I’ve heard this in my day-to-day life and at my job. How did “they” get so big?
Well I will tell you, it’s a process. Nobody just wakes up one day and says “I think I’ll get fatter today”.
Come on! Nobody really chooses to be obese.
Do we choose the wrong foods? Yes! Do we choose to not move enough? Yes! Do we choose to say “Screw it” YES!! But we don’t choose the result.
I know that’s hard to hear or believe, especially if you have never had a weight issue. It’s true.
In the day-to-day decision-making process, nobody and I mean NOBODY will tell you that they were thinking much past the next few days. Nobody is in the right mind-set to realize that eating that or not exercising or blah blah blah will result in the horrible consequence of obesity.
And once you’re there, it’s just sad and defeating. It then becomes maintenance. You’re simply maintaining the weight. You know there’s a problem but you don’t know what to do about it.
Now you’re in a place where the food you eat is your therapy. Not a good thing.
You want to lose weight but the thought of exercise makes you want to throw up. Plus, if you’re into the “morbidly obese” category, exercise is painful. Lord help you if you have an injury or other ailment that adds to that problem.
Then there’s the mental side. The depression, the anxiety, the social anxiety, the fear of doctors, the eating disorders, the sound of others in your head. They all add to the issue.
And what if you suffer a loss? Someone you adore and love passes away? Guess what? When food has been your therapy and your drug of choice, this will only compound the already huge amount of problems going on.
I was in this place for so many years. I suffered the loss of my Grandfather, my grandmother moved to Hawaii, my parents divorced, my dad stopped coming to see me, my Grandmother passed away, I suffered a horrible knee injury, I struggled with infertility, we suffered a major financial crisis, we went through the loss of a brother (who was murdered), we went through a horrible court case, we became pregnant unexpectedly, we lost 6 family members in one year including both my parents…….those are my weight gain highlights. All of these moments lead to my weight problem.
Why? A lot of fit and skinny people go through worse things and don’t gain weight.
One simply reason.
Obesity isn’t just a food problem it’s a mental health problem and eating disorder.
You heard me correctly.
Obesity isn’t just a food problem it’s a mental health problem and an eating disorder!!!!
Believe it! It’s the absolute truth.
That is why I truly believe that if you do not deal with got you here, then you will fail for sure and I don’t care what surgery you had.
I am so thankful that my insurance’s process included going to classes and speaking with mental health and nutritionists. They were very transparent about the underlying issue of obesity.
They truly want you to succeed.
Please understand, that I know my struggle is daily. I now it’s a constant work in process. I am a complete mental case some days and yet totally together other days.
But I know this….I am worth it. I deserve it and I will continually work to make good choices because failure is NOT an option.
The next time you see someone who clearly struggles with their weight, take a moment and ask yourself “what’s happened?” and be kind. Because you never know what someone is dealing with. It’s much deeper than a number on a scale.
My Journey’s My Own 