To be worried about my weight loss?

[Helpme6352617]

Hi everyone.
I have recently been very very stressed out about my health.
I had a colonoscopy and gastroscopy on Monday which was normal thank god, only a sliding hiatal hernia.
A few months back I was 13.7 stone, then I was 13 stone (not trying, one of the reasons for my gastroscopy and colonoscopy).
I had the prep last Sunday and the procedure on Monday. I have been eating normally since the procedure. I weighed myself today and I am now 12.5 stone. I also had an upper abdominal scan which was normal.
I am getting extremely worried that there is something seriously wrong somewhere else in my body, I have an extended hours GP appointment tomorrow.
For reference I am 30 years old, I have a 4 year old and a 15 month old who still breastfeeds day and night.
Has anyone ever lost weight like this through stress? And it not be something like cancer?
I am just beside myself.

I am in a medical profession. You can lose a lot of weight very fast for many reasons. It is very unlikely you have a very serious medical problem. Of course follow up with your medical care. But 99.9% out of a 100 you have nothing serious or life altering. Take care.

That must be worrying OP.
rapid weight loss happened to a friend, but they were slim to start with so quickly looked very thin. Turned out to be Coeliac disease. They are fine, but still very lean.
Hope your GP appointment is helpful.

Thank you.
This is the most awful thing I have ever been through. I want to cry every time I look at my children. I am so terrified.
I am going to be extremely honest tomorrow with the GP about everything. :(

I have been tested for that on bloods and biopsy during gastroscopy. I have my follow up with the consultant on the 10th with all my results from the procedures.
Hoping it’s not the worst 😭

My goto line about unexplained minor weight loss is .... my mother convinced she had very dreaded nonspecific cancer because she had a small unexpected weight loss... she promptly had & died of a heart attack .. heart attack because of her smoking, alcoholism & lack of good diet or any exercise. She wasted a lot of time worrying about a non problem and inability to fix real problems.

I'm not a proffesional but I would of assumed it was because you were breastfeeding, isnt that supposed to Make us lose weight? ( I could be wrong, been nearly a decade since I had a baby 😅 )

Could it be the breastfeeding?
I breastfed my youngest longer than my others and reached a point after 12 months when I started to drop weight (up to then I thought it was a myth). Once I stopped I put it straight back on!

Hoping everything’s ok 💐

I have been eating normally since the procedure

Have you though? Running around after a four year old and a fifteen month old (still breastfeeding) could very well drop weight quickly if you’re even slightly down on calories. I had two under 14 months and breastfed and lost four stone quite rapidly as I never stopped. I would have thought I was eating properly too but when I think about it, I never got time to finish anything I was eating. I was also probably running on adrenaline. Could that be true for you?

It's probably the breastfeeding and stress. You've lost a stone. Given that you probably have been so busy and worrrying a lot, you've been eating less.
You've had tests and scans and they've been clear, and you're only 30.
You'll probably still be here in 60 yrs time.

I will be honest and that's not a dramatic weight loss. I went through a rough time mentally and was obsessed with my weight. I would weigh myself 3 or 4 times day and my weight could fluctuate by 2 to 3 kilos a day and more so when on my period.

How long between losing the stone? I can lose weight quicker quickly if I'm particularly more active one month and then put it on again.

I lost a stone due to a bad breakup. They did tests but there was nothing physically wrong. So it's totally possible. But still best to follow the medical checks too, to be on the safe side.

You don’t think it’s a dramatic weight loss? I’m honestly so worried about it.
Just before Christmas I was 13 bang on. Now 12.5 but also done the colonoscopy too in that time. I don’t have scales at home, I only weigh myself when I visit a family member as they have a scale. I’ve watched it go down from 13.7 to 12.5. I can’t remember when it was 13.7 but within 3/4 months

Have they checked you for coeliac, thyroid, diabetes I take it? These are other possible reasons

I lost a lot of weight when breastfeeding too.

Tested for coeliac with bloods and small intestine biopsy- will get the results for these on Friday 10th.
Will discuss the other things with the GP tomorrow, thank you

Did it happen after feeding for a while? I never had any weight loss until recently, she’s 15 months x

I think if you’re stressed out, breastfeeding and running round after young children, losing a stone in 4 months would be easily done without trying.

What are you eating in a day, how many calories?

Are you weighing yourself on the same set of scales each time? As different scales in different places can give quite different readings.

The colonoscopy prep will have shifted several extra pounds, you had to restict your food intake, then you lose a lot of water (& the entire contents of your gut!)

Are you definitely eating enough for your activity level, stress level and taking into account the BF? Your body will prioritise putting energy into BM so if you are in a calorie deficit you will lose weight.

Colonoscopy can mimic quite a weight loss. I remember MIL being worried but her weight levelled off again within a month or so.

Also echo pp about it not being dramatic - my neighbour lost nearly 3 stone in 4 months, after investigations he was found to have coeliacs. He went from being a slim built 12 stone to being skeletal.

I remember losing quite a lot when running round after 2 pre schoolers while still breastfeeding.

Yes same scales, same floor, same room every time x

You’re only talking 13 down to 12.5, since you don’t remember when you weighed 13.7. So 7 pounds, which is easily attributed to the colonoscopy process that clears your system out and requires you to fast. I really think you should stop weighing yourself and stressing over normal fluctuations. Do you have health anxiety?

My friend started dropping weight some years ago and had many tests and examinations.

It took months before they found it was a parasite that she had picked up in Turkey from eating an undercooked sausage.

I can't remember the treatment it was tablets I recall.

You have several factors at play here: you are extremely anxious and will be using calories and energy on this, you are breastfeeding round the clock and you have two very small and presumably active children.

The two scopes will mean you were cleared out which will cause quite a weight fluctuation. How do you know your relatives’s scales are accurate and also are you weighing yourself naked at the same time each time? Doubtful.

Obviously talk to your doctors again and listen to them. They are taking you seriously but this seems to be feeding your anxiety. With absolute respect you are still far from underweight. If they reassure you and this is your only symptom ( unexplained) then please try to eat sensibly and put it to the back of your mind. Our weight does fluctuate at different times of life.