To be so depressed that I've got another 4 months (at least) on this?

[autumnsunsets]

I am doing a VLCD.

I have lost a stone and a half.

I have roughly another 4 stone to go.

AIBU to be depressed at the thought? I'm a SAHM and am finding the days incredibly long and dull without food to break them up and I am well aware that's how I ended up almost 6 stone overweight

And then there's the fact I am still massive despite having lost weight!

OP, it's not your hands that you need to keep busy but you head.
We've all been there, where you get so engrossed in what you're doing that you lose track of time and when you do check on the time, it's hours after your normal lunch/dinner time.
Find something to do that keeps your attention and stops you thinking about food.
When you are tempted to snack, get up and do something else.
Stick with it because it is so worth it in the end for the new lease of life it brings and the extra energy.

Your head not you head.

Well done on what you've achieved so far! I would set mini goals and think of a specific reward when you hit them. When I did WE I knew my target weight was miles away so started towards 5% of my body weight then 10%. It was achievable and felt good to think of how I'd actually got rid of some fat.
Every so often I would weigh out my weight loss in cookery books and would amaze myself at just how much a stone weighed.
Think of your non-scale victories too - they don't all have to be linked up to going down dress sizes. One I remember was when I noticed my collar bones becoming more pronounced...or when a bath towel went round me completely without any gaps!.
Other lit motivators can be as simple as putting a pound in a jar when you lose a pound

I got fed up with calorie counting after losing a stone and switched to 5:2 which suits me much better.

The problem is that VLCD are brutal. It is no wonder you are struggling. Rather than saying I have at least another 4 months of this can you not look at it as a years project where even 1lb a week would get you to goal? Its far more achievable than the inevitable falling off the wagon of a VLCD.

Couldn't you try something like weight watchers? I've lost 13lb since the 1st of August. I can't imagine a more miserable time than not being able to enjoy food. Congrats on your loss so far.

And I am being weighed tomorrow and I will have lost weight but I will still be fat!

Yes, but less fat than you were.
My guess is you put weight on over years, so expect years for it to come off.
Keep going.

I didn't really put it on over years, maybe a year. And I know that logically it takes time to come off. But it was a hell of a lot more fun putting it on

I feel more positive today.

VLCDs are the ONLY way I can lose weight!

One thing that has helped me is putting some treats into my diet - and going totally against the received wisdom, I don't think there is anything wrong with some of those treats being food - you simply change what you consider to be a treat.

For example, I buy myself punnets of cherries, and those little containers of cut up pineapple - they are fruit, and so have natural sugar in, but they also have fibre, and are good for you, so there's nothing wrong with having these as a treat. I have also got some pots of jelly in the fridge - I get the cherry jelly from waitrose - it is 160 calories a pot, but is so delicious that it is worth it.

Or if I am craving something sweet, I make a smoothie with really ripe bananas and semi skimmed milk (and a teaspoon of honey, if it needs it) - you can make a pint of this, but that will last me the whole afternoon, so whilst it does have a fair number of calories in it, it also provides a whole lot of pleasure for those calories.

I think it is also worth remembering that if you are sticking to your diet at least 80% of the time, then the odd slip up won't be the end of the world.

Not on a VLCD!

What happens when you get to goal though? Doesn't eating very low calories for months at a time mess up your metabolism so you then can't eat more without putting weight on and end up fatter than when you started?

I've lost 23lbs since Christmas, with some yo-yoing in April when I fell off the low calorie wagon. I have over a stone to lose still and it is coming off at 1lb a week now on 5:2 and has been for the last three months. The thing is I actually enjoy it though and mostly don't find it very hard which is why I can keep going for months and months. Maintenance of one "fast" day a week won't be a problem either. 5:2 keeps your metabolism going as well. I just think diets that are really hard on body and mind are doomed to fail.

Not much to add except to say you're doing incredibly well. Don't forget that. Dieting is fucking hard.

If your diet is VLC most of the time, an occasional healthy treat is not going to undo all the good you are doing, or substantially affect how fast the diet works - and it may help you to stick to the diet the rest of the time.

But we are all different, and what works for me, mightn't work for you - so maybe you need to find some alternative treats - a really lovely shower gel, so your shower is a luxurious experience, for example, or buying a new book or nail polish - anything that makes you feel rewarded for your achievements.