Whether it’s in one on one coaching, leading a support group, or working with weight loss surgery patients at a retreat or meeting, the most common theme as to why we self-sabotage our weight loss surgery journeys was “I don’t deserve it”, “I am unworthy of it” and statements to that effect. “It” being whatever we saw as our ultimate vision of who we wanted to be.
I hear this time and time again throughout the weight loss surgery community as well as in every other area of life. To me, the big secret is learning to love and believe in ME first, in my ability to do it - whatever it may be, and in the knowledge that when I put myself first I can and will attain the goals I set for myself AND have enough left over of ME to provide and care for the others around me.
It has taken me years to acknowledge that I really am worthy of loving myself, just as I am today. Until I was willing to begin, in a tiny voice, to tell myself that I deserved to be happy, I deserved to be healthy, and I was the only one capable of making that happen nothing changed in my life. Well, one thing did change- I just kept insulating myself from reality by putting on more pounds of protection until I weighed 424 pounds.
It hasn’t been easy to let go of that insulation, it hurts sometimes, really hurts. The other side of that pain for me has been FREEDOM…the amazing freedom that comes when you shed hundreds of pounds of excess baggage both physically and metaphorically.
I now can step out of the shower, look at my body in the mirror and choose to see the imperfections and self-criticize or choose to see the amazing changes I have managed to create with my hard work day after day after day for the past 15+ years. It’s really not much different than choosing what to eat for dinner. The results are the same. My choice of attitude either propels me further on this incredible journey that is my life today, or like eating a bag of potato chips creates chemical changes in my body that will leave me feeling poorly physically as well as emotionally.
There are days that it is difficult to have that positive attitude; however I must say that they rarely occur on the days I begin with looking in the mirror and smiling and then getting my fitness on, and they linger now, not for weeks and months, but merely for hours. I am truly enjoying my life day by day, making each day the very best one it can be.
Oh, so you want to know what the 3 simple steps to loving yourself are:
This may not be the answer for everyone, but it sure is a darn good start for anyone. Remember, YOU MATTER!