Losing weight can be a very long and hard experience. Look at this positive:

YOU LOST 20 POUNDS AND YOU ARE OFF ONE OF YOUR MEDICATIONS!

Don't let anybody tell you different, that is a very good progress! I struggle with my weight, need to lose about 25 more pounds. It is hard. But it is also all about changing our lifestyles; this includes both diet and exercise!

It takes time. It sounds like you have made lifestyle changes. Give them time to work, please! More weight will come off.

There are many ways to measure progress. The scale is the obvious one. Another is clothing, as your weight drops you notice clothing becoming lose. Another is the tape measure, there are times where the tape shows progress where the scale does not. Endurance is another good measurement; are you able to do more exercise than before?

What you are doing IS good enough to let you drop 20 pounds. Give it 4 more months and odds are you will lose another 10 to 20 pounds. (Granted we are in the dreaded holiday period where we are all tempted to eat more unhealthy stuff.)

Please consider joining the Diets & Weight Maintenance group. I'm there, but not as active as I should be. Lots of support there!

Gentle hugs

Congratulations on loosing 20lbs. I have lost that much myself and know how hard it is, I need to lose another 30 myself,

I dangle within about a 10 lb range, I do well for a little while, like a few days and bam it seems like life just fucks with me and I hit that place where I'm like fuck it, I don't care and give up for few days where I binge eat really bad food because life is so depressing on those days and I smoke like a train on those days, and then go back to trying to quit smoking, (as I had done previously for 3 years) and excersising and eating right. I am rolling back and forth and can't seem to make any headway, or get any further in losing the extra 30 lbs.

20 pounds is a great start. I hear you on looking at pictures. I avoid that as much as possible. I come from a very heavy family and weight has always been an issue. In a dream world I would lose 60 pounds, right now I would be happy with 10 to 15. Baby steps work. Your goal should be a pound every two weeks or something attainable. At 2 weeks per pound you will lose 26 pounds in a year. At a pound a week that would be 52 pounds. A pound a week or two seems attainable. Now if only I could take those words and make them work on me. I lose one and gain two

Congrats on losing weight. 20 lbs is great!

It CAN be good enough. Why aren't you giving yourself the credit that you deserve for losing the 20 pounds? Do you know how much work and sacrifice that takes to accomplish losing that much? I am very proud of you. And no,, if you are not proud of what you have accomplished, don't give up. Keep working at what your ideal weight will be in YOUR eyes and don't forget that what truly matters is what is in your heart, not what is on the outside. I know you are probably asking yourself how I would know. Well, I don't as the most I've ever weighed was 150 pounds when I was pregnant. BUT, I do know what it's like to be so emaciated that I could literally hide behind a tree and no-one would see me. I looked hideous! Please believe me, an emaciated body looks far worse in my eyes, then someone that has some meat on their bones. Some times the body goes through a lawl, where the weight just won't come off, and then all of a sudden it hits a new peak and starts dropping. What I love about what you said is that you never mentioned the word "diet". God, you were able to get off one of your medications! That is a feat in itself!! Please give yourself time, don't let your frustration take away all that you have accomplished, and talk to people who will support you and be there for you. If you don't have those people in real life, there are plenty of us here that will support you to the end. Hugs Gramybear

Thank you to everyone for taking the time to read this post, and for your words of encouragement.

My mindset is still not where it should be, but I thank you all for the reminders to celebrate the victories I have achieved thus far.

I guess I just need to talk a little louder than the 'nay saying' voices in my head ... I'm sure most, if not all of you all know the ones I am talking about about.

You Are BEAUTIFUL

When my wife left me several years ago, I realized it was my fault and it was me who had to change for the better. That journey started several years ago and is not complete. Its a journey of self improvement that is on going and only done for me, not others.

My point is this.... Your journey to change yourself for the better is for you and not others and it takes time. Maybe a life time commitment and that all okay. Its not always the bigger picture we need to see, but the little improvements we are making that we need to value, especially if we are doing it for ourselves. If you want to give up, that is your right with respects to your choice, but I would encourage you to stay on your journey if the little improvements make you feel good about yourself. No one is perfect and no one is ever going to reach the level in life they want all the way. Its about the little things really. Best to you.