Medication affecting appetite.

chubbybunnee

I was recently diagnosed with ADD and my doctor prescribed me adderol. I started it and everything was normal for the first week. after that, I noticed I wasnt snacking as much out of 'boredom' and didn't have much of an appetite. Recently, I have been getting up at 7 for work then at 4 realise I havent eaten yet, so i make a bowl of cereal, eat a snack, then wait for dinner time. Because I havent been as hungry, it's hard to want to eat all my calories. I literally have to force myself to eat something just so I have food in my stomach. My calories vary from 400 to 1200 any given day and my macros are always seeming to end up over protein, under carbs, under fat, over in sugar (from the special k cereal and 90 cal cookie bar). I am hearing all these people say I'm putting my body into starvation mode, but I literally don't feel hungry. In fact, sometimes I feel nauseous and don't want to eat. Should I be forcing myself to eat anyways just to get to my 1200 calories, or is it ok to not eat if I'm not hungry? Does the medication 'speed up' my metabolism or does it just supress my triggers that tell my body that its hungry?

I work 2 jobs, go to school, and have so much to do when I get home (i.e. cleaning and laundry) that I rarely have time for the gym. I do some yoga at home or walk the dogs, but that's all I have time for. I'm so exhausted by the time I get home, and any exercise time will be coming out off my 'sleep time'. I know in a perfect world, I should exercise and eat more.... In 2011 I went from 225 to 171 by eating 2200 calories a day and burning off 1000 a day, but I was a stay at home wife back then and had nothing to do but work out 3 times a day. Now, I'm lucky if I get 5 hours of sleep a night.

I am so stressed out. I am losing weight really fast. I have lost about 7 or 8 pounds in the past 12 days. I don't want to lose weight and be "skinny fat"...I want to lose weight but look good and be healthy.

Does anyone know about this medication and it's effects on the body? I can google it, but didn't know if anyone else out there was on it and having the same side effect and has overcome it.

I really don't want my metabolism to slow down, but I don't want to be force feeding myself either. Is there a happy medium?

thisismeraw

The medication can take away you feeling hungry. You may have to force yourself to get calories in. 1200 is far too low let alone only consuming 400 ish calories in a day.

Have nuts... tons of calories for low amounts of food. Have protein shakes. Again, can be high calorie but not make you feel stuffed. If you really aren't hungry you can drink mass building shakes which are really high calorie. Helps you get those calories in without having to consume a large amount of food. Have a few scoops of peanut butter or another nut butter. Figure out ways to up your calories as netting far too little will increase your muscle loss along the way.

Until you can get your calories up, lay off the exercise for now as it will create an even higher deficit. Maybe swap out the cereal for something higher calorie. Instead of the cookie bar have apple slices with peanut butter.

chubbybunnee

Thanks for the advice Do you recomend any particular protein powder or shakes? I used to have one from a nnaturalist but it expired and there are so many out there. How do I figure out which one is best for me? Do they differ or are they all basically the same ingredients?

BarackMeLikeAHurricane

There are a few options, eat a lot in the morning before you take it, see if your doctor can put you on the instant release one so it's out of your system quicker and you'll have an appetite for dinner, or force yourself to eat more. I was on it in high school and became scary skinny. I was ninety something pounds and I'm 5'8". My skin became dry and dull, my nails were blue, I would pass out all the time, I felt depressed and miserable, and I would eat maybe two to three times a week. When I would eat, I would try to make it something high calorie like granola with nuts, dried fruit, and honey but I food seemed repulsive to me. I would try to drink either juice or those bolthouse farms drinks (very nutrient dense and I would drink the high protein one) when I could manage it. I just had to stop taking it so I could have my life back.