To expect some help from my GP in losing weight?

[Chubbychubchub]

I am a fatty. Properly overweight. About 8 stone over normal weight range (about 19st, I should be 11st at most according to BMI).

Last year I had some health issues. My GP said I'd benefit from losing weight. Just eat less and move more were her words.

I have tried. However I struggle to control what I eat, and have zero willpower.

I did go to a well known slimming group previously. It made me ill, though I did get down to 13st. But it wasn't sustainable.

I asked my GP for help. I was told 'all they could do was refer me to the nurse, but she would tell me the same. That was all they could do and there was no other help available.

I have heard of people locally being referred to a dietician, or sent to slimming group for free etc. Aibu to expect something similar, or certainly some kind of help beyond trite advice?

Did you ask for a referral? I think you can do SW with GP referral

Unless you don't know about calories or what foods are high in sugar and fat then I'm not sure what they can do. They can offer information and some areas (I think) can offer referrals for exercise or diet groups. But they can't physically do a lot.
What changes could you make?

They are all going to tell you the same thing.

Eat less.

If you have no willpower, the NHS can't magic any up for you.

Dieticians are useful for people with medical conditions which require an altered diet.

You don't really fall into that category. Using up an expensive appointment would be really unreasonable.

Start logging your food on MyFitnessPal and try and build up your exercise, even a walk around the block daily will help.

Unfortunately that ' trite advice' is the truth unless you have a medical condition affecting weight. Sofa fork imbalance is the usual cause.

You can waste your or our money on a group , or you can access the free advice on the NHS site. Stay away from the thickly made up bloggers, actresses, gurus etc.

If you've not tried slimming world I would give it a go. There's no way that you can get ill on it as you're not undereating and have no faddy supplements/meal replacements.

Ask for a referral to SW , or to the practice nurse dietician.

did get down to 13st. But it wasn't sustainable - it is sustainable if you heat and exercise properly. If you starve yourself to lose weight hen resume normal eating, of course you are going to pile it back on. Ditto if you follow your slimming clubs plan, reach a goal weight then revert to scoffing famikly size bars of chocolate at every turn.

All you post proves is that you can lose weight, you just choose to revert to bad eating practives. Shoert of the GP coming round and micromanaging your cooking, what do you expect him/her to actually do? There are no miracle cures other than self discipline.

FFS @ stabbing one fingered on a phone!

I didn't say 'please refer me to a dietician/ slimming group' specifically but I did ask GP if there was any help available either at the practice or could I be referred anywhere, and was basically told no.

You've tried a slimming club and said it made you Ill. So why do you wish a free referral?

Also you appear to know how to lose weight. So why do you wish to see a dietician?

The issue is your will power and lack of desire to stick to a diet and lose weight. No dietician in the world can help you with this.

You just need to eat whatever you have been eating, just less of it.

I do understand how hard this is though, it is a lot easier to 'Do Something' to make you feel like you are at least trying, but it is sadly a delusion.

I remember very clearly when trying to give up smoking buying every book/signing up to every support group going as a distraction from the uncomfortable truth that I just needed to stop smoking.

It's going to be hard, but anything worth having in life takes a lot of grit and determination.

Good luck.

What help do you expect them to give if you have 'zero willpower'?

YANBU; at 19st you will be morbidly obese (a fact, not a value judgement, I am also in this category). You’re not just trying to lose a few pounds, weight loss is important for your health. If you’re asking for help with weight loss your GP should refer you to a weight loss clinic, usually run at a hospital. GPs can also refer to local weight management programmes which by involve discounts on gyms etc.

There is also the possibility of bariatric surgery (if your healthy weight is 11st I suspect you are a similar height to me, suggesting your BMI is over 40). This pathway usually involves significant input from a weight loss clinic beforehand anyway.

Good luck with it; yes you do have to make the changes yourself, but it’s not unreasonable to expect some help along the way.

I'm not sure there are any magic / secret diets that dieticians are privy to that will help you shift 8 stone without willpower. You'll have to find some if you want to lose weight.

There are many books / meal plans / diets by (sometimes) qualified authors. You could browse the relevant shelf of your local Waterstones and see what appeals and try to get a copy out the library? None of them are willpower-free though.

You've said 'willpower' is your problem. No medical professional can give you that. That alone comes from you.

Come join us here: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/weight_loss_chat/3045244-Anyone-looking-to-lose-100lbs-plus-in-2017-18-Part-3

We're all doing different methods and everyone is doing fantastically well. It's been going a year but gets new joiners all the time.

Personally I am doing MFP based calorie counting. I've only ever done Slimming World in the past but I can't eat dairy so can't follow plan properly. I'm actually finding it really illuminating how many calories are in things. I've been most surprised by lean meat - it's actually really high in calories, but on SW it's free (unlimited). Obviously I already had a decent understanding of what's in food, but yeah, done things have shocked me.

Anyway, come say hello. We'll help you along.

You should be able to get a referral for weight watchers or slimming world.

As pp said though, they can't give you willpower.

You said you got down to 13stone with sw, that's great. Why is it not sustainable? If you've done it once, you can do it again.

If there is an underlying cause for your overeating then you should look to address that.

Suggest reading "why do you over eat when all you want is to be slim" by Zoe harcombe.

What help do you actually want though?
The NHS is struggling to cope. Budgets are a joke. In the long term ensuring everyone is a healthy weight, stops smoking and doesn't binge drink would save them money. But an ageing population and expensive (but lifesaving) treatments that weren't an option 20 years ago means that there isn't money to spare.

YABU Op, and I say that gently as I know just how fucking hard it is. Ultimately the only person who can help is you.

What you might be able to ask for is some CBT sessions to look at why you eat as you do? If the GP won't or can't refer you, you could find a private one. You'd pay the fees in what you save on expensive junk food! This sort of thing:

www.verywellmind.com/how-cbt-helped-jenna-stop-overeating-22145

I was losing weight eating food I didn't like and which isn't really compatible with my current lifestyle, I was exercising (running 10-15 miles a week) but that didn't stop the weight gain and then I injured myself because I was too heavy to run.

The thing is, if I don't start losing weight I am going to drain nhs resources even further. I have no intention of going the gastric band route but I know 2 people my size who did (with huge complications admittedly).

I can't download MFP onto my phone unfortunately.

Check out rebelfit on FB.

Diets don't work long term, as you have discovered around 95% of people will regain the weight lost and a good majority will regain more on top. Diets are outdated and GPS should not be recommending them.

Ideally it's about moving more or asking for a gastric band....the rate of regain after one of those is much much less statistically.

Another thing you could try is a bit of tough love - what finally got me to shift a few stone was high blood sugar and the fear of diabetes. You could ask your dr for a test, or get a meter and test regularly after meals; if you're too high (as many overweight people who don't exercise are), the spectre of T2 should frighten you into replacing pizza with salmon; pudding with berries or a bit of cheese!

I have tried. However I struggle to control what I eat, and have zero willpower.

How is a GP going to help with this? Also moving more and eating less isn't trite advice - it's a very practical way of losing weight. Stop eating so much and get some exercise to try and raise your metabolism.

Also although it would be nice to have free exercise classes etc that's not really what the NHS is for. And I know you will probably say that the NHS should pay for preventative care to stop you later developing diabetes, cancer etc but there isn't enough money for everything.

You sound like you are trying to shift the responsibility for your weight loss onto someone else.

I was losing weight eating food I didn't like and which isn't really compatible with my current lifestyle

You don't need to change your diet though OP, just eat smaller portions of the things that do suit you and you like.

You'll be a bit hungry for a while, but you'll soon get used to it. I think to a large extent obesity stems from a fear of being hungry and rethinking that idea is the secret to maintaining a healthy weight.