Shrinking from Compliments

I had one person comment on my weight loss when I lost about 8 pounds.  I hadn't noticed much of a difference myself, besides in the way my jeans fit, so she must be very perceptive.  She was the only one who said anything at all until now and I was good with that.  It makes me uncomfortable when people, especially people I don't know all that well, comment on my weight.  All of the sudden people have started commenting.  My sister asked why I had to get "skinny" while she was pregnant.  My brother-in-law said "What's up, Slim?"  My brother had enough tact to just say "Happy Easter, Sister.  You look great!"  So, though the comments ran the gamut, I was fine with them all since I am close to them.

On the other hand, it makes me really uncomfortable when acquaintances take note.  It usually starts with an up and down eye assessment and ends with something with the word "skinny" in it.  I've been told I need to stop "shrinking" and should "stop now."  One of the nicest compliments was from a casual friend who came up to me and said "You are beautiful."  I looked around to see who she was talking to.  I didn't reply in case she wasn't talking to me.  She then looked at me straight in the eye and said "Well, you are."  I think I need to learn to take compliments better.  They are all attempting to compliment me and I need to be more gracious in my acceptance.

Now......the day that I got the comments from two separate people saying I should stop shrinking and stop losing weight now, I think it took up some space in my head and affected my eating decisions.  That was the day that I was starving at the skating rink and ate cheese dipped in nacho cheese, seriously!  And when my cheese filled breadstick ran out long before my nacho cheese ran out, I scanned the vending machines to look for something else that could possibly dipped in cheese.  Thankfully, I regained some composure and pawned the cheese off on my eldest son.  I wonder though, how much those words played in knocking out my food plan that day.  It is good for me to be aware of this, so that I can react better in the future.

I will practice properly thanking people for their comments.  What is a proper response to "You need to stop shrinking now" though?  Thank you just doesn't seem right, though I am sure it is intended to be a compliment.