I have made BIG mistakes in my life. Mistakes I thought were good choices at the time that turned out to be disastrous.
This pic was me several years ago as I was wheeled back to have Weight Loss Surgery. I “thought” this was my only option at the time. I’d tried EVERY diet out there & nothing else had worked.
Imagine my frustration when several years later I had gained back all the weight AGAIN. Talk about feeling like a loser.
Me getting weight loss surgery actually isn’t the mistake I made. There are several people who have had successful weight loss surgery. The mistake I made was what I was thinking in my head.
I thought that Weight Loss Surgery would cure my weight problem.
I thought there was something very wrong with me because none of the diets I’d tried previously had worked.
I thought that once I had surgery & lost weight all my problems in life would be over.
I thought that I was not worthy of being loved until I was a certain weight on the scale.
I thought that when I lost weight I would automatically be liked & accepted in groups I currently felt I was left out of.
The BIG MISTAKE I made was how I thought. All my thoughts about weight loss were not true, but I thought they were.
If I could go back to this day in my life, I’d have a few words of advice for this version of myself.
Advice #1: You are not going to love yourself anymore as a thin person than you do right now.
Advice #2: If you’re searching for love & acceptance from those around you – you’re looking in the wrong place. Loving yourself is the 1st place to start.
Advice #3: Being happy with your life is a CHOICE you make & has nothing to do with how much you weigh, what size you wear or whether you can fit into a seat at the amusement park.
Advice #4: Having weight loss surgery will not heal your emotional eating. The work is all done in your brain.
I STILL do not have the perfect body. And yet – I fiercely love this person that I am. And when I finally learned to love myself – I am able to have true love & empathy for those around me. That is where the true happiness comes from.