How would you cope, if you created an environment to support your weight loss?

It can only be of assistance. Lets set our environment up to make it as difficult as possible to avoid

hurting our neck just for one little taste

You may like to consider applying some of the following suggestions to assist your journey.

1. Have fewer temptations of either a sweet or savoury base in the house
   
2. Keep temptations out of sight, hidden in a non see through box
   
3. Keep temptations out of reach, encased in a box located in the highest kitchen cupboard possible
   
4. Creating space to present your exercise gear and equipment, ready to be used
   
5. Have you even considered sleeping in your t-shirt and track suit, with your runners at the base of your bed to easily slip on as soon as you wake up, ready for your walk
   
6. Slowly reducing sweet drinks and sugars even artificial sweeteners in your hot drinks
   
7. Slowly retrain your taste buds to not desire sweets and fats as much, by reducing the frequency slowly. It only takes two weeks for your taste buds to change and not enjoy the old flavours as much.
   

This is just a start of some baby steps to help you SPEAK UP to yourself and find a way to create an environment to support you. There is always a way.

You would most likely have heard of Carnie Wilsons long battle with her weight. Her story is ever so inspiring as she SPOKE OUT and found her way out by forming a strong support team around her for success with the Lap Band.

Carnie Wilson is an example of how important it is to accept the personal responsibility required to slowly adjust one's lifestyle to control self sabotaging behaviors such as emotional and habitual eating.

When one's relationship with food supports a non-dieting approach, cravings are reduced and the ability to eat with more control enables the environment to be set up for success and maintained. Rather than getting in the car and travelling to buy food to graze on. This is just one example.

Repeated history of difficulty in losing weight can sabotage one's self confidence.

This is why I encouraged you SPEAK OUT and grasp onto who and what you need to help you manage your weight and health with your Lap Band.

Additional options to reach out and find your way could include:

1. Surgical review regarding the band adjustments
   
2. Psychologist to help manage emotional eating. There are 2 books I encourage you read if you like; If not Dieting Then What or The Happiness Trap
   
3. Dietitian to help eat the ideal foods with the lap band
   
4. Exercise group. I encourage EFM and STEP INTO LIFE as they offer group personal training at a reasonable cost
   
5. Forums for contact such as where we are. (Nothing like stating the obvious hey!)
   
6. Support group meetings face to face or online
   
7. Commit socially with a group of people to participate in a fun run/walk
   

If it is important to you, you'll find a way.

If not, you'll find an excuse !

It's a shame that the photo you chose to illustrate your thoughts here just enforces the stereotype of the fat stupid female--indeed, she looks almost mentally-impaired-- powerless over food. I personally find this offensive, especially used in an article which is targetted towards people who might be sensitive to this stereotype.

I do agree. It's when we feel overwhelmed that it may appear all too much. In these situations making small changes and gaining small wins will help get us out of the rut/situation. It takes time and commitment.

If it is important to you, you'll find a way.
If not, you'll find an excuse !

I can see and understand your view point. To offend, was not my intention at all. I chose this article leaning towards a humorous angle trying to illustrate that we cope better when we create an environment which makes it harder to fail and easier to move forward, hence all the practical tips in the article. Having overcome a history of distorted eating myself, this has shaped my practice at focussing on behaviour changes principles to get my clients to stop dieting and eat a little of everything guilt free. I am certainly very mindful of one's possible sensitivities surrounding weight loss. I try with my articles and information provided to always evoke a thought or feeling towards self reflection, in this case to call out for some help to who ever that may be.

It's a shame that the photo you chose to illustrate your thoughts here just enforces the stereotype of the fat stupid female--indeed, she looks almost mentally-impaired-- powerless over food. I personally find this offensive, especially used in an article which is targetted towards people who might be sensitive to this stereotype.

I have to respectfully disagree with #5. sleeping in your exercise gear sounds obsessive and mildly dysfunctional on a psychological level. If you did that, and did not get up to exercise, there is likely to be an increased amount of shame, anxiety, or guilt over not following through right away. Seems like that would push you back into the "What's the point?" mentality a lot of us have had in the past when we "fail."

To be honest, the biggest thing anyone can do to help them during this process is to speak to a therapist about their eating issues. As much as we would not like to admit it, none of us got to where we are because we have a healthy, non-dysfunctional relationship with food. Short term changes are relatively easy, but the long-term changes we need to make are extremely difficult without professional support.

The second most important thing is to stop putting moral labels on food. No food is "clean" or "good" or "bad." It just is. By putting those labels on different foods, you are giving the food the power to dictate how you will view yourself for the day. If you didn't "eat clean" does that make you a dirty person? You may not say it to yourself outright, but I'll bet anything you'll be thinking that in some form. When food stops being a moral choice, and simply a nutritional choice, we stop giving food control over our lives and start controlling the food.

I agree with @@LumpySpacePrincess, assigning labels to food only serves to complicate things for dieters. Food is either nutritious or its not, we choose which ones we eat. By assigning a label to the food, it then labels us and with the struggles we already face, being labeled is the last thing we need. I was not offended by the picture but I was offended by the statement that Parisshel made that the woman looked mentally impaired, again another unnecessary label The woman is obviously obese and carries a lot of her weight in her face, by no fault of her own. The photo was tongue in cheek...She had chips on both her shoulders, temptation whichever way she turns. I agreed with some of the items on the list and disagreed with others but all in all a good article.