Importance of picture taking after bariatric surgery

Biggest regret

If there is something I regret about my journey, it is that I didn’t take enough pics. It is crazy, right? I think that everyone who has/had problems with weight does their best to disappear when somebody takes out a camera. Maybe tries to hide behind people, somewhere at the back where only the head is visible. And now I am telling you to take as many pics as possible. Have I gone completely crazy?

Actually, not at all. Do you know why?  Picture-taking is important. Because you will forget very soon how big you were. You will always remember that you were obese, but you will never get how big you were. That is why it is great to have visual documentation. No, I am not a masochist. A few years from now, you will be incredibly happy to have these pics.

Do it anyway

I know that showing yourself off in a pic is a good deal of torture, that goes without a doubt. So ok, take them at home, in the garden, somewhere where there are no people who might have opinions. But have them. This is really important. After the surgery, things will start happening incredibly fast and you won’t have time to remember what it was like, how your body was changing, where you were losing first, and what it all did to your face. 

I wish I had known this. I have some vague memory about what it used to be like, but the visual clue is missing. I used to be very efficient in hiding when pics were taken. You might say that it is good that people won’t have any pictures of you from before. They will still remember. Not in detail, but they will start comparing your new you with the old one very soon. 

Do it weekly

To tell the truth, it is cool to hear: Have you lost weight? Your soul is elated 😀 the thing is that in the first 6 months or so, you are losing incredibly fast, well, most people do, and the changes are the most visible ones. If you don’t take a pic every week, it will all get lost. You won’t remember anything of this. 

Fast change

And another thing is, as the visual changes are so incredibly fast your brain doesn’t have time to process them. I remember coming to a store, I needed a new shirt because the old ones were falling from my shoulders, and I was clueless. I had no idea what size I currently was. It was a good nightmare. I went to the XL section, but after pulling out the first t-shirt, it was clear, that it was a big no, that I would need something smaller. L? I haven’t worn that size for years this can’t be. Oops, and it was M because L was still too large. 

I didn’t know if I should cry with happiness or if I should be super happy. It was surreal. The thing was that my brain was still living in my former body, and never had the chance to adapt to the change that was happening. I hear it all the time in forums. I haven’t lost anything, I am still the same. They don’t take pictures. That is the problem. If they did, they would see it.

It is happening

Maybe the scales are not moving, or you are at a stall, but it means absolutely nothing after the surgery. The process continues, even if the scales are not moving. You are losing size. And that is what matters. We are so obsessed with the number, that we completely forget about the visual part. We get frustrated at the slightest inconvenience and we run the bathroom every morning, only to scoff. The scales haven’t moved.

I think that goes back to our past when we were trying to lose by some miraculous diet and every 100 grams was a miracle. But initially, I was losing a kilo/2 pounds some days – the first month. And then it was 200 grams here, half a kilo there. It was incredible. 

It is so fast…

I could easily lose track of things if I didn’t put the weight in an app. I remember how confused I was when I stepped on the scales in the morning and I didn’t even remember how much I weighed the previous day. The app tracked it all for me. Seeing it now, it is impressive indeed to see it. But still, I don’t have pics from that time. It is pretty silly. I wish I had them. It would be a great documentary material. 

… the brain is behind

The silly part of the process is, that the visual change is so fast that the brain is always behind. You still think about yourself as an obese person, but in reality, you might already be only overweight. This can be so incredibly frustrating. You keep telling yourself that you haven’t lost anything, that it is not even visible, that I was not all worth it. But the reality is very different. You are a very different person, your clothes are much smaller. You are slowly starting to pick up your confidence, you can stand for yourself. 

Advice!

If I could give myself advice for the future, it would be: take a picture weekly. Really, this often. You would be amazed at how much progress you have made. Even if your head is telling you something different. It is happening. And after a few months, let alone years, you will be happy to have this. These pics will show how incredibly far you have come and how many changes have happened. 

Our memory is fragile. Some things happen so fast that we don’t have any chance to notice them. We are so busy living the day-after-day life that we lose track of the big picture. I think every bariatric patient would be amazed about the amount of weight they lost in the process. I heard somebody saying: I knew I was big, but THIS big? Wow! That is insane, I never saw myself like this. 

Pics don’t lie

For the better and for the worse as well. That is why it is important to have them, so that we never forget about where we are coming from, what we have gone through, and how far we have come. One day, when you reach your target weight, you will say: I did it! And you will look at the old pic from the beginning, and you will be able to appreciate the process. That is why, take the pictures. They are for you. You will be grateful to have them.