The power of positive thinking re: WLS

When reading the Title and content of some of the posts I have come to realize something. So many posts have a "negative" feel to them. If you think negative, it is going to be harder to turn things around. I have had some really bad things happen to me in my life and I used to think negative a lot. It has taken me years to change that. I try to think positive before I speak or write, and I'm not successful 100% of the time but have done a good job improving in that area. This post is not specifically directed at any one person, but everyone in general.

Instead of thinking and saying that you've failed at something, why not instead try to change the way you think and phrase it differently, like "facing a challenge" or "missed opportunity". I find it a whole lot easier to succeed and stay positive if I just take a minute and think about what I'm facing, how I look at it and how I present it. WLS is no picnic, it is a journey full of opportunities, sometimes chock full of roads with bumps and potholes. If you get a flat when you run over something in the road, you change a tire, not discard the car, and get back on your trip. You also do not say that the car is a lemon or failure because of it. You just have to move forward and not let things get the better of you. You will succeed, be patient, be positive and look to your OH friends for help, support and the occasional tough love that comes with this territory.

I have found this one small thing makes a tremendous successful impact in my life, and I wish the same for you.

Julie

I absolutely agree that your 'frame of mind' is very important to a happy, successful life. I do not mean that it will fix everything by smiling, but it will make it seem not so bad. Although I am single again after 35 years of having a cheating spouse, have chronic pain, am unemployed and not having an easy time making ends meet....oh well!!

I think more of what I do have; 5 wonderful children, 5 amazing grandchildren, a roof over my head, a car to get me from here to there and have the gift of good health :) Yes, I do get down from time to time, but I actually get in front of the mirror and give myself a talking to. Sometimes I even cry while doing it, but it does help. (Yeah, so now you are thinking that I am bat**** crazy, )

Like Julie said in the OP, the power of positive thinking is a very strong power!

I really wish this site had a like button!  

Some of the posts that I read are frightening for someone preparing for surgery.  Attitude is everything!  I am having negative thoughts about my decision to have wls, but I know that the long term benefits far outweigh any "physical discomfort" I may be experiencing now!  I am looking forward to my new lifestyle, the good, the bad & the ugly!

Julie, you said it so well.  Your right, bad things happen.  It's part of life. Life isn't always fair.  It definitely isn't always easy. I have found the more worth while something is the harder it is to do.  Thank you for writing this.  It takes courage to stand up and change one's whole life around, hopefully knowing that this journey isn't an easy one.  For some, the road is more treacherous than other's paths.  But if we give it our all every day, each day, we will all end up at the finish line.   Then we all have to remember that the work is not done, and that the path continues. A new adventure begins.

Thank you for writing this! A positive attitude is a must!

Thank you for this post. I try not getting on here much cause I freak myself out and I am 11 days away from surgery. I am positive enough to know everything will turn out great and I have enough faith to know its one day at a time and everything will work out....

My weight progress hasn't been where I am wanting it to be.. but I am changing the way I think.. I need to think positive if not any progress I won't see it as a success.. every day I eat on my plan and put my health first and not emotional eat and exercise.. it's a goal I meet today..

 

going to therapy and group therapy.. helps because I am one to normally get discouraged easy.. and I refuse to give in.. this is it.. this is my shot to get better and healthier.. and the beginning of my new life..

Thank you for posting this.  I am guilty of letting the fear of "failure" overwhelm me.  I read posts like yours to help me reframe my thinking about my upcoming rny.  I want so badly for this to work.  It will take me some time to accept that I will be successful at weight loss because I have been battling this issue since toddlerhood.  In general, I am a positive person and I hope that attitude will transfer to this road to weight loss that I'm on.