A Stall or Lack of Following Protocol?

This is all my own personal opinion.....
I do think that the scale is a terrible invention and alot of us has based our lives on what those numbers say.... I am pre-op and I still get on my scale once a day even though I know that it is going to be a number that makes be cringe....I know that it is going to be hard to part with it.... But I know I need to....

Also another good thing to remember is that... we did not put this weight on over night.... how can we possible expect it to come off that way???  I think that if you so what you said above and stick to the guidelines you are doing great and that will continue...

I think that being over weight had done such a number on the majority of us... that we are paranoid that this tool will not work for us... that nothing will.... I think putting those negative thoughts away along with that pesky scale are a great place to start

 I don't think its a stall OR failing to stick to protocol.  9 pounds in a month is fabulous!  The rate of loss DOES slow down the further out you get.  

Personally, I'm a scale *****  I don't let it ruin or make my day, but I like knowing where I am.  

 I think you're doing great.  It does slow down the further out you get, but you will still lose.  It's totally normal to lose in steps - staying near the same for a few weeks, and then dropping pounds quickly.  It's not a steady slide down the scale.

I totally get what you're saying about doubting the DS's ability to get you to goal.  It's from years of being conditioned to fail at "diets".  I used to worry about the same exact things.  I swore that I was done losing weight at 225 pounds, then 200, then 180...and today I weigh in the 140's.  

After the first month I lost about 10 pounds a month until I got to a BMI of around 28.  From there I dropped to about 2-3 pounds a month until I got to where I am now.

I'm also a ***** for the scale, I know it's not mentally healthy but I do weigh myself every day.  By doing so I can tell you that I've seen every stall, gain, and drop and that it's all normal.