The Scale: Friend or Foe?

[LovelyLiz]

After about a decade of not owning a scale, I bought one yesterday. This is not because I am trying to change my weight in one way or the other, it is more just for knowledge. I have been weighing myself when I visit my family, since they have a scale, but that is only about once every couple of months. The last time I visited them I noticed I had put on about 10 pounds, and it was somewhat of a surprise, and I wondered what I had been doing differently, if anything.

So I decided to buy a scale, just to keep an eye on things and be aware of weight fluctuations in either direction and what causes them. Just to get to know my body better, etc. It was a hard decision because when I first became more aware of and active in the SA movement, throwing out the scale was one of the first (and best) decisions I made. But now I'm hoping I can just use it as a tool for awareness, and not let whatever number shows up make/break my day or have too much power over me.

We'll see whether this is possible... :)

Here are the things I'm wondering: Do you own a scale? Why or why not? How's that working out for you?

*This Question is for my fellow BBW/SSBBW. While I realize women and men of all sizes can have complicated relationships with weight/scale, I am posting this in the BBW forum because I want to talk about this issue particularly from a BBW/SSBBW perspective.*

[lozonloz]

I dont own a scale, but my mother does own a very expensive digital scale due to her business...

Ironically she's a weight loss consultant :D I tend to stay out of the way when her clients come over becuase I dislike the "Why arent you skinny" conversations.

I weigh myself on those scales about once a month, and I'd say its overall a positive thing. I do it to check my weight and moderate it because frankly, I'm simply too poor to buy myself new clothes all over again. My jeans cost £30! I want them to last, so if I go 4 pounds or so in either direction in a month I eat abit less or more or exercise more. Until I'm around the same again. It's taught me alot about how my body loses and gains weight and why. I think learning these things about your body can only be a positive thing.

[kayrae]

I own a scale. My weight used to fluctuate a lot and I like to keep track of it. The actual numbers don't bother me, but I've realized that significant weight gain/loss is important for me to know. Last year I got really sick and could only keep down thin soup. I lost almost 15 lbs. in a week and y'know that's not a good thing.

[steely]

I have a scale, we have always had a stormy relationship. For many years, I just couldn't weigh myself. It didn't go high enough, now I can weigh myself but it has lost the power it once had over me. It doesn't matter to me anymore. It's been very liberating. All those years of physicals, being weighed at school, always terrified of being the biggest, (I always was), now it just doesn't matter. Who would've thought?

[Tam]

I have my own scale, and i weight myself frequently!

[Jes]

I have a scale I don't use (I bought it for someone else). My gym used to have a scale in the locker room, but it's now gone. Sadly, I've been seeing doctors a lot lately, and get weighed at every single visit, so that's good enough for me. I don't care who in the medical profession knows my weight. I'd be happier if it were a bit lower, but I fluctuate within the same...9 or so lbs.

[Geektastic1]

I don't own one. Thought about getting one, but it would just make for extra clutter. I'll weigh myself at the doctor's, at a friend's house, or a public scale once in a while, which is enough for me. I haven't gained or lost much weight or changed size in the past two years anyway.

[Tina]

Anyone remember Jean? Can't remember her user name but she used to post here years ago. She had a web page where she'd show the scales that she took out and used for target practice. Now there's a scale I've enjoyed seeing!

[mossystate]

I have never owned a scale. I am going to be getting one. For years, I never ' wanted to know ', and I never had much of a burning need to know. I have decided that I want and need this tool.

That is how I will view it...a tool.

As I do want to lower the number I see on it, and with my sometimes erratic eating...and as I age...I know I personally need this. Am a little excited to buy a scale, to tell you the truth. Perhaps I am a little too easily excited. ;)

At the same time, I am proud and happy for those who have been haunted by and abused by scolding numbers.....to have very limited contact with something so benign being used as a weapon against them.



I want fat women to be making the call....nobody else.....no matter what side of the fence they are on. Our lives, physical and mental...are our own.

[LovelyLiz]

That is how I will view it...a tool.

Totally. That scale: what a tool! ;)

(You know I <3 You)

[Tau]

No, I don't own one and never will. I hate weighing scales - they remind me of all the awful, numbing, humiliating doctors' visits I had to endure when I was younger. I'll never forget being 15 and standing on one while this bitch of a female doctor walked around me, nudging at my stomach, telling me how I didn't have a hope of finding any kind of happiness if i didn't lose 40kilos tomorrow. She kept saying to me: "Do you want to be one of those women we have to weigh with the scales they use in the zoo or the train station? Like an animal thats too fat to fit on something meant for normal people?" :( That memory still brings tears to my eyes so no, I don't own one. I keep an eye on my weight by measuring myself. If the centimetres are creeping up I'll step on my sister's to see whats potting but otherwise - no fucking way.

[firefly]

I bought a scale last week - I was so fed up with the "error" my old scale told me every time I stepped on - I need the numbers, too.

I know I'm not at the weight I feel comfortable and healthy with, but atm I'm not able to live without my daily bars of chocolate. But - this "comfortable weight" is nothing that can be measured up in numbers...

[ashmamma84]

Don't own one. Never have probably because I just didn't get caught up in numbers. As long as I was looking and feeling my best, I wasn't concerned with the actual digits. But I can see its value in being a tool to aid in keeping track of weight.

However, now that I'm losing a bit of weight from a recent surgery, I do want to weigh myself for some reason. I've expressed concern to my Mother in confidence about the fear of becoming to...thin? and she's reassured me that I've never been thin so I'll probably bounce right back. It's weird though, because it's sort of sad to me to lose some weight. I guess I'm just really comfortable and used to being a chunky chick.

I still won't buy a scale, so I'll just be in the know everytime I get weighed at the doc.

[BeautifulPoeticDisaster]

I have a scale. I bought my first one when I was 26...it went up to 750lbs. My skinny ass husband broke it somehow. Then I got the popular black talking one with silver squares on....then it stopped weighing me acurately when I got near the limit of 550. :( I still have it though! My current one is heavy duty and goes up to 1000lbs.

Now my relationship with the scale is a seriously fucked up one. I retain water like no ones business and can easily put on 30lbs in a week...and I can lose 30 pounds in a week. Even in knowing this, I punish myself if what I see number wise does not reflect the effort I have put in on healthy eating and exercise. I'm seriously like a bulimic without the purging. I have the delusional image thing going on. Some days I feel light, look light and can move better...and other days I feel 900lbs and care barely move and am depressed.

I wish I didn't place my self worth on a stupid number, but seeing as I have been weighed and either praised or shamed since I was 2, it is seriously engrained.

[lypeaches]

hmpf. Scales. There was a time in my life that I was at war with the scales. If they're out and accessible, it becomes too easy for me to become obsessed with them. However, I do like to keep rough track of my weight, so my compromise is that I keep them in the attic....and bring them out to weigh every month or so.

[bigjayne66]

I have two sets of doctors scales ,one foot on each lol,then get my neighbour to read them ,usually a couple of times a month,they will weigh 700lbs between them.not afraid of them since I passed 400 a couple months ago...:)

[Dmitra]

No scales here. The disgust of being weighed in class every year made me hate them, especially after 5th grade when the other kids were way too interested in the number - 153 lb (~70 kg) on a 5'2 frame, shocking eh? My teacher just had to tell me she only weighed 144 which did not help. Anywho, fast forward lots of years to now when I don't mind stepping on the scale at the doctor's. I still don't want a scale in my home because it'd be a daily reminder of all that past self and societal hatred, though. I'm now 5'7 and maintained around 365 lb (~166 kg) for the past 6 years of weighing with my anti-dieting ways, just to say it. :)

[kayrae]

Do some of you find the sight of scales triggering?

[steely]

Do some of you find the sight of scales triggering?

Yes, to the point if breaking out in a cold sweat in the doctors office. This has been a little while ago, they knew better than to even mention the scale. It was like a panic attack, I would physically get sick to my stomach. It's no wonder my blood pressure was through the roof. I've always hated going to the doctor because I would be weighed.

I don't really want to post this but I will, it brings up feelings that are difficult for me..

[LovelyLiz]

Yes, to the point if breaking out in a cold sweat in the doctors office. This has been a little while ago, they knew better than to even mention the scale. It was like a panic attack, I would physically get sick to my stomach. It's no wonder my blood pressure was through the roof. I've always hated going to the doctor because I would be weighed.

I don't really want to post this but I will, it brings up feelings that are difficult for me..

I hear you on this. I don't think my reactions were quite as strong about getting weighed at the doctor's office, but I will say that when I realized I could refuse to be weighed when I went to the doctor, it was like a huge burden had been lifted from my shoulders.

I love when I go there, and the nurse is like, "Step up on the scale" and I say, "No, that's okay. Not today." It feels good to be able to advocate for myself in this way.

[supersizebbw]

i bought my first personal weighing scale last year, this was immediately after i found out that both the doctor's scale and gym scale didn't weigh over 330pounds (150kgs)...the humiliation of stepping on a scale infront of another human being and it giving the dreaded ERR sign was just too much to take. so i finally bought my own to be able to weigh in the comfort and privacy of my room.

[Punkin1024]

Scales have been friend and foe! I really hate stepping on the scales at the Dr. office, but I figure it is a tool to help keep me at healthy levels. Sudden weight loss or gain can indicate a myriad of health problems, many of these health issues do run in my family. However, I don't weigh at home because it just reminds me how I used to be a slave to those scales.

[ThatFatGirl]

Definitely a friend. I am trying to lose weight and feel that not getting too hung up on the number on the scale is going to be important to sticking to my diet (lifestyle change, whatever you want to call it). I try not to weigh myself anymore than every 7-10 days and figure any number as long as it is less than the previous time is a good number.

I went a long time without a scale and passed on being weighed at the doctor's office and guess what? Major gains. So now, the scale is my bff and helps me stay on track.

[Carrie]

However, now that I'm losing a bit of weight from a recent surgery, I do want to weigh myself for some reason. I've expressed concern to my Mother in confidence about the fear of becoming to...thin? and she's reassured me that I've never been thin so I'll probably bounce right back.
This story made me smile, Ash! So different from the typical parental/scale experience. :happy:

[Theresa48]

The scale isn't my friend. Sometimes I walk by it and curse its existance even though I am the one that bought it and put it there. Throwing it out isn't an option because then I admit it has power over me. I guess I keep it because who knows? Someday I might need it for whatever purpose it would serve. On re-reading this it occurs to me that I could apply this to my ex-husband....bad relationship that was. LOL! The scale should be a tool to track my health but it isn't. It is a torture device no matter the numbers going up or going down. Okay...so now you know...I am a mess.:p

[LillyBBBW]

I own a scale and use it from time to time. It's that black talking digital scale that goes up to 500 or so pounds. I'm very comfortable with having and using it but wasn't always. Like the others here my history with scales was an exercise in constant trauma. Depending on what it said I was either an accomplished go-getter or a worthless slob with no self control. It was insane how this little instrument could determine so much about me, my life and how I feel about myself. I decided never to bother with one again except for medical purposes.

This worked well for me till there was an issue with my doctor's scale. It was broken and misreading my weight each time I visited. This set me up for a terrible health scare. My mother suggested buying my own scale so I finally got one just so I could know my weight for myself. It was very liberating being able to know and own my weight and not have anyone breathing down my neck and creating drama. There was seemingly no reason for me to tell anyone what the numbers were. I was very comfortable with this but then I had to have knee surgery last March. I happened to overhear my PCP and the surgeon discussing dosages and my weight as I was being prepped for surgery. I was nearly under medicated for it but because I bought that scale, I was able to tell my doctors my true weight and that the information in the chart was incorrect by about 55 pounds. Who knows what could have happend?

So yeah, I really like having a scale now. It was a bit easier for me to cut away the stigma surrounding the numbers. The numbers were always a source of shame and to some degree they still are. The world at large still tends to get worked up over it and attaches shame and horror so I prefer to still keep it to myself. Knowledge is power though, at least it is in my case.

[BigCutieAnya]

Definitely not a friend...Perhaps it could be categorized under 'acquaintance" :D

[kayrae]

Are any of you familiar with Marilyn Wann's yay scales? What do you think of that?

[calauria]

I'm hate scales and not ready to have a relationship with one, since all my life my self worth was wrapped up in how much I weighed.

[Green Eyed Fairy]

Are any of you familiar with Marilyn Wann's yay scales? What do you think of that?

Not familiar with them at all....please tell more?

[tinkerbell]

I have one, and use it almost daily. By using it almost daily, I see how my body fluctuates with weight, and I dont get super upset when I see a gain or anything. I can gain 10 lbs during my period because of water retention. And since I've gotten used to that, I dont freak out when I see numbers on the scale. Most of the time anyway :)

I can tell when I'm in an emotional over eating mode, because I wont step on the scale. And for me, thats not good. I dont like the way I feel when I'm doing that. It means I'm not dealing with something that is bothering me, and am eating to deal with it, rather than figuring it out.

[lovelocs]

I grew up in a household that was very fatphobic. My mother has a literally religious aversion to fat. Doesn't help that she's certifiable. But we did not own a scale. I was never measured in this way except for very rare doctor's visits. Otherwise, my weight was measured by what clothing fit, and what didn't.
Historically, a scale is a rather unusual thing to have in a home, I think. For the majority of human existence we only weighed what we traded: from grain to gold. Livestock and their parts. When the scale was first introduced, it was a public novelty, and only later became an object of dread.

Here's a link:
http://www.articlealley.com/article_80489_27.html

I have a scale now. It came with the house I bought. It is chronically off by about 5 pounds, so I use it for a ballpark figure. When I use it. Which is once every few months. If I'm gaining weight, my jeans are a much better indicator of this than a scale. But that's just me.

[kayrae]

Read more about it on The East Bay Express (http://www.eastbayexpress.com/eastbay/fat-fit-fabulous/Content?oid=1081824)

http://voluptuart.com/images/large/MWPS-1_01_LRG.jpg?zenid=1bb024a3b10570a14babe0cd7a647c4 d

[lovelocs]

I like that. I mean, it tells you everything you need to know, right?
Also fantastic articles :).

[StarWitness]

The numbers have been a big source of anxiety for me in terms of recovering from an eating disorder, especially because a significant part of that was weighing myself daily. I cut the scale out of my life for a really long time; in fact, a few weeks ago, I weighed myself for the first time since high school. Silly as it may sound, that took all of my confidence and courage.

But when I saw what I weighed, you know what? I didn't give a fuck! I'm about 20 lbs heavier than I had estimated, and I don't give a fuck. Go me.

[LovelyLiz]

But when I saw what I weighed, you know what? I didn't give a fuck! I'm about 20 lbs heavier than I had estimated, and I don't give a fuck. Go me.

Yes! Go you. :)

[VelvetGirl]

I do own a scale,although i dont really use it.Since weighting was always a hard process.I still havent made it so that the numbers there wont change my mood,in a good or in a bad way.I wish that sometime i ll find the way to really use it only as a tool.I have to admit that im trying to learn how to love myself no matter what:blush:

[steely]

I got on the scale this morning and it was just a number, nothing more and nothing less. Just a number, I think this thread has really helped with seeing the scale in a totally different light.

[Aust99]

I have a scale in my bathroom and I weigh myself once a week to keep track of what's happening with my body. When I first got the scales I went a bit crazy and hopped on them every time I walked past them. So I ended up putting them away and pulling them out once a week to weight myself. I can leave them out now and not be consumed with weighing myself. It's interesting how having them in the bathroom affected me initially.

[Inhibited]

I just bought scales recently, the only reason i never had any is coz they never went up high enough for my weight, i could only find scales that went as high as 120kgs / 264lbs, but the ones i recently bought go as high as 180kgs / 396lbs....

[Shala]

I now weigh every morning on a scale. It keeps me in check. While I'm not trying to lose....I do not want to gain either. I am happy where I am physically.

A couple of years ago, I gave up the scale completely. I had benn the same weight(between 295 and 300) for over a decade.Then after a year or so of scale banishment, I noticed a change in me. I was gaining. My clothes were tighter, I was more tired. Then to my alarm, my feet and ankles were swelling daily.

I decided to weigh on a scale.....the number was 335! Those 35 extra pounds made a HUGE difference i n my daily life...and it scared me.

So I made some changes and lost 25 pounds. I am now 310 and my sweeling has stopped completely.

Now I weigh every day to keep myself in check.

[kayrae]

Hi Shala. I'm glad that the swelling on your feet and ankle are gone.

I admit that I don't really care about the scale until I see it, then I just have to hop right on and see. I'm glad that the numbers no longer make me want to modify my body in an unhealthy manner.

[steely]

I got on the scale this morning myself and the progress I had made with the hateful thing, just went right down the drain. I had actually gained weight and I found myself wanting to throttle it. The weight gain was not the horrible part, when you are as big as I am, 5-10 pounds doesn't make that big of a difference. The worst thing is the automatic reaction, the horror, the horror. I then had to talk myself down from the ledge with cheese! Crisis avoided for this moment anyway. Still a work in progress, as it happens. :p

[Seraphina]

That is such a hard question.

My scale is more like an obsession and I can never leave the damn thing alone. I used to hide it under the bed but then I'd just have to furtively run with it to the bathroom floor (which is the only one without carpet) while my hubby was busy and weigh, then quickly run back, not because he has an issue with me weighing but because I am always secretive about it. Anyway now it lives by the sink and regularly calls to me to have a look at the numbers. I hover between sinking into the deepest darkest depression because I have put on and being so turned on the next step is *cough* going back to bed. Worst still losing is like a triumph and a personal disaster all in one go - me, weight conflicted? Never :doh:

The only time the scale is truly my friend is when the hubby is on it and I get to poke his belly and tell him he's getting fat :wubu:

[kayrae]

would it be helpful if you get rid of the scale?

[rainyday]

My beef with scales isn't the number, it's that they're narrow and needing to stand on the edges throws off the number a little. I have a look see every couple weeks. At this point in my life it's just a tool. Mobility is a more important measurement for me than weight.

[deeexit]

i have a scale, but never used it...i kindda go by my pants :)

[Tau]

i have a scale, but never used it...i kindda go by my pants :)

Pants and bras are awesome indicators of weight gain. When my boobies balloon I know I've gained more than I should.

[LillyBBBW]

Pants and bras are awesome indicators of weight gain. When my boobies balloon I know I've gained more than I should.

Wha? Who told you that? :D:kiss2:

[mossystate]

Elastic says otherwise.:D

[Seraphina]

would it be helpful if you get rid of the scale?

Nah, I tried that. It just makes my obsession worse, at least if I can see then I know. Really it's not about "what" number the scale says just that I have a number... crazy!

My boobs aren't a great indicator of weight gain, more how hormonal I am, but jeans are a good indicator - once the booty starts to grow I know I need a trip to the shops :D

[Tina]

My scale is more like an obsession and I can never leave the damn thing alone. I used to hide it under the bed but then I'd just have to furtively run with it to the bathroom floor (which is the only one without carpet) while my hubby was busy and weigh, then quickly run back, not because he has an issue with me weighing but because I am always secretive about it. Anyway now it lives by the sink and regularly calls to me to have a look at the numbers. I hover between sinking into the deepest darkest depression because I have put on and being so turned on the next step is *cough* going back to bed. Worst still losing is like a triumph and a personal disaster all in one go - me, weight conflicted? Never :doh:
I've had these feelings before and find them problematic. It's why I only weigh myself maybe once per week. Scale and number obsession sucks and doesn't really do anything, IMO, but cause anxiety. Ultimately, to me, the numbers are only just so important. The thing that is the best indicator is that I know I am able to lose weight; I just have to do what I need to do in order to have a result. It's the doing and being consistent that is the hard part. Weight and number obsession is counter-productive, IMO, and for me causes feelings that only make me feel bad about myself. That never helps anything.

[msbard90]

Personally, I don't like to weigh myself. Like other posters have mentioned, it can be an extremely addictive and unhealthy obsession. For me, it was. As a child, I was bullied by my sisters to weigh myself in front of them, and was ridiculed- severely. Because of my childhood experiences, I became obsessed with my appearance and the number on the scale as a teenager. If I weighed over 120 pounds, I was fat. Then, when I developed anorexic habits, I would say if I was over 110 lbs, I was fat. But what made me decide THOSE numbers? Looking back, when I weighed 110 lbs or less, I looked disgusting. I was pale and sickly looking. My obsession with the scale was so intense I would weigh myself when I woke up, after using the bathroom, after eating, before bed etc.. I would fluctuate a few pounds here and there. I would use diuretics then weigh myself. It was an extremely unhealthy obsession, and I am glad to say that scales are no longer welcome in my life.

[Sensualbbwcurves]

Nope..I don't own a scale. For me it would b e quite disturbing to own one especially on my down days..so no scale for me.

[Candy_Coated_Clown]

Here are the things I'm wondering: Do you own a scale? Why or why not? How's that working out for you?



Yeah, I do own a scale. I will get on it once in awhile for the same reasons as the OP...to check where I am for health reasons, but I'd like to get to the point where I depend on it rarely. I've had a lot of control and obsession issues with the scale over the years. The scale used to be something that could make or break my day and turn my mood upside down, in and out and all around town. It totally ruled what I felt my self worth would be on a particular day. Definitely do not want to go back to that head space.

I still get twinges of that kind of thinking now and then as it never completely goes away, but I've come a long way.

I am sure there was a point where scales weren't needed at all in our society, well at least in this regard as empiricism, science and the like have been around for quite some time in many cultures.

People were so tuned in with their bodies and how they felt, that they had a highly intuitive understanding of where they were "supposed" to be weight wise FOR THEM. Being fit and fat is very much a reality and I hope, more and more, that the awareness of this factual reality expands. So many people consider fit and fat to be an oxymoron.

Another thing is the scale ruined me earlier on because I've always been someone who weighs A LOT...way more than what I look like. Most people are surprised if they find out my true weight, so when I was much younger and more impressionable, that caused me to feel like a freak among all the other girls who were these dainty and predictable weights. I always wondered, "Why do I weigh so damn much?"

Let's not talk about the BMI chart. That chart so doesn't apply to me and where I should or need to be in weight for my particular body type and to be healthy. I've come to accept that and am fine with it.

These days I like to go by how my body feels and what the fit of my clothes convey, more often than what the scale says, although I do check infrequently. If I can't function on a basic level and do the things I need to do day to day and my body feels worn, battered and beat down by weight, then I know I need to lose some weight for health until those issues are no longer a problem. But I no longer strive to be thin or petite just for the sake of it. Just healthy in mind, body and spirit.

[bobbleheaddoll]

neither friend nor foe...have never owned one. :)

i had a hard time reading some of these posts. i am sorry to see that the number some little box tells you inspires such thoughts in you girls.

you need to keep it in perspective. weight is variable. it goes up and down. it is meant to. how you feel should be a much better gauge than some little number. weight is also subjective...what is small to me may be big to you. just keep it in your heads.

you don't need a scale to judge yourself girls. if you think you are unhappy as you are and feel like you want to lose a little, go for it. you will know if it is working, even without the little box. i do agree changes in your body are a much better gauge than the scale.

life it too short to worry about a scale my darlings. live your life and your body will find it's natural balance.

[Lamia]

No, I don't own one and never will. I hate weighing scales - they remind me of all the awful, numbing, humiliating doctors' visits I had to endure when I was younger. I'll never forget being 15 and standing on one while this bitch of a female doctor walked around me, nudging at my stomach, telling me how I didn't have a hope of finding any kind of happiness if i didn't lose 40kilos tomorrow. She kept saying to me: "Do you want to be one of those women we have to weigh with the scales they use in the zoo or the train station? Like an animal thats too fat to fit on something meant for normal people?" :( That memory still brings tears to my eyes so no, I don't own one. I keep an eye on my weight by measuring myself. If the centimetres are creeping up I'll step on my sister's to see whats potting but otherwise - no fucking way.

Hearing that makes me want to punch that doctor in the face. :mad: I totally understand I had to be taken down to a loading dock and weight one time. I weighed 304 lbs. I was 18. When you're young these sorts of humiliations are so much more painful I think.

[mollywogger]

my scales became like a barometer for me.

if i was down a few.. i would have a good day and be YAY!

if i was up a few.. i would start of with a down mood.. and not feel as perky.

it became a real issue for me.. is i shoved the scales outside.. and now try not to weigh.. best thing i did. for me

[aussieamazonwoman]

I do not own a scale. For me, over the years I have learnt that what I weigh is not a good measure of how well I am looking after myself. I went through a stage in my very early 20's where I lost a lot of weight by not eating. My entire sense of self hinged upon seeing the number go down. I was really unhealthy then.

A couple of years ago I joined a gym and I noticed over the year that my old obsession with numbers was creeping up on me. I started to weigh myself every time I went in there.

Now, sometimes I will ask my doctor if I can check my weight when I go to see her. She is the one who gets happy when the number is lower. I try to focus on eating superb food and moving my body a bit so it feels good.



Here are the things I'm wondering: Do you own a scale? Why or why not? How's that working out for you?

*This Question is for my fellow BBW/SSBBW. While I realize women and men of all sizes can have complicated relationships with weight/scale, I am posting this in the BBW forum because I want to talk about this issue particularly from a BBW/SSBBW perspective.*

[CastingPearls]

I own a scale. I use it. I also own and use a full-length mirror.

I can only speak for myself but for years I feared the scale. After every mandatory weigh-in at school (results announced by nurse to class), I was a big fat target for weeks. After many years I realized that it was not my enemy. It stated a fact and did so without judgment.

So I use it. I'd like to be smaller than I am now for comfort and health, but by no means thin. I don't actively diet but rather watch what I eat and use the scale as a tool. When I reclaimed it, it lost its effectiveness as a weapon.