Obese... Sick of it... What help can the NHS provide

[Platypusdr]

I am severly obese. My BMI is 44 and I am pre diabetic. I asked my GP for support and they directed me to their 'wellness coach' who I found not that helpful. The main thing he told me is to use the portion plate and to eat a olate of vegetables /salad first and then go to eat the rest. I found this quite helpful. But things are not moving down (In 2 months I have lost 2 kgs).

However I feel like the meetings arent dealing with the underlying reason as to why I eat. The last meeting was a disaster (me crying all over the appointment around pumpkin and whether it should be a carb or a veg... As he said I should limit it but couldn't really give me the reasons why and where it should be in the 50% veg, 25%carb 25%protein portion plate and seemed to say it is veg out carb and couldn't decide which made it so confusing and so many other things). I then mentioned that I feel the meetings are nice enough but the main message is limit food, but not really dealing with the underlying issues as to why I eat, which I feel is not sustainable.

Anyways... I want to know if there is anything else that I can ask for help from from the NHS, or is this it? I would like to go to the next meeting prepared and know exactly what I can ask for as I know that this would be helpful.

Why are you ignoring every post about injections????

I had a gastric sleeve and lost 7 stone but what I would say is that it doesn't change your mental relationship with food so if you can work on that at the same time it's advised.

I had the surgery before weight loss injections were a thing, so perhaps I wouldn't have gone down that route now but I don't regret it and it has changed my life.

I said weight gain, not loss, if you're being really picky.

As for my mansplaining, I'm just offering a different gender viewpoint. How can I put that across without stating my gender? You may feel it is not relevant, but I do, would it be womansplaing if I was a woman or would my, factual, viewpoint hold more weight in my argument if I was a woman? would you feel it necessary to 'call out' a woman? I even make a point of not picking out single comments. Furthermore, by making a point that I'm not trying to dig at anyone who may have commented—just an opinion—a rather simplistic opinion, I know, which I also said.

I'm replying from an overweight position. I have little self-control, love all foods that are bad for me, and need to lose weight. However, I also know the only actual solution is to eat fewer calories and speed up that process by exercising to burn more calories than I would usually just sit around. If that's mansplaining, then I'm guilty.

sorry, that should have been a BMR calculator, which works out your resting calories needed based upon your age, weight etc, it also gives a handy guide to calories needed to lose weight.

BMR Calculator

@40YearOldDad if you were female, I'd call you out for being simplistic, unsupportive and patronising. Being male just adds that extra layer of patriarchal nonsense.

"However, I also know the only actual solution is to eat fewer calories and speed up that process by exercising to burn more calories than I would usually just sit around. If that's mansplaining, then I'm guilty." Yes, yes it is. Thank goodness you've realised it. Everyone already knows that to lose weight you need to eat less and move more. This is not news, and it is clear that the OP understands this. Yet you have felt the need to keep repeating it, at length. Thus demonstrating that you don't understand what the OP is having problems with, nor how to support her.

Just for fun, I sometimes post under a different username. It's funny how no one says my viewpoint is not valid then. 😂

@JellyComb I am not ignoring posts about injections. I have even mentioned this above that I would consider them. Realistically if at all possible I would like to avoid them (largely due to costs and long term implication uncertainty), but I am coming to the conclusion that I really need to look into them.

I am reading every comment, and most of them are extremely helpful, and I am looking to see whether there is anything I have not considered.

@Platypusdr—I've just read your posts here. You clearly know what you need to do and what you want to avoid. I would in no way want to upset you about your weight; believe it or not, man, woman, we all have our hang-ups on weight and body image. None of my comments were directed directly at you.

Some find it incredibly easy to lose weight. I know I did in my 30s, not so much now—but that's father time catching up with me. I see you have a gym membership. Get yourself down there and speak to a PT. Depending upon what gym you're a member of, you may get this as a freebie or at least an initial meeting to set out a plan based on your current level of fitness, meal options, ideal calorie intake, etc.

Much like the popular weight loss courses, I always find it helpful to have an overall goal and then 'mini-goals' along the way, which, hopefully, come around quicker than the big goal.

My PT once told me, 'You'll never out-exercise a bad diet. That may not just be junk food, but also the volume of food & drink you consume.' I cut my coffee intake from 4-5 cups daily, which was the best part of 1000 calories daily on coffee!

You mentioned you'd had success with calorie counting; start here; hundreds of apps for this stuff now; keep an honest log of your food, drinks and treats, and weigh everything out; it's boring as shit, but it's the only way to start to be honest with yourself to get actual insight into how many calories you're having, and where you can cut back or change based upon your history

OP, as you are prediabetic you will get hungrier than other people, so calorie counting etc only works to a certain extent. Low carb does work but easy to fall off the wagon.

I second the idea of injections. I take Mounjaro. It's allowed me to stop the cycle of hunger - eat too much - hunger etc. I'm not currently prediabetic but have been in the past. I haven't eaten badly in the past few years, just way too much because of the gnawing hunger.

Oh I must have missed the one where you said you would consider the injections, i do apologise.

I have been on Mounjaro and have lost the 4 stone i needed to. It took just under 6 months. I have put on and lost the same 4 stone in every way conceivable for the last 25 years and Mounjaro has without doubt been the easiest and quickest way to lose the weight. I absolutely urge you to give it a go. Med Express is a good place to start the journey. Also, the cost is nothing over the course of the month when you consider what you are saving in actual food not being consumed.

You could do it in tandem with some other methods to sort out the issue of WHY you overeat at the same time.

No, I haven’t. I did once lose a stone and look unhealthily slim, but that wasn’t really by design as much as my mum didn’t keep food in the house. Other than that I’ve been in a very small range my whole adult life.

Half of Carla - Instagram account and on YouTube is an excellent resource. She has lost half her body weight (180 lbs) and describes herself as a former food addict/binge-eater. She underwent therapy and shares a lot of the knowledge and wisdom she gained from that. She will soon take over as head coach on the weight loss program BodySlims, which is the program that helped her lose weight.