Laughter IS The Best Medicine

I am chuckling right now, thinking about yesterday afternoon. I was weighed on three scales -- yes three scales -- all within 1 1/2 hours. And of course you know the upshot: all of the numbers were different. This makes me laugh and laugh, because I have been so obsessed with the scale, so wrapped up in the numbers, and here we have a beautiful example of why this is utter nonsense and a complete waste of time. Which number is correct? One must be "right" and two must be "wrong." Right? Right?

Here's how it played out: I had my thyroid doctor appointment at 2:30 p.m. So before I left, I weighed myself at home at 2:00 p.m. and it said 159 lbs. At the doctor's office, I weighed in at 2:30 p.m. also at 159 lbs. But my doctor told me he set his scale two pounds over someone's true weight, so I actually weighed 157 lbs. He then said throw out my scale, buy a belt, and if, over time, I find I need fewer notches, then go on a diet. It was then I first started laughing.

Next came the clinic scale at 3:30 p.m. I stepped on and it registered 161 lbs. At this point, I was completely unfazed, and could see so clearly how ridiculous I have been over these past weeks. Yes, I need to keep an eye on my weight to make sure it doesn't creep up and ultimately get out of control. But trying to pinpoint an exact number and hold there is one hair short of insanity.

(Now, I am working with my nutritionist, Millie, on a wonderful eating plan that is actually keeping me on target with the weight I am comfortable with -- a few pounds under my goal of 160 lbs. I'll be discussing it in a later post, as it is still very new to me and I am learning the ropes.)

Right now, it is true that my anxiety doesn't flare up if I stay dead even on the same number every day. It's the certainty of it that makes me comfortable, allows me to relax. I guess, too, that I avoided scales for so long that this new "relationship," for lack of a better word, is strange and foreign to me. I'm fumbling along, trying to figure this whole thing out, and as you know, I've been pretty stressed out by it all. But I am learning, and things are getting easier with time.

Where I'm hoping to be is the point where I can have an acceptable range -- say, 157 lbs.-162 lbs. -- a five-pound "spread" that makes me feel comfortable. I think, no, I know I can get there. I just need to be patient and think positively. I'm also finding solace in my thinking that I am not the only one struggling with the scale and the numbers. There just has to be others who have lost a significant amount of weight, are afraid of gaining it back, and subsequently get nervous when they step on the scale. It's completely understandable. Fear underlies a heck of a lot of things.

So tonight I laugh, and it feels really good. Physically, I feel better too. I'm on the mend from the terrible cold. I hope you find some time to laugh too. It is indeed wonderful "medicine." The kind I'm happy to take!