be]

Um, yes, I definitely have this problem. I'm a size 6 NOW, and I still feel pretty chunky most of the time! One of my best friends is a size 8-10 and I think her body is totally bangin', and yet I'm fat. Logical? Not really. And the thing is, I really wonder what it'll take for me FINALLY to feel like I'm at a "good" size. I mean, know that when I started, I would have flipped out and died just to get to wear a size 12, and I'm pretty sure I thought size 8 was certifiably skinny... But now, even with wearing size 6, I'm like "Ehhh, 6 is okay, but maybe I'll actually REALLY be normal-sized if I'm a 4..." Which really freaks me out, because, suppose I actually DO drop down to a 4 (which doesn't seem super-likely, heh) and I'm still not happy--do I really want to be 5'8" and pining away after a size 2?!?! Cuuuz that sounds more than a little nuts to me... But if it doesn't stop then, when will it stop? Is a size 4 really going to be the magical size at which I finally feel comfortable? Cuz that's what I was hoping size 6 would be!

I think my main problem is that even though my measurements or whatever may be pretty decent, I have basically no definition whatsoever... So sometimes all *I* see when I look at myself are the stretch marks and flabby, wobbly bits of loose skin hanging off of me (especially my arms, ugh), and of course my natural reaction is "Whoa, you're FAT!" I might have a smaller waist or hips measurement than another woman, but if she is really toned, her skin will be stretched much tighter--it may be over a larger "circumference" (lol), but she will still look much more fit than I do. In my mind, at least. Lately I've been working on trying to exercise more, so hopefully I will tone up at least a little - I *think* I'm already starting to see a difference in my thighs and tummy, but that could just be me deluding myself out of desperate hopes, LOL! - but at the same time I know my skin has only got so much elasticity yet, and I'm never gonna look like a supermodel! But then I'm like, well, I don't *have* to look like a supermodel, now do I?? It's like, since I spent my whole life not even remotely trying to fulfill the standards of an "acceptable" body, my mind is now trying to waaay over-compensate and make up for lost time by making me think that I have to be perfect or something. Not exactly realistic, I know.

Hmmm, I kind of went off on a BIG tangent there, LOL! But yeah, it really is kind of frustrating not to know what I look like. I really just don't know! But when it comes down to it, it seems to me like the whole whacked-out body image thing just comes with the territory when you undergo significant weight loss, so I guess I'm willing to put up with it if that's what I have to do in order to maintain my loss, heh... I do have hope that I'll eventually be able to make peace with my body, and I swear I do NOT just stand in the mirror and think "Eeek! I'm hideous!" or anything like that, heh, but I definitely still have a long way to go in that department.

[nicollle]

ahh i definitely have this problem big time. i have good and bad days... it's odd because sometimes i feel normal and as though i look good and others like im 90lbs heavier although that is obviously not possible haha.

[Nella]

Originally Posted by MsDiana 08

I always felt fat. But now I realize that I looked great and just didn't realize. Now I just wish that I still looked like that.

The funny thing is that most females look in the mirror and see themselves as being bigger than what they are.
I am opposite because I look in the mirror and think I am smaller than what I am. I only realize my actual size when I see myself in pictures...weird.

I do the same thing. In my head and in the mirror, I look OK, but then the photos come back and I'm like "Whoa, who is that fat chick in my clothes?"

It makes you wonder, which is the real "picture" I know I'm overweight, but I don't think I'm as big as in pictures.