What do/did you like about being fat???

Tonight I started my 12 step addiction class and that was a question that was asked. At first i was like WTH are you kidding me...I didn't like NOTHING about being fat. I couldn't walk far without my hips hurting, sure couldn't exercise, and most important I couldn't play with my son.

But then I really started thinking about it. I liked being invisible, not getting hit on, and the food took the emptyness away. Now when people are looking at me Im like WTH....The other day one of my professors wa****ting on me and I didn't even realize it! Later when another student pointed it out I was paranoid I did something that made him think I was available (Im married and wear a ring everyday). IDK I guess it just takes time. Im just a work in progress!

 I liked that I could stuff myself with endless possibilities. I liked that no food was off limit and I didn't need to put in effort.

I like post - op better now though.

I have to say that I liked how the food made me feel better no matter what. And as the pp said - nothing was off limits. Its a big part of how I'm dealing today - not having the food as a coping mechanism is a big struggle for me.

I didn't like being fat, but I think I used it as a defense, a wall to keep people out. I had this thought that if I made myself as unattractive as possible then no one would want me and if they didn't want me they couldn't hurt me! Of course it didn't work that way as I was used, taken advantage of and abused more! Food was my best friend and being fat I didn't have to try as hard, I used it as an excuse for not living the life I was meant to live and I had little expectations for myself and being as big as I was, if I didn't expect much of myself then I couldn't let myself down. It's crazy when you really stop and think about it. I didn't realize what I was doing to myself till months after wls and it became very clear how dangerous the road I was allowing myself to go down was.

There is lots I didn't like, but many things I did.  I liked not having to participate in life.  People carried things for me, I let them.  They cleaned.. I didn't.  I just didn't have to function.  I remember the pressure after surgery when I had to participate in life.. it was a bit overwhelming knowing people now expected things from me.  But I also had a feeling that I had a lot of years to catch up that I had missed doing things.    Even now after plastics, I like the 'fuller' me.   I had lots fixed, but some things were not at the top of my priority list like arms and legs.  After the other bits were fixed, the arms and legs looked awful.  I have since gained 20 odd pounds and feel pretty good.  calories - exercise = weight.. and thats' where I am, just where I was before plastics.  But also.. not seeing the arms and in between the legs so badly wrinkled.. makes me feel better in my head.  If I could stay at this weight, not morbidly obese, but this weight, I'd be good. 
I also miss the drugged feeling, gotta say.

Bonnie

This was a really helpful thread to read for me since I relate to what everyone wrote. It's a loss I'm feeling right now of the food as comfort/drug/wall/excuse/etc. It's nice to know I'm not alone. Thanks.

Food is my drug of choice.  I love how I'm feeling when I'm eating...it is like all is okay with the world.  If I have a bad day, I can go home and have my little food orgy and for a little while (a very short little while), I feel okay.  Afterward the carb coma sits in and I wonder what the hell I just did.  It is addicting and although I love the high and hate the aftermath - it is so hard not to turn to food.  I'm a foodie - I find myself glued to food network to discover my next evil dish to make me feel good - I don't even have to cook it, just seeling Paula Deen or Man vs. Food or DDD takes me to a happy place.

Like others, food is also a shield (a comfort)- my fatness is a form of protection.  Men don't look at me like a piece of meat, women don't think I'm competition and little kids think I'm cuddly...no one wants anything from me when I'm fat.  I can sink into oblivian and fade into the crowd - I don't stick out.  All of these things to me when I think about them aren't good - but it is a cloak.  This is also a catch 22 I believe - I also have to work twice as hard at work because most people assume I'm lazy and stupid, while being morbidly obese is absolutely exhausting (mentally and physically).

I know I will miss both my addiction and my shield - but it is past time hiding behind myself and face the world...

Not a freaking thing. I believe this is why I have had such an easy time making a complete lifestyle change.

The expectations were lower when I was a big girl--my endurance was low, couldn't stand the heat, didn't fell well.  People did stuff for me and I let them.  Now, no one feels compelled to baby me.
I could eat what I wanted when I wanted and in unlimited quantities.  I had a broken "full button" and kind of enjoyed it.  I wish I could eat the whole 4 oz. hamburger and not have to scramble for calories later.
No one paid me much mind and that was FINE with me as I am significantly introverted and do not play well with others.  On Sunday, I would not greet with my family at church because I did not want to talk about how I look--good, bad or indifferent.
That was introspective!  Thanks for starting the thread!

I loved EVERYTHING about being plus sized/fat.  I love my soft ample body, I miss being hit on by men, I miss being able to eat whatever I wanted, I miss my modeling career the most.  I miss looking healthy as opposed to now actually BEING healthy.