I have only been on a plane once. My hubby is a thin guy, I just put the armrest up and we had plenty of room. Even though I fit in 1 seat I would GLADLY pay for 2 if it meant more comfort for me. I have seen the ADA applied to some very heavy people at work with the purchase of special office chairs that are specifically designed for larger tushies. Luckily I am not, nor will I become, someone who needs that. I was impressed by the company purchasing those chairs (at over $500/pop). The company has since said that if someone requires a chair outside the normal ergonomic ones they provide then that person must purchase it themselves. At DLR, I know what I can and cannot ride. I know the rides that will hurt me because I am not comfy and those that will mess with my back and I simply avoid them.

The bypass surgery has been the thing to do at my work. The sad thing is out of the 10+ that have put their bodies thru that, only 3 have kept the weight off. Most are gaining it back and then some. I have thought about going that route, but for me, it isn't worth the risk. I have a Hubby who loves me, no matter what size I wear. I am more comfortable in my own skin than I have ever been in my life and David is a big reason for that. I am not saying I don't want to lose weight, but as long as I am not gaining I am happy.

Hope I'm not getting too personal here, but I'm curious as to your position on bariatric surgery.

Do you have any health effects associated with your weight? For example, I know that the high blood pressure and border line diabetes made the surgery worth while fo rmy relative and outweighed any risk. Also, it wasn't just a surgery....she had to sign papers committing to go through an entire program including nutritional and exercise classes, presurgical counseling, and a year of support group meetings, among other things. I think just having the surgery alone would be too scary.....the other things in the program has made it pretty successful for her thus far.

I am glad you are comfortable with yourself and that your husband loves you no matter what. It is sad that some feel the need to have surgery for a cosmetic purpose rather than a health one.

Re: airplane seats

In theory, I don't have a problem with objective requirements that people be required to pay for the space they occupy.

However, my experience is that these policies are applied subjectively and frequently illustrate the biases that are the subject of this discussion.

For example: I'm short. Weight on me looks different than it does on someone taller whose butt might be just as wide as mine. But their butt "appears" smaller.

Second: My butt does fit in an airplane seat. It takes up the whole seat, I'll grant you, but it fits. (I still have a lot of muscle in my tush, so when I sit I go more "up" than "out," if that makes sense.) Meanwhile, my more normal-sized husband has room to spare in the butt, but does the guy sprawl where he is incapable of confining his legs to the the floor space aligned with his seat. It annoys me to no end and I'm married to him! I would be really ticked if he was a stranger occupying my floor space, where I was planning on putting my own feet. (But since he's my husband I just kick him!)

Third: parents aren't obligated to buy seats for kids under 2. But if that's the case, they should keep the kid in "their" space, not stick their feet in my lap because sonny boy wants to take a nap and they weren't required to buy him a seat so it's okay. Um, not with me?

If they had some kind of "butt" measure like they use for carry-ons, and if the standard was clear, I would be hard pressed to object, even if it meant I had to buy two seats. But when the standard is Joe "looks" fat and Bob, who's taller but with equal rear real estate doesn't -- and when other people are allowed to occupy more than their space for their non-obesity-related comfort -- then I object.

I have BP issues, mostly brought on by work stress. The people who are gaining the weight back are the ones who had it for cosmetic purposes, the ones who are keeping it off did it for medical reasons. My Dr isn't concerned with my weight and I see her every 2-3 months (she is more concerned about my mental health and work related stress and depression).

You know, my LEGS don't fit in an airplane seat and, if my thyroid meds don't kick in soon, my butt won't either! I just need the entire plane supersized for me.

NA!! hehehe Luckily we flew business class, not economy. David would have had the same problem. Poor guy is allllllll legs. lol

LOL! THAT would go over REALLY well!

Actually, if I read those results correctly, the conclusion was that it's better to be slightly overweight than slightly under weight. It's still best, in terms of health risk, to be within the "ideal" range, and being singificiantly overweight is still a considered a major health risk. But it seems that carrying a few extra pounds might not be a big deal.

They also ranked it lower (than is currently asserted) on the list of things what kill you.