I never did, not for 48 years. About two years ago, my sister and I started being honest with each other. She was 'only' 40 pounds overweight.

Well, it felt so good to be honest with my sister, that I started telling people I am close to. Now I mention it to many people. Not total strangers on the street but if diet comes up . . . and it does, I come right out and report my high weight, my current weight and my goal weight.

It feels so good to be open. And my openness generates support that I would not otherwise have had.

I have also found that people who have never been 100+ pounds overweight don't really have any idea what a person 100+ or 150+ or 200+ etc really look like.

When I started telling people I weighed 300 (back when I did!), many people were surprised at my actual weight, they had thought I weighed much, muchless. Not that they gave it much thought but normal size folks who have always been normal sized folks just don't know what 300 pounds looks like on a 5'7" frame. Or whatever the weight/height ratio might be.

I have a 75 year old friend who is 5'8" and weighs about 180. She has more than one seriously debilitating disability. She can do no exercise. She beats herself up for being fat. I tell her that we don't know what other people weigh, that she is not all that fat for her age and height and health condition. We do so much damage to ourselves with self hatred.

I had another friend that I have not seen in fifteen years. I weighed about 240 when we were pals. She was a lot fatter than me so I concluded she weighed about 300. She slipped a couple of discs in her spine picking up a child at work. I took her to one of her doctor's appointments at a pain clinic. As they weighed her, I looked away, not wanting to invade her privacy but I caught a glimpse of the digital scale: 470. That's when I began to realize people don't know what 100+ overweight looks like.

I know many folks are ashamed of disclosing their real weight. This shame adds to our suffering, IMHO.

Just wanted to share how being truthful about my actual weight has set me free. Sunlight is the best disinfectant.