Question:
When did you start to feel thin? Or at least stop feeling fat?

I am 6.5 months post op and down over 100 pounds with 25 to go till I reach my goal and get a TT. I am now getting into size 10 jeans and still see myself as fat. I am so not fishing for compliments. I am seriously concerned. I look at the pants and think that THEY are small but can't seem to see myself the same way. I am hoping that a TT will make me feel much better because I feel deformed at this point with my sagging belly. Do I just need to let my brain catch up? Will I see myself as others do any time soon? Also is anyone particularly critical of certain body parts now?    — Carol S. (posted on July 31, 2003)

July 31, 2003
I can honestly relate to what you are saying I had lap rny in Nov 2002 and am down 110 lbs and in a size 10 but I still see myself as being fat, especially when I look at myself with no clothes on. I hope that if I am able to get a TT that will help but can't help but wonder if I will always be critical of myself no matter what size I am
   — charlotte W.

July 31, 2003
It does take awhile for your brain to catch up. Try having someone take a picture or video of you and look at that. Sometimes it helps you "see" it better. I'm just starting to have a more realistic picture of how I look (I'm 2 years post-op!) I still don't believe I'm "thin" although lots of people tell me that, but at least I no longer think I'm "fat".
   — mom2jtx3

July 31, 2003
I'm 16 months out, at 147, down 155 pounds and also in a size 10 or 12 now (I'm 5'2"). I still feel fat almost all the time, despite being told constantly I no longer need to lose weight. I'm not yet at goal. I do think it helps to look at full body pictures from pre-op to present, far more than it helps to look in the mirror. I also feel huge and gross looking naked in the mirror, though I'd take the flabby skin any day over the fat. I want kids within the next 2-3 years, so am postponing any decisions on ps until after then, and though it bothers me, the extra skin doesn't bother my boyfriend in the least. I do usually think I look pretty good in clothing and am slowly coming to be reconciled with my body image - yesterday I even came to the shocking conclusion that my shoulders look bony to even me, especially after seeing a thin, athletic woman who looked the same way I do in the collarbone, shoulder area. It does take time...
   — Melissa F.

July 31, 2003
I'll let you know when I start and when I stop. I have brief moments, but I feel fat most of the time, even though I'm 168 pounds lighter.
   — Lisa C.

July 31, 2003
Hi Carol, just wanted to say congrats. on the 100 pound weight drop. I am 6.5 months out too and know what you mean. I am very critical of my inner thighs and will not even wear shorts in public. Thank God for capris :). I am having similar issues with body image and I went to www.virtualmodel.com to get a more "accurate" view of me. I find it very interesting especially when I have my model at 286, my pre-op weight, then change her to 210 my now weight. The proof is right in front of me when I fold my new smaller clothes but sometimes looking at my model helps me out. Good Luck sweety. Laureace A.
   — Laureace A.

August 1, 2003
I am going through the same thing. I thing TIME is our answer. When I was overweight I didn't see myself as large as I was (physically I felt it, mentally I denied it), but now I don't FEEL the size that I am. I am now a size 8 and it's really not my size, but the saggy skin that makes me feel fat. I am currently going through the loops of getting approval for a breast reduction/lift - no lie they hang almost to my belly button - and (to pay on my own) a bat-wing removal. (The stomache/legs/butt will hopefully be a bonus someday, but I think if I can feel normal from the waist up, that will be a vast improvement). It's a process, some of us just have a harder time with the body image. At my support group, they say it just takes time, most of us have been heavy for years and years, and it changes so fast, the mind just needs healthy, positive re-training to adjust to the changes.
   — Dana B.

August 3, 2003
I was within the normal BMI range well before I actually felt normal. Time has been a big help. However, I really started feeling normal, when I accidentally saw myself in a window reflection and I "looked normal" to myself. Now I take every opportunity to look at my reflection, and I'm gradually coming to accept myself as "average" build.
   — Kathy J.

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