Seems to be a common thread in other blogs I've nosed at on the Blogs page just now: "Why did I let myself get so big?"; "Why did I slide back into my old habits?"; "I can't do this!"; "I feel like I'll never get there, I just can't stick to the plan!", and so on.

Now, I'm no psychologist, but some things I've learned for myself, the hard way.

You have to believe in yourself!

Self-evident, you might say? But think about it: how often have you, or I, had a day where we've made bad choices or drunk too much or gone over our points? If you can't put up your hand to that, you are perfect beyond words! We are all human, which means we're flawed and imperfect. One bad day, or week, does not have to mean the end of things. Accept you messed up, draw a line under it and move on. It doesn't mean you are a failure, that you can't do this or that you are a bad person who is unworthy of being thin and having good things happen to you.

Rome wasn't built in a day!

The weight did not go on overnight; ergo, it will not come OFF overnight. (I do wish it would, believe me!) So, don't be downhearted if your progress isn't so fast as that of others, or not as fast as you want it to be. Every half-pound counts, and a STS is not a fail.

Change the habits of a lifetime!

If you look at this as a short-term fix, you are setting yourself up for a fall. You have to change your approach to food, change your approach to exercise, and accept that you will always have to pay close attention to keeping the healthy habits you've learned while losing weight. You became fat for a reason. Comfort eating, poor food choices, lack of exercise, depression, ill-health, whatever. We're here because we're fat, or were fat. You have to look at and understand why you became fat in the first place.I think my reasons have been laid out at least once (*cough*), so I won't reiterate them here. You will still be the same 'you' at goal unless you change your attitudes and hang on to the tools that got you to goal.

Point and track everything that passes your lips!

Obvious? Hmm. Yes, but...the temptation if you know or think you have gone over your points for the day or week is NOT to track for a day. Before you know it, that day has become a week, or a month. That way failure lies. It doesn't matter how 'bad' a day or so has been. Assess the damage, draw that line, 'fess up to it and move on. Let it go. What has been, will be. Only you can re-take control.

Enjoy the journey!

You are going to be so sick of me saying this! The plan is part of your life, not your reason for living. You have to fit it into your life, not fit your life around the plan. You can still eat out, drink a bottle of wine, eat chocolate and crisps and other things you've always thought of as 'naughty' or 'forbidden'. Nothing in isolation and in moderation is going to mean the end of your diet. Let go of the concept of 'good' and 'bad' foods; look at the points you have available, decide what you'd like to indulge in, and fit it into those points. No points? Get some exercise and earn a few! You have to still feel as though you can still have fun. You have to learn how to approach food so that it is no longer the enemy. A little of what you fancy does you good. Ditch the guilt and just enjoy! If my food doesn't taste good, I don't feel good. If I feel deprived, I will go off the rails.

Love yourself. Respect yourself!

You are worthy of love and respect, but first you have to love and respect yourself. Positive reinforcement exercise: stand in front of a mirror, look yourself in the eye, and repeat 'I am worthy of love and respect. I love and respect myself'. You will come to believe it. (Fake it till you make it, in other words.) Try it for a week and see how you feel!