The Power of Support

Lately my life schedule has been absolutely CRAZY!

I mean to tell you I have had one thing after another coming up to derail my regular routine of exercise, WW meetings and French practice.

It's been doctor's apts for me or my son, dentist apts, my son's extracurricular activities, my job, illness, trips, and it goes on and on.

What I can tell you is this-

I NEED MY MEETINGS!!!!

I cannot tell you how different I feel inside when I go to my meetings vs when I miss them.

And let me tell you, I don't ever CHOOSE to miss them.

I only mention this because for me this has been pivotal to my weight loss success.

What I know is that I can't do this alone.  I need the support of meetings.

In the beginning I also did the WW personal coaching, and while it was more expensive it was totally worth it for me.

I needed someone to baby step me through all my mental clutter and keep me on track.  I got 45 minutes per week of coaching calls I could schedule any way I wanted.  You could choose to schedule in three 15 minute calls or one 45 minute call.  After finding the right coach for me I chose the latter.

In my first year I think I only missed 2 meetings and rarely missed a call.  My coach also took e-mails and I took advantage of that as well.  Remember, if you don't like the first coach you get try another.  It's like everything else in life.  Sometimes it takes time to find the right one.  

And when I missed them, I really missed them.  Even now after having made Lifetime I notice a direct correlation with my weight and how regularly I get to the meetings.  

It's having an awesome leader(thank you Nancy!) and fellow members.  It's the amazing friendships you make there.

It feels so good to talk with people who know how you feel and have been where you're at or where you've been before.

I mention this because I often see people on WW's Connect who are struggling and asking whether they should go to meetings.

It's a resounding "YES!" for me.  I think the more support you can surround yourself with the better.

For years I tried to use the buddy system with my mom, my husband or my cousin among others.

What I can tell you is that it never worked, at least for me.  We're all busy and have things that get in the way.

And while the buddy system works for a lot of married and non-married couples it did not work for us.  Now that might have been because my husband doesn't do WW.  He eats what I cook and never complains but he doesn't do WW.

Asking him to help police my eating made us both angry and resentful.

That's why I was so ready to try something new with someone that wasn't family.

It's like therapy.  Having an outside, objective third party is an invaluable tool(Again, only speaking for myself here).

Having someone who is always there to hold you accountable is keystone.

So, if you've been on the fence about what to do or struggling with your weight I would urge you to strongly consider going to meetings or getting some type of support outside the circle of your family and friends.

You're not alone in your struggle and you're not hopeless or helpless.

But remember, asking for help is not enough.  You have to learn to accept and allow the help you're given.  Sometimes that's easier said than done when you've spent a lifetime doing everything on your own.

Asking for and accepting help doesn't make you weak.

It makes you strong and it makes you smart and I promise you it will feel so good.