Noooooooooooooooo!

I'm reading a book, When You Eat at the Refrigerator, Pull Up a Chair, by Geneen Roth and I will admit I'm only at the beginning of the book but she says NEVER DIET. She says you will not go wild and eat without control just because you stop dieting. She says throw out your skinny clothes - they are only yelling derisions at you and you don't need that. Maybe it's just a difference of life experiences but I did just that when I got married - I ate without guilt and ate what I felt and stopped when I felt like stopping. I stopped the "diet" mentality and I gained about 160 lbs. I did lose control and my emotional eating kicked in with full force. Dieting all those years prior was also not dealing with my food issues, but it kept me in check and was a useful tool when my "skinny" clothes no longer fit me. I just don't believe in giving up the dream. Granted, therapy has helped me make the dream more realistic, but I still have a dream for my future and it involves fitting into thinner clothes. Seeing those stupid pair of white washed jeans in my closet for the past 20 years reminded me of what I could do if I put my mind to it and if I found something that would work with my body. I attribute my current level of success to continuing to seek out the right "diet" and keeping in mind the eventually thin fantasy. I didn't start TSFL because I knew the science behind it or that I believed it would work or because the support was awesome and would mean the difference between long term success or failure. I started TSFL because it was, in my uneducated mind, another "diet" that I hadn't tried before. And it has led me to a lifestyle that has changed my life. But if I had listened to Geneen's advice I would not have made that call that has changed my life. I plan on fitting into those "skinny" jeans and maybe even wearing them out of the house (of course, I'll have to get big hair and 80's earrings) so maybe I'll wear them to a costume party - but I will wear them again. Please, don't give up the dream of getting your body back. Please don't give into eating what you want and trusting yourself to stop when you're full. If you have insulin problems or immune issues or emotional issues (I think that should cover just about everyone) you will most likely NOT stop when you're "done". You probably won't know when your "done". And eating "what you feel like eating" very likely will start a cycle of unhealth (binging, compulsive eating, berating yourself, insulin resistance, etc). I wish with my whole heart I could go back and stop myself from giving up when I got sick in my 20's. I wish I could tell myself that it was worth the continued fight to save my body from the ravages of gross, processed, sugar laden food. Never give up, never surrender!! :-)