My doctor rang me to tell me off!

[Willowy2]

I'm just posting to have a little rant!

I've been in MJ for 18 months. Started at a BMI of 30 and mu BMI is now 20 and I'm on a maintenance dose which I aim to come off fully by the 2 year mark in August.

Yesterday my doctor rang me to say he got a letter from a pharmacy that I'm on MJ but my BMI is too low, why am I on it, it's dangerous, this is the first he's heard of it, it's only for BMIs 27+ etc.

Firstly - a letter first appeared on my GP record in October 2024 as I can see a copy on the NHS app.

Secondly - The most recent letter states I am maintaining and that they can prescribe maintenance down to BMI of 19 with close monitoring and it's been verified that I was previously eligible. I've been with the same pharmacy since November 2024.

Thirdly - When I tried to explain the above he wasn't listening and just kept repeating how dangerous it was!

Honestly, I was in shock when I came off the phone. Are GPs really that clueless about this medication?

I've seen a few posts where people haven't wanted to disclose to their GP as their GP is clueless / judgemental etc. And the responses are usually things like that the letter just gets uploaded to your file, as if you're going to get a phone call from your actual GP....Well turns out I did.

He just kept repeating BMI of 27+. Right, so I get to a BMI of 27 then, have to stop the medication just to get fat again and repeat?

He wasn't interested in me saying how I train regularly, eat 2000+ calories a day, the best health I've been for ages.

Honestly, I was furious, felt told off like a child!

Anyone else had similiar from their GPs? Clueless, absolutely clueless.

And the drugs are going to save the nhs billions, in reduced cancer treatment, obesity is the number one cause, reduced heart attack, stroke diabetes, liver and kidney disease etc, with a tiny risk of any illness due to the drugs.

sounds like an nhs win to me.

Everybody is fake concerned about what others do with their money and body. Personally, I will be staying on it forever, my money my body. People really need to learn to mind the business that pays them.

But we weren't asking about you? And if it's nobody's business why are telling us about yourself unprompted. You can take WLI forever if you wish and not tell anyone ever.
OP explained she was reducing and that's a good thing for her.

I’m not OP but I am on MJ, 18 months in, lost 8 stone so far and can easily eat over 2k calories. I usually eat about 1800 but going over 2000 would be easy.

20 is a low range BMI so I get why he called. At least he’s proactive - my DH is still waiting for ours to contact him about his high cholesterol 🙄

I don’t think the doctor being concerned and calling you was a bad thing. It was very proactive. However he should have been more knowledgeable about the medication and discussed it with you and listened to your plan. His attitude wasn’t acceptable.

I’m on WLI but I don’t intend to take them forever. I don’t consider obesity in my case to be an illness, I was only just into the obese category and have taken the jabs as a tool to lose weight more easily. I don’t have any health conditions and don’t have food noise. I was simply too fat because I’m greedy and ate too much and drank too much wine. I say this because everyone’s journey is different and bodies are different. Doctors (and others) need to respect this and listen as if people choose to stay on the drugs they will have valid reasons for doing so. The doctor should have listened.

It’s still a healthy bmi, the opposite way would be calling someone with a bmi of 23.5 and telling them they were fat as they were 1.5 points from the upper end.

would that be ok for you too, or is it just at the slimmer end you take issue?

I have no issue about him calling me if it were to have a discussion but he was telling me off and clearly not very knowledgeable about GLP-1. As others have said, I'm also waiting on a GP call back about a medical issue for my son.... 🤷‍♀️

They're probably worried about getting a load of flack and ' why didn't my Dr tell me' if anything goes wrong/ if there's a load of health issues in the pipeline associated with taking it when not only at but under a healthy BMI.

Also a lot of people on here intend to be on maintenance doses long-term....

People definitely seem to have an issue with 20. Yes it's low, but still within the healthy range. I have a very small frame. My hips, wrists and ribcage are tiny. When I was obese it looked awful on me because I am so small in frame. 20 for me looks very healthy. It's puts me at a size 8 to 10 roughly. And I now have a good, healthy appetite which compliments my training and not restricting every day to stay small. I'd be happy for my BMI to increase as I gain more muscle which is the goal. My last body scan put me at 47.1% muscle and 18.9 % body fat. And to say it again, yes, for me personally I am ready to come off by continuing my tapering plan. I didn't like being told off by my doctor, not a discussion, a telling off. It was unnecessary and didn't really gain anything for anyone. For arguments sake, let's say I was in ED territory, I don't think a telling off would motivate me get help for that!

I think you are being blasé about Dr finding out someone with BMI 20 is on weight loss medication.

It would be concerning without knowing what has happened.

So the way to go about that is for the GP to phone you, not let you speak and tell you off and quote misinformation?

For maintenance, as recommended by all the global heath authorities,

No one is saying it’s one or the other though… use the drugs whilst obese and then maintainable and then stop using them before it becomes dangerous for such a small bmi

I am curious if any of you know people who take GLP1 for alcohol abuse. I have a couple of family members who struggle with alcohol. I was wondering if glp1s might help

It's nowhere near approved for addiction yet and it's not even close to being within off label prescribing protocols so I doubt anyone would know people prescribed it specifically for addiction. Anecdotally though it seems to help a lot of people with alcohol or drug cravings.

@Slimtoddy I think this may come: https://www.bmj.com/content/392/bmj.s417#:~:text=GLP%2D1%20receptors%20are%20abundantly,circuitry%20that%20addictive%20substances%20exploit.

He's a doctor for goodness sake, what would he know about the human body! 🙄

(OP, maybe listen to what he's saying and be grateful he's even interested, when most people can't get an appointment).

But it’s not dangerous, the global health authorities have confirmed and recommended, what’s dangerous is the risk of regain. Which nearly all formally obese people do, irrelevant of weight loss method.

No.

no he fucking isn’t.

no, he’s not, I don’t get why people are posting when they don’t understand the drugs, or anything about them, I can’t imagine rocking up to a chemo thread or a diabetes one and posting misinformation,

BMI is a crude measure at best and doesn’t take into account a person’s frame or where their weight is distributed. My BMI is 20 but I am small framed and carry weight around my middle. At BMI 21 my waist-height ratio goes into the ‘danger’ zone. I have a close family history of diabetes and heart disease so will be staying on MJ as long as needed to keep my waist-height ratio out of the danger zone. It’s not all about being ‘skinny’!

This monitoring is what has been recommended and approved by the medical profession for the prescribers licences.

Yes I'm soooo grateful I got an unsolicited phone call from my GP about a legitimately prescribed medication, which he seems to have limited knowledge about. I am sooo grateful he didn't take the time to listen to me and instead just ranted at me without giving me time to speak. I am soooo grateful that he took the time to do that rather than spending time talking to patients who may need genuine medical advice and support. Sooooo grateful. 🙄