Do you see yourself as thin yet?

[JRT Mom 920]

I've always had a problem of looking in the mirror and seeing a fat chick no matter what my weight. Are y'all like that too? It's so frustrating now that we can't try clothes on and I always buy them too big and have to return them.

Is there anything you can do to see yourself the way you truly are? Thanks!

[ms.sss 15,859]

Take pictures! Find an old pic of a bigger you and put it right beside a pic of a smaller you today.

Its hard to ignore when the evidence is side by side ❤️

[Hunter Healy 4]

Nope... I think the transformation on the inside is much harder than the one that occurs on the outside.

[summerset 5,265]

It depends. Some days I feel just, well... fat. Usually looking in the mirror helps this feeling.

However, on some days I see myself as "too fat" or rather "not thin enough". Like hips are too wide in comparison to shoulders... Thighs and upper arms are just FAT... When I have these days it can help seeing my reflection in comparison to other people, e. g. in a glass door or window. It's easier to see yourself the size you are when you stand next to other people.

[PlanetHopper 86]

6 hours ago, JRT Mom said:

Are y'all like that too? It's so frustrating now that we can't try clothes on and I always buy them too big and have to return them.

Yes, I also have this issue. I think a lot of WLS patients go through this. As mentioned by a previous person, I like to take pictures throughout my journey and create side by side with them to prove to myself that I am in fact smaller. This is one of my best suggestions. I also recommend measuring yourself (hips, thighs, arms, waist, ect) to see the difference in measurements. Sometimes when I look at down at my thighs, it seems like they are still the same but when I look in the mirror, I can see they are smaller.

I too am very disappointed that I cannot try on clothes in the store at this time. I wanted to buy a few things for my birthday since I have not bought any new clothes since surgery (most of my stuff is too big). However, most places are not accepting returns in my area, so I didn't want to be stuck with something.

[NovaLuna 710]

I don't think I'll ever be 'thin' as my family has athletic builds and tend to be on the curvier side. I always told myself my goal was to be at LEAST a size 14 in pants... a 12, if I'm super lucky. I'm in a 20 right now. And yes, I do still feel fat and because of that I do end up buying bigger sizes. I went shopping the other day and bought a bunch of new shirts and when I tried them on at home they were all too big! And I bought 2xl's!

[ms.sss 15,859]

...its funny because when I was bigger, I thought I was smaller than I really was. Now that I’m smaller, I think I am bigger than I really am....

[PlanetHopper 86]

2 hours ago, NovaLuna said:

I tried them on at home they were all too big!

Congratulations, that is wonderful

48 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

...its funny because when I was bigger, I thought I was smaller than I really was. Now that I’m smaller, I think I am bigger than I really am....

Same here. it is pretty ironic

[Luna805 69]

I read this and kinda laughed at myself. I haven’t had the WLS yet, but I’m already noticing a boost of confidence and seeing myself thinner. Not crazy, I think I’m skinny, but I’m already identifying with a healthier body. Maybe because I’ve always fluctuated weight, I know what I look like under this weight gain. I feel very relaxed and ready to be the me I see in my head :)

[PollyEster 228]

What ms.sss said. From what I've read, it's pretty common for body dysmorphia to reverse after bariatric surgery. When I gained 110 lbs in 2 years and went from being average weight to morbidly obese, I went through the exact same thing. No matter what women look like, we tend to judge ourselves critically 😥

New outfits—particularly in colours and silhouettes I never would/could have worn when I was MO—definitely are helping me accept and learn to appreciate what I see in the mirror now. But I still purchase everything (online) in duplicate: 8's plus one larger size, usually a 12, "just in case" the 8's are suddenly somehow too small 😶

[ms.sss 15,859]

42 minutes ago, PollyEster said:

But I still purchase everything (online) in duplicate: 8's plus one larger size, usually a 12, "just in case" the 8's are suddenly somehow too small 😶

At 5'2" and 129 lbs, I would think you would be positively SWIMMING in a size 8 (let alone size 12!). We are the same height and I think when I was 130 lbs, size 8's would have been falling off...buy smaller sizes, girl!

[PollyEster 228]

1 hour ago, ms.sss said:

At 5'2" and 129 lbs, I would think you would be positively SWIMMING in a size 8 (let alone size 12!). We are the same height and I think when I was 130 lbs, size 8's would have been falling off...buy smaller sizes, girl!

😄 There's definitely a major MC Hammer pants vibe going on in the 8's and belts are a must, but I continue to lose way (and I mean waaaaaaaaaay 😲) faster than I ever thought I would or could, so now I'm waiting until maintenance before throwing away more $$ on clothes. Unlike you (you look long and lithe in your photos) I do have an extremely muscular, solid physique, though. I'm not sure where I'll end up size-wise. What size tops and pants do you wear currently?

Edited to add that I was wearing size 24 pants barely more than a year ago and never seemed to fully clue in to how, um... *vast* they were, and now size 6 and 8 pants somehow look like 4 person *tents* to me!

Edited again to add that the size 8's were purchased just over a month ago, when I was about 10-12lbs heavier, and were already pretty lose at that time... but I kept them because they were still a better fit than anything else in my closet, and stores were still closed.

Edited June 17, 2020 by PollyEster

[Arabesque 7,621]

Congrats on your weight loss @JRTMom.

I think we’re all guilty of still having moments of misjudging our size. I too didn’t think I was as big as I was before my surgery. I even thought photos taken then were just very unflattering and not a true reflection of my size.

The same still happens now at times. Earlier this year I was at a swanky spa when three ‘beautiful young things’ came in and I suddenly felt embarrassed by my size. In that moment I thought I was still obese. In reality I was actually thinner than those girls. Then last week I looked down at my thighs & thought gee they’re so flabby. Absolutely crazy thinking both times but your head can twist things up bad.

Get out a pair of your old fat pants (if you kept a pair) & compare them with a pair of your skinny ones. There’s nothing as confirming as physically seeing the many, many inches difference between the sizes. The other day I put on a US size 8 skirt I used to wear years ago when I was last slim & it literally fell right off me. Pooled at my feet. Inches too big. Very reassuring.

[ms.sss 15,859]

4 hours ago, PollyEster said:

😄 There's definitely a major MC Hammer pants vibe going on in the 8's

😂😂😂😂😂😂 MC Hammer. Classic. 😂

4 hours ago, PollyEster said:

What size tops and pants do you wear currently?

Edited to add that I was wearing size 24 pants barely more than a year ago and never seemed to fully clue in to how, um... *vast* they were,

I was up to a 20 in pants (44” waist), now I can do size 0-2 (25” wst). Though...as we speak, I am wearing my kid’s hand-me-down sweatpants, which is a child’s size large (13-14), hahaha

In tops, I was a 2XL (48” bust), and now Im an XXS-XS (33” bust. R.I.P. boobs 😭).

Edited to add: I just checked my weight loss records (yeah, i have weight-loss records, don’t judge me! Lol), and when I was 130 lbs, my waist was 27”, so that would have been about a size 4. So yeah, size 8 would’ve been waaaaaay too big.

Edited June 17, 2020 by ms.sss

[ms.sss 15,859]

2 hours ago, Arabesque said:

Get out a pair of your old fat pants (if you kept a pair) & compare them with a pair of your skinny ones. There’s nothing as confirming as physically seeing the many, many inches difference between the sizes.

+1

❤️❤️❤️