I am mid 40's with a BMI of 40. I have struggled with my weight since the age of 10. I am from a "fat family" and at this point pretty much all my family including my younger sister are diabetic, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and some are starting to have significant health implications due to this.
Even though I am morbidly obese my blood pressure is in the healthy range so 115/76 and I check at home, my blood sugar and cholesterol levels are also in the healthy range. I believe this is due to the fact that I do eat a healthy, home cooked, vegetarian, whole food diet 90% of the time and I don't drink any alcohol at all and never have. I get offered covid and flu vaccines on the NHS every winter now and I think that is because my GP has put me down as high risk due to obesity.
Earlier this year I started going to the local authority Gym and while I did lose some weight and my fitness is so much better than what it was I am not really able to move past that initial 20lb loss. I know that I need to eat much less consistently to lose more weight but I am really struggling with that. I can have a really good few days then I have a bad day the diet goes out the window for a couple of days and when I get back on track I'm back at square one.
If I were able to just eat what I currently do but smaller portions and no snacking then I think I would be able to lose weight as my diet is mostly healthy there is just too much of it and too much snacking.
I am on HRT and feel so much better on it than before, it was HRT that gave me the energy to even contemplate joining the gym so I don't want to stop that.
I'm in Scotland and I have no idea if I can get wegovy or similar on the NHS in my position? In the past when I asked my GP for help with weight loss I was told that while I met the Criteria in terms of my BMI I also needed to be suffering from diabetes, high blood pressure or heart problems before I would be referred for help losing weight but this was before these injections were available. It seems crazy that you have to develop serious health issues prior to getting help with your weight but I do understand that the NHS is strapped for cash.
I do feel bad about this as I am so in control of my life and behaviours in other areas but I just can't get a handle on my eating habits. I also don't have much disposable income after all my necessary outgoings so I can't afford more than a months worth of these injections privately.
Has anyone got these injections on the NHS, especially in Scotland. Did you have to have an additional health condition to qualify? Did your GP proscribe or did you have to be referred? How did your GP react to you asking about these medications? I can imagine that they have lots of people wanting them these days even people who aren't obese.