Physical obsession gone - Help with Mental health

[PhillyPUFF]

Hi guys,

I haven't been on the boards in a while, but I thought I'd come back to share how things are going in my life. I'm about 10 months post-op and feeling really good about my chest. I have no problem wearing single layer tighter fitting t-shirts and tank tops - its great. I went to the beach last weekend for the first time since m surgery. It was a little weird at first, but after I realized no one was staring and I was 'normal' I really started enjoying myself. I still need to go shirtless some more before I'm fully comfortable, but I'm way more confident and realy looking forward to the summer.

The bigger piece of the pie is my mental state. Sometimes I'm still pretty self conscious about my chest - thinking people are looking at me and judging me. After i look in a store/car window and see my flat chest, the feelings go away. I'm also still very shy when it comes to meeting girls. I know it will take some more time to fully 'heal' but I'm curious if anyone has any advice about helping with my mental state. Has anyone went for therapy or something similar after they've goen surgerys? I really want to work on not being so isolated and building up my confidence and my social life. Having a girlfriend would be pretty sweet too

I hope everyone's doing well and I really appreciate any advice.

[mrpower33]

Hey, I know what you are going through, I have lots of body issues and so do most people who are here.  If you can afford therapy, that would be the best.  If you can't, I would say, work on your body as best you can.  But at the same time, acknowledge that no one is perfect and everyone has flaws, both physically and otherwise.  Next, you need to talk to yourself daily, tell yourself that you are healthy and normal.  Speaking to yourself internally on a daily basis will eventually change how you think about yourself if you are disciplined enough.  Finally, stop worrying about it and focus on making yourself a well rounded person.  Work on your career, take up a new and interesting hobby, make a list of things you want to find in a girlfriend and then set out to BE THOSE THINGS.  As soon as you stop focusing on your deficiencies and start working on making yourself an exciting and interesting person, the sooner you will forget about your foibles and realize you really do have a lot to offer. 

[Cellar_Door]

I personally would not recommend the anti-depressants. There's a huge risk of becoming dependent on them. And they will then severely control all aspects of your mental health - without them you'll be a mess.