Anxiety with the scale

[loridee11 510]

Is anyone else afraid/anxious of the scale? I'm almost 3 months post-op and my weight loss has been slower than I would like but not bad. However, I had a crazy long stall and I've had weeks where I felt like I did really well where I've lost less than a pound. I haven't had any really big weeks except for the first one.

For the last couple of weeks I'm getting anxiety before my weight in. I already dropped to weekly from daily to try to help.

Tomorrow is my weekly weight in day and I'm already feeling anxious even thought I've been within my macro goals each day (high end for Protein, low for carbs and fat) and been within my calories. I've also been upping my walking - both pace and distance. I feel like clothes are fitting looser but I'm STILL anxious. I've thought about just not weighing, but that makes me more nervous since when I was gaining weight I'd skip the scale for long periods and of course it would show a huge jump when I finally got back on.

Any thoughts from anyone whose experienced this?

[Sammi_Katt 303]

It's trauma, honestly. I HAVE to weigh myself once a week, or I'll find myself obsessing over numbers. It's a hard habit to break, but it's better for your mental health to do it only once a week.

The anxiety will come and go- it's the same anxieties I had when I was dieting before. I'd do really good, then get too relaxed and go back to more than what I was. I understand how it is; however, you pointed out you are staying in your macros, AND you're getting better with exercise. Stalls *are* going to happen, but they are not forever. You are doing so much better for yourself now than you were before, and you gotta hang in there. As I can see from your current loss, that is FANTASTIC. You are doing a great job- it will slow down a bit, but as long as you keep hitting those macros and exercise goals, you will do your body a world of good.

If you are still having a hard time with the weigh ins, maybe take it back to only once a month for a little while? Maybe seeing the bigger number on the weight loss from 4 weeks instead of one might be a little more reassuring?

And photos are always good. I, personally, cannot see my own weight loss until I look at photos. It's hard for me to believe.

Take a deep breath, weigh yourself tomorrow, and know that you are doing so much good for your body now. ❤️

[biginjapan 647]

Longer stalls are not uncommon the further out you are from surgery (often 2-5 weeks!). As long as the weight is not going up from week to week, I think it's okay. Are you taking your body measurements? That can often show that you are losing weight, even if the scale doesn't move. I've also noticed that sometimes the body likes to hold onto fluids a little more every now and then, not sure why. Even being constipated/having no bowel movements for a few days can affect the scale. Another thing you can try is mixing up your diet and exercise a bit. Go cycling or swimming instead of walking, try some new bariatric-friendly recipes...it may kick your body out of its stall.

[summerset 5,261]

If you have a body fat scale this can help as well. They might not be very accurate but when you see your weight standing still but body fat going down fast you're most likely just retaining Water.

[loridee11 510]

Thanks all for answering.

My weigh in today was actually really good - my best since week 1. It seems the anxiety isn't really related to the number, it's the "what if" from a life time of dieting and failing and feeling like the scale didn't reflect my effort. Hopefully this is something that will go down as I continue to stay on track and make progress with this new tool.

I do also take measurements and pictures, but only 1 time per month at the end of the month. I'll look into a scale that does body fat as well.

[amboyle728 71]

OMG, YES! I can relate 110% After surgery I was literally getting on the scale every time I went in the Bathroom, and I was driving myself crazy obsessing about the fluctuations--same thoughts--"what if" this effort failed like every one I've tried before. Upon the advice and encouragement of many on this forum, I finally had to hide the scale, and force myself to weigh only once a week. I am now terrified every Thursday morning.

Measurements help, as well as trying on old clothes, the latter of which is clear evidence that my body is, indeed, changing, even on those days when I don't feel any different.

Today, in a burst of optimism, I cleaned out my closet, getting rid of the clothes that are now too big, and making room for the new ones I will soon be buying. That does a lot to relieve the anxiety and boost my mental mood.

Give it a try

[loridee11 510]

2 hours ago, amboyle728 said:

OMG, YES! I can relate 110% After surgery I was literally getting on the scale every time I went in the Bathroom, and I was driving myself crazy obsessing about the fluctuations--same thoughts--"what if" this effort failed like every one I've tried before. Upon the advice and encouragement of many on this forum, I finally had to hide the scale, and force myself to weigh only once a week. I am now terrified every Thursday morning.

Measurements help, as well as trying on old clothes, the latter of which is clear evidence that my body is, indeed, changing, even on those days when I don't feel any different.

Today, in a burst of optimism, I cleaned out my closet, getting rid of the clothes that are now too big, and making room for the new ones I will soon be buying. That does a lot to relieve the anxiety and boost my mental mood.

Give it a try

I cleaned my closet out last weekend I would say about half got pulled out to go to charity. Most of the rest are still too big, but look OK so I kept them for now. I have started to question if I'll get to wear my existing work clothes again -- I'm in CA and working from home for the forseeable future. It's entirely possible when that lifts up none of them will fit. AND I'll be good with that

[Krimsonbutterflies 661]

On 3/21/2020 at 1:14 PM, loridee11 said:

. I have started to question if I'll get to wear my existing work clothes again -- I'm in CA and working from home for the forseeable future. It's entirely possible when that lifts up none of them will fit. AND I'll be good with that 

I wonder if I will be able to fit my work pants by the time I return to work as well. I have dresses that I'll certainly be able to wear, but the pants and blazers concern me. I will donate those when business resumes for women returning to the workforce in need.

Looking forward to seeing the next size down and a size medium is my goal.