Clinical perspective, offered as context rather than as advice.
Body image adjustment with mental health: I've lost 82 lbs but when I look in the mirror, I still see my old self sometimes. "Phantom fat" is a real phenomenon.
My therapist specializes in body image issues with weight loss patients. She says it can take 12-18 months for your brain's body map to update. In the meantime: take progress photos (your eyes lie but cameras don't), try on old clothes, and be patient with yourself.
One thing that is still open after steve_okc’s answer:
What would you measure differently if you were starting again?
jim_asheville said:Body image adjustment with mental health: I've lost 82 lbs but when I look in the mirror, I still see my old self sometimes.
Therapy insights from my mental health journey: my therapist introduced me to the concept of "identity updating" — the psychological work of becoming a new version of yourself.
Key realizations: I used food to manage emotions, I had internalized fatphobia that I'm still unpacking, my social identity was partly built around being "the big guy/girl," and learning to accept compliments is surprisingly hard when you've been invisible for years.
Physical transformation without emotional processing is unstable. Do both.
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Browse GL Biochemjim_asheville said:Body image adjustment with mental health: I've lost 82 lbs but when I look in the mirror, I still see my old self sometimes.
True, with the qualification that this is a self-selected group. The people for whom it did not work post less, and that shapes everything we think we know.
Correct me if the detail matters more than I have assumed.