Hi Gloria. I did actually donate them to get them out of the house. I sent a box of clothes to forum member GeeWee who replied to a post, I sent a few boxes of clothes to a couple of my old roommates, and the rest went to Goodwill and Out of the Closet. Between the two of us, I think we donated about 15 large garbage bags worth of clothing since both of us had entire wardrobes that no longer fit us. It felt really good to be able to do something nice for people in need during these tough economic times. At the same time, it also felt really good to make room in our closets for the future. I am now 4 sizes smaller than when I started, and I have no desire to ever go back. My hope is that if I ever found myself gaining weight, that I would take steps to deal with the problem very early on. My goal is that the only times that I will gain weight once I reach goal are for pregnancies--and then I'll need maternity clothes, not my old size 22s.

I am glad that you are noticing the health benefits of the weight that you've already lost. That is such a great motivator to keep going.

--Melissa