My husband and I were talking the other day and we had a thought. We've observed that people who have known me for a long time (either since I was born or since very young) do not notice my weight loss but others who have only know me since I've been fat, do. We were thinking, maybe when people have known you thin they do not notice as easily (especially when you lose really really slow and they don't see you very often) because your new smaller self melts into their old memory of what you looked like. However, the people who have only known you as a fat person don't have those memories of you and when you lose weight, they really notice. Does this make sense? What do you think?

I agree, definitely. My family didn't get to see me go through the process- they very much got the "before and after" (I don't live near them). However, I noticed that people I saw every single day didn't notice nearly as much as the people I saw every once in a while. I think it has a lot to do with exactly what you said above

I specifically remember a close friend and co-worker who swore that I couldn't have lost that much weight, simply because I just looked like the same old Jen to her (I saw her just about every day) until one day it hit her like a ton of bricks when she saw me walking away from her.

I never notice friend and family weight changes, I hardly ever notice their size anyway, i just see them as a whole package. I think we look far more closely at ourselves than others do. Or maybe im just bad at noticing stuff

Well, you don't know who is avoiding saying anything because commenting on people's weight is a minefield...

Jay

Hmm... Everyone I know, knows I'm trying to lose weight. Well almost all of them. I hope they're not just saying they can see the difference because they know.... lol

I think like everyone is saying, casual acquaintences tend to notice more because they tend to be more shallow and judgemental than family and close friends. Friends and family do notice eventually, but I think it takes them longer because either they may see you more often and can't see the gradual differences or because they know you so well that they dont' even think about weight or the way you look?

People who knew me before I gained all this weight haven't noticed as much, or said as much at least, as those whom I became friends with after the weight gain. Like you said, I think it's because they were only used to seeing me at 360 lbs so they are only now seeing me at a smaller size for the first time. Whereas everyone who knew me at 180 lbs -- well, they sort of know my weight has always been up-and-down . . .

hmmm interesting concept.

The only people who have mentioned my weight to me, and there haven't been that many at all, it seems like is family and friends who seem to care for me a lot and they get concerned for me.

I had two dear friends talk to me privately and seriously and they let me know they were concerned. It realled touched me that they would care that much for me. These two friends are friends that are not afraid to tell me they love me.

My mother and my sister mention my weight a lot but it's more like nagging!

Since I have started dieting Dec 1 and have lost 35 pounds so far not one person has noticed and I haven't talked about it. I am curious to see how much I have to lose before someone notices.

I myself will only notice weight gain in my friends only if I haven't seen them in a while.

People I know less well go on and on a lot more about my weight loss than my family does. But I don't think it's that my family doesn't notice. It's a combination of they see me more often (so to talk about it a lot every time they see me would get reallllly boring for everyone involved), and also that my family knows me better (that I would rather not be the center of so much attention).

My local friends haven't noticed, and they've only known me at my heavier weights. And during 2 pregnancies, so after that I guess even my highest weight looks skinnier.

My husband has been at sea during the last 20 lbs I've lost. It was hard for him to notice the loss before he left because he saw me every day, but I'm really hoping he notices the difference when he gets back.

this happened with me and my next door neighbor!!

It took a good 50- 60 pounds before ANYONE, (friends, family, casual acquaintances, etc) mentioned (or noticed?) my weight loss. Some people comment on it every time I see them and some people I see fairly regularly have never commented on it. Some people tell me I'm getting too thin, (HA!) and in the same breath ask me how much more I plan on losing! (That is always funny to me!) It seems some people are annoyed by my weight loss and are hoping I gain it all back, some stare, some look away, some sing God's praises I'm getting healthy.

I know a diverse group of people, and they are all very different!

Well you are right.
we cannot notice the changes when they tend to occur slowly.
People , very close, cannot ,in any way,observe the changes in the appearance of the body.
On the contrary people who occasionally see us can immediately notice the appearances in the body.

I definitely agree. Same goes for how often you see people. A guy friend of mine was close to 190 and pretty heavy when we started freshmen year. Since then, he has joined the swim team and grew probably about 4 inches, and also lost 30 pounds. He looks great. I didn't realize it was a different RJ until I was looking at pictures from Freshmen year and was like "Who is that?" "Oh my goodness, that's RJ???" I notice that when I go to school, most people don't notice, but when I go to work, where I only am a few times a week and don't always see the same people, they immediately notice. I love when people notice, of course! :]