[mcleary04]

I haven't been here in quite some time....I know...I'm sorry. I've managed to STILL maintain my weight loss from WW, but I want to lose another 40 pounds before my wedding in October.

The problem is...WHAT IS MY MOTIVATION? I need help here people! Usually someone's motivation is for their health, image, family, etc. But I'm not married, I'm not scared of a heart-attack or some fat-related disease, and I don't have a family. So what should be motivating me? I'm not one to really care about my image either...so being a fat bride doesn't scare me either---my dress still fits.

I want to lose weight because daily tasks are getting harder. Plus, I'm seeing everyone else around me lose weight. Should jealously be my motivation? My co-workers are losing weight, and my best friends, my sisters are losing weight....it sucks they can do it and I have tried and failed several times! Wouldn't that make me a bad person for being jealous??? What are your thoughts?

[susanpesek]

GIRL! It is NICE to see you back!!
H-h-m-m-m? Motivation needed, eh? SURELY you do have motivations; you MUST discover them. Mine are:To be pleasing to God and have integrity for myself and toward others. I also need acceptance and to feel a sense of belonging. I am motivated by feelings of love.......

I don't know if you have ever heard of Maslow's Needs Pyramid; maybe you studied it in school, probably in the same class as you learned about Pavlov's dogs:
According to Maslow, an individual is ready to act upon the growth needs if and only if the deficiency needs are met. Maslow's initial idea included only one growth need--self-actualization. Self-actualized people are characterized by: 1) being problem-focused;
2) incorporating an ongoing freshness of appreciation of life;
3) a concern about personal growth; and
4) the ability to have peak experiences.
5) Cognitive: to know, to understand, and explore;
6) Aesthetic: symmetry, order, and beauty;
7) Self-actualization: to find self-fulfillment and realize one's potential; and
8) Self-transcendence: to connect to something beyond the ego or to help others find self-fulfillment and realize their potential.

That may be a little too much information, susan!