First loss in three years!

[JupiterStar]

Okay, short version for anyone who hasn't read my other posts just in case: 3 years ago almost exactly I was hospitalized and nearly died due to an undiagnosed low platelet disorder, had to be in treatment which included high doses of daily steroids, severe activity restrictions, and bed rest for 9 months, had to deal with the withdrawal and recovery symptoms for about a year longer, ballooned up to high weight and very little strength for daily activities, despite being very careful with my diet and doing everything I could to try and at least maintain weight if not lose it. 

 

Today, I stepped on the scale. I was scared because I've been on vacation for a week and my second week in my 4 week challenge is not going well at all, neither with regards to food nor exercise. But I made myself do it anyway. And I'm down 1lb. That is a tiny amount, especially considering it's been 3 weeks since I last weighed myself, but...it's a loss. And it's the first loss in THREE YEARS. I don't even care if it's from water weight or other factors, in the last three years I haven't had a single loss of even 1/10th of a lb AT ALL. For that matter, there have only been three times that I have weighed myself in that time where I didn't show a gain from the previous time! So I am absolutely through the roof with this. I'm still feeling discouraged with my ability to stick with my challenges, but this is a huge victory for me, if I can show a loss or a not-loss-by-at-least-maintaining-my-weight even with the terrible eating I did this vacation. I'm going to double down on my efforts again and see if I can repeat this next week! If it's a tiny loss or even just me staying the same, I will be so, SO happy!!!

[purplebug]

Woohoo! Go you, that's amazing!  

[Guzzi]

Awesome!!!  That's great news!  If you think about it that probably means you actually lost more than that the two previous weeks and then the (inevitable) holiday eating bumped you back up again.  You probably lost 2-3lbs realistically.   I think you should be bloody proud of that!

 

I'm so glad this has been a big boost to you, I know how hard it can be losing weight when you're fighting against a medical condition that doesn't want to let you, it can be so demoralising.  The only thing you can do is to celebrate any vicorty that you get, and try to be as philosophical as you can about the times you don't make any progress.  I'm sure you know all  about that.  

 

I thought I'd share one of my favourite quotes on the subject.  It has helped me to put things into perspective. 

Accept — then act. Whatever the present moment contains, accept it as if you had chosen it. Always work with it, not against it.This will miraculously transform your whole life.” ~Eckhart Tolle

 

Try not to be discouraged that your challenge hasn't gone to plan, that's actually pretty common for a first challenge.   The really important thing is to learn from your experience and to try again with a better insight about what works for you and what doesn't.  

 

Congrats, and keep up the good work!

 

Guzzi

[JupiterStar]

Thank you! It really was a huge deal for me...I mean, immediately after I got the okay to leave the house, when I was still on significant amounts of steroids, I was part of a dance troupe that met 2 times weekly for 3 hours of intense yosakoi dance practice plus full weekends of performances where we'd do parade and stage dancing about 12 times per day, was eating 1600 calories a day, and pushing myself to the limit, and I STILL gained weight and went up 2 clothing sizes. When I stopped the steroids, I could barely move for months, and it of course got worse even with significant calorie cuts, and it just never stopped. I saw that little loss and went through the roof. I know no one else thinks it's a big deal, why get excited about less than 1 pound? But...THREE YEARS of starving myself, fighting with doctors about being okay to work out or not, and constant gains...any loss felt so big...

[Guzzi]

It's a shit, huh?  I'm glad you've finally seen some progress but please don't ever feel bad that that your milestones might be smaller than someone else's, because your battles are sooo much bigger.  And honestly, this forum can ca really quiet and slow at times, I'm sure that any lack of response is due to a lack of traffic rather than anything else.  

[JupiterStar]

Well, a week after I first posted this, I showed a gain of almost a full kilo (basically, 2lbs) and it lasted, so it wasn't just a one-off. But today I did my weekly weigh-in and was down .5kg/~1lb again, and two losses in as many months? I'll take it. Hopefully next week will NOT have a gain again, just maintaining. 

[NellyCB]

Bravo 

[chemgeek]

Way to go! Steroids can royally screw with one's appetite and metabolism both, so any loss (or even just maintenance of current weight) on them is something to celebrate.