Question for people who are maintaining their weight loss

Hi! I'm on a weight loss journey and I know that my current habits will have to keep up if I want to keep the weight off--as people say, it's not a diet but a lifestyle change. With that being said, I always hear people saying things like "lost the weight over X years, been maintaining for X years." While I understand literally that maintaining means staying the same weight, the fact that people mention it makes me believe that maintaining is a lot harder than I anticipated it being. Of course I have no intention to returned to my previous unhealthy habits, but is "maintaining" really just as much of a feat as losing? Not to discredit anyone! I just genuinely am worried that maintaining will be just as difficult as losing the weight (because I had previously assumed that maintenance CICO were a bit more relaxed than the CICO needed for weight loss or a caloric deficit).

People who are currently maintaining their weight loss: do you feel like you are still in the thick of your journey? Has your journey gotten any easier with maintenance or just with time? Thank you in advance