Tuesday
Dec292009
When it comes to your wardrobe...
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
...don't go crazy and give away all your clothes when you are sick.
Last year, I lost 50 pounds. Rapidly. I was really really sick, and was losing weight like crazy. For a girl that had always been significantly overweight (topping out at almost 250 lbs in college), losing all that weight was kind of a weird dream-come-true, in a really fucked up kind of way. I suddenly became too skinny, dropping down to 145, and I looked like crap. Anyway, I've written about all that before.
In the depressed, disoriented state that I had grown used to functioning in last summer, I got rid of all my old clothes. Really nice pants, good dresses, tops, cute jackets, lots of vintage stuff, TONS of really great clothes. I'm kind of a clothes junkie, truth be told. I like quirky, unique things from thrift stores and garage sales and fancy boutiques and obscure designers. I've always had a really personal sense of style, and love collecting interesting clothing. But in my illness-induced madness, I just decided the best course of action was to get rid of everything I wasn't using or wearing. I thought I'd never need those clothes again, because I couldn't imagine gaining enough weight back to fit into that stuff. Plus, I needed to change my space. I felt so imprisoned, so desperate, so weighted down by sickness - I wanted a light, clean environment without clutter. So, I cleaned and purged. Did it help? A little bit. I still do it sometimes, and go crazy and take piles of stuff to Savers.
But is compulsive purging a good idea? Not always. Think before you give all that stuff away.
In my case, the weight is back, roughly 35 pounds of it now. As I struggle to squeeze into the jeans I bought only a couple months ago, and look at hte growing pile of clothes that don't fit anymore in my closet, I kick myself for getting rid of all that stuff. I want my old clothes back. I need my old clothes back. LIke those great black skinny jeans I got on sale for $15. That cute ochre and cream-colored houndstooth jacket. My favorite navy jersey dress. Shit. Gone, all gone. I don't have the money to go buy a new wardrobe at this point, no matter how vintage, used, and inexpensive thrift I can find it.
LESSON: Until you're healthy, don't purge your closet. Your weight will probably fluctuate until your body evens out and your system heals. Put your clothes in a box or a bin or a drawer, and save them somewhere. Because you never know when your delicate system might throw you a curveball, and make your weight change, yet again.
The waistband of my snug jeans is causing a muffin top as I write this. Sure, it is a gluten free muffin top (ba dum ching!), but a muffin top nonetheless. Not cool. There is a reason I usually wear stretchy leggings, flowy skirts, and little dresses - no binding, and never too tight!
xoxo
Kim
Last year, I lost 50 pounds. Rapidly. I was really really sick, and was losing weight like crazy. For a girl that had always been significantly overweight (topping out at almost 250 lbs in college), losing all that weight was kind of a weird dream-come-true, in a really fucked up kind of way. I suddenly became too skinny, dropping down to 145, and I looked like crap. Anyway, I've written about all that before.
In the depressed, disoriented state that I had grown used to functioning in last summer, I got rid of all my old clothes. Really nice pants, good dresses, tops, cute jackets, lots of vintage stuff, TONS of really great clothes. I'm kind of a clothes junkie, truth be told. I like quirky, unique things from thrift stores and garage sales and fancy boutiques and obscure designers. I've always had a really personal sense of style, and love collecting interesting clothing. But in my illness-induced madness, I just decided the best course of action was to get rid of everything I wasn't using or wearing. I thought I'd never need those clothes again, because I couldn't imagine gaining enough weight back to fit into that stuff. Plus, I needed to change my space. I felt so imprisoned, so desperate, so weighted down by sickness - I wanted a light, clean environment without clutter. So, I cleaned and purged. Did it help? A little bit. I still do it sometimes, and go crazy and take piles of stuff to Savers.
But is compulsive purging a good idea? Not always. Think before you give all that stuff away.
In my case, the weight is back, roughly 35 pounds of it now. As I struggle to squeeze into the jeans I bought only a couple months ago, and look at hte growing pile of clothes that don't fit anymore in my closet, I kick myself for getting rid of all that stuff. I want my old clothes back. I need my old clothes back. LIke those great black skinny jeans I got on sale for $15. That cute ochre and cream-colored houndstooth jacket. My favorite navy jersey dress. Shit. Gone, all gone. I don't have the money to go buy a new wardrobe at this point, no matter how vintage, used, and inexpensive thrift I can find it.
LESSON: Until you're healthy, don't purge your closet. Your weight will probably fluctuate until your body evens out and your system heals. Put your clothes in a box or a bin or a drawer, and save them somewhere. Because you never know when your delicate system might throw you a curveball, and make your weight change, yet again.
The waistband of my snug jeans is causing a muffin top as I write this. Sure, it is a gluten free muffin top (ba dum ching!), but a muffin top nonetheless. Not cool. There is a reason I usually wear stretchy leggings, flowy skirts, and little dresses - no binding, and never too tight!
xoxo
Kim
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