Do some doctors just get a kick out of telling you to lose weight?

I doubt very much they 'delight in it' @Bbq1 but given 64%+ of adults in the are overweight or obese, I'm not surprised it's 'almost everybody' especially as the link between excess weight and poor health is well documented. Frankly, I'd be surprised if a doctor did NOT mention it. The size of the doctor is of zero irrelevance. Obesity levels are climbing and costing the NHS vast sums of money for treatment that could be avoided - I think it's something like £6billion! Anything they can do to support someone to lose weight should be applauded IMO and not mentioning it for fear of upsetting or offending someone is quite possibly part of the reason why it's a such a growing issue.

(not to say the dr in OP's post wasn't insensitive and could have shown greater empathy by asking if she needs any support to continue her weight loss journey and explaining the benefits to her health)

But it would make them a bit more credible because after all if loosing weight was that easy why are they not able to do it

Our GPs do this every bloody time, smoking, weight age etc. need a new hip, knee they ask these questions. In Wales it's to knock you off the referral list I've worked out. Because if you tell them you have private insurance they beam at you. Falling over themselves to be obliging.

I was told that I was obese by a practice nurse 35 years ago. It was the only wake-up call I had to motivate me to loose weight.

I’m glad she decided to weigh me and have that conversation. I’d probably still be carrying those extra 30 kg and more, and my life would have looked different.

Today, I think she’d be more cautious before saying anything.

Sounds like he just got on with his job in an efficient manner, considering how many patients he'll have to see.

Bollocks to that. It's NOT efficient not to remember the conversation from 8 minutes earlier and respond accordingly, "right, you've mentioned your weight - excellent work and keep it up as it's clearly important, as you know" does not take extra time or effort.. It's not efficient to handle medical matters in an entirely inpersonal manner - all it does is make people feel liek shit and reduce their liklihood of continuing to make changes.

And more importantly, it makes me wonder what else he missed during this appointment. Perhaps she said something else that was important about her healthcare, but he wasn't paying attention and so he missed it.

I speak as someone who had a condition in pregnancy that was missed because mid wife after mid wife didn't take my complaints seriously because they simply heard I'd had a test for this condition and they glossed over it after that. I was lucky enought to see a senior midwife in my final few weeks of pregnancy who listned to what I said, clocked the timing of my original test, realiesd it was entirely possible the test had been administered too early and sent me for restesting.... which then resulted in me receiving multiple panciked calls from the surgery later that day because they wanted to induce me practicalyl immediatley.

So not paying attention annoys the SHIT out of me.

Support groups for that condition may well be more helpful with more up to date advice than NHS - certainly what my parents have found - though obviously depends on condition and what's out there for it.

Did you get the 'when was your last menstrual period' as well.

Taking their own advice will do nothing for their patients.

That’s awful. How insulting ! Hope you can get some proper help and guidance for your new condition.

I remember my family GP (who probably had a BMI 35+) telling me when I still had about half a stone of baby weight to shift “You could do with losing just few pounds. I know, I know you’re looking at me thinking ‘You absolute bloody hypocrite!’ but I HAVE to tell you. It’s the rules” and then pissed herself laughing. I wouldn’t take it personally.

It does make them sound like they weren't listening at all.

Could be worse all your symptoms could be put down to the weight.

Dad had untreated sleep anea - he did lose the weight but struggled to keep off - went back to GP about snoring - and it affected whole house - to get a shrug. Likely sleep apnea was a continuting factor to the weight gain rather than weight causing the sleep apnea in his case.

Later when he was obese again despite his best efforts he had a lot of bone joint pain - again put down to weight - which probably didn't help. A blood test was done someone added vit D - GP rang in panic as he was one point away from being blue lighted to hospital and needed to come in immediately. He felt more able to move about when his levels were back up to normal levels - or NHS normal anyway.

Sounds like he just got on with his job in an efficient manner, considering how many patients he'll have to see.

But it also sounds like the OP is very touchy about it, considering her report on the GP's weight which is neither here nor there when it comes to the OP's health.

I'm sure like most OW people they probably try. But if it were that easy there would be no OW people. Being a nurse doesn't automatically remove all the barriers to weight loss that people who are not nurses face.

I’m convinced they either don’t listen to a word I say, or it’s just become something they say without realising.

I had a HRT check a few weeks ago and asked for some help with diet, nutrition, etc. I’ve put on put on a couple of stone over the last few years and nothing I do will shift it - healthy diet, gym and personal trainer, lots of exercise, swimming, tried fasting, etc. I’m only just outside of the healthy range, but I feel uncomfortable so the GP referred me to a nutritionist.

At the end of the appointment, having just discussed all this and referred me, he said “we also need to address your weight, it would be good to get back to a healthy weight” - er….

I’ve also got frozen shoulder for the second time - for which he referred me to physio/hydrotherapy - again, losing weight will help with that apparently.

But, it's ridiculous to say we really need to do something about your weight to someone who has literally just told them they're doing something about their weight. It makes it seem like they haven't listened at all.

And it's not like he actually gave her any advice or anything.

An awful lot of nurses should take some of their own advice as most of the ones I see are overweight

This. Tick box exercise which health professionals can’t frustratingly override. You have done great and a great example of what hard work and commitment accomplishes. Losing weight to reach a healthy BMI is not easy but oh so worth it in the end - healthier internal organs and enhanced wellbeing / confidence.

No. I think if they're good doctors they get a kick out of helping their patients to be well and healthy, managing existing health conditions and preventing new ones. Obviously given the number of patients they are statistically likely to have who are OW, this probably involves raising the subject of weight loss on a fairly regular basis. Even those perverse enough to get pleasure from that would surely find the novelty wore off with the sheer repetition.

Perhaps I'm extrapolating. But I was assuming that she had been overweight for a while and that woudl be on her records

But even if not, and even if he THINKS she's lying, surely, if he's paying attention he'd still give her positive reinforcement for the weight she has (apparently) lost, while encouraging her to continue to lose weight. That's just basic patient care to a) pay attention b) be supportive.

You're not the OP though are you?

She hadn't seen her doctor for years.

Well, my doctor could tell that I had 100% lost weight because my last data point on weight was significnatly higher than it was when I came in. So it's not exactly DIFFICULT for them to confirm, even if they dont' know you well.....

But if your gut was touching your desk, how would that affect your clients in any way?

You'd still be just as qualified wouldn't you?

"I've lost loads of weight recently"

"I haven't had a drink since last Christmas, honest!"

"Smoking? Nah I packed that in months ago Doc".

These are all things GPs hear regularly, but they still need to do their job.

You haven't seen him in years so he'll have no idea whether you've really lost any weight, or you're just trying to stop him mentioning it - much like when a smoker claims they've given up but they haven't.

His gut won't give you a heart attack or diabetes and given he wasn't the one visiting you about a health problem, I don't know why you've even mentioned it?