Trying to "get healthy" and not making progress

csteuter

Aside from wanting to drop some weight (at a faster progress than I am apparently able to do!) I mainly wanted to improve my health. I started back on MFP about 8 weeks ago and have dropped close to 8 pounds, with 4 pounds the first week, so losing at about 1/2 pound a week after the 1st week. 8 weeks ago my dr. told me I was insulin resistent since the bloodwork showed it at the high range of normal and prescribed Metformin, which was also supposed to help a little with weight loss.

Today, 8 weeks later, I've dropped a little weight, I've taken the Metformin every day, I've had no sugar/desserts with the exception of a cupcake over the weekend for my niece's birthday, walking moderately each day, reduced carbs, increased protein ... bloodwork today shows my glucose EXACTLY where it was 3 months ago when I was 10 pounds heavier, eating pie every night, no Metformin, absolutely no physical activity. The A1C level is apparently solid in the pre-diabetes range. So, while I guess I could say without losing weight, without taking Metformin, and continuing to eat desserts every night my glucose level "could" have increased ... my glucose level has been stable over the past 3 years or so ... it had not been climbing. So why isn't it dropping now? Dr. said to double up on the Metformin, but tried that Friday and it made me really sick. It's discouraging.

PinkCoconut

I can't say much for your medication but I can say to be patient. I know 8 weeks seems like a long time but it could take several months of consistent effort before you see results. The other equation could be the rest of your diet, hidden sugars or even inflammation in your stomach that may need addressing. But I'd first go with staying the course consistently for another 4-8 weeks and then if that doesn't do anything, talk to a nutritionist and see if they can help you narrow down what might be going on.

Feel free to friend me!

jgnatca

I can talk about the Metformin. More about that later.

It could very well be that your life changes have halted the progress of the disease. I remained pre-diabetic for ten years through diet and Metformin.

Metformin does have pretty spectacular digestive effects that we usually don't want to talk about. Your system slowly adapts however so the trick is to gradually increase the dosage. I say increase say, 1 1/2 pills per dose instead of 2. Until you are tolerating that. Then put it up to the dosage your doctor is recommending. Metformin is very good at quietly controlling blood sugars.

csteuter

jgnatca wrote: »

I can talk about the Metformin. More about that later.

It could very well be that your life changes have halted the progress of the disease. I remained pre-diabetic for ten years through diet and Metformin.

Metformin does have pretty spectacular digestive effects that we usually don't want to talk about. Your system slowly adapts however so the trick is to gradually increase the dosage. I say increase say, 1 1/2 pills per dose instead of 2. Until you are tolerating that. Then put it up to the dosage your doctor is recommending. Metformin is very good at quietly controlling blood sugars.

Just curious, since you remained pre-diabetic for 10 years, did you then become diabetic after that time, or control it down to lower than pre-diabetic? Also, the nurse practitioner today said I could instead take Januvia in the morning and Metformin at night ... but Januvia has the side effect of potentially causing pancreatitis, which my husband had a near fatal experience with. Definitely don't want to take on that risk! What I would like to know is if I can lose enough weight that I will drop below the pre-diabetic levels and won't need the medication at all. Or, am I destined to stay on this path?

csteuter

Also, now I discover my "pre-diabetic" levels of 101 for fasting glucose and 5.7 for A1C. That is barely a whisper into the pre-diabetic stage! I'm concerned. I have been going to a weight management internist/nurse practitioner that keep saying I have a metabolic disorder which my family doctor has never been concerned about. They keep treating the "pre-diabetes" which has had negative effect on my weight loss ... it's been slower than I've done on my own in the past 16 months. It's almost as if these specialists call everything a metabolic disorder ... i.e.., if I've got a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Yikes. I'm tempted to go off all the medications for 30-60 days and see where I am in terms of weight loss, because weight loss by itself is related to decreasing diabetes levels. Crazy or a good plan? Thanks! (55 years old, 5'3", 156 pounds)

Nanleigh01

I take metformin two times a day and it has been really hard. I also take simistatin and a lot of other medicine .

Robertus

How overweight are you, if you don't mind my asking? Are you doing any exercise or sports activity? Congratulations on the weight-loss, but eight pounds is not terribly much to expect to see much benefit in terms of your diabetes biomarkers. Why do you think treating the diabetes is hindering your weight loss? Do not go off your medication without first speaking with your doctors.

csteuter

Probably 25-30 pounds overweight. I am doing mild activity -- recovering from a foot injury.

Robertus

csteuter wrote: »

Probably 25-30 pounds overweight. I am doing mild activity -- recovering from a foot injury.

That's not very much overweight. Maybe your diabetes is not directly related to your weight.