Relationship changes after weight loss — navigating identity shifts

Clinical perspective, offered as context rather than as advice.

Therapy insights from my mental health journey: my therapist introduced me to the concept of "identity updating" — the psychological work of becoming a new version of yourself.

Key realizations: I used food to manage emotions, I had internalized fatphobia that I'm still unpacking, my social identity was partly built around being "the big guy/girl," and learning to accept compliments is surprisingly hard when you've been invisible for years.

Physical transformation without emotional processing is unstable. Do both.

LabKate said:

One year anniversary on mental health — reflections: What I wish I'd known: the side effects are temporary, the benefits compound over time, protein…

Recovering from an eating disorder and using mental health: this is a complex situation and I want to be transparent about it.

I have a history of binge eating disorder. My psychiatrist, therapist, and prescribing doctor all collaborate on my care. The GLP-1 agonist has actually been therapeutic — it removes the biological urgency of binge impulses without relying on restriction.

This is NOT appropriate for all ED patients. Anorexia, bulimia, and restrictive EDs require different approaches. But for BED specifically, the evidence and my personal experience are positive. Always involve your mental health team.

Following on from LabKate — and this may be the naive question:

What would you measure differently if you were starting again?

Dr.AddMedPHL said:

Recovering from an eating disorder and using mental health: this is a complex situation and I want to be transparent about it.

I am going to disagree with the direction of travel here. The thread has converged on the tidiest answer rather than the best-supported one, and those are not the same thing.

Moderator note: two posts asking for a source have been merged into one. Please search the thread before asking again. Report rather than reply if it drifts again.