Doctor Says Phentermine Long Term Not a Problem....Really?

Athena98501

I should have put this disclaimer out their before for the "Phentermine is bad" crowd. Please quit posting about how horrible Phentermine is. Diabetes is also horrible and does terrible things to you body. There are all kinds of physical ailments related to obesity that are much worse than phentermine....so please no more posts about how bad phentermine is OK?

You asked if it's safe, and got your answer. It's disrespectful to dismiss the posters who aren't saying what you want to hear. And while you can say that you haven't perceived any undesirable side effects, you can't know that it isn't doing some of the worst things on that list without you being able to tell yet.

You said you've lost weight without any real trouble before, so I don't see why you feel this is necessary. Yes, a lot of people gain weight back, but looking for a quick fix will almost guarantee that you do too. I'd recommend you just plan on logging way beyond when you reach maintenance. People regain their weight because they fall back into their old habits, and eat significantly over their TDEE. Don't do that, and you won't have a problem.

ladymiseryali

What's the point of posting something asking for advice when you're just going to have a childish tantrum when someone tells you something you don't want to hear? :huh: :noway:

SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish

I want to know if anyone can confirm using Phentermine as safe long term. I want to know if what this doctor is saying is accurate....as I stated in my OP.

With the above statement, it looks like you have made up your mind and want someone to tell you its not dangerous and validate your decision. However none of those drugs are "safe" really, its a weighing of negatives that you have to do here.

I hope you can hear this, here is the truth of the matter: it sounds like you are in the very common situation where the doctor you have currently thinks that you will lose control and eat too much and gain more weight, causing diabetes, and he thinks that the percentage chance of negative health effects of weight gain and diabetes are worse than the percentage chance of all the negative effects of Phentermine, and that you will get sick and die sooner without it than with it. it does not mean its "safe", just when you roll the dice with one situation, the likelyhood of "crapping out" is less with one than with the other, however, you still choose to roll those dice you didn't have to by taking it. And the reason he thinks this is he's seen many who cant control themselves and gain much more weight and get diabetes...so yes this is bad, but you CAN try to lose first yourself, and only medicate if you lose the battle.

Of course the best choice is this one that he isn't going over with you, and its the hard choice: to lose weight and change your eating habits, change your lifestyle and lower your weight by yourself, avoiding BOTH sets of side effects. He doesn't think you have it in you to do this. And if we were playing a game of statistics, he's probably right a lot more than wrong, and *IF* this drug did keep you from getting overly overweight and diabetic when you didnt have the will to do it, its side effects would probably be worth it, but remember that is also only a certain percentage chance that it will work for you.

If I were you, I'd want to prove him wrong and work hard to do it. And, in the case I tried very very hard and failed trying to do it, I'd say rolling the dice with Phentermine is probably less likely to shorten my life as much as diabetes and a lot of excessive weight and then go ahead with that choice after giving it a very good try. But you are not me, the choice is not mine what you do, and I don't know enough about you or your medical history to say. Everyone likes the pill/easy way out, but its not the best possible option: the best option is usually not easy, and the easy one is not "safe".

Lupercalia

Bloody hell! Get a better doctor, STAT.

No, it is not safe to be on Phentermine indefinitely. I personally wouldn't want to be on it for even a day. There are just too many negative side effects and risks you're taking by doing so.

EVERYONE who loses weight is at risk for regaining it. Maintaining weight loss is difficult, period. Regardless of whether you've got PCOS or not. People who do not significantly overhaul their previous "fat" lifestyles are the ones who end up regaining. Phentermine users would certainly be included in this group, as taking a pill, or a cocktail of pills to control your weight is absolutely not learning how to eat, exercise regularly and deal with life in a sane sort of way.

I have PCOS, as do many other women on this board. I am also insulin resistant (prediabetic). I have lost a lot of fat, and am continuing to lose. I haven't had any sort of chemical help in the form of diet pills or even Metformin (couldn't tolerate it). I did this all on my own, slowly but surely. You can do it, too. There are lots of women on this site with PCOS who have lost (and are keeping off) significant amounts of weight.

I had to really limit my carbs, sort out my food allergies and intolerances, and start exercising. Life isn't fair, and I feel like I have to work twice as hard for maybe half or one third the results of someone who doesn't have PCOS, but hey ho. What can you do, right? So yeah, I've had to be consistent and very tenacious. I will go for what seems like ages without seeing the scale move, but eventually everything seems to catch up and pay off for me, and I lose a little bit of fat. Trusting in that process to work out for you is a huge part of the deal.

EvgeniZyntx

I am not really worried about losing the weight...that I know I can do (Done it many many many many times!) It is his statement of two of the following:

1. Women with PCOS usually ALWAYS gain the weight back over time because it gets too hard to keep it off.
2. After a while Phentermine stops working for women if they go on and off of it all the time.

Again, I am thinking long term here in preventing diabetes. I was also told that women with PCOS have a 75% chance of getting diabetes (different doctor). He basically said that between weighing the risks of getting diabetes verses taking phentermine long term, the better option would be phentermine long term.

I am not heavy enough to get any type of medical surgery/procedure done either to make sure I don't gain the weight back either. So, I am concerned primarily for the future and managing this PCOS stuff and being realistic at the same time.

Ok, time to cut through the bad info you are getting.

1) MOST people regain the weight they lost - as for women with PCOS most do too. What he should have said, is MOST not ALL. But the same is true with Phetermine. What you need to decide is what is your long term strategy to not be like "most".
2) Phetermine habituation occurs whether you stop/go or continue. Fact, just read the insert - it's written right there
3) Phetermine and PCOS is a bad combo - why? Each alone increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. Together? There is some uncertainty around the role of phetermine - but a reminder that this drug is not allowed in the EU for a reason...
4) Phetermine is indicated only for short term usage - if a doctor is prescribing it for long term they are doing so outside of the FDA guidelines for the drug.

If you are interested in any information for this drug, here is the single best starting point:
http://druginfo.nlm.nih.gov/drugportal/ProxyServlet?mergeData=true&objectHandle=DBMaint&APPLICATION_NAME=drugportal&actionHandle=default&nextPage=jsp/drugportal/ResultScreen.jsp&TXTSUPERLISTID=0000122098&QV1=PHENTERMINE

5) With regards to Diabetes. 75% is WRONG. The long term risk accretion rate is perhaps 2x higher for women with PCOS from 13% to 23%.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3060760/

if you are concerned about diabetes - the single best change you can carry out is lifestyle and weight loss. There is no study that I have found that suggest long term use of phentermine is more successful.

Iron_Feline

Maybe before you resort to pills to lose weight you could post asking for women with PCOS success stories to tell you how they did it. Yes it will be harder but I know it's not impossible as I have read the success stories here.

IN fact here are a few since I'm so nice :flowerforyou:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/880990-180-pounds-down-with-pcos

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/988410-ladies-with-pcos-success-stories?hl=PCOS+success

There is probably a group or two as well.

Lupercalia

Maybe before you resort to pills to lose weight you could post asking for women with PCOS success stories to tell you how they did it. Yes it will be harder but I know it's not impossible as I have read the success stories here.

IN fact here are a few since I'm so nice :flowerforyou:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/880990-180-pounds-down-with-pcos

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/988410-ladies-with-pcos-success-stories?hl=PCOS+success

There is probably a group or two as well.

Here's a group:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/3070-p-c-o-sis

PCOS_Gal

Thanks for the posts...... except for the ones where people are telling me I am hurting my body by taking phentermine.

I never asked in my OP if I should or should not take phentermine. So everyone that keeps posting that somehow I am going to cause myself to have a stroke or heart attack and that I will become addicted cause I am taking an amphetamine and giving my body poison....you all need to do your homework more and research scholarly journals.

I have no side effects other than reduced appetite and have no medical conditions that would preclude me using the drug safely...and have used it safely in the past and was extremely effective in helping me lose weight and I was able to keep it off until I got pregnant. It is safe for someone like me with no heart conditions or other serious medical conditions and has been studied the longest

What DID have me concerned as I stated in my OP is my doctors tale that women can stay on it pretty much indefinitely and that he would recommend women to stay on it with serious PCOS symptoms....that had me concerned as I was also always taught it was a short term solution in conjunction with diet and exercise....just as other people have posted here.

What also concerned me was his stance that I am pretty much "doomed" to be a yo-yo for the rest of my life because of the PCOS (despite low carb eating) and that phentermine was the way this was going to help me not be a doomed Yo-yo. The endocrinologist was another doctor who gave me the 75% of women with PCOS get Diabetes...pretty much giving me another doomed scenario of being a diabetic in the future... so thanks for the links that stated otherwise.

So overall the takeaway here is it looks like I have a bad weight loss doctor and and bad endocrinologist and need to find a new one of each.

Again, losing the weight is not an issue for me, with or without the phentermine, as I have done so many times in my life I have lost count.... and I know what it takes and I know what works. I just don't want to be a perpetual yo-yo like what was being predicted to me by this doctor as well as domed to be a diabetic no matter what I do as per the other doctor.

I_Will_End_You

Again, losing the weight is not an issue for me, with or without the phentermine, as I have done so many times in my life I have lost count.... and I know what it takes and I know what works. I just don't want to be a perpetual yo-yo like what was being predicted to me by this doctor as well as domed to be a diabetic no matter what I do as per the other doctor.

You already are, you said you've done it over and over again. Stop taking pills and change your lifestyle if you don't want to keep yo-yo'ing.

PCOS_Gal

Give it up...really...please....it is getting old.

I am doing south beach...the phentermine by far helps with the low carb diet and is keeping me motivated..... so enough already from the anti-phentermine crowd. There is no harm with me taking it and there is only a benefit if I do.

nomeejerome

OP asks for information, receives information and then asks a certain group of people to stop responding because she is going to do it anyway? Sounds about right.

galvestongal

I was on Phentermine for about 4 months to start (this was a few years ago) and had great results. I lost a lot of weight quickly and have kept most of it off. I can't say I was ever addicted, although I did go back on it now and then just to get a handle on my eating. However, I wouldn't recommend it, nor would I go back on it myself. After taking it I had abnormal heartbeat and my heart would start pounding hard and fast for no reason...very scary. It makes me wonder what long term effects would be for someone taking it longer...not worth the consequences I don't believe...I learned the hard way and wish I would have just relied on diet and exercise alone.

PCOS_Gal

OP was posing the question if what the doctor said was accurate NOT if the poster should or should not take Phentermine. Please re-read post if anyone is confused.

galvestongal

My doctor told me it would be fine to do on and off. However, My pharmacist and other doctors told me that it should be taken no longer than 3 months to prevent heart problems. I later found out the doctor that told me it was okay was making a killing off the "diet plan" at his office and was pushing it on everyone. After staying on it longer than the 3 months, I have to agree that it was not a "safe" thing to do.

DavPul

Perhaps the OP could just clearly state exactly what she wants us to say so that we could parrot it back to her. Even better, could the OP type out the answer she wants and then we can just quote it and type ^THIS under the quote box. It would be less frustrating for all involved.

QuietBloom

I would like some feedback from people that have taken Phentermine.

It's basically an amphetamine. You're artificially avoiding hunger by (over) stimulating the body's fight-or-flight response.

What else needs to be said? Seriously, this is destructive as hell.

I take amphetamines daily. They are not 'destructive as hell' when used appropriately.

QuietBloom

OP was posing the question if what the doctor said was accurate NOT if the poster should or should not take Phentermine. Please re-read post if anyone is confused.

I don't think there are any studies on the long-term effects of it or anything that supports it will lose efficacy if you go on and off it. I think that is your doctor's opinion, and I would ask him what he is basing his recommendation on if you are curious. Also, you can always Google studies yourself (I always like to educate myself and not just take my doctor's word on things).

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/

DopeItUp

Give it up...really...please....it is getting old.

I am doing south beach...the phentermine by far helps with the low carb diet and is keeping me motivated..... so enough already from the anti-phentermine crowd. There is no harm with me taking it and there is only a benefit if I do.

So there are numerous posts extolling the WELL KNOWN AND DOCUMENTED dangers of phentermine and your response is that there is no harm in your taking it? Did you even read any of the posts? At this point I just have to assume you are being intentionally obtuse because that's the only plausible explanation I can come up with.

QuietBloom

OP asks for information, receives information and then asks a certain group of people to stop responding because she is going to do it anyway? Sounds about right.

To be fair, she asked for a specific set of information.

OP, when you post on a public forum, you HAVE to expect that everyone is going to chime in with their opinion. Snarking at people who aren't giving you the feedback you want is a waste of time and energy and kinda defeats the purpose of a public forum IMHO.

EDIT: Oooh, found one study where apparently people had been on it 21 years. Wow.

________________________________________________________________________________

Int J Obes (Lond). 2013 May 17. doi: 10.1038/ijo.2013.74. [Epub ahead of print]
Addiction potential of phentermine prescribed during long-term treatment of obesity.
Hendricks EJ, Srisurapanont M, Schmidt SL, Haggard M, Souter S, Mitchell CL, De Marco DG, Hendricks MJ, Istratiy Y, Greenway FL.
Source

Center for Weight Management, Roseville, CA, USA.
Abstract

Objective:To investigate if phentermine treatment induces phentermine abuse, psychological dependence (addiction) or phentermine drug craving in overweight, obese and weight loss maintenance patients. To investigate whether amphetamine-like withdrawal occurs after abrupt cessation of long-term phentermine treatment.Design:Clinical intervention trial with interruption of phentermine treatment in long-term patients.Subjects:269 obese, overweight or formerly obese subjects (age: 20-88 years, BMI: 21-74 kg m-2) treated with phentermine long-term (LTP, N=117), 1.1-21.1 years, or short-term (ATP, N=152), 4-22 days, with phentermine doses of 18.75-112.5 (LTP) and 15-93.75 (ATP) mg per day.Measurements:Module K of the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview modified for phentermine (MINI-SUD), Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS), 45-item Cocaine Craving Questionnaire-NOW (CCQ-NOW) modified for phentermine (PCQ-NOW), and Amphetamine Withdrawal Questionnaire (AWQ) modified for phentermine (PWQ).Results:MINI-SUD interviews were negative for phentermine abuse or psychological dependence in all LTP patients. SDS examination scores were low for all LTP and ATP patients, indicating they were not psychologically dependent upon phentermine. PCQ-NOW scores were low for all LTP and ATP patients, indicating neither short-term nor long-term phentermine treatment had induced phentermine craving. Other than an increase in hunger or eating, amphetamine-like withdrawal symptoms did not occur upon abrupt phentermine cessation as measured by sequential PWQ scores.Conclusions:Phentermine abuse or psychological dependence (addiction) does not occur in patients treated with phentermine for obesity. Phentermine treatment does not induce phentermine drug craving, a hallmark sign of addiction. Amphetamine-like withdrawal does not occur upon abrupt treatment cessation even at doses much higher than commonly recommended and after treatment durations of up to 21 years.International Journal of Obesity advance online publication, 11 June 2013; doi:10.1038/ijo.2013.74.

________________________________________________________________________________________________

This was just published this year. It seems that blanket statements about its use being 'bad' and 'dangerous' are not necessarily accurate.

EvgeniZyntx

OP asks for information, receives information and then asks a certain group of people to stop responding because she is going to do it anyway? Sounds about right.

To be fair, she asked for a specific set of information.

OP, when you post on a public forum, you HAVE to expect that everyone is going to chime in with their opinion. Snarking at people who aren't giving you the feedback you want is a waste of time and energy and kinda defeats the purpose of a public forum IMHO.

EDIT: Oooh, found one study where apparently people had been on it 21 years. Wow.

________________________________________________________________________________

Int J Obes (Lond). 2013 May 17. doi: 10.1038/ijo.2013.74. [Epub ahead of print]
Addiction potential of phentermine prescribed during long-term treatment of obesity.
Hendricks EJ, Srisurapanont M, Schmidt SL, Haggard M, Souter S, Mitchell CL, De Marco DG, Hendricks MJ, Istratiy Y, Greenway FL.
Source

Center for Weight Management, Roseville, CA, USA.
Abstract

Objective:To investigate if phentermine treatment induces phentermine abuse, psychological dependence (addiction) or phentermine drug craving in overweight, obese and weight loss maintenance patients. To investigate whether amphetamine-like withdrawal occurs after abrupt cessation of long-term phentermine treatment.Design:Clinical intervention trial with interruption of phentermine treatment in long-term patients.Subjects:269 obese, overweight or formerly obese subjects (age: 20-88 years, BMI: 21-74 kg m-2) treated with phentermine long-term (LTP, N=117), 1.1-21.1 years, or short-term (ATP, N=152), 4-22 days, with phentermine doses of 18.75-112.5 (LTP) and 15-93.75 (ATP) mg per day.Measurements:Module K of the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview modified for phentermine (MINI-SUD), Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS), 45-item Cocaine Craving Questionnaire-NOW (CCQ-NOW) modified for phentermine (PCQ-NOW), and Amphetamine Withdrawal Questionnaire (AWQ) modified for phentermine (PWQ).Results:MINI-SUD interviews were negative for phentermine abuse or psychological dependence in all LTP patients. SDS examination scores were low for all LTP and ATP patients, indicating they were not psychologically dependent upon phentermine. PCQ-NOW scores were low for all LTP and ATP patients, indicating neither short-term nor long-term phentermine treatment had induced phentermine craving. Other than an increase in hunger or eating, amphetamine-like withdrawal symptoms did not occur upon abrupt phentermine cessation as measured by sequential PWQ scores.Conclusions:Phentermine abuse or psychological dependence (addiction) does not occur in patients treated with phentermine for obesity. Phentermine treatment does not induce phentermine drug craving, a hallmark sign of addiction. Amphetamine-like withdrawal does not occur upon abrupt treatment cessation even at doses much higher than commonly recommended and after treatment durations of up to 21 years.International Journal of Obesity advance online publication, 11 June 2013; doi:10.1038/ijo.2013.74.

________________________________________________________________________________________________

This was just published this year. It seems that blanket statements about its use being 'bad' and 'dangerous' are not necessarily accurate.

May I suggest you read the other conclusions of that study. Yeah, there is a nice little surprise in there.