Orlistat

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Hi, I have just started taking Orlistat today and I can see lots of old threads about it but none recently posted so just wondering if anyone else on here is on this same journey? I have around 5-6 stone that I could do with losing so my doctor suggested Xenical as a starting point. I have Fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome too and I am sure my weight at 18.5 stone won't be helping those. Any friendly advice or chat would be greatly appreciated

@Mummyginge22 you can choose something slightly lower fat at Maccys? I would say if you went for the works, Big Mac or big tasty and chips and milkshakes etc then you would probably have the runs and have oily stools. The tablets work with the time it takes for your digestive system to work so I've been finding that I have adverse symptoms the following day.
I have been skipping tablets when I know that I'm eating something bad,.... but there is a problem with this too, I have found myself getting complacent and just relying on missing a few which has ruined my initial mindset. It's tempting to do it (especially for me as I love food) but I really wouldn't get too reliant on missing them as you may not get the results as quick as you want them. Once I'm back off my holiday, I am going to pretend I'm starting them from scratch again to get back in the zone x

@Smoky1107 that's a great weight loss x well done x

To be honest I get a chicken wrap and chips. I do a 6 hour journey twice a month (spaced out) so mcdonalds on that day is just easy for me. I'm hoping that if I didnt take the tablets for that day (I'd probably forget to anyway) I would be fine as both are under 20g of fat. I'm hoping the Dr will prescribe and not tell me to just diet for longer 😐

I've been taking these for a few weeks now. I eat fairly healthily (certainly not to excess) and exercise daily (10k steps and cycling) and haven't lost anything! No adverse reactions apart from wind and a sore tummy. 😪🙄
I really want to lose weight gained following an operation but at a loss with what to do.

Update from me: I was taking Orlistat for about 3 weeks before my holiday and it was working well - no nasty side effects just a few more trips to the loo than normal, which I much prefer to the constipation I got on Ozempic.

Took a break for a week while on holiday but now I am starting them again. I lost a few lbs in the time I was taking them before my holiday so want to get back to losing weight again.

Hope everyone is doing well and the side effects are managable.

Started to take this just over 2 weeks ago. I am calorie counting, and tend to only have 1 main meal a day, so most days have only been taking one.

Side effects have settled and only had one accident that happened when I had some wind 😭only orange fat but yuck!

Not sure whether they are doing much now as I don't even have orange poo (TMI?)

I'm 5ft 2in, large frame (7 inch wrist) size 6 feet, and started dieting 12th May.

Starting weight 91.8kg, hoping to get down to 83kg as I have a tummy tuck pencilled in for August the 15th, if I can get down to under 35 BMI.

Good luck everyone.

Hi everyone
Ive filled in the form on boots online but my BMI is 29.3 - does anyone know if they will still let me have them?

@Confused2124 No idea, depends how strict they keep to the 30 BMI cut off, unless you have something like high blood pressure as well?

My gp has prescribed them for me, so if you get no luck online may be worth a try there, good luck x

Has anyone got a weight update for this? I have started taking these yesterday morning and I really want to loose 5 stone

@Mumof3premies Hiya, I was 91.8kg when I started and am now 84.7kg, but I have been calorie counting as well, and also fasting 16/8 x

How long did this take you? I’m 94kg but I’m only 5ftv2 so I need to get down to about 70kg xxx

@Mumof3premies Started taking them about 12th may, so not long, im also 5ft 2. So about 7 weeks, i have also been sticking to a low fat diet as the side effects are worst if you eat higher fat food x

I’ve lost 4.5kg since May. Combining Orlistat with a low fat diet because I’m scared of the potential consequences with fatty foods. It does help to keep me on the straight & narrow. Although when I went on holiday for a week recently I stopped taking it a few days beforehand so I could eat more fatty food on holiday without worrying.

It’s not a quick way to lose weight but it’s pretty good at giving you more incentive to limit the fat you eat.

I lost 15 lbs in the first few weeks, then took my
Eye off the ball. My mental and physical health are not great at the moment but I've started taking them again yesterday properly. I had put about 3lbs back on over the last 4 weeks. I have 4-5 stone to lose too. I started at 18 stone 6, the biggest I've ever been. I also have Fibromyalgia and CFS. I am 5 ft 6.5 in
It's not as simple as taking pills and watching the weight fall off, I see that now, I got complacent and started eating cheat food and chocolate and skipping days etc. I am now going back to eating as if I was on slimming world. I'm drawing a line under it and not being too hard on myself. Just starting again x x
The pills require a lifestyle change. I'm trying to go swimming if I can too.

I hope everyone else is doing well? And if not, then don't be too hard on yourselves x just start again.

Hiya, am I able to join this thread? This is the first ever time I’ve used mumsnet so bare with me as I have no idea what I am doing! I’ve been taking orlistat for 5 days now and I have honestly experienced the horror stories… I still am now… yep, I’ve even sh1t myself at work 🤦🏼‍♀️ but to be honest, I think it’s because I haven’t really been watching what I’ve been eating and haven’t properly followed a lot fat diet… most nights I’ve been running to the toilet (including tonight) and now I seem to have developed a water infection, as if it couldn’t get any worse. I’ve also started swimming which I’m hoping is going to help, I need to weigh myself but I weigh a whopping 23 stone 4lbs, not that I think I look it, I think I hide it quite well, but yes, I’ve got around 10 stone to lose!! I’ve got PCOS so I’m not even sure a low fat diet is going to help, as my problem is sugar? Any suggestions would be helpful and any advice! ☺️

God that must have been awful! I honestly think that if I had shat myself even once (let alone at work!) I would have given up. I'm not being judgemental at all but I have been very careful with the fat content in the things I eat since starting, and have never had any accidents like this since starting in May. I am going to the toilet a lot more often though, and sometimes it is quite urgent. I'm sorry to hear you have a urine infection at the moment, they are horrible I know from personal experience.

I eat too much sugar too as have sugar in tea and I drink a lot of tea. Won't give that up as I enjoy it too much. But I have changed my habits around eating high fat food and only do it occasionally now.

You will lose weight if you cut back on the amount of fat in your diet but I guess you will lose weight quicker if you also cut back on the amount of sugar in your diet. I am a sucker for chocolate but I am eating less of that these days (mostly because of my fear of the fat content rather than my fear of the sugar tbh). Anyway, welcome to Mumsnet and hope you enjoy the site.

@Alex1993 welcome! How are you doing now? I'm back on them after a few weeks break and I'm also struggling to eat as low fat as I should. My fibromyalgia and CFS are flaring up at the moment which is making me feel exhausted so I'm feeding that with chocolate and marshmallows 🙈. I'm struggling with some adverse side effects today too because I ate some high fat sausages for breakfast. We are all on a journey/ it will have ups and downs x but we've got this ! Just take it a day at a time and try your best to reduce your fat and sugar intake x
If you've ever tried slimming world before, eating like you are on that is really good or the Mediterranean diet is a really great way to eat too for this.
Good luck and keep us all posted x

Can I join? I've just taken the first capsule having had them in the cupboard for over a year. This thread motivated me to get started, so thank you to everyone who shared their stories. I've got at least 3 stone to lose, which feels pretty daunting.

Good Luck and remember you can skip a tablet if you have a meal that has no fat or a tiny amount of fat in it. Sometimes I also skip a tablet if I feel I am needing the loo too much for convenience. I take a tablet with most normal meals though & so far no problems 😊

Thank you, I'll definitely bear that in mind 😊

@MyCatHasStaff welcome ! Best of luck on the tablets and keep us posted x.

Hey everyone

Eek - bit nervous about taking my first tablet tomorrow! Not necessarily about tomorrow but I have to be in the office twice next week and they're planning lunch out  hoping they go somewhere I can make good choices! Chicken, broccoli and rice from Nando's might be ok right? Looking at the nutritional info it's telling me about 16-17g fat so hoping I don't explode at work 
Need around 30kg off to get my bmi in the right range for ivf

@curious541 hey, yes they say aim for around 14-15gms fat per meal so 16-17 should be absolutely fine x I've only experienced adverse effects when I've eaten really high fat content like a fry up or too many sausages. chicken is a lean meat so should be much better for you as long as it's not fried in a greasy batter x x also, your body has to digest the food first so it's unlikely you would see the effects until that has happened, which for me, has been over 12 hours later x

How are you getting on so far? I’ve literally not lost any weight at all!

I've lost about 10-12lb since starting Orlistat but I'm eating much healthier than normal because I'm anxious about the side effects if I eat too much fat. I still haven't had any bad side effects but I'm quite careful. Normally choose chicken or fish in restaurants and will have a few chips but not a huge portion. At home I'm eating lots of lean meat or fish or salads. Have cut right back on alcohol and drinking lots of fizzy water instead.