need to say this

[razzelflabben]

I do not get hungry, like almost never, literally 2 maybe 3 times I year, I feel hunger. I eat whatever I want and still end up with less than x calories average. In fact, my family (one side) suffers the same thing...my grandmother averages xxx-xxx calories a day and still was considered obese. I myself weigh way too much most of the weight put on with babies and going off the pill.

Many years ago, I got so bad that I was anorexic, literally eating x bites of food a week. Didn't loose any weight. When I got sick before, I went to the Dr. the first Dr. said it was because I was fat, to cut back on what I was eating and I'd be fine. I asked him how to cut back on x bites a week, his reply, when you do eat, eat less. The second Dr. was a family Dr. familiar with the problem and he told me to force myself to eat, which I did and started feeling better.

Well that is a bit of history, now for the present day struggle. I had afib recently diagnosed. The cardiologist is saying that my weight is a major factor and I have to cut the weight. I asked how, he said xxx or less calories would do it. I counted calories for about a month, 2 days my normal calorie intake was over xxx and that was mostly because my husband worries I will become anorexic again.

Well, long story short, the Dr finally listened, my average intake is xxx btw. The Dr. says, if it isn't calories it has to be hormones, find a Dr. that will test and treat the hormones, and in the meantime take your calories down to x and see what happens. So now, with the lure of anorexia constantly in my face, I am suppose to cut my calories again. It would be nothing for me to become anorexic again, much less go under xx every day, even today, I doubt I'll hit xxx without my husband pushing me to eat more.

I don't want that fight again and to make matters worse, I was just starting to accept myself, and now, I find myself detestable. Had a dear friend try to offer encouragement and it only made me detest myself even more. I hate being fat. I hate fighting to eat anything. I hate food. In a week or less, I could be easily eating nothing again, and the worst part, my daughter is falling into some of the same habits I had at that age.

I liked thinking I had worth, no matter how much I weighed, but now, it's all starting over again and no one wants to see what's wrong because it's so much easier to just blame the fat chick....

Well, I'm not going to go on, if I do, I'll end up crying and my children will worry more than they already are...they try to help, I just....


edited to delted trigger causing numbers! -sheepdog

 

[BeautifullyMe]

I have a couple of questions for you...

Have you had your thyroid checked?
Have you been tested for food allergies?
Do you know when you are due for a colonoscopy?
Do you have any other health issues, especially related to your digestive system (ie: IBS, chronic fatigue, trouble speaking, walking, or focusing, achy muscles or joints, acid reflux issues, dry skin, brittle hair, etc?)

I ask these questions because I have done a lot of research into food allergies that create many symptoms. Thirty percent of patients with Celiac Disease (gluten intolerence) become overweight or obese as a reaction to the disease (which essentially starves the body of nutrition.) One in every On Hundred and Thirty Three Americans have celiac disease, including some that produce false negatives on bloodwork and many of them do not realize that the disease is affecting them. I have urged more than a few people who have struggled with gaining weight while only eating tiny meals to get tested for celiac and most of them found out at the Drs. that they DO have the disease. For people like my husband who struggled with weight gain for years, the pounds were easily shed once the offending food(s) were taken out of the diet. Today our family refrains from eating gluten, soy, dairy, and corn (corn syrup is in everything and is a huge cause for weight gain even if you aren't allergic). I still struggle to keep my weight up because of my ED but my body has greatly healed from a lot of the physical problems I was experiencing pre diagnosis. My husband continues to lose weight while eating normal meals and with very little time to go to the gym and is almost at a healthy weight for his size.

You may or may not suffer from food allergies but since you have tried so many other things that don't seem to work, perhaps the answer does not lie in making yourself eat ANYTHING, but choosing to eat things that are sure to agree with your body - and then maybe your body will agree with you. Common food allergies include wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt, corn, soy, dairy, tree nuts, fish & shellfish, nightshade veggies, preservatives, & food colorings.

Good luck and take care.
-Anna

 

[razzelflabben]

I have a couple of questions for you...

Have you had your thyroid checked?

with general blood tests

Have you been tested for food allergies?

no, but I have them and have told every Dr. the ones I know.

Do you know when you are due for a colonoscopy?

no

Do you have any other health issues, especially related to your digestive system (ie: IBS, chronic fatigue, trouble speaking, walking, or focusing, achy muscles or joints, acid reflux issues, dry skin, brittle hair, etc?)

I have fatigued muscles and have had for as long as I can remember. Dry, brittle hair especially after I had my kids.

I ask these questions because I have done a lot of research into food allergies that create many symptoms. Thirty percent of patients with Celiac Disease (gluten intolerence) become overweight or obese as a reaction to the disease (which essentially starves the body of nutrition.) One in every On Hundred and Thirty Three Americans have celiac disease, including some that produce false negatives on bloodwork and many of them do not realize that the disease is affecting them. I have urged more than a few people who have struggled with gaining weight while only eating tiny meals to get tested for celiac and most of them found out at the Drs. that they DO have the disease. For people like my husband who struggled with weight gain for years, the pounds were easily shed once the offending food(s) were taken out of the diet. Today our family refrains from eating gluten, soy, dairy, and corn (corn syrup is in everything and is a huge cause for weight gain even if you aren't allergic). I still struggle to keep my weight up because of my ED but my body has greatly healed from a lot of the physical problems I was experiencing pre diagnosis. My husband continues to lose weight while eating normal meals and with very little time to go to the gym and is almost at a healthy weight for his size.

how do you get a Dr. to test for it, every Dr. I have found tells me to just cut the alories and move on? Was even told when I was anorexic to stop eating so much, and move on...

You may or may not suffer from food allergies but since you have tried so many other things that don't seem to work, perhaps the answer does not lie in making yourself eat ANYTHING, but choosing to eat things that are sure to agree with your body - and then maybe your body will agree with you. Common food allergies include wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt, corn, soy, dairy, tree nuts, fish & shellfish, nightshade veggies, preservatives, & food colorings.

Good luck and take care.
-Anna

In addition, the research I have done, hits the symptoms right down the line for excess stress hormone, in fact, my husband read and article in a readers digest and got excited about finding so many of the symptoms matched mine, it built up his hope, but no one will test for it to see. How do you get someone to test?

 

[BeautifullyMe]

I'm not sure how your Drs work where you are, but in my experience I have had to be assertive and take the lead to get any help, even with specialists. If I were you I would walk right in the door to your primary and say "I don't feel well, I'm pretty sure I know why. I want you to do the blood test for celiacs disease and I want to be refered to a nutritionist and a specialist who deals with allergies." Don't ASK them to do it. TELL them to do it. Many Drs who are not told what to do choose the wait and see approach because they are not trained to understand obscure illnesses. You have to do research and take charge, for your sanity and your health. If you think there is something going on, your DR is not allowed to just snow the issue over - but you need to be assertive to convey that message.
-Anna

 

[razzelflabben]

I'm not sure how your Drs work where you are, but in my experience I have had to be assertive and take the lead to get any help, even with specialists. If I were you I would walk right in the door to your primary and say "I don't feel well, I'm pretty sure I know why. I want you to do the blood test for celiacs disease and I want to be refered to a nutritionist and a specialist who deals with allergies." Don't ASK them to do it. TELL them to do it. Many Drs who are not told what to do choose the wait and see approach because they are not trained to understand obscure illnesses. You have to do research and take charge, for your sanity and your health. If you think there is something going on, your DR is not allowed to just snow the issue over - but you need to be assertive to convey that message.
-Anna

I've tried that, in fact, as of right now, I've been refered to a pulminary guy who does allergies, asthma (I have all the symptoms of both) and other lung related issues. I went in, demanding that he look into the issues that are showing symptoms, he was so convinced (because of my weight) that I had sleep apnea that he refused to do anything but a sleep apnea test (which I have had three of now, and all turned up neg.)... to make matters worse, we have government insurance, which limits our choices to 2 Dr. (we have been trying for over a year to get into one of them to have our son refered to a specialist. Finally we got a referal from the ER Dr. who got tired of our coming in.) In the meantime, the cardiologist is saying, it's your weight, probably due to hormone imbalance, keep looking til you find someone who will test for it and in the meantime, but back in calories. This week, I cut back some, not even all the way, and the combination of meds and too few calories is what we think is driving my pulse and BP to drop...but it's not "dangerously low" so no worries, in the meantime I feel like crap, have made backward progress on eating and self image, and I'm done talking about it for the moment....I'm tired of all my worth, all my problems being that I am fat, and if I would just "cut back", everything would be okay....to make matters even worse, my husband and children are watching like hawks that I don't become anorexic again and no Dr. that I can find will do anything but what they want to do. I have to stop talking about it right now...sorry, I do appreciate all your posts, I just need to stop for the moment....

 

[roseglass6370]

I just happened to pop in on this forum and came across your post.

I would suggest getting opinions from as many different doctors as your insurance allows and ensuring that they know the history of your past diagnoses from the others. If they've all been suggesting the same routes of treatment and none have worked, it's their responsibility to find other answers.

Follow BeautifullyMe's advice in demanding to have other tests done. The calorie cutting is obviously not working and is causing more difficulties for you.

I would also HIGHLY recommend seeing a psychologist or counselor to address your self-image problems. Those can be just as detrimental to your health (if not more) than your physical issues.

Hope this helps.

-Brooke

 

[razzelflabben]

WEll, my husband got a second job, and my calories have dropped even lower, you see, he knows I struggle to eat, and so when he is home, he "compels" me to eat more. Most days I have dropped below the mark, but what really worries me is that I see the same starting in my almost thirteen year old daughter. In our family, there is history of eating problems, they begin with never feeling hungry, and escalate from there. I have had nothing to eat at all, and feel no hunger. My husband and I will be going out and I will be eating this evening, but the "work" involved in eating just isn't worth it.

Well, I just thought I'd update anyone who cared, and ask anyone with a notion to pray for my daughter that we might be able to curb her issues. It isn't about weight, (though I would love to and need to loose weight) it isn't about self image (though I do not think much of myself) it is about not feeling like eating, never being hungry, and the Dr. coming along and telling me to loose weight, cut more calories, which never works. My grandmother was hospitalized for not eating enough and was still considered obese...how is this possible? Why can't they either find out what is "wrong" or leave us to suffer the humiliation of obesity without condemnation?

 

[Bamboo_Chicken]

I'm sorry this has been such a struggle and it seems like you haven't really been given any answers. Have you told your doctor that his suggestions don't seem to be working, and have you considered getting a second opinion from another GP or a nutritionist?

 

[razzelflabben]

I'm sorry this has been such a struggle and it seems like you haven't really been given any answers. Have you told your doctor that his suggestions don't seem to be working, and have you considered getting a second opinion from another GP or a nutritionist?

Yep and yep...but I am finding strength and answers in our Lord. Even as I write this, we have found at least a partial solution in which our daughter has an appetite (mine is coming along) and she is still loosing weight, even though she is eating. that is a miracle in our family....God is good, He will prevail...