So laying in bed last night with hubby. He was looking through his old phone that he uses as an alarm clock,. He found a picture of me from about 2 years ago, at the height of my obesity. He asked me if I remembered the picture. I looked so bad, it really made me sad to know i let myself get to look like that. My face and body was unrecognizable to me. I honestly didn't realize at first that it was me. I realized it really was me when I recognized the outfit I was wearing. I may not be where I need to be, but I thank God I'm not where I was. I don't run from cameras anymore...I don't seek them out, but at least I'm not avoiding them now either. So even though it bummed me out...I'll take it as a victory.

@@Pillar2butterfly - I just had that moment about two hours ago with a pic I sent to another BP person.

I KNEW it was me, but wow

I remember feeling bloated & extremely uncomfortable posing for that pic.

I still don't like posing for pics but at least I may recognize myself

I look at old pictures of myself a lot. I have a bunch up on my old SparkPeople page from when I was trying to lose weight on there years ago. So whenever I need some motivation, I go back there and look at them.

Hugs. It's tough looking back. There are pictures I look back on where I never saw how I really looked. When I put them side by side with new pictures it's heartbreaking, embarrassing, shameful... My own brother, who I hadn't seen since Christmas saw me last weekend and the confusion on his face when I walked in was visible. He said he didn't recognize me. I saw a woman in the store I hadn't seen for a year and she had no idea who I was. It's only been 6 months since my surgery but the change is massive. Oddly, I only see it when I look at pictures. I don't see myself as thinner in the mirror or reflections. I just bought size 10 work pants and seriously had to talk myself into it. They fit fine, but I couldn't wrap my head around buying them ( I use to be a size 22). I'm still not mentally caught up with my weight loss nor am I at goals. I know how you feel.

Sent from my SM-G930P using the BariatricPal App

Edited May 9, 201610 yr by HopeandAgony

I judged myself harshly at my high weight. When I see my old photos I remember the feeling of being trapped in my body. I was so unhappy. I always want that reminder. I want to keep healthy and enjoy adventures in life.

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Thank you everyone for the supportive responses....it is always refreshing to share here...knowing others totally understand!

It can be hard to see old photos. I hated having my picture taken and rarely did. I can only find one full body shot of me in the last 3 years. Makes it hard to post many "before" photos. However, when I do see photos of me from when I was bigger (usually just my head or a kid in front of me to shield me), I don't mind seeing them anymore. I just made a family photo book and didn't mind putting some not so flattering photos in my in there, because like it or not, that was me at that time. And I am owning it. It was a hard time where I struggled a lot, and now I don't. It just reminds me how far I have come!

Yeah, those old pictures that are shocking! Shocking! SHOCKING!

I've run across a huge cache of pix from the past 15 years recently. And I honestly can't believe I was that huge.

It's not even an "I hate those pictures!" reaction. I just simply can't fathom how big I was and how I managed to survive physically being so much larger than I am.

Boy, we sure did put on blinders (in many ways) to survive those days.

I use my fitness pal and it allows you to post pictures with your weight recordings. It then let's you compare the old ones to today (or any other day you like). I find it encouraging to see how far I've come. I look at it almost every day. I was sitting next to a friend that I hadn't seen in over a year and she didn't recognize me. When I look at those pictures I can see why.