Welcome to the Group

Welcome! We would love get to know you, so please tell us a little bit about yourself. You can choose any format you'd like, but most of us here share some or all of the following details:

1. History with weight loss:
2. History with Calorie Count:
3. Reason for joining this group:
4. Some interesting details about yourself, such as your job, your family, your pets and your interests:

And now just go ahead and make that first post!

After a severe bipolar episode and medical issues that were treated with prednisone I ballooned up to 180lbs when weighed on Jan2, 2008.  After many events and stress in my life, i lost a great deal of weight without even trying. Then I stopped having an appetite and began to get ill.  After umpteen medical tests not much was found other than an a couple of ulcers.  Finally I began to get my appetite back. But with even more stress mounting, (my husband left) I began to binge.  Finally I feel like I am back onto a balanced track and happier with my weight (137) than I have ever been.  For years i have been around 150-165.  Friends and family think I am too thin, but it is only by comparison to what they were accustomed to seeing.  I look forward to this site and it assisting me in continuing to lose.  I have never felt better about myself physically (i"m 38) and with that it helps in the mental department. 

I am in school to become a Veterinary Technician, animal nurse, and will graduate another year.  I do not work, I have no children.  We are cat people and decided long ago that kids just weren't for us.  I am a total foodie that comes from a family of working professional chefs.  Family dinners are amazing but leave you feeling disgusting.  It is hard to not just eat my way through life with the appreciation of foods that I have, but gaining control actually brings more of an appreciation of what i do eat rather than what I don't.

My Name Is Stephanie Nicole and  I'm 18, 5'5 With Dark Brown Hair And Light Brown Eyes :)

I Started Calorie Count In May Of 2008 Weighing 218.

I've lost 35 Pounds Since Then And I Plan To Lose An Additonal 30 By January:)

Calorie Count Says It's In Unrealistic Goal But I Think I can Do It :)

I Am Determined To lose Weight, I'm Tired Of Being Made Fun Of.

I Feel That When I Lose Weight I Will Feel Confident And Sexy Which I Believe Is An Emotion That Every Girl Deserves To Feel.  

I Am Often Depresses Due To My Obesity And Lack Of Feeling Appreciated Or Loved.

I'm Always Single, Relationships Never Seem To Last.

I Haven't Spoken To my Mother In 3 Years, She Wants Nothing To Due With Me Because She Is An Hopeless Addict.

I Want So Baddly To Lose Weight, Be Healthy And Find Someone To Love Me.

I Love With My father And Step Mother And Life Is Always Full Of Conflicts.

I Am The Type That will Put Up With Anything Just To Keep The Peace And After 9 years, I've Realized That I'm Sick Of It!

I Have A Physical Aility To Take In September So I Can Get An Academy Date To become  Correctional Deputy.

I Am Trying To Keep Focused The Fact that I Must Get Fit in Order To Accomplish My Dream Of Working For The Sheriffs Department.

With The Money I Will Make I Will Save Up To Get my Own Place And Put myself Through School.

I Know Things Will Get Better With Time But It's A Daily Challenge To Be Happy And Not Binge.

Hi there.  I have been coming to cc.com since January 2007.  I found the community when doing a search for a food/nutritional values database.  I was not looking into weight-loss at the time, just nutritional info. 

I have always been a very nutritionally-conscious person.  I was vegetarian for over 20 years, beginning at age 16.  I have also always been fairly active, athletic.  I have done weight-lifting (body sculpting) since I was 18 and yoga since about 20. 

It was last spring that I had my first serious injury since I broke my arm at age 4.  I sprained my ankle coming down off a hike on a mountain.  It was really bad.  I was off my feet for about 2 months.  It scared me.  It perpetuated my latest bout of depression and subsequent weight-gain. 

I am 39 years old, live with my common-law husband.  We aren't legally married but I refer to him as my husband because, for all intents and purposes, he is.  He is my only friend and family.  We have been together for about 2.5 years.  I have no children, nor does he.  We both decided long before we met that we did not want to have any.  I am finding that, the older I get, the more ppl I meet who are decidedly not having children.  It's not that I don't like children, I just think there are enough and I have never had a desire to be a mother.  I will leave that task to those who do.  I respect it.  It's just not for me. 

So I gained about 15-18 pounds.  Yea, maybe it doesn't seem like much, but the way I feel is dramatically different.  2 years ago I was at a very healthy 130-132.  I'm 5'3" and really muscular.  I was wearing a size 5 then, now I am an 8-10.  My heaviest was topped-out at 148.  Today, or at least a few days ago, I was 141.  I have gotten down to 137, but no lower since the injury. 

I have been battling serious depression for the last year since I disconnected entirely form my family of origin.  The injury didn't help.  My mother is a very sick woman, and until last year, I was in denial of just how bad it really was.  I am the oldest of two and my sister won't speak to me since I cut-off our mother.  Despite the fact that our mother allowed her husband to molest her from ages 6-12, she still defends her.  She has also been drunk for 20 years, lost custody of her 2 kids (whom btw, she had at the same age as our mother and exactly 4 years apart, just like us), and was widowed from her 2nd husband who died from cirrhosis.  I don't think she will ever get sober.  Our family life destroyed any chance she might have otherwise had.  Me, well, I am struggling. I am healing from a life of trauma inflected by my family and various other ppl I invited into my life out of the dysfunctional living skills I had learned in order to survive.  I have been diagnosed with PTSD and subsequent depression and anxiety.  I used to have a lot of panic attacks.  It has ggotten better in recent years, but lately I have started having them again.

So I have no family, except my husband.  I'm an adult orphan, in a way.  I would like to hear about how ppl deal with depression, how they became depressed and just chat about the days and what we do day to day in coping the best we can. I am totally open to PM.  So if you feel compelled, I welcome it. 

Oh, a little more about me... I sing, cook, read about conscious evolution and love macabre fantasy fiction.  I have always been athletic, though the depression has eaten away at that lately.  My husband is a Reiki master and I have studied metaphysics, spirituality and nutritional health for over 20 years. I have lots of great, healthy recipes too. 

So that's me, in a nutshell.  Glad to meet you.  Hope to get more members soon. 

Hi! My name is Gina im 24 years old. I joined cc in may of 08 bc i had gained weight as a result of my latest bout of depression. I guess i joined this group to be able to chat with others who have dealt with depression and weight gain. Im doing great now & am at a good weight. My depression seems to be cyclic. I will be fine for a year or two and then bam out of nowhere the depression hits and  lasts anywhere from 6 to almost ten months.  It really frustrates me because i am a very positive person. I hate feeling sad and helpless for no reason. I've been on different types of antidpressants since i was 18. It seems the meds only work for a year or so and then i guess i get used to them and they stop working; then i have to play the game of trying others until i feel like myself again. each time i get depressed i start overeating bigtime causing a weight gain of anywhere from 10-20lbs, which in turn makes me feel even worse. I think i actually do it on purpose when im depressed bc it gives me the excuse to stay home and mope instead of forcing myslef to go out with friends. My excuse becomes " oh im too fat, all my clothes don't fit, so i can't go out". Im glad i found this little group it feels good to be able to acknowledge these things and maybe hear from others who go through similar things. Feel free to message me if you'ed like to chat :)

to answer the last question, i LOVE cats, reading & shopping!

Hey, guys. I'm an "old person" and I have had a lot of treatments for depression--like 20 years of talk therapy, group & individual, and medications from melaril and the troglodytes (elavil, triavil) until finally settling on prozac & wellbutrin.

Since I joined CC+, I have been seriously considering (with doctor approval) reducing my dependence on prozac. I am already off half the dose. In another week, I'll be trying halving that one.

I became clinically depressed about the time of puberty, say 14 years old. My parents (it was after all 1955) silently freaked. They (esp. mom) were terrified I would be institutionalized because I was sad and weird. I stayed in my room a lot and listened to music. I had few friends and saw them sporadically. ... my teachers tried to help, but then we moved back to Georgia. Talk about depressing.

I left home to live with some political types and smoked a lot of pot. I demonstrated some and got sicker...even got anorexic...although I had no clue about ED back then (late 60's). Finally got to a shrink who started medicating me and talking to me. Got better. Changed my life around and started out on my own around age 22. Still pretty screwed up, making destructive choices. Attempted suicide and was hospitalized. More therapy, drugs and parental help. Lived with parents for most of a year, moved out again...on better terms anyway.

Kept talking to shrink in group, graduated college, yay! Working for lawyers...met some fool, got married, had kids, quit working...Fool was pretty good support for a while, and the kids are awesome!!!! But I'm still majorly depressed and untreated from graduation through most of 14 years of marriage. ooops.

I found a program of recovery that allowed me to grow along spiritual lines. Totally voluntary group meetings, literature, friends to talk to, no rules, no "leaders," just suggestions. Experience, strength and hope. (works a lot like CC+ really!) I was motivated to try it because I was miserable. I have gotten better.

Divorced. Raised my kids on my own, and it was the best for all of us. Found steady work, and still here. Found a doctor I could communicate with and got treated for depression chemically. Kids all grown up and mostly moved away.  But they love me and dont' mind spending time with me, so that's all good.

Gained a lot of weight during and after divorce, and just didn't want to deal with it, until now, finally, I recognize weight as my #1 health problem. I am having a tremendous difficulty staying focused on doing good for myself. One step forward, 2 steps back is how it feels. Trying to jerk my attitude around to the positive side of the scale is not easy and there are so many cracks in my personality where I start leaking "whines" again. It doesn't have to be this way, but gosh it's hard to focus on positive things, keep looking at my progress, and just LEAVE THE REST! 

I know I do not have to wallow in misery, that life is better than I think it is, and there is more wonderful stuff out there than I am willing to admit to. I guess my most destructive behavior is using words like "stupid" "idiot" and berating myself...So I'm SO GLAD we are here in this "Depression" group.

My name is Gina too, and it looks like we have a lot else in common besides that!

Hi there,

I just joined yesterday after months of procrastination/denial about my weight. I'm 36 years old, 5'7", and am 172 lbs. I've been something of a yo-yo dieter, going from 140 -ish to 170-ish probably about 5 times in the last 15 years. The best I felt was about 5-7 years ago- during that period I was going to the gym all the time and felt incredibly fit. That was when I lived in Boston. I moved to Los Angeles 4 years ago and can't find a gym I like that I can afford. I realize that's not an excuse to be sedentary. I do enjoy going for walks and hiking, it's just hard to get off my butt and go!

I suffer from major depressive disorder as well as panic disorder. I was diagnosed about 10 years ago, though I know I've had the conditions since I was a kid. Right now I am on Effexor, Ativan, and Seroquel. The Seroquel is a mood-stabilizer/anti-psychotic that's been known to cause major weight gain, so I'm freaking out a bit about that. I'm curious if anyone here has gained weight from meds, and if so, is it possible to lose the weight while on the offending med? Does it make you gain by increasing your appetite, or just by screwing so much with your metabolism you just balloon up? I dunno...I've heard horror stories. The med does work for me, though, so I'd rather not go off it if I can help it.

Okay, so some positive things now: I love living in LA, I'm a musician, I play multiple instruments and sing, I compose and do orchestral arrangements, I perform in a small orch-pop band, and I also do voice-over work. I love animals, I love to cook, I'm a vegetarian, I'm generally good humored, I like nerdy things though I'm a creative type (I suppose one doesn't preclude the other), I'm married to another musician, no kids (like 'em, but not for me), and I love the Boston Red Sox!

Anyway, I am determined to lose weight. I am so tired of feeling like crap about myself. It only exacerbates my depression- well, one feeds off the other, if you know what I mean. I'm fat because I'm depressed/I'm depressed because I'm fat. I am a master of self-loathing. I am sick of it!

Thanks for reading this, and I hope we can have some successes together.      

xoCG

 

 

 

My whole life I was always overweight and had self esteem issues to go with it. About 3 years ago I decided that vegetarianism was a good diet to help me lose some weight. Well, I didn't think it was that hard to give up meat, and not to mention my Dad had a problem with it. Well, he passed away mid January 07 and that really made me go downhill. I really became a vegetarian that summer and started to lose more weight. I kind of plateaued by the end of that year and decided I must do something different. So, I started restricting myself more and more. I lost a lot of weight and it was the happiest I have ever been with myself since I realized I was overweight. I was seeing a psychologist and he was worried about his weight loss. I saw some other doctors and they said I was probably anorexic. But I didn't listen to them and I just kept doing my own thing. I got down to 102 (I am 5'5") and I wasn't even that skinny, or so I thought. So in about April I started to eat "normally" again. But that just turned into bingeing and now I don't know how to eat anymore. I was medically treated for severe depression at the beginning of this year and attempted to get "better" with 3 different medications. I tried Prozac, Remeron, then Zoloft. They never really took me off the Zoloft but I stopped seeing my psychiatrist so in turn I stopped with the medication.

I started on CC when I decided I wanted to lose more weight at the beginning of this year. It helped me consume less calories than I should have, but now I am using it to attempt to consume what I should and keep better track of my fat, protein, and fiber intake.

I decided to join this group because I have depression and maybe this will help since I stopped counseling. Maybe I can take some of your guys' advice and state my own to help get through this a little better.

I have a passion for art, mostly photography. I love fashion, mostly high fashion that I can't afford, but I think it's a very interesting art form. I like to read a lot of fiction books. I am only 16 but everyone tells me I have the history of someone twice my age. I had a rough childhood, if you can even call that a childhood. "I grew up too quick" is what my family says because I don't act my age. When I was 5 years old I used to like to talk to the older ladies who came into my mom's nail salon rather than talking to their grandchildren who were my age. But just lately I have met 2 people my age who actually act their age, which is totally weird for me because I want to say they're immature, but they really aren't, they're just 16-17 years old.

Hi, I'm Daniela, and I'm 16 years old. Currently aiming to go down to at least 170lbs by the end of 2008. I'm 5'6" and weigh 192 lbs and I'm extremely ashamed of my weight, plus also with depression which I don't think helps all that much. But thanks to my boyfriend-now-fiancee, I feel a little better but still not good enough.

I joined this site a few days ago and thanks to logging my calories the day after I joined I realized that I'm not eating enough; under 2,000 calories each day and when I do physical activity like going out to walk with my friends, play Dance Dance Revolution, etc, I burn more than I consume. but the majority of my time is spent at the computer.

I'm afraid to start eating more though, to at least consume 2,000 calories each day, because of my lack of regular physical activity. But I don't want to remain eating small amounts like I already do, though. I figure if I don't do physical activity all that much, I don't need to eat that much either, or at all even.

Um... it doesn't help much that most of my hobbies and interest involve sitting down. Videogames (except for DDR), internet... both my major interests. I like swimming too, but I haven't donethat in a while out of lazyness in both my mom's part and mine. Um, ever since elementary school I was teased for my weight and other things and sinceI took it too seriously it affected me more than it should, and even considered suicide before.

Just recently the silliest idea ever struck me, to aim to be a plus-size model (which will probably fail seeing that I'm incredibly camera shy and can't pose for my life). Also I got the dumb idea to go for belly dancing, which I don't know how long it'll last before I find myself too embarrased to keep going or get teased by other girls my age for being the fattest one there.

So um.. nice to meet you all!

Hello. Terri, here. I'm 35, married, no 2-legged kids but several 4-legged. I'm about 180lbs (have been afraid of the scale the past few weeks!) at 5'3". I want to loose 50lbs. I started CC in May, but I have not been doing it for the last month. There are always excuses, but I find that when I quit it is so hard to restart! I hope that all of you giving your time & yourselves will help motivate me to do the same.

I have been depressed on-and-off since I was about 5. I was never diagnosed or treated as a kid (dad had a stigma he has since, thankfully, lost), but went through individual & group therapy for a few years as an adult. Often think I need to go back!

I don't work, and I moved (with hubby) 1000 miles from "home" last year to be closer to his family. I have not socialized much at all for the past year, and I am turning into a hermit! I think that contributes to the depression (or vise versa), but mostly it is the neverending spiral of I'm fat = I'm sad = I eat = I'm fat...

My interests used to include reading, movies, hiking, ANYthing animal-related, environmentalism/conservation/preservation (have a BS in Natural Resource Mgmt), drawing, art appreciation, ceramics, cooking. Now my interests don't interest me much (sound familiar, anyone?) but my husband tries to involve me in golf and fantasy football, and I actually sometimes find myself enjoying it despite myself! Also we have started home brewing beer and THAT I like cuz we can drink the product! =)

I'm Lauren.  I'm 19 and 5'5".  I'm new to this group & the calorie count community.

1. History with weight loss:  My weight changes a lot.  Ever since I started highschool and gained over 30 lbs in about a year, my weight has been all over the place.  This year it's been between 132 and 110.  It's currently 118.  At my highest weight, I was 138.

2. History with Calorie Count: I've used calorie count for nutrition facts for years, but I never made an account until yesterday.

3. Reason for joining this group:  I hope I can meet people similar to myself I suppose.

4. Some interesting details about yourself, such as your job, your family, your pets and your interests:  This summer I got a job at petsmart, graduated highschool, moved out of my parents' home, got married, got a kitten, got robbed, got my apartment broken into, had a gun thrown at the back window, lost 13 pounds, and loads of other things you don't want to hear about.  And I start college classes today.  Stress and weight loss obsession kind of sums up my life. 

Hi all.. I'm Keri and I just turned 24. I am also new to this group and I have been using calorie count since April of this year.

I have been overweight my whole life and now that I have been told that I have to loose 25 or more pounds before my body will start to ovulate, has totally pushed me in to loosing weight because I want to have a family.

I use to take Effexor for my depression and I gained about 30 pounds from the medication. I have stopped my medication because of that fact and have not gone on another one (probably not the smartest thing). I seem to experience every side effect that depression pills cause. I know I have to find something to go on though.

I think I started to have depression issues after my boyfriend committed suicide, atleast that is when someone told me that they thought I was depressed and should concider seeing someone. My moods were up and down; one minute I was happy and the other minute I was crabby and leave me alone or I just didn't want to do anything and rather be by myself.

So.... this is me...

Hi everyone, I'm Sara. I've been a member of CC+ for an hour. I never really seemed to have a problem with my weight until just recently. I've always been self conscious about my body and the way it looked... but the scale always said I was "just right".  Now it's telling me I'm "slightly overweight", and I've decided to do something about that.

Depression has been a part of my life for over 7 years now.. since I was about 10, and is still a part of my life. In the past year... it's gotten even worse. Since April, I've been in and out of the inpatient unit for suicide attempts. At one time in the hospital... I remember being down to 139, which isn't my best... but it's better than being in the 140's... which is scary for me. Before my hospitalizations, I was about 145, and after I got home from my last stay in the hospital, I skyrocketed to 148, which is where I'm at now. I know it doesn't sound like much, but when you're used to being in the 130's, It IS a lot. I don't exercise, mainly because I don't have the will to. I just need a LOT of encouraging and some serious motivation, and that's why I'm here. I'll take all the help and advice I can get.

 

Hi I am Wendy, I have strugged my whole life with being overweight. Food  brings me happiness and comfort, and I have a very hard time concentrating on losing weight, or being on a diet, cause I love my food, especially fast food.

I have been diagnosed as clinically depressed for 16 years now, and struggle each & every day to get out of bed and function.

I really need all the support I can get, and hope to be successful, Wendy

Hey there y'all!  I wanted to say "welcome" to all the new members - Welcome!  It's great to see people posting in this group.  I'm looking forward to getting to know everyone in the other forums as well. Feel free to start up a new one in this group. 

 

My name is Christine and I'm 20 years old and a 5'1" woman. I am half puerto rican and half white.I just started calorie count today, September 3, 2008. I weight 150 poundsI haven't lost any weight but am hoping to lose 45 pounds. i want to go back to my weight of 105 pre pregnancy weight. I have been struggling with depression for 4 or 5 years now and notice i used to just forget to eat and not care about food when i first got depression. now after the baby i seem to love food. i can't believe how much weight i have put on my body and want to lose it. i joined this forum to hopefully get some support and possibly make some friends.

Have always been the chubby kid, and my self esteem has always been in the toilet. My family has a long long history of mental things. Mine are as follows:

1. Panic disorder
2. Severe OCD
3. Cyclothymia (A mild form of bipolar)
4. Depression

I have always been trying to lose weight, but now it is finally taking hold. CC has helped me lose 6 lbs in the 1 month I've been here!

I joined this group because I am just now getting over all my issues and I want to help anyone still going through them.

I am a violinist. I am in the pit orchestra and the chamber orchestra in my school, and every summer I go to orchestra camp, and I am in the Concert (the 2nd highest level out of 4) Orchestra in my town's Youth Symphony, which is nationally reknowned.

I am a smart cookie.

Hey there, so i took the time to read all of the post from everyone, and it REALLY made me feel like im in the right place. I started calorie counter today. Ive had a rough past couple of years and am just now starting to realize that its ok and i can stop making people feel sorry for me, and i can stop feeling sorry for myself. I have BPD or borderline personality disorder, depression and OCD. I was diagnosed after several suicide attempts and substance abuse. Ive always been a chubby girl and was teased ALOT, ive never been happy with the way i look. Well im turning 20 this year, and I figured this is as good a time as any to celebrate being me, and to overcome what has happend to me. I stopped taking my zoloft (with doctor consent) and started eating healthier and trying to be more active by taking more walks, and you know what, its really helping, i feel good that im doing something for me and not worrying what other people think about me. or what i think about other people. so heres to eating healthier and forgetting that "diagnosis"!!!!

.

Welcom, railea!

I agree, it is sharing with people who have similar experience, similar problems, issues, and have found helpful solutions to share that makes CC+ so wonderful. I get encouragement from comments in my Journal and posts to groups and forums.

I have found making friends at CC+ and enjoying the process to be a good bridge between complete isolation and actually reaching out F2F--making human contact that is more immediate.