is weight to blame for low self esteem/confidence?

[hippychicken]

i've really been thinking a lot about this over the last few months and wondered what people thought.
i have been over weight all in my 20's (size 18)i felt over weight as a teenager but now know i wasnt i just thought i was, im determined to be size 12 by the time im 30 which is in dec as thats what ive always said during 20's, ive blamed every thing; lack of conifdence self esteem on the fact im not size 12, (i think ill b a confident hapy person and not just exist) I
n the last year my dad walked back into my life after 27 years and ive meet my half brothers and his patner and i have no confidence with them and am begining to think its a deeper issue than weight as i have lost 18lb so far since meeting them. i beginning to think that maybe what ive always thought is wrong and thats a scary thought, what does people think?

 

[Baby_Cakes]

I think it plays a huge huge part. My confidence/esteem has plummeted - i dont want to leave the house, have no confidence to apply for a new job, no confidence to go to social gatherings. I know loosing weight wont solve everything, but i know it will go a long way to helping me.

 

[~Jen~]

Weight is DEFINITELY a huge contributor to low self esteem but you can't think that all your problems and confidence issues will go away once you lose the weight. Yes you will be more confident, but there will always be that voice in your head. You have to learn to love yourself (I should heed some of my own advice). A good project is to keep a diary. Each day, write down at least one thing you were proud of that day, no matter how small (eg: I walked an extra 10 minutes today, or I went for a walk even though I really didn't want to, I resisted the cakes in work etc). You can also make a list of all the things in life you have done that you are proud of. Little by little you will learn to love yourself more (therefore gaining self esteem). I am sorry I don't have more advice but I am also searching for the same answers.

 

[Abigail23]

Yes, I agree, any underlying self-esteem issues will still be there once you lose weight and will still need to be dealt with, but at least you'll be NORMAL weight with issues, rather than OVERWEIGHT with issues!! I know which one I'd prefer ..... It's like the saying 'money doesn't bring you happiness'. Well that's for sure, but I'd rather be a miserable millionaire than a miserable pauper.

 

[Eli]

To me weight is a major issue what comes to confidence. I leave so many things undone just because I think of my fats and it makes me feel so down. Sometimes I'm scared that losing weight won't make me happy, but at least I'd then have one problem less.

 

[Miss Kitten]

I think it's a vicious circle for many people including me, the low self esteem is there anyway but the weight contributes to that big time, and then the comfort eating, then the weight gain makes the confidence even lower, which leads to comfort eating again... etc. Emotions play a huge part in weight gain for me. I know that losing the weight won't magically make me love myself but it takes a major factor out of the equation...