Physical Check-In #2

Good Morning, fern!
There you are!
You've been missed!

Fern, how are you feeling ??

BirdDancer have you beaten your infection?!

Hope you’re all having an ok day.

I’m officially fat! My endocrinologist dictated a letter to my other doctors in my presence and said “Pookyl as you know, is currently carrying extra weight. She is carrying 52kgs (114.6lbs) of excess weight..”

It’s one thing to know you’re fat, it’s another to KNOW that you’re fat.

How the hell did I end up like this?? Rhetoric question. I know the answer - 5 yrs of psych meds has made me fat.
I’m going to talk to my pdoc about decreasing my Seroquel. She may not agree as I’ve tried a lower dose and become wobbly. I’ve been episode free for just over 4mths.
Is it worth messing around with a working med combo? Maybe this time I’ll tolerate a decrease? Maybe ask to go IP to ensure a med change goes smoothly?

Feel like screaming at the walls in frustration. I’m doing all the right things and the weight just keeps on creeping up. With what little I eat I should be as slender as.

I’m not fitting into any of my summer clothes so hubby is taking me clothes shopping. Buying clothes in a bigger size is just depressing. That will make it jeans in 4 sizes in my cupboard.

It is hit or miss. It reminds me of morning sickness. I'm a little run down and then I have waves of nausea on and off all day. My husband came down with it today and it is hitting him a bit harder. He has three more days at work before he's off for a couple of weeks for the holidays. I hate to see him feeling bad. He can't just stop and take a nap in the middle of the day like I can. My kids each had it for 7 days. I'm on day 5 or so, so I should be back to good soon. Yay!

Thanks for checking on me... I've been really busy despite feeling ill and I've been mia a bit here. You've been on my mind though. I think of you and send you thoughts of wellness. You're so strong and a true inspiration to me. Thank you for being you!!!

I understand your frustration. Because of my ED my weight has fluctuated over the years but many psych meds have caused huge weight gain and has effected my liver

Seroquol was the first psych Med I took and I was very underweight so I freaked out big time , all my Doctors were all happy, all it did for me was causing me to be unsafe.

I do have metabolic syndrome from years of psych meds. So every 1 lb I want to lose will be feel like struggling to lose 3. That is what prompted me to dump my meds

The last 6 months ? I honestly cant blame psych meds for all the weight gain as I’ve been stress eating and most is comfort foods, so lots of pasta. The string of prednisone recently certainly doesn’t help anything.

After an exhaustive search of different diets , well I hate the word diet to me it’s just going to be a lifestyle change. A simple diabetic diet with more of a decrease in carbs will be very easy to follow.

I have to become physically active again, I have no choice but to wait for my lungs to work again, and get back on a biologic for this ridiculous pain.

I “ think” someone here took a picture of them selves pre Med to show their Pdoc proof as to how much of a difference psych meds has made , weight wise.

I know there are a couple meds that are for weight loose but I believe they are very activating which is a train wreck for so many people with Bipolar, and I’ve seen many insurance companies refuse to cover!!!! I guess they prefer to pay when someone has a heart attack or needs joint replacements.

Big Pharma makes me furious. They could easily be sitting on an amazing pill to deal with psych Med weight gain but they are making so much money with there meds for all the problems weight gain causes.

I’ll step off my soap box now, sorry I get riled.

Your Doctors need to sit up and do something to find that balance of psych meds that are going to keep you stable but allow for weight loss.

Thanks Fern

I insist that you and your family recover from this illness before the holiday !!!!

I also hate the word ‘diet’. It immediately makes me want to rebel against eating properly. I agree that the low sugar, healthy fats way of eating is the way to go.

Me too! We had the flu last year and had to skip all of our get togethers. I was running a fever of 104 on Christmas day. I refuse to repeat that. And... Everyone is coming to our house this year, so we need to rally!

Oh damn

This year you will all be in good health

Christina, how did your pulmonary specialist appoint go?

Thanks for asking

My Pulmonary functions test came back at 70 he prefers 80 and up but he says he thinks it’s due to the Humira. I have a big flare of psoriasis so it’s a good indication that Humira is leaving my system , he thinks I’ll be okay for a new biologic in January.

So I have to deal with the skin and pain for probably another 3-4 months while whatever has time to work.

But I am not getting worse thankfully

The breathing problem is rare Side effect ... of course I had to have it lol

Just going to suck with the skin flares while gone to Florida, it’s shampoo and ointment use numerous times a day.

Thanks for the update. It must be a relief to know the end is in sight? It’s such a shame that it takes time for biologics to work.

The light is dim but at least it’s not just a black tunnel to no where !

Fern, I'm sorry you got sick with a virus (or other), too. I hope you and your family members are on the road to recovery. There are still days to go before the holidays and New Years. I second that I hope we're all feeling much better and staying well in 2020.

Christina, I also hope that when you can finally get the treatment you need that you will see positive improvement in your health. It's a bugger that you have to wait longer.

I'm happy to say that my bronchitis/flu/cold is pretty much gone now. I'm still trying to take things slowly. I still get easily tired out from bigger projects.

Pookyl, I'm sorry about all of the extra weight you need to contend with. And I totally understand that feeling of wanting to rebel against diets. Has your doctor considered maybe adding a more weight friendly medication in addition to the Seroquel, as a means of slowly lowering the Seroquel dose? I see in your signature (if it's still up-to-date) that you're on three antipsychotics (two of which are Seroquel). How does the Saphris work for you? Is that weight neutral? Saphris is a medication I have never personally tried. I do know Seroquel XR and regular Seroquel quite well. I take a very small dose of Latuda as another antipsychotic. My guess is that Latuda is more helpful at keeping my bipolar depression away than curbing/preventing mania. Every time I start to get hypomanic or manic, my Seroquel XR dose goes up, or I take regular Seroquel as a prn.

I'm having a good week exercise-wise. My foot is still bothering me, but I have been able to find several good seated cardio and strength workouts that are keeping me in shape while I wait to heal. I'm also working in some yoga and core workouts. I kept saying I needed a change from my usual circuit training, and my foot forced me into it. I find it funny how life delivers what we ask for in strange ways.

WC, you were right. I definitely need better support in my shoes. I have a trip for new shoes and maybe some inserts on my list. I am crazy busy lately, but I hope to get to it soon. I know that will help. I've been wearing some very cushiony flip flops around the house and it helps. Alternatively, certain shoes seem to flare things up for the worse. I think a new pair of cross trainers would help a lot.

How's everyone feeling today? Hugs to all and I am sending continued thoughts of wellness.

I saw my gp today to get a script for migraine meds. We also talked about my lactose intolerance and how I wonder if I am sensitive to gluten too. She ordered a blood test to see if I am celiac. I doubt I am, but it would be good to know. For years, I have just ignored my food related abdominal pain, but it’s very easy to modify my diet when I’m living at my dad’s since he modifies his significantly. The lactose free and gluten free items are already in the house.

Hey there!
So glad you are having a good week with exercise.
Sorry your foot/feet still hurt.
I am forgetting. is the pain from fasciitis?
I hope all else is going well, too!

Hi Merlin,
It's nice to have you posting!

I am sorry you experience migraines. I had them almost daily for years.
I have read, and you probably have, too, that food sensitivities might contribute to migraines.. I don't know if it true. Surely seems like a trial away from the foods you feel bother you will also allow you to see if your migraines calm down some. I am not saying that food sensitivities cause migraines; I tend to think the sensitivities might be a migraine trigger for some people.

As for the celiac bloodwork, some practitioners feel the test available now does not catch all cases of gluten intolerance. Many doctors advise trying the gluten free diet even if the test comes back negative. I am sure you know this,.

I hope eliminating some foods will prove helpful to you!

What an ideal situation for trying an elimination type of a dietary regimen!

I have also gained a lot of weight with Seroquel.
I hate that med and what it does to people. All of my doctors hate it, too, except my pdoc.

I try to use the word "lifestyle" instead of diet. I think it is often true that people starting to change their diet are often also trying to exercise more, etc.

I find it a lot easier to stick to my weight watchers points when I'm staying with my parents. All those frozen dinners and restaurant foods are why I put on so much weight.

Hey! No, it's called metatarsalgia. It essentially feels like I am stepping on a sharp rock in the ball of my foot. It is kind of a searing pain. I've been doing a lot of jump training with my workouts and also cleaning barefoot and it's pretty aggravated. It comes and goes and usually heals quickly, but it is lingering this time. Hopefully some proper footwear and support will have me back to good soon.

How are you feeling? I know you've been pushing yourself physically.

I went shopping with my DH for ‘fat girl’ clothes yesterday. I decided against buying jeans in the next size up as the current ones fit me (just).
Something positive: My pdoc has started the slow process of weaning me off Seroquel. Hopefully that will make it easier to lose weight. My Seroquel has been dropped by 25mgs. If I tolerate this drop then in Jan I can drop it by a further 50mgs. The main negative that I’ve noticed so far is an increase in anxiety.

Saphris is an anti-psychotic. It is supposed to be more weight neutral than the other AP’s. It works also as a mood stabiliser for me particularly well at the manic end of things.

Uuuugh. I am so mad at myself. I’ve been eating so much and none of it low carb. I already gained a pound in just one week. If I continue this way through Christmas and New Years I may put on the six pounds I lost. Then I will have to struggle to lose them again. I hate how I have no self control. I just felt so defeated that I wasn’t losing weight even with lower carb that I completely went opposite. I wanted to lose ten pounds (in 2.5 months) by the time my physical on Jan 2 came up. I struggled to lose just six. I’m so frustrated! Plus there are so many sweets around at Christmas. I will be making cookies, fudge, and Christmas crackle for desserts for Christmas Eve and gifts for people. It will be a major struggle to not eat too many of them.

On top of everything my stomach is hurting like crazy, probably from all the food and carbs. Doesn’t stop me from eating it though! I’m a glutton for punishment, as well as a regular glutton

And I’m on the patch but still smoking here and there. I don’t smoke much bc i could accidentally take in too much nicotine but still, I can only go two or three days smoke free.

Ok ok all done with my self pity post. I know some of you are struggling with worse, especially Christina and wild coyote. I will be ok. I just have to make it through the holidays without completely wrecking my weight loss.