Just Starting Phentermine

Me too. Started using Fitness Pal - doctor's orders - a month ago...after going in this morning, and finding out I'd been eating well...and still gained 4 pounds...she prescribed Phentermine. Took half a pill today. Kinda excited...and a little scared about it.

<insert popcorn eating gif here>

Oh, and no, there are no pills in my popcorn. And that's not a euphemism for anything.

And OP, listen to your rather ironic profile pic and toss the pills in the trash. :flowerforyou:

And what happens when you stop the Phentermine? It will come back on. I speak from experience.

Be warned - you're going to get some negative feedback as most people on MFP don't take kindly to people using quick fixes in order to lose weight. Hopefully you are educating yourself about portion control and are developing a healthy relationship with food. Tough love time: if you're just relying on whatever drug you're taking to lose the weight unfortunately once you go off of it you'll most likely gain all of the weight back....plus some. Good luck OP.

I tried two pills and threw away the rest of the bottle because the side effects were just so awful for me.

phentermine causes u to lose weight by raising your heart rate and (stimulating ur nervous system) so you dont have an appetite... if you dont change why you eat or what you eat you wont do any better on that pill and it has MANY side effects. I was on it for a year and it made me crazy. Very anxious all the time, talking really fast, hyper stimulated basically (and not in a good way) made myself and my husband crazy. PLEASE PLEASE go to a bariatric class (you dont have to go through with the surgery) just the class will teach you SO MUCH about food and labels and even peak into why it is you eat what you do.

Best thing i learned...
Its calories in vs calories out... SHOCKER
If you write down everything you put in your mouth (esp condiments like salad dressings, etc) you will be shocked at how many cal you actually eat. If you lower that amount ( i eventually got to 1200 cal per day pre op for sleeve) i lost 40 pounds and didnt have any of the icky side effects that stupid pill gave me. also I didnt lose but 5 lbs while on it. WHY cause i never changed what i ate or why i ate. I would graze just to graze. I would always eat watching TV or on the computer. TWO BIG NO NOs... hard to keep track of how much or what your eating. I got rid of the crap in my house fixed only fresh stuff and started using a salad plate instead of a reg dinner plate... 3 months later i was 40 pounds down! and i didnt even exercise...

Now post op im trying to include the exercise ( i have bad knees and back, so starting with yoga and pilates- gently)

but you can do it... no damn pill will fix it. As soon as you stop you WILL gain it ALL back if not more... (and it made me super depressed when i stopped)... think of that pill like meth-- know any healthy meth heads LOL... sorry for the joke but its honest its a TERRIBLE and proven FAILURE for weight loss. Cause you dont address ANY of the issues that lead you to be the weight you are right now...
i wish you luck and hope you get off a pill ( no pill can save us, we must start taking responsibility for what we put in our mouth and yes get off our butt and walk more) esp bc that pill is very unsafe- can lead to heart attacks and heart rhythm disorders ( mine was up over 120 every day) ...

I agree with the throwing the pills in the trash. These sound a lot like the old Phenphen that several of my friends used and developed heart trouble from. Of course they got to take part in a class action suit but that's not my cup of tea. Too much caffeine gives me the shakes so I'm not sure how these pills would affect me.

Great message. Thanks.

There are a lot of comments on this choice in the forum. Look under the search feature using the drug’s name. Needless to say it's a hot topic (as is anything seen as a short-lived short-cut) and ultimately it comes down to learning the right behaviors during its use that you can then leverage after you are done talking it. It has side effects for most. It works for a limited time before your body makes it ineffective so think of it as a onetime shot. Some people don’t learn to manage their hunger or the role of exercise and calories or whatever and put the weight back on (and then some like any diet short term fix).

If you take it watch for side effects – be ready to quit. Plan to get off it as quickly as possible (usually 3 months max is the recommended period). Use a tool like this to help you monitor your calories in/calories out. Exercise. Learn to eat better/differently. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Phentermine is an amphetamine-like medication used to suppress appetite. It can help weight loss by decreasing your hunger or making you feel full longer. Phentermine may be recommended as part of an overall weight-loss plan if you're significantly overweight — not if you want to lose just a few pounds.

Phentermine may be a way to kick-start your weight loss. But once you stop taking it, you're likely to regain the weight you lost. That's why phentermine should be part of a plan that includes healthy eating and regular exercise — you're more likely to maintain your weight loss over time if you don't rely solely on medications.

It is not recommended to use for longer than 12 weeks and has several side affects as mentioned by many others.

You have to decide if your consumption problem comes from Strong Appetite or from poor food choices and can you gain control of the Appetite and wean yourself off the pills in a relatively short period of time. Doctors will often keep perscribing them long after they should because patients will come back for quick and profitable office visits so you have to take control of this yourself.

Just want to give you feed back from someone taking it. It is helping me. I went into this with the complete MINDSET that I was going to change my lifestyle. After talking with my doctor he thought at this point it would be the best option. I have lost 40 pounds since I started taking it in January. I have A LOT more to lose. The benefit from taking it is now that I have 40lbs off I can actually walk out the doors on my lunch break and walk a half a mile. Before it killed me just to walk to the bathroom. I have changed my eating habits and pray daily that God show me that food is fuel, not comfort. You can do this! I support your choice that you feel is best for you at this time. Feel free to friend me.

If you value your heart's health... .throw the pills away. They double your risk of heart disease and other legitimate cardiovascular problems. There are other ways to lose the weight, and you can do it like so many others on here

Please be careful if you are serious about taking this medication. I am a nurse and I took it for a short period of time, it worked really great at first and I was honestly clueless as how badly it could interfere with your heart. I have SVT(superventricular tachycardia) and it turns out that even days after stopping it, it would make my heart rate go up to 200 beats a minute... NOT GOOD at all. Regular rate is 60-100 bpm. I honestly wouldn't advise anyone to take this medication. It really messes up your system, plus when the weight comes off and the pills are stopped the weight comes back on.

I started phentermine about 2 weeks ago. Down 16 lbs. Side effects to date: Dry mouth sometimes. Greatest benefit thus far: Being able to control food instead of it controlling me. I am: Taking phentermine, logging food and activity. I'm not: freaking out about taking it or, planning on taking it for the rest of my life.


You don't like phentermine? So what? Nobody's asking you to take it.


You can lose weight without it? Great! What do you want, a medal or a chest to pin it on?


Now, back off and leave the newcomer and others alone.

Be warned - you're going to get some negative feedback as most people on MFP don't take kindly to people using quick fixes in order to lose weight. Hopefully you are educating yourself about portion control and are developing a healthy relationship with food. Tough love time: if you're just relying on whatever drug you're taking to lose the weight unfortunately once you go off of it you'll most likely gain all of the weight back....plus some. Good luck OP.

Listen to this post...listen!!!

I have lost with pills..then gained it all back..with friends. These friends saw me go from 140 to180 to 220 to 250 to 280 to 300 to 315 to 330.All over some 13 years..I'm DONE... Don't be another story...another person who looses it all just to have it come back because you did not fix the main problem...eating habits.

Just drop the pills...start from scratch...start with you. Please.

You deserve better than a yoyo diet gimmick.