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?

Most people who are slim are demonstrating hat they do have willpower though. Don't assume that everyone who is slim are there through no effort whatsoever. The opposite is true. Many slim people are only slim because they exercise willpower every day. The trick is for those of us ho are nataurally fat to tap into that. And it's not always as easy as "stop eating"

bit you’re right. I’ve always had a bmi of around 22. I was brought up with portion control and it’s stayed with me. I’m slim because I don’t eat too much and I walk the dog daily for 45/60 mins. Nothing special.3 meals a day, rarely snack and if I do it’s fruit or nuts. You can do this, you just need to start and do it for one day, then 2 and so on. Your stomach will shrink and it will get easier when you see results. Good luck.

In addition MsHarry** you may be genetically predisposed to having a slender frame /low body fat. You may not necessarily be healthy just because you're slim. I was trying to say that, just by looking st someone , you do not know what struggles they're having, what is luck, what is a result of their lived experiences, what is willpower, what is gluttony, what is exercise, what is an EA. So smugness is best curbed, especially when you've only ever experienced one of those states of being

The weight isn't really the main problem, it's a symptom of your pain.

Having read your latest posts, OP, I completely agree with this. You need to get to the root cause of your distress and unhappiness. I'm absolutely no expert on that kind of thing but I would expect that some appropriate counselling would be beneficial. I think you need to chat to your GP about the cause and not the symptom.

I wish you well.

practice sometimes, but sometimes not. I will never forget the thread here where lots of people said they forget to eat. There are lots of times when I am busy and I don't want to eat, but I get very strong hunger pangs. I could never forget to eat.

Exactly. We are all different. But when it comes to food many people cannot (will not?) countenance that any other experience than there own is real

Hi OP,
I don’t think anyone has mentioned it yet but ‘mindful eating’ may help you: www.eatingdisorders.org.au/docman/fact-sheets/234-fact-sheet-mindful-eating/file
Failing that, in all honesty I’d save up and have gastric sleeve surgery privately. At least start looking into it now, it is actually different from a gastric band and seems to have fewer side effect and be more effective.
Does your current DP actively support your desire to lose weight?

I do have friends who 'forget' to eat. All very slim and never speak of watching their weight. However one of them has high blood pressure/ angina and another is in daily pain with arthritis and awaiting a 2nd knee replacement.so thin definitely doesn't always equal healthy. Someone else I know who is very very slim is a functioning alcoholic. I agree the way I am isn't healthy. Mine is just much more visible. I'm lucky that I don't have diabetes, or arthritis, or gout, or low back pain, or high blood pressure, or any of the usual fat person problems. Yet. But I do know that's luck more than anything else.

I know to some I come across as argumentative or unduly defensive. There's 2 points about that. Firstly, my title is worded wrong. I didn't expect help. I didn't go to my GP being all entitled etc. I genuinely wanted some help. Actually just to be listened to. I didn't want or expect to go down the bariatric surgery route. I don't think that's for me. I just wanted someone to listen. Something a bit like SW but without someone selling me shitty hi fi bars or telling me to use Fanta or Tango in my dinner. I thought based on what id been told about practice nurses or practice dieticians etc that I might be able to see someone and talk about my eating patterns, how to address this, discuss what i can and should eat. Maybe even talk to other people. On reflection I realise what I wanted wasn't just that it was someone to talk to about my feelings around food and how that ties into my past.

I'm not believed by people about what happened. And believe me they know the detail I've told them, or they witnessed it. There's only actually been 1 person who ever validated what was going on (a colleague who once witnessed my Ex giving me a verbal bollocking and was visibly distressed by something I by then saw as normal).everyone else takes the it happens you're a difficult person approach. I do need to move on from that. But then it isn't helpful and drags me back to that not being belived thing when on this thread posters tell me I cant eat what I say I eat and must be eating more, I cant ever have run that much, I must be spending £100s on food shopping. That's the funniest bit. Do you think only rich people are fat?! Just as an example I can buy 6 chocolate bars for £1. 6 pieces of fruit is more than that. It's never been so cheap to overeat as it is now. I find it really insulting to say that I must be spending so much on food that I will be £100 a week better off once I lose weight, especially when I've said I currently spend less than that. For anyone who hasn't been fat, here's a newsflash. You don't have to eat takeaways at every meal, gorge yourself all day long. Of course you are eating more than you need. But it's nasty to assume because I'm this size I have chips every day, am eating from the moment I wake up, and so on. Yes I eat too much. Mea culpa. But I'm not constantly stuffing, I don't know a fat person who is. Of course we eat too much but our lives are not a daily episode of man vs food!

Your current eating pattern is terrible for you. Basically you eat too much horrible beige food that turns to sugar. Try the book GI for Dummies, read it, properly read it, keep it by the bed, and try instituting a few changes each week. just to see if they stop you feeling hungry - bugger the weightloss in the immediate term. If you keep gradually moving to a lower GI load overall, I am sure things will change, and once you are weaned off the sugar spikes from simple carbohydrates it will be a great deal easier to make larger changes. And that could, ideally, coincide with the beginning of summer, when it is so much easier to deal with these things.

You've been a whiny pain on this thread, which suggests to me that you are deeply unhappy and frustrated. So, very good luck with getting happier.

And don't take the 'pasta with a lo-fat tomato sauce' stuff from PPs on board. That would be the worst possible thing for you, I reckon., although it might work very well for others.

Having read through the thread I actually feel sick that I have the share the same air as soon of these people. Op you have been through a lot. Your release mechanism has been food., some people are lucky and food has no emotional attachment for them. In the same way as some people can have a drink now and then to release others become alcoholics. Food might not be physically addictive but it can certainly become mentally addictive. It can become a crutch, evenputting on weight can be linked to feelings of wanting to keep people physically and emotionally distant. To the ones saying eat less run around more. Do you also say drink less, just stop sticking that needle in your arm? That attitude, ignoring the mental side of losing weight and maintaining is contributing to the obsity crisis. I’m overweight, eat within my daily calorie allowance )all tracked) go to the gym 3x a week (inc on Pt session). Lucky if I shift 1lb a month. It’s bloody hard. Doctors hate fat people yet offer no help or support, to the point if many overweight people are put off going to see their DR. Yes OP there should be more support. On the one run it would save the Nhs.

I'm your size OP but I have figured out that smaller portions are more filling and I can do exercise for free in my house by walking up and down the stairs and by using full 2 litre bottles as weights.

Unfortunately you need to eat a lot less to lose weight. Not just exchange the food you eat for lower calorie food but also eat less of it.

First of all what I think we tend to forget is that assuming we are otherwise healthy, it’s ok to feel a bit hungry. It’s not something that needs to immediately be fixed with more food. We lose a sense of what feeling hungry is actually like when we habitually overeat.

It’s also not good to eat until you feel full if you need to lose weight. We generally eat too fast and so don’t register as full until too late.

Something that works for me is to take a portion I would normally eat, eat half of it and save the other half. Wait about an hour and only eat more if I am still really hungry - otherwise save the rest for the next meal/day.

The other thing is to stop conditioning yourself to eat at certain times. Unless you absolutely have to due to limited break times at work, don’t eat if you are not hungry (or have a very small snack only).

You need to relearn what hunger feels like (not just craving food but actually being hungry) and what is feels like to have eaten enough but not to feel actually full just not hungry any more.

When you are considerably overweight, feeling full is not good, usually it means you have eaten too much. Feeling a little hungry is not bad - you basically need to recalibrate your body to the amount of food it actually needs.

Op I know how difficult this all is and I know how damn hard it is to get people to listen to you. Good luck with everything you can do this

Come over to low carb boot camp we have ladies who have lost 150lb this year we are on mums net and a new boot camp starts soon

Op the fact that you have started this thread and shared such data speaks volumes about your resilience and will

Don’t give up . From leading latest updates maybe some therapy is what you need in fact to address the abuse and the reason why you overeat.

The main Hurdle to overcome is thinking g you can change . It really is mental

For the first time in
My adult life I have stopped eating shit , large portions and drinking myself to sleep after a stressful day . It took a challenge and actually i have suprised
Myself by how easy it’s been . But I wanted this for years and year and did NOTHING

So you have not yet had the moment when you say ‘I can’t go on like this - something has to change’ -

Don’t give up . And I agree that slimmers world and calorie counting might not be for you

I won’t give you patronising advice . But the kick starts and push you need might come for a different source than the NHS

Hello OP. I've not read RTFT, only your replies. I believe what you're saying. My own experience is that the hardest part of losing weight is weight-loss maintenance. My suggestion is to avoid commercial diet groups, as they thrive on the yo-yo dieter, and use your anger and energy to kickstart a healthy eating plan for life. Whatever weight you lose will be beneficial to your health.

Even though your heart etc was okay when checked out, your health will suffer in the future. Read about gallstones, pancreatitis etc on the NHS website. Perhaps ask for a referral to a specialist re getting them zapped in day surgery, which is less intrusive than GB removal.

An online 12-step programme may help with sorting out emotional eating. You can go to Overeaters Anonymous and see what you think. Also the weight loss threads in MN provide support and understanding. You're looking to change your head as well as your body, and that takes time.

Many many people lose successfully then regain, even after two, three, five years. We hear far less about them, only the immediate weight loss. But you will find your people and learn what works for you.

On a practical note, a food and activity journal may help you if you enjoy using pen and paper. A cheap step counter can help motivate. Move away from "diet" to " healthy eating". And sometimes it helps to avoid situations where you expose yourself needlessly to unhelpful replies, such as here on aibu.

And you might want to change your name to something more in line with your hopes for the future.

All the best.

vote for corbyn im sure he can solve this issue like every other issue failing that burn more calories than you eat

Op, some of the replies you have received here have been disgusting and nothing short of spiteful.

I think the fact that you lost such a good chunk of weight on slimming world speaks volumes about your will power. You can do this, you just need to find that will power again.

Go back through the thread, ignore the nasty replies, and make a list of all of the constructive and helpful ideas. You will find something that works for you

Morning OP, hope you got some sleep. What’s the plan for today?

Stop snacking on rubbish and have some fruit. Three meals a day. Low in fat. Lots of veg and fruit. Drink lots of water tea coffee etc.

Put less in than you burn off and the weight will come off. The first 1-3 stone are the easiest

You've done it before

Stop making excuses and move away from the pre packed sandwiches

I haven't read the whole of this very long thread but find what I have read very depressing. Everyone seems to be recommending that you do more of what hasn't worked so far and moreover what we all know doesn't work.
Chubbychubchub read Beyond Chocolate by Audrey and Sophie Boss or Overcoming Overeating by Jane Hirschmann and Carol Munter. You need a different approach.

Before apps to help people still lost weight

Get the Collins gem calorie counter book, a notepad and pen. The book tells you how to work out how many calories you need to maintain your weight and how many you need to lose weight. So at 19 stone you will be able to eat more and still lose a couple of lbs week and the amount you can eat goes down slowly so not drastic and easier to get used to.

The book has the calories for everything, including fast food if you do have a blip.

I used this years and years ago and lost over 5 stone, I exercised too.

Unfortunately years later and married I put it back on and am losing it again using an app but same principle. It is dropping off.

Record everything you eat and adjust if you have something high in calories.

Prepare your food. This will save you money. Buying a supermarket meal deal costs. Buy some carrot and cucumber and do veg sticks in a pot for work. Take a sandwich if you must but maybe try a sandwich thin instead of normal bread. Have some crisps now and then if you want but not every day. This will stop you ‘having no choice’ about eating pizza.

You need to think about what is in food. You say you don’t eat fat as you don’t have butter and oil but peanut butter is high fat and high calorie.

Maybe write down everything for a few days and work out the calories and fat you are eating, it might shock you into realisIng how much you eat.

The first few days will be really hard but make yourself do it. You know from in th past how good it feels to eat well and then exercise and how good it feels when your clothes are looser. Hold onto that thought and use it to keep motivated.

I’m not naturally thin and I do have to watch what I eat.
I literally do that, I watch.

I don’t deprive myself of anything. I’m an extremely fussy eater and would never eat foods I don’t like.

I’m just within my healthy weight range but I was at one point nearly 15 stone.
I plan my day. I have something like cereal for breakfast. If I want to have something fattening for dinner than I only have a small portion and then have something light for lunch just to see me through until my main meal.
You have to just balance it out. I still have chocolate, this morning I’ve eaten half a pack of custard creams out of boredom. It means that I’ll go easy through the rest of the day and maybe just have a jacket potato later.
I highly recommend meal planning and educating yourself on portion sizes. Weigh yourself regularly so you can stay on top of it.

I think trying to lose weight is making you ill and miserable.

Being obese is making you ill and miserable.

Not knowing what to do for the best is making you ill and miserable.

Your environment/past/present is making you ill and miserable.

How to get out of this awful cycle?

Be kind to yourself. Find what makes you laugh. Get your sense of humour back. Surround yourself as much as you can (even just 5 minutes a day!) with people, places, things that you love and you know are healthy.

Go back to basics and keep it simple.

When you are hungry snack on unlimited amounts of fresh vegetables and fruit: so whole carrots and apples so you just wash them without having to faff about chopping them.

Have a hot, clear soup like miso or a spoon of marmite in hot water.

Then add things you know are healthy like sunflower seeds and spinach leaves, any protein and rice noodles.

Have a bar of chocolate, banana and nuts or slice of cake if you need something sweet.

Do a little exercise just 2-5 minutes before you go to bed and first when you wake up, if you have weights then use them.

Plan something exciting to do or something to look forward to.

Do only as much as will make you happy.

Keep a diary.

Get rid of as much processed crap as you can from the cupboards, fridge and shopping bags. Most of it will have palm oil in which destroys orangutans' homes and rainforests so you don't want to be aiding and abetting that!

Good luck!

www.oagb.org.uk/do-i-have-a-problem-with-food/

Best thing I ever did x