New Diet Pills (Belviq vs Qsymia)

sassiebritches

Are you still using this or how did it work?Are

I've been taking Belviq for 6-7 weeks now and have lost ~17 pounds. I started at just over 218. I am not one of those who has zero appetite. Less definitely... like I can go 4-5 hours without thinking about food but when dinner time rolls around, I am hungry. I am satisfied with less and even over Thanksgiving where I overate and felt gross, it still was not NEARLY as many calories as I'd have typically put away. I mean, I was too stuffed to have pumpkin pie... and I LOVE pumpkin pie!! Especially with lots of whipped cream. LOL

As far as side effects, well, I don't seem to get them anymore. I just feel... normal. I get a little dry mouth if I haven't eaten much but that would happen without the medication. In the beginning, the side effects were there but very mild. I had a headache first week (went away with ibuprofen), some fatigue and dizziness (went away in 2 weeks) and had been sleeping more and definitely more soundly. In the beginning, I would be out instantly and slept 9-11 hrs (if I could!) That went away and now my sleep pattern is the normal 7-8 hrs. I just don't wake up is my husband is rustling around or getting out of bed (he has restless legs) so the sound sleep is still there.

For me, it was a God-send. I have some endocrine problems and losing weight has a uphill, soul-sucking, battle. If you happen to be a responder, it's a great drug.

P.S. My insurance didn't cover it, so my doctor filled out the patient assistance forms for me. Now, all I pay is a $25 copay per mo. Not sure how long that will last, but for now it really helps a lot.

FatFreeFrolicking

These are prescription drugs, prescribed by physicians.

It always surprises me that the topic is something specific, yet some of you who have have no interest in this topic feel that it is your duty to tell us what we already know. Then you expect us to say "Gee whiz, I never knew that." and "Thanks for enlightening me." We get it. You would never take these drugs. We don't understand why you need to impose your opinions and beliefs on us. These are prescription drugs, prescribed by physicians. We appreciate your input and knowledge on other topics, but the lecturing gets kind of old, you know?

Back to the subject.

I take Phentermine, and have very good results with it. I would rather not take it if there was something different that was effective.

I am interested in these other drugs you mentioned, because Phentermine has a pharmacology similar to amphetamine, which is not something I consider healthy.

I looked these drugs up. I had never heard of them. One is mixed with Topomax, an anti-seizure medication, so I wouldn't want to take that. The other seems to be some kind of SSRI, and it can interact with other SSRIs. I take a small dose of Prozac. Also, the BMI needs to be over 30, or over 27 with another health condition. My BMI is 27.6, so that probably leaves me out.

Back to square one. I don't lose weight very fast. Normally around 1/2 pound a week. RIght now I am finally exercising regularly, so I am losing more than usual. Since February 4th I have lost 16 pounds. The big trick with Phentermine and with any weight loss, is making sure we keep up the healthy way of eating. That's what I have trouble with.

You are willing to take Phentermine which is basically speed but you wouldn't want to take a drug mixed with Topamax because it's an anti-seizure medication? :laugh: :huh:

FatFreeFrolicking

People, what you're not getting is that many times people lose weight then gain it all back. Over and over. It has nothing to do with diet pills. The reason I posted about my yo-yo dieting, is that is going to be a thing of my past. I intend on changing that. I never will let myself get heavy again.

It absolutely has everything to do with diet pills.

They are relying on diet pills to lose weight because they can't do it themselves.

So once they stop taking the diet pill, they gain all of the weight back plus some because they never truly learned the fundamentals needed to KEEP the weight off.

likitisplit

These are prescription drugs, prescribed by physicians.

It always surprises me that the topic is something specific, yet some of you who have have no interest in this topic feel that it is your duty to tell us what we already know. Then you expect us to say "Gee whiz, I never knew that." and "Thanks for enlightening me." We get it. You would never take these drugs. We don't understand why you need to impose your opinions and beliefs on us. These are prescription drugs, prescribed by physicians. We appreciate your input and knowledge on other topics, but the lecturing gets kind of old, you know?

Back to the subject.

I take Phentermine, and have very good results with it. I would rather not take it if there was something different that was effective.

I am interested in these other drugs you mentioned, because Phentermine has a pharmacology similar to amphetamine, which is not something I consider healthy.

I looked these drugs up. I had never heard of them. One is mixed with Topomax, an anti-seizure medication, so I wouldn't want to take that. The other seems to be some kind of SSRI, and it can interact with other SSRIs. I take a small dose of Prozac. Also, the BMI needs to be over 30, or over 27 with another health condition. My BMI is 27.6, so that probably leaves me out.

Back to square one. I don't lose weight very fast. Normally around 1/2 pound a week. RIght now I am finally exercising regularly, so I am losing more than usual. Since February 4th I have lost 16 pounds. The big trick with Phentermine and with any weight loss, is making sure we keep up the healthy way of eating. That's what I have trouble with.

You are willing to take Phentermine which is basically speed but you wouldn't want to take a drug mixed with Topamax because it's an anti-seizure medication? :laugh: :huh:

Also the half pound a week, which is awesome steady loss...

ZombieEarhart

People, what you're not getting is that many times people lose weight then gain it all back. Over and over. It has nothing to do with diet pills. The reason I posted about my yo-yo dieting, is that is going to be a thing of my past. I intend on changing that. I never will let myself get heavy again.

Uh, I think people do get that. Of course the pills work in that you lose weight for a few months- but then what? Yo-yoing is exactly the problem with diet pills

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Junebuggyzy

When I quit smoking 10 years ago, I was on a forum where I was criticized for not doing it the natural way. I was criticized because I used the patch, and took Welbutrin. I was told the only right way to quit smoking was cold turkey. Guess what? I am still not smoking, and I wonder how many of them are.

People who are really posting that are asking real questions:
Just private message me or someone else that cares.

Some people have too much time on their hands and need to make themselves feel better by criticizing what someone else does that works for them. Some people have a need to let people know that their way is the only way. Guess what? When I am at my goal weight and maintaining it for 10 years, will you still be on these forums, fat. and criticizing people for doing it the wrong way?

paperpudding

Guess what? When I am at my goal weight and maintaining it for 10 years, will you still be on these forums, fat. and criticizing people for doing it the wrong way?

Interesting comment.
Not everyone commenting against diet pills is fat - one has lost over 150 lb and myself has been at maintenance for 5 months

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LexiMelo

When I quit smoking 10 years ago, I was on a forum where I was criticized for not doing it the natural way. I was criticized because I used the patch, and took Welbutrin. I was told the only right way to quit smoking was cold turkey. Guess what? I am still not smoking, and I wonder how many of them are.

People who are really posting that are asking real questions:
Just private message me or someone else that cares.

Some people have too much time on their hands and need to make themselves feel better by criticizing what someone else does that works for them. Some people have a need to let people know that their way is the only way. Guess what? When I am at my goal weight and maintaining it for 10 years, will you still be on these forums, fat. and criticizing people for doing it the wrong way?

ooh Feisty. I was on that same smoking support group I believe. I quit smoking cold turkey ten years ago and yes have no interest in smoking now and actually the smell of it makes me want to vomit. My mother, on the other hand, has been on the nicotine patch for five years. But as the PP said, quitting smoking and weight loss are two incredibly different things.

Given your past of yo-yo dieting and your plan to essentially take speed to lose weight, your claim that you will be at goal weight and maintaining it for ten years while the rest of us, who eat right and exercise will be "fat" is wholly not credible. But good luck with that.

likitisplit

I used the patch to quit smoking successfully. If I ever needed to quit eating, I guess I'd use a pill. However, this is not the place for you learn how to stop eating, but for you to learn how to satisfy yourself with the right amount of healthy food. Controlling your hunger isn't going to teach you a thing about satisfying it appropriately.

elisa123gal

I'm sure you'll get abused by all sorts of people putting you down for using diet pills..but everyone is different. I understand the need to just want to get the weight off. This is your journey and you need to approach it your way.

many of us on here have lost weight the "natural" way through diet and exercise and gained it all back too. some many times over..

Myself? I fear diet pills..just because the FDA can approve something..then years later do the old "oops" is causes this or that.

I find taking turmeric supplements.. which is really just the spice in a gel capsule takes my mind off food just like you say these diet pills do..…try it.. take one four times a day before meals. It is healthy for you…an anti inflammatory…and studies show it reduces fat cells..

Junebuggyzy

Topic: New Diet Pills (Belviq vs Qsymia)

Please change this to:

Topic: "Why I hate diet pills"

or

Topic: "I think it is really important to reply to threads that have nothing to do with me, because topics that have to do with my needs are nowhere near as important as topics that have nothing to do with me, and I really, really need to tell you how right I am and how wrong you are, and oh, did I forget to say that I really need to get a life?"

Too bad there is no unsubscribe button. As long as you guys have decided it is really important to take this post off topic, I bid you a happy life.

PJPrimrose

We are here to share our experience with weight loss. IMHO diet pills are a disaster. Taking in medications of any kind has side effects. If you don't believe me talk to an actual person in the medical field that went to medical school. The side effects are acceptable if it will do you some good. Diet pills do not work and have side effects. Or they are a placebo and it's a waste of money.

SugaryLynx

Guess what? When I am at my goal weight and maintaining it for 10 years, will you still be on these forums, fat. and criticizing people for doing it the wrong way?

need a ladder? I'm afraid mine is too short to help you down.

cindymylou

This is my first time posting. I have to say I was completely taken back by the anti-pill bully comments. I understand that each person is entitled to their own opinion but it just isn't fair to a person who is prescribed a medication by a knowledgable physician and whose healthcare and weightless is being followed by a knowledgable physician to be bashed for attempting to gain information from others who are going through the same thing. That's the reason I am here. I need to find more information about Belviq and see what the experience of others has been (not the experience of the anti pill users cause I have already been an anti pill user for the last 25 years).

So far I have used Qysmia. I definitely feel that I have cravings and I do eat less. However, it's not been very strong at keeping my eating at bay. I am just barely struggling with obesity. I can't even remember what my BMI is right now. I'm 155 and 5' but a few years ago I was 187. I lost that by changing my eating habits when I became diabetic. I am not on insulin and use exercise and metformin to control my diabetes. However, I still have health issues that require me to lose weight such as my diabetes, high blood pressure, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. I am limited as to what exercise I can do because I have osteoarthritis in my upper spine, blah. I felt like I had to spell all that out for the non pill people who think I might not be doing it right.

My point is that I don't have a big amount of weight to lose like some who are in the meds but it's this weight that I'm super struggling with and I am wondering if I would find the Belviq more effective. I find it strange that the Qsymia does not seem as effective.

paperpudding

Cindymylou, I didn't think my comments were bullying.

I wrote a polite request for those posters who posted in beginning of this thread, 4 - 10 months ago, to come back and inform us of their long term success.

Unfortunately none of them did so.

Hmmm, I wonder what that means?

mcspiffy88

Well the less weight you have to loose the less effective you will find these diet pills .. If you just got a few beauty pounds to loose hop on the treadmill and burn it off. my 2c

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likitisplit

Cindymylou, I didn't think my comments were bullying.

I wrote a polite request for those posters who posted in beginning of this thread, 4 - 10 months ago, to come back and inform us of their long term success.

Unfortunately none of them did so.

Hmmm, I wonder what that means?

It's Cindy's first time posting and she joined April of 2014. What does that tell you?

Texsox

Cindymylou, I didn't think my comments were bullying.

I wrote a polite request for those posters who posted in beginning of this thread, 4 - 10 months ago, to come back and inform us of their long term success.

Unfortunately none of them did so.

Hmmm, I wonder what that means?

That they lost the weight and no longer post here?

I'll keep you informed. So far after 10 days I have lost 7.5 pounds on Belviq. Yes, I went through a couple days of backaches and headaches, but those are gone. The plan that my doctor and I have worked out will eventually get me off the blood pressure pills I've been taking for 25 years. I am not struggling with hunger pains, it is bacially doing everything that the drug maker promises. I will gladly trade my BP pills for Belviq. My doctor's and my greatest concern is when I go off Belviq. We're hoping by then with careful monitoring and additional excercise options, I will be able to maintain a lower weight and not yo-yo like I have been doing with MFP and moderate only excercise.

shescountry74

I started using Garcinia and the first week it seemed to help curb appetite and cravings. Now 3 weeks into taking it I don't feel it is working and last week I felt more hungrier than normal and wanted to eat all day long. I do believe diets pills can help you get a jump start to a new program for the first few weeks or so. I just worry about long term use and the effects it cold entail. However, I know a person that used them for about 6 months and was very successful at taking them with little to no side effects. Now a 15 months later she has not been on diet pills and has maintained her weight loss. She is activily involved now with working out, marathons, etc.. My job most of the time requires me to sit at my desk in front of a computer and at times I get bored and want to eat, and eat or eat things that are so unhealthy.

shescountry74

I quit smoking cold turkey in 2006 stayed Smoke free for 2 years and my life style and personal life went upside down going through divorce. I went back to smoking. Then I tried it again in March 2012, cold turkey for close to 4 months and once again went right back to it. Now thinking about quitting again, but trying the patch or the shantax (spelling). Anything now to quit smoking again and this time to stay away from them for good is my goal. Everyone is different and things work for others that may not work for someone else. All with diet pills as well. If you take something to quit smoking and have had great success with it, I look at it as long as you quit smoking what does it matter what you did to get to that point. Thumbs up to ones who can kick the habit and stay with it for a lifetime. Smoking, losing weight is all about life style change, no matter which one it is, it is still hard and can be very challenging at times. Whatever works for anyone to get a jump start on a healthier living “my hats off to them!”

sarsons2

hmm.. forgetting to eat is hardly healthy. You need to eat regularly or will never achieve what you are after. diet pills DO NOT WORK long term - its all just a waste of money.

The answer to losing weight is healthy - and balanced - eating and exercise.

Burn more than you absorb and you will get there. LONG TERM IS BEST - much less likely to put it all back on again, like you will using tablets and other crank crap

likitisplit

There is no way to jump start a healthier lifestyle. You are the sum of the choices you make. If you live healthy, your body will adjust itself to whatever you are doing at the time.

nancy10272004

These are prescription drugs, prescribed by physicians.

I am interested in these other drugs you mentioned, because Phentermine has a pharmacology similar to amphetamine, which is not something I consider healthy.

I looked these drugs up. I had never heard of them. One is mixed with Topomax, an anti-seizure medication, so I wouldn't want to take that. The other seems to be some kind of SSRI, and it can interact with other SSRIs. I take a small dose of Prozac. Also, the BMI needs to be over 30, or over 27 with another health condition. My BMI is 27.6, so that probably leaves me out.

I'm not a psychiatrist but because of my long history with the subject and its many treatment options, I play one on the interwebz.

Topamax is an anti-seizure medication that is frequently used as a mood stabilizer for people with bipolar disorder. I have no clue why that would be in a diet pill.

As for the other one, it's highly unlikely it's an SSRI. It's probably an SNRI like Wellbutrin. The "N" stands for norepinephrine. It's not exactly an upper but it can give people anxiety or make them manic. I have a serious clue as to why this would be in a diet pill.

jwooley13

Without taking sides here, I think the real problem is everyone speaking in absolutes. Diet pills probably do work for some people - especially those that are extremely overweight and need to shed pounds fast to avoid onset of diabetes or other obesity-induced conditions. However, there are also plenty of people out there who have stopped taking diet pills, fallen off the wagon, and gobbled up all of the weight that they lost and then some. The biggest problem here are folks who take these medications without close supervision from a medical professional, because that's often where people run into problems.

Everyone just stop judging each other so much.


**Added point - to the poster who didn't want to take one of the drugs mixed with Topomax - probably a good choice. I work in epilepsy clinical trials and while topomax is great for people who need it, it also tends to dramatically hinder cognitive function. We call it the "supermodel drug" because it makes patients thin, but also turns them a bit air-headed while they're taking it.

Wtn_Gurl

I took Qsymia a while back and because i didnot drink enough water, i got bad constipation. i stopped taking it. I was doing ok with no bad side effects while on the 2 week lower dose, but when they upped it, it gave me that bad effect. the other side effects i felt was pop tasted nasty like they tell us it would, and i did get a little air-headed more than usual (haha).

I am now doing low carbohydrate, and when im hungry I use food to satisfy my appetite, mostly a fat product like cheese or yogurt or fruit. last week i was dropping a pound a day like when i was on Qsymia. Seems like it is working so far.

so i think i am trying to use food to do what the meds did for me.

i wish i could take something to suppress my appetite because sometimes i eat a medium amount of food which whould fill me up, but then i still am hungry.. So annoying! i hate hunger pangs!!! grrrr... eating that fat food is not making me fat. but it is doing what the meds did, it seems, time will tell if my method will work for the long haul.

I dont know of any meds that dont have bad side effects that would just take away the extra appetite.

if you want to not take a med, try eating something full fat that is not too sweet or salty, and see if that helps you.

I'm not a doctor so i cannot recommend anything to anyone, but thats my experience with Qsymia. not sure what would have happened if i upped my water though.

by the way, my progress is as my ticker shows, i lost 23 pounds in 2 months. pretty darn good, thank you Jesus, all without meds.

jwooley13

I took Qsymia a while back and because i didnot drink enough water, i got bad constipation. i stopped taking it. I was doing ok with no bad side effects while on the 2 week lower dose, but when they upped it, it gave me that bad effect. the other side effects i felt was pop tasted nasty like they tell us it would, and i did get a little air-headed more than usual (haha).

I am now doing low carbohydrate, and when im hungry I use food to satisfy my appetite, mostly a fat product like cheese or yogurt or fruit. last week i was dropping a pound a day like when i was on Qsymia. Seems like it is working so far.

so i think i am trying to use food to do what the meds did for me.

i wish i could take something to suppress my appetite because sometimes i eat a medium amount of food which whould fill me up, but then i still am hungry.. So annoying! i hate hunger pangs!!! grrrr... eating that fat food is not making me fat. but it is doing what the meds did, it seems, time will tell if my method will work for the long haul.

I dont know of any meds that dont have bad side effects that would just take away the extra appetite.

if you want to not take a med, try eating something full fat that is not too sweet or salty, and see if that helps you.

I'm not a doctor so i cannot recommend anything to anyone, but thats my experience with Qsymia. not sure what would have happened if i upped my water though.

by the way, my progress is as my ticker shows, i lost 23 pounds in 2 months. pretty darn good, thank you Jesus, all without meds.

If you're looking for something mild and over the counter, I would recommend green coffee bean extract. I only take half the dose and don't take it every day, but I find it helps to curb cravings a bit. If you're ultra sensitive to caffeine, it may make you a bit jittery, but other than that I've noticed no side effects. It's helpful, but it's no miracle pill!

Unknown

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