I can sympathize with not looking good in photos, because I don't photograph at all well. I think some people just don't, so if you look fine in the mirror and you're happy with who you see there, try to ignore the photos. :3

The key to dieting that I've noticed work more than anything else (and is healthier and more prolonged than crash diets or anything like that) isn't so much eating less food, but smaller portions more frequently. Another good thing is to only eat when you're hungry, and only eat until you're not hungry anymore, not until you're like "oh god so full, going to explode". :P I do that regularly, because I'm stupid. Don't be me. :D

I can't really say whether or not any of this works for sure, though, because I've never dieted but uh.. it's what I've heard, and it sounds like a good idea. Also, if you drink soda at all (it's hard to give up, I know) you can drop an easy ten pounds just by not drinking it anymore. That's what happened to my roommate. Lots of fluids in your diet (including fresh vegetables of some sort) make a big difference, too. Even just eating celery or baby carrots can get lots of water into you, plus they are tasty.

As for age, don't sweat it too much. Five years isn't a huge difference unless you're young, and then everybody makes a big deal out of it. When you're older and you say you're five years apart people won't even care, and it'll be less obvious to you that you're older. For instance if a man is twenty and his wife is twenty-five, does anybody care? :3

Anyways, sorry to babble at you. xD I hope you feel better soon. :3

The amount eaten may help or not. But mayhaps how you eat.

I keep myself at a 1,200 calorie diet, mainly, but I proportion it out. During the breakfast time (I don't eat breakfast) I'll have a honey bun or a snack of some sort. Then lunch rolls around. A single meat bit, and some starch, with light veggies and diet soda. Dinner is the same, but more with veggies. Then I have a little snack afterwards. I've been shedding.

A good way to lose is through cardiovascular exercise. One way to achieve this is through .. ahem. Trust me. My ex and I slimmed down a great deal thanks to that. Mia.

You shouldn't think so down on yourself. If he's pleased with you, then why can't you accept it and join him in that happiness? :) You know what I think of you already, so that's two people! Nyah.

I think you're doing fine. I mean, come on. You have someone, I don't. Shouldn't that say enough? ;)

-Zi

A word from a wise old Fox... or at least old...

Never mind all of that. I learned a long long time ago that the love of my life is who they are no matter what they look like. There is no explaining it. If he treats you well, and you do the same back, your mutual love will never die.

*gives her a hug...

V.

to be honest, i can relate in the field of love, and mostly with the age thing. i was with somebody who was 7 years younger than me (i'm 25), but the maturity wasnt all there for them, and that kinda made things a little difficult, but if that person really loves you for you, then dont sweat the small stuff, ya know? and i never had much love experience in hs myself, dealing with nonsense for the most part ^^

You know, I woulda commented a while ago, except that somehow this got lost in the epic fucking fail that is the long list of people I watch who seem content with posting a half dozen journals in a single minute. Otherwise, I woulda posted this a loooong ass time ago. Like, a day after it was made.

Cuz, unfortunately, I have very little amounts of a life right now.

Which is actually relevant.

See, the thing about love is how much it changes us. Both for the best and worst. A lover can make us feel like we mean something to someone. They can make us feel like we finally are alive. Best feeling ever. But at the same time we may also suddenly begin to doubt ourselves. We look at ourselves and think we're not worthy. Especially those of us that have no self-esteem. We may have confidence, but we have no self-esteem. The result is that for some reason we suddenly strive to become something we aren't. We try to change, to improve...

Except that most the time, we change something inadvertently that our lover loves us for. "We like people for their strengths, but love them for their imperfections."

And you know I'm right about this because I am so successful with love. *sob*

But I've witnessed enough of it. Experienced? Heh, in the true sense, not in over five years and I'm starting to depreciate into the state of "just fucking give up" after my last attempt. But I've witnessed and seen enough of it to have my own form of experience. It's like second-hand smoking. But instead it's second-hand knowing.

Age gaps don't usually mean too much. I know some dudes and girls who are two years younger than me and are more mature than my 30-year old supervisor at work. Of course, the same can be said in reverse. Can't fit every age group into a maturity section. Just doesn't work.

Now, maybe this is just jealousy talking because now everyone around me is suddenly getting into relationships and I just got turned down twice in the last four weeks after failing a relationship attempt with a girl I've been attracted to for nearly three years, but it's also probably the best advice you can follow: Quit fucking whining and be happy, dammit! *chuckles* Forget about what YOU see. What YOU see about YOURSELF fails to be important any more once you're in a relationship. It's what THEY see. And if you ask his honest opinion and he says "maybe a bit of weight loss..." then yes, lose some weight. But don't kill yourself doing it; that ain't gonna help nobody. Be yourself, be the person they fell in love with, and for fuck's sake, enjoy the love and forget the self-dislike.

Unless you want to have a success record like mine.