Want to clean out my closet but I'm afraid of failure. Advice?

I was doing laundry tonight and as I was putting my clothes away all I could think of was how I hated most of what I own. Most of my clothes were bought because they fit not so much because I actually liked them. I lost 90 lbs a couple of years ago and threw away all my clothes only to gain it back. Now, I want to start thinning out my closet but I feel afraid to...like I might gain all the weight back and regret it. It all really makes me mad. Mad that I got so fat, mad that I'm afraid of failure, mad that even after gastric bypass I can't seem to believe that I can do this. Ugh. Anyone else go through this? What did you do or how did you let go of the fear?

I buy almost all my clothes at thrift stores so I don't really get too attached to them.  This isn't my first rodeo.  In 2002 I had my first WLS and lost all my weight.  As I went down in size I would put the bigger clothes in a bag and after I had a bunch I would take them to Goodwill or another thrift store I go to that will give you a 30% off coupon per bag you bring in.  I wound up in a size 3 and stayed there for about a year and then slowly started creeping up.  As the 3s became too small for me I put them in the hall closet thinking I would save them for when I lost weight again.  After a while I knew that ship had sailed so I got rid of them.
By the time I had my revision the only clothes I had were sweat type pants with drawstrings and t shirts.  I wore those from 150 lbs to 218 lbs.  They went from being very loose to very tight but I would not buy any more clothes other then them.  After my surgery I did the same.  I kept those clothes from 218 lbs to about 150 lbs.  I think I was around 165 lbs before I bought some jeans.  I had actually kept one pair of jeans from when I weighed 150 lbs and I was so happy when I got into them again.  I think the first size of jeans I bought were 12.  When I bought those I also bought a pair in size 10 to look forward to.  When I could get into the size 10 I went out and bought a size 8.  As soon as a pair of jeans got too big for me I put them in the bag for the thrift store.  I kept my tops for a long time, though.  I still have some tops in my closet that are size XL.  I wore one yesterday in fact.  I am larger on top anyway.
Now I am trying to gain weight.  I've had to buy a few pairs of jeans in a smaller size but I am keeping the larger jeans, too, because I plan on getting back in them and I don't want to have to go out and buy a bunch of jeans again.  I also get a lot of clothes for free on Freecycle and Craigslist.
I'm not working outside the home right now so I really don't have a need for nicer clothes but if I get a job I will hit the thrift stores again and find some appropriate clothes.
If it makes you feel more secure then bag up the clothes and keep them for a while.  Maybe after a few years you will feel better about giving them away :)

It's hard to believe in success.

Those clothes are weighing your down. Trust me, by letting them go you will feel so much lighter. You will be on a new path.

You do not need these clothes. Goodwill,salvation army, or a women's shelter need your clothes. Maybe a thrift store. But not you.

Deb T.

I'm 2 years out and still haven't cleaned out my closet and dressers. Not sure what I'm waiting for!!

Julie

I finally got around to cleaning out my drawers a few months ago and I found things that I hadn't worn in 8 years.

I had the same problem. I actually had developed a very nice wardrobe and had a lot of expensive nice things that I loved. Nine months later, I had stacks of clothes that no longer fit but I was too attached and too scared to get rid of them. I was talking to a friend about them and she made me promise that I would get rid of them before New Year's. So I had a deadline. I finally went through all my clothes, made a list of everything I had and took it to a local Woman's Shelter right before the Christmas Holidays. It was a year after my RNY. I'm almost two years out now and have never looked back. I don't even remember which pieces I was so attached to.

Don't ru**** Pull them out of your closet and keep them somewhere, but set yourself a deadline for how long you will keep them. It's all part of the adjustment phase, accepting your newself and new lifestyle and saying goodbye to the the old you, the person you were for so many years.

Good luck.
Jan

I threw away EVERYTHING  (well in he process of trying to sell it) at 5 months out.  I am 7 now.  I coul not wear any of them.  I lost 100 before and gained back and regretted ditiching cothes - but did it again because this time I will be a success!!! 

Thanks for all the good advice. I think I'm going to start by separating the things I like from what I don't. Next step is to start getting rid of things. I'm a minimalist so I really don't have very much to begin with but I think that it's about facing my fear of failure more than anything. I'm going to work on that and also start letting go of things that no longer work- whatever that may be- like clothes or thoughts or old patterns. This surgery really s about so much more than weight loss! Thanks again for the support and advice! It really helps!

I am going through this too. I did clean out 2 closets and a chest of drawers-- but still have one to go. The old fat clothes were my comfortable friends and helped me hide my old fat self, but time to say goodbye:)

At the 6 month mark, when I had lost 100 pounds, I rewarded myself by remodeling my closet. I gutted it, painted it, and installed a beautiful cherry Closet Maid system I got at Lowe's. There was no way I was putting my big clothes back in my beautiful new closet. It was tough, but very liberating for me.

Laura