How can I gain weight?

Hahaha.. I loved it when you said 'enjoy it while it lasts' truly that's the irony of life. There are people who complain that either they're too fat or too thin. But when times change and they get what they want (and more) they're complain again. *LOL* True, I guess you should learn to enjoy it. You don't have to change your body type as long as you're 'healthy'. You can just change the way you dress to compensate for your 'liabilities'. Good luck. Truly man's wants are insatiable. =)

Ersmommy and Laydee, thanks for great comments! I'm trying to enjoy having an underweight problem rather than having an overweight problem. Looking at the genetics in my family, I don't think I'll ever have a problem with becoming overweight. I enjoy eating bread, so I'll keep scarfing down those carbs -lol. Finding the time to exercise will be tricky as I work full time and then some when I get home. Thanks again for your suggestions! I really appreciate your ideas.

Exercise would be ideal if I only had the time! I'd love to join a gym or something. I also heard eating fatty foods is really unhealthy no matter how much weight I would gain doing so. Thanks for your input!

I completely agree with you. Worry should not be a part of life because it causes stress and ultimately has a negative effect on the body. In my case, worry and stress would cause me to lose weight. Thank you for the insight.

When I was in high school...there was another girl in class (besides me) who was very thin. One day the teacher talked to her in class about her weight (we were a girls only class...so that was fine)...and said she was too thin for her own good. That's when another girl asked the teacher why she was talking about only that particular girl....I was thin too....the teacher replied that the other girl looked 'weak and anaemic'....though I didn't. I was just thin....but looked healthy...while the teacher was concerned about the other girl's health. So, what I'm trying to say is...it doesn't matter if you are thin as long as you are healthy. You can have children...being thin is not a hindrance to that. My older son has always been thin (though you wouldn't think that's possible the way he eats). I'm happy that he's healthy and able to be active. My dad's slim too and I've never even seen him plump (I've taken after him in this)...and he's had quite a few major health problems that he didn't even know of and was discovered when checking for something else (a hole in his heart since birth which was discovered when he was 55....a block in an artery discovered when he thought he had malaria..etc)....and all the doctors said that the only reason he didn't know about these problems and lived this long (he's 62 now) is because he has a healthy lifestyle and he's not overweight.

Well that definitely raised my spirits! Thanks so much, SV. I'm happy to hear of your dad's excellent health. Wow, that's just wonderful for him. I agree with you that being thin is much better than being obese if you're going to have health issues! Sometimes people will say that if you get sick and lose a bunch of weight, it's better to start out plump so you have more weight to "spare." I don't know how true that is, but would love to hear your take on this. Also, you oldest son sounds like my fiance! He eats like a pack of wolves and has nothing to show for it! (LOL) I'm so grateful for your comment, however, because it really helps me to see that my weight really isn't the problem. After all, if I did start gaining weight, I don't know where I'd put it all (LOL), and I also don't know how I'd get my hands on a cheap new wardrobe. Oh well...I don't have to think about that now, do I? Thank goodness! The other thing is that I know I'll be buying maternity clothes soon enough, so might as well not even have to bother with two new wardrobes. Thanks for your insight. I really enjoyed reading your kind comment!

I'm glad to hear there's hope for me! (LOL) I think that's a common trend, that most people are telling me "just wait, the weight will come in time." I suppose marriage and children are my only hope...hopefully I'll weigh enough and be healthy enough to have children. People have told me that I'm too thin to be healthy enough to have a child. I beg to differ, though! I'm perfectly healthy, just underweight. It's not necessarily a problem unless I stay the same and don't gain anymore weight for years or if I were to start dropping the weight. That wouldn't be good, but I'll do my best to heed your instructions and be satisfied with my weight for the time being! At least I have hope that I'll gain some more soon! Thanks, SV.

As in my case., I tend to put on weight very easily, I mean, if I increase food intake. It's quite instant and kinda shows. On the contrary it's been difficult to reduce weight. No amount of strict diet or exercise does it significantly. As in your case. it's indeed scary to lose weight when you are sick. I just hope you do not fall ill frequently, if so pls assess total health factors, that's important. The immune system needs to be checked. Now this is getting serious. I am sure you are healthy, just eat right and get going. Lots of love.

I sincerely appreciate your concern. Yes, I'm very healthy, but if I were to become unhealthy from loss of weight or any other condition, it would become a problem to be underweight. I definitely agree with you, and it is really scary when I lose so much weight so quickly when I'm sick. I understand how it's hard for you to lose weight while it's hard for me to gain weight. A lot of it has to do with habits, genes, diet, etc. There are so many factors! I guess it just doesn't make sense to me how one person can weigh too much and another can not weigh enough, but at the same time, they're both trying to cope with it and change it to the ideal weight! Of course, there are very few people on this earth who have the perfect weight for their build. They're very rare because it takes work to maintain that kind of diet and shape. Great comment - thanks!

You're right. It most certainly is a useless burden that I've been carrying. You're also correct that I'm not unhealthy. My slim built really puzzles the doctors, but they can tell that clinically I'm not unhealthy and never have been. The only thing that scares me is when I get sick. I can lose 10 or 15 pounds in one day. I hate that. I can always lose weight quickly, but gaining it back is the hard part. Must sound like a good problem to have, right? (LOL) Thanks for your response. You are too kind!

Yes, I actually drink protein shakes from Herbalife. I don't know if you've heard of that or not, but I gained 10 lbs. in about three weeks. I want to keep gaining weight (and quicker), so I'm thankful for your suggestion. I will continue to drink them because they say that the more I drink per day, the better. I've also had a few suggestions of a 3,000-calories-per-day diet. It's a whole lot, but I think the shakes will definitely help! Thanks.

I like how you referred to the necessary balance in diet that the human body must have. I agree. If I'm eating enough of each, the weight will come in time. As I commented on a previous response, it's all a matter of my eating more calories than I consume each day. Thanks for your response!

Would you like to trade places? (LOL) I'd love to be able to look at, smell, think about, and dream about food in order to gain weight, then I wouldn't have to do all the work of cramming it in at least five times a day to keep up with my psycho metabolism! I wish I had advice on how to speed up your metabolism, but unfortunately, mine is just in the genes. I think it might be related to a thyroid on steroids. (LOL) Thanks for your response, Polly!

I've been looking for the kind of shakes you mentioned, but I have to be careful as I'm allergic to cow's milk. I know that sounds really weird, but I have to be picky because of it! (It's also much different than being lactose intolerate, unfortunately.) I also like what you mentioned about high-calorie foods. If you have any specific foods like that, I'd love to hear about it because my doctor told me the important thing is for me to eat more calories than I burn each day. That'll be the key to my gaining weight. Thanks for the advice!

LOL - Thanks for the excellent response, Taz! I'm trying to wait for the weight to come on, but I'm so impatient it seems like it will never come! I fear that I will never gain another pound for the rest of my life because I'm 22 and still underweight...always have been. My biggest fear is not being able to have children although I'm perfectly healthy at my current weight. Thanks again!