Depression and Bullying - My Weight Loss Story

 "Depression is like drowning... Except you can see everyone else around you breathing completely fine." -Unknown

   In our society, people don’t take mental health in general as seriously as it should be. Fortunately, there aren’t a lot of people who suffer from severe depression but that means that those who suffer from it are in the minority. And this makes it very hard for you to find someone who understands what you're going through when you tell them you have severe depression.

   Usually when you try to explain to depression to others or tell them that you have it,  you'll get friends and family  who tell you to get over it, to not think about it too much or you'll feel better if you smile. So I try to smile and be positive but I keep getting sucked into despair by stupid triggers in my environment and myself, like when I think about all the popular girls who bullied me or when I look at my naked body in the mirror. When I'm triggered I have to struggle for about the next hour to get out of the pit of despair I fall into. That shows you that depression is more than just a mood to just get over. Depression and other mental disorders like anxiety and bipolar are disorders which little is known about and no one will talk about. I want this to change. I want to have an open discussion about how society sees mental illness. So today I decided to tell you my story about how I overcame my depression and how I achieved my weight loss.

 

   I took a lot of weight since I was 15 (age when I was 52 kilos) when I stopped swimming. From 8 to 15, I was a high-level sports, I train for 3 hours everyday, the weekend I have competition and during the holiday I go to training school.  

This daily charge of intense sport had become too stressful for me, and inconsistent with my studies. The problem is that when I was still sporty, I ate a lot ... And once stopped the sport, I continued to eat the same way (as I have had to adjust calorie intake by eating less after stopping because my level of physical activity had greatly lowered). 

In addition, once entered high school, I discovered new things: fast food I was eating regularly, the buffets, etc. All this of course could not fix things or help me eat healthy. Instead of eating at the university canteen, I went to Kebab for lunch not far from the High school. The result is inevitable in the absence of sport: I took 19 kg in 3 years (it could have been worse you might say). 

 The fact of finding myself on the verge of being obese made me realize that I had gone too far in my eating habits. The word "obesity" frightened so I decided to seriously lose weight. There are lots of factors that led me to take this approach, I used to be bullied a lot during high school because of my weight, The girls/popular group were mean and made fun of me because I was different than them. , my parents used to always fat shaming me, and I started to hate how I look more and more. All these things let me into depression. "Tell your friends about your depression" they said and I did. But they don't care. No one cares. My best friends ignored my messages all day. They read it but they don’t reply or forget to reply, they never messaged me spontaneously. But depression isn't like a broken leg. Depression is more like cancer. It can be fatal and there is nothing any one can do to just fix it. I have to fix it myself, I am the only one who can do it.

   I am overweight since I was the age of 17, but it was not until my 18 years that I actually realized what I was doing to my body suffer. Perhaps too young or too lazy to do this before, but it is better late than never, I am proud to announce to everyone that I lost 10 kilos and having achieved this weight loss means a lot to me. 

What are the consequences of this thinning? The benefits of weight lost are not only visible on my body but they are also visible on my mind. Of course I love the benefits of my weight loss on my body. My face is not bloated, my legs are lighter and breathlessness is much rarer. My big belly is now a lot smaller and allows me to wear jeans and other clothing accessories closer to the body. But my mind also became stronger, and I appreciate this improvement as much as the virtues visible on my body. I became more confident of my body image, more sociable, happier, less sad, and less whiny. What's great is that I fulfilled both physically and mentally in just five months to plan. And this is how I overcame my depression.

My tips for all the steemians who want to lose 10 kilos in 5 months like me  

•Be determined to lose weight mentally. If you are not strong enough in your head or motivated, you will NOT (and I've seen in many, many people) lose weight over a period exceeding 7 days.  

• Start a fasting if only for 2 days, eating only at a time that will seem most appropriate. The goal will not only cleanse your body but also your stomach condition to "absorb" less foods.  

• Eat in small plates (put your dishes in the dessert plates for example).  

• Cooking a fair portion to avoid finishing the rest. 

• Drink regularly during the meal (for me between 1 glass and a half and two glasses of water).  

• regularly note the dates and weight loss.  

• Do not hesitate to take a picture from all angles before you start your "diet" to report to you on developments. 

Cheers, 

Layla