Amazing shopping experience...

I went clothes shopping (again) today. It nearly brought me to tears in the dressing room. Happy tears, that is. Very happy tears! For the first time in, oh, about twenty years, there is a "1" as first digit on the size label. Yes, I now fit an 18/20 (or 2X) in tops. I'm still about a 22 or 24 in pants and skirts, which seems to be the norm for me right now. Hopefully it'll even out by the time I'm at my "ideal" size (whatever that may be).

After shopping at WalMart (got some great clearance deals!), I went to Costco to pick up a few things. As I walked past the clothing section, a couple of blouses caught my eye. Being still giddy about discovering my new size, I thought, "I wonder if I could fit an extra large?" Yeah right, wishful thinking! I held it up to me anyway, just out of morbid curiousity, and it looked like it would probably fit! I really liked it, and figured that even if it didn't fit right now, it would eventually. So I bought it. When I got home, I tried it on and this is the result...

Just for fun, here's my "before" pic...
I'm finally at the point where people are starting to notice. It really does take awhile for changes to show because I was so very large. It was about 75-80 pounds before it was noticeable to people who didn't know and weren't really looking for changes. Next week marks the six-month point. The time has gone by so quickly! I am planning to post an update on my "top 10 reasons" on my six month "surgiversary," so I'll save that for next week. That'll give you something to tune in for later. :-)

I am thankful to all of you who offered such encourgaging comments when I was in a funk a few weeks ago. Andrea was so right in pointing out that my feelings of inadequacy were the result of comparing myself to others (never a good idea!) and thinking that I was somehow "less" than someone who did it without surgical intervention. I was also guilty of pride, thinking that I needed to do it "on my own." For better or worse (or both), I tend to have this self-concept that I can do anything I set my mind to, and it has been very humbling (and much needed) to admit that I needed help in a big way. I am working on being okay with that. As I said, 99% of the time I'm simply thrilled to bits with the marvelous progress and changes, and so glad that I finally took that enormous step. It is giving me back my life, both literally and figuratively. How could I not be grateful?!

Thanks for all of your support--it truly means the world to me! This has been an amazing ride so far, and I can't wait to see what next 2/3 of the journey is like!