You know, I have been a member here since it started and before that I was at Food Network. I was very active on the forums in the beginning, in fact with the support and some determination, I lost like 35 pounds the first year. I found myself at times feeling misunderstood or not paid attention to. I left and stopped posting for a while also. I still lurked the board and would see what was going on and would even feel offended if no one noticed I was gone. I still post, not like I used to, but if I feel like I have something of value to contribute, I will. I have also gained back about 20 of the 35 that I had lost originally. A couple of years ago, I even drove all the way from Nashville to Knoxville to see KD and meet her in person. (That was definately worth the three hour trip there)!! You have a very valid issue and you could be just the person it takes to maintain the importance of ministering to the people who struggle more financially. We have been very very poor in our lives, on welfare at one point 18years ago. Now we are blessed and over those many years my husband has become,through much hard work, a vice president with a very big company and now we live very comfortably. Not only have I been on both ends of the spectrum personally, but I worked (volunteered) in the Inner City housing projects in Nashville and knew first hand the struggles and pain and in particular the hopelessness and obesity that exists there. I really can feel your emotion and I want you to know that at this stage of my life I realize that my opinions and the way I feel are very valuable to someone. So, if I come here and give my 2 cents and it maybe only is received by one person, well then I am glad that one person maybe feels better or stronger because of me. I don't think you should be so quick to say goodbye. I think you should embrace that which you are so passionate about and take it upon yourself to make a difference. You know, I used to teach a bible study in the projects. Sometimes I would drive an hour to get there and only one person would show up. I really felt useless until many years later when I discovered that I had some impact on that one person. So, would I have driven an hour each way once a week if I had known that I would only touch one person?? I am glad I did. I have also learned that I can not be offended by the opinions of others. I can not take every statement to heart. Sometimes we can read a response and not take it as it was meant. The text has no emotion or expression and we can feel like something was unkind when it was not meant to be. I think that for the most part, rich or poor, we are all here for the very same reason. We all need encouragement and support to be healthy and lose weight. We have all tried everything out there and have recognized that the other stuff dosen't work and I am pretty confident that every one here is sincere and wants to help and support each other. We are mostly women, some men, parents, sisters, brothers. We all have the same issues, just different backround and approaches. I am pretty sure that you came here to find a way to help yourself lose weight. You have had a difficult year, as have others on this board, like myself when my mil passed away last month suddenly. You owe it to yourself to follow through and continue to receive love and support and you owe it to whomever is touched by your experiences and advice. We really can not get through this life alone, it is just too hard and this whole lifestyle changing, weight loss cycle is very hard as well. Don't do it alone.
Posts: 1380 | Location: West Florida | Registered: March 12, 2004
You know, I have been a member here since it started and before that I was at Food Network. I was very active on the forums in the beginning, in fact with the support and some determination, I lost like 35 pounds the first year. I found myself at times feeling misunderstood or not paid attention to. I left and stopped posting for a while also. I still lurked the board and would see what was going on and would even feel offended if no one noticed I was gone. I still post, not like I used to, but if I feel like I have something of value to contribute, I will. I have also gained back about 20 of the 35 that I had lost originally. A couple of years ago, I even drove all the way from Nashville to Knoxville to see KD and meet her in person. (That was definately worth the three hour trip there)!! You have a very valid issue and you could be just the person it takes to maintain the importance of ministering to the people who struggle more financially. We have been very very poor in our lives, on welfare at one point 18years ago. Now we are blessed and over those many years my husband has become,through much hard work, a vice president with a very big company and now we live very comfortably. Not only have I been on both ends of the spectrum personally, but I worked (volunteered) in the Inner City housing projects in Nashville and knew first hand the struggles and pain and in particular the hopelessness and obesity that exists there. I really can feel your emotion and I want you to know that at this stage of my life I realize that my opinions and the way I feel are very valuable to someone. So, if I come here and give my 2 cents and it maybe only is received by one person, well then I am glad that one person maybe feels better or stronger because of me. I don't think you should be so quick to say goodbye. I think you should embrace that which you are so passionate about and take it upon yourself to make a difference. You know, I used to teach a bible study in the projects. Sometimes I would drive an hour to get there and only one person would show up. I really felt useless until many years later when I discovered that I had some impact on that one person. So, would I have driven an hour each way once a week if I had known that I would only touch one person?? I am glad I did. I have also learned that I can not be offended by the opinions of others. I can not take every statement to heart. Sometimes we can read a response and not take it as it was meant. The text has no emotion or expression and we can feel like something was unkind when it was not meant to be. I think that for the most part, rich or poor, we are all here for the very same reason. We all need encouragement and support to be healthy and lose weight. We have all tried everything out there and have recognized that the other stuff dosen't work and I am pretty confident that every one here is sincere and wants to help and support each other. We are mostly women, some men, parents, sisters, brothers. We all have the same issues, just different backround and approaches. I am pretty sure that you came here to find a way to help yourself lose weight. You have had a difficult year, as have others on this board, like myself when my mil passed away last month suddenly. You owe it to yourself to follow through and continue to receive love and support and you owe it to whomever is touched by your experiences and advice. We really can not get through this life alone, it is just too hard and this whole lifestyle changing, weight loss cycle is very hard as well. Don't do it alone.
