Anyone on phentermine?

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mrslondon
mrslondon Posts: 146 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok so I was prescribed phentermine about a year and a half ago, my doctor gave me the 37.5mg tablets. I took them for a while but I did find that they made me irritable and it curbed my cravings so much that i really didnt eat much at all, but I did lose 25lbs in about 2 months. Obviously almost having to force myself to eat, when I came off them, i gained all that weight back and then some as while i was on them, I was not changing my eating habits or working out as I should have been, Well this time around, since I have been dieting, I have been eating right, exercising etc but i still have the cravings all the time, changing your eating habits after a lifetime of bad choices is not easy. I cheat alot and I just need motivation to get off my butt and go workout. So I decided to go back on the phentermine but only take half the pill, that way I can still eat and once my prescription is done with, i can continue to eat healthy and it wont all be new to me. Has anyone else taken phentermine and are you still losing weight with it helping curb appetite to eat all the time? Im really optimistic about using them this time, yesterday I did great, and today Im a little tired but nothing bad like I was before, purely just because I went to bed late last night

Replies

  • mrscates
    mrscates Posts: 559 Member
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    I do not take Phentermine or an "diet" pill, I do however take a supplement that aids in helping your fat burn faster and stimulate your metabolism. BUT it does NOT make me lose weight. Working out and eating right does. That last thing I personally want to know is that what I am taking makes my brain tell me I am not hungry. The anxiety of getting off those pills in my opinion will cause you more problem than help you.
  • Larode
    Larode Posts: 22 Member
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    I have been taking "Tenuate" since last May and have lost 45 lbs. It doesn't really work anymore as you do build up a tolerance, so I only take it every few days. I have been swimming laps almost daily and that has made a huge difference in my weight loss and shaping up. I think anything you can do to help you get through this, knowing it is really up to you to do the right thing, is okay. I may switch to the phentermine at this point. I have about 40 more lbs to lose - then to save up money for plastic surgery!

    The other thing that I do is not have anything in the house to tempt me. I do like my cocktails at night, so I have that guilty pleasure, but no sweets, etc. I am very careful with carbs - using high fiber low carb tortillas in place of bread for sandwiches, and lots of fruit and veges as my source of carbs.

    Good luck to you and do whatever you have to to get through the hard parts!
  • sauza
    sauza Posts: 159 Member
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    Seems to me, according to most fitness experts, that water and muscle are lost while fat must be burned off. We need our muscles to do that, therefore proper nutrition in necessary for muscle (fat burning tissue) maintenance.

    My personal experience with phentermine comes from working in the medical field (Mds, but focused totally on appearance) and well over 90% of our patients lost enough muscle mass to lower their metabolism enough to gain back 150% of their weight EACH time they used it. Liposuction being their next step. I do not know what anyone else's statistics are. We saw apprx 900 patients/year with close to 50% being prescribed phentermine. For what that is worth. As I said, I have no idea what anyone else's stats are.
  • christymiguel82
    christymiguel82 Posts: 1
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    I had a baby in May and began taking Phentermine this past January and lost 20 lbs in 2 months. In the 2 months I ate very healthy and excercised 3-5 times a week. This is the second time I've taken Phentermine, I took it after my first son as well...it works very well but like you said if you don't stick to a healthy eating and excercise plan, the weight will come right back. I am trying a week without the Phentermine now as we speak and I feel horrible,...no energy, cravings like crazy, depressed. I have about 20 more pounds to lose until I get to my goal weight and I was thinking of just doing the rest on my own but I'm not sure how long these symptoms are gonna last. My biggest advice to you would be, make sure you very slowly wean yourself off. I wish you the best!!!
  • SheliaN1960
    SheliaN1960 Posts: 454 Member
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    mrscates is so right! 20 years ago after my son was born I began taking fastins (which is the same thing) and I became a horrible person. The mood swings and the anger grew out of control. My son was only 4 years old and mind was all messed up because of that stuff. I would NEVER recommend that anyone EVER take these types of meds. I feel as strongly as I do about it because I wasted precious years taking the stuff!!! Years that I can never get back!! Best wishes!
  • FoamyRiver
    FoamyRiver Posts: 276 Member
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    I have part of a prescription from a while back and I do take 1/2 a pill on the days that I seem to be wanting to eat everything that isn't nailed down. But I don't take them every day. I am a carb-aholic and I've found if I can limit my carb intake and increase my protein and fiber that I do much better with the cravings.

    But I do believe that the key is watching what you eat and exercising. I think you'll do fine taking Phentermine this time as long as you continue to do MFP.

    Best of luck to you!
  • koosdel
    koosdel Posts: 3,317 Member
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    Yup, follow the instructions carefully. The only hard part is eating right and staying active when you run out.
    Also, you don't have to take them every day, as needed is ok.
  • BrattyLori
    BrattyLori Posts: 101 Member
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    I took phentermine, ate properly, moderately exercised and lost a ton of weight. One morning I couldnt get out of bed. I thought I was having a stroke - I was dizzy and disoriented. I stopped taking it and gained back a TON of weight and looked like a fat, bloated, sick old woman. After THAT happened to me, a friend actually HAD a stroke and now has a messed up face at 40.

    Really - trust me - its not that hard to just eat less and exercise. Why risk your looks or your life to lose weight a little faster?
  • redcrow9
    redcrow9 Posts: 22 Member
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    I've been on and off Phen. for about a year now and the best advice I can give is to be as strict as you can with yourself now because, like you, when I stopped the first time I pigged out like crazy. That's because I was never hungry while on it and didn't eat enough cals to sustain me. So as soon as it started wearing off I binged like mad!
    I started again in December and basically had to start my whole weightloss journey over.
    This time:

    I log EVERYTHING!
    Always make sure I get enough to eat even if I'm not hungry.
    and just keep up with my exercise.

    They say it takes 3 weeks to make or break a habit so after 3 weeks of being nearly perfect I think I can handle dropping the Phen. But it is a good idea to wean yourself off of it.
    If you're only taking half a pill I can't imagine you would really need to wean yourself off.
    I'm on the Max dosage now 1.5 pills/day, but I have ADD and stimulants/amphetamines don't affect me the same way they do most people.
    Ok starting to ramble but you get it....
  • mrslondon
    mrslondon Posts: 146 Member
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    Thats the plan. I dont intend on taking them for long and im only taking half a pill to kind of get me back into the mode of eating right without all the cravings. I am being as responsible as possible with them this time. I know exactly why people gain their weight back when they come off them, its because they do not stick with their healthy eating and exercising. Essentially i am doing the same thing I have been doing but with the help of a craving suppressant. I have not cut down on meals at all and im still doing everything as normal, just with a little help. Once I can get my body used to eating smaller portions of food and the right foods, i can wean myself off them. My doctor strictly told me that I MUST eat right and exercise, as this is NO MAGIC PILL which i am fully aware of. He also clearly told me that yes, if I do stop taking them and I do not continue to eat healthy, and exercise,of course i will gain the weight back and then some. That to me is common knowledge. I am still logging into MFP daily and eating right, I think that there should be no harm as long as I dont abuse them or stop eating all together
  • Mandie_P
    Mandie_P Posts: 5 Member
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    I have previously taken it in spurts and I will tell you, you become immune if you stop and start a lot. It got to the point that it didn't curb anything, so then I was left with just the irritablility. I also started having chest pains, so I opted to stop and lose weight the old fashion way. Best of luck to you!
  • Krys_T
    Krys_T Posts: 1,406 Member
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    Well I had a couple of friends who were on Phentermine/Adipex both prescribed by the same doctor. The wonderful thing about him was he only prescribed it to patients who were 75-100lbs. overweight. Well the advice he gave them was to make sure that even though they are not hungry to eat 5 meals a day. He had them do this so that when they did come off of the adipex, their metabolism would be normal and they wouldn't binge when they came off of it. They also were to take 1/2 pills the month that they were weened off of it.

    The good news was one of my friends lost about 80lbs over the course of a year (and I think this was the key) Normally people will lose that kind of weight way sooner than that but since they weren't starving themselves and truly using it as an aid. My other friend was on it for I believe 8 months and lost 50lbs. They were working out about 3 times a week and only walking. So this was in 2008 and they are still at their weights.

    I honestly feel like exercise and proper nutrition are the best way to lose the weight....this way you don't have to worry about the side effects that may present themselves. Because although these are friends of mine that had "success" with adipex...everyone's body is going to react different to medication. Make sure proper blood work is taken before and during your use of the medication.

    Good luck to you,...and I would say at anytime you don't feel like yourself on the meds...COME OFF OF THEM IMMEDIATELY!
  • mrslondon
    mrslondon Posts: 146 Member
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    Well I had a couple of friends who were on Phentermine/Adipex both prescribed by the same doctor. The wonderful thing about him was he only prescribed it to patients who were 75-100lbs. overweight. Well the advice he gave them was to make sure that even though they are not hungry to eat 5 meals a day. He had them do this so that when they did come off of the adipex, their metabolism would be normal and they wouldn't binge when they came off of it. They also were to take 1/2 pills the month that they were weened off of it.

    The good news was one of my friends lost about 80lbs over the course of a year (and I think this was the key) Normally people will lose that kind of weight way sooner than that but since they weren't starving themselves and truly using it as an aid. My other friend was on it for I believe 8 months and lost 50lbs. They were working out about 3 times a week and only walking. So this was in 2008 and they are still at their weights.

    I honestly feel like exercise and proper nutrition are the best way to lose the weight....this way you don't have to worry about the side effects that may present themselves. Because although these are friends of mine that had "success" with adipex...everyone's body is going to react different to medication. Make sure proper blood work is taken before and during your use of the medication.

    Good luck to you,...and I would say at anytime you don't feel like yourself on the meds...COME OFF OF THEM IMMEDIATELY!


    I couldn't agree more. I was also told the same thing, make sure you eat frequently and healthy, starvation is NOT an option. And your right, everyone's body will act different, thats the same with any medication. When he first prescribed them to me, i was given a full physical, an ECG also, to make sure my heart was fine etc. I am being responsible with this medication and I have high hopes this time around, ive seen the proof

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