Betrayed!!

I hearya. My weight began to spriral out of control when I was on an anti-anxiety drug many years ago. After packing on 15 pounds in 3 months the doctor said, "Oh yeah, that's one of the known side effects." THANKS A LOT, MORON!!! So I quit taking the prescription but my whole system was so screwed up after that I just gave up after awhile. Only started getting it together about 3 years ago.

Hopefully you won't need the meds at all anymore, or could switch to something less destructive. Sheesh that sucks.

I don't have any experience with this, but I wanted to let you know that I read your post and that must be such a helpless feeling. *hugs*

Anti-depression medications, Prednisone, and birth control pills can all cause weight gain. I'm sure there are others out there, too. Typically, some people get those side effects and others don't. The good news is, if you find that one is causing you to retain water or otherwise gain weight, there's usually another brand to try. Don't be afraid to go to your doctor and ask to try something else.

Agree. I was put on prednisone in high school for a bout of bells palsy and I ballooned fast. But, after stopping I did come down quite a bit.

First let me preface by saying my rant here is MY OWN OPINION. Please don't follow me blindly. Follow your doctor's instructions. You can work this out with your doctor.

Okay, here is my rant: I was a hospital nurse for 26 years on a medical floor and I've observed a LOT. I've seen doctors treat patients so differently over that time. I saw one "beloved" doctor and one not so "beloved" both treat their patients by micromanaging every single health issue they have from acid indigestion, high blood pressure, and constipation to you name it! I vividly remember one person being discharged from the hospital with NINE prescriptions and instructions to go fill those on the way home. The person called back in an hour or so saying, "These prescriptions cost me $900.00!"

I remember my own doctor telling me" cut out alcohol, cut out anything with bubbles, cut out caffeine, cut out this, cut out that," She cut out everything out of my diet! I was only 35 and weighed 155 pounds. She was looking after my health. She also considered my job working on a medical floor where I walked back and forth there 3 miles a day on the job as "no exercise". She didn't pull any punches. She also didn't believe that grabbing a prescription pad was the first way to treat a problem. I had developed an ulcer. Yes, she treated the ulcer, but then the pills stopped and it was up to me to keep the ulcer at bay by eliminating things from my diet.

My pet peeve is drugs. You see commercials for people taking drugs so they can eat pizza, you see weight loss products that you sprinkle on your food so you can continue to eat them while you lose weight. I wonder if that works on a box of donuts??!! I personally think drugs are a racket and not good for your health. If it fixes one thing (BP), something else becomes a problem (lack of weight loss), etc.

And yes, your blood pressure is most likely high because you are overweight, maybe you're also eating too much sodium, and maybe you weren't exercising, either. But you have turned over a new leaf, here, also. You are watching what you eat, maybe you are more concerned about your sodium intake, and you are definitely exercising. I would hope that you and your doctor can come to an agreement where if you continue these new good behavious he can stop the drugs (never stop them on your own - some can have side effects), and you can report weekly or something so the nurse in his office can check your BP to make sure it isn't rediculously high.

I know mine would creep up to 140 or so if I wasn't exercising at all. I am anxious to see how it is now since I have been walking so much and bike riding and now exercising with weights again. It's sad, but I can't afford to go to the doctor anymore, so I have to rely on taking care of myself and checking my BP at the grocery store! But I am following Dr. Oz. His one statement was something like either you can fix your heart problems by choosing the right foods to stock your kitchen with or he can fix your heart problems on the operating table.

You are doing a good think by eating right, losing weight, and exercising. I think even in a few weeks of this your blood pressure will come down, even if you are not seeing a weight loss. Your heart is getting the exercise it needs so it can function better.

Good luck! Let us know what he says and how your blood pressure reads. I think you'll do great!!

None of the nutrition books, or my Personal training manual (I just checked) list beta-blocker side effects as reduced metabolic rate, just a change in heart rate and a stern warning not to use heart rate as a measure for level of intensity for a client using them. Are you sure it's a real symptom? Maybe it's a new symptom that just hasn't made it to these books yet, but I couldn't find it online either.

The thing is, if you're on them, calculating exercise calories becomes far more difficult, you must use RPE to measure, and that's pretty much a guestimate for most people. My books list the same as you get here:

http://www.webmd.com/hypertension-high-blood-pressure/hypertension-treatment-beta-blockers

Possibly you are around menopause time, and from my experience (& having never had a weight problem in my life before) I suddenly zoomed into overweight zone in the same year in which I gradually went into menopause. These days I need 1/3 less cals than I used to just to stay in maintenance - I'm amazed at how little I can eat compared to before meno! even tho I am no less less active. Just something to be aware of, could be part of the reason you're struggling.

I saw my weight BALLOON when I was put on multiple courses of steroids. 7 stone in a little over 2 years. Not all of that was the steroids, I also stupidly forgot to reduce my portion size when I went from walking 4-6 miles a day to barely being able to get up my own stairs!
My dr was treating me for asthma, which I did have but the steroids weren't working and instead of sending me for tests he'd just up the dose and prescribe again. This went on for 2 years until I insisted on further tests and was diagnosed with emphysema.



And let this be a warning to any smokers. I had already quit before any symptoms were present, to be told aged 42 that my lungs are knackered due to my own stupidity is pretty damn hard to take. It struck hard and it struck early and you never know if you are going to be the one struck in the same way...quit now!

I am sorry for you. That is tough news to take! That is also why it is SO important for us to eat real food, not processed crap with sky high sodium and full of chemicals. Our bodies are remarkable machines and can and do take incredible abuse until that one day when it is the last straw. I am so grateful to be as healthy as I hope I am today with all of the sugar, and junk I have tortured my poor body with!

I gained 20lbs on birth control last year. I was switched to a low dose birth control. The weight is very stubborn to get off, but I have noticed a change since my meds were switched.

I had the Mirena put in to stop heavy peroids. In 3 days I gained 8 lbs. The Dr. insisted it was NOT the Mirena. I left it in for 6 months to "give it a try" and had it taken out just about 6 months to the day of getting it. 3 days later, I was down 8 lbs. I was one of the few that it has this sort of affect on. Meds can really suck!! Let us know what the doc says!!!!! GOod luck!

I had my Mirena in for a little less than 2 years and I couldn't lose anything! I gained about 25 pounds without any change in diet from before I had it put in - I even breastfed for almost 9 months of that time! And then I could lose about the same 5 pounds, but it always was very very yo-yo.

I know the doctors say it won't effect weight, and I think that is abunch of bull. Anyway, I think Mirena definately had a ton to do with it because when I got it out to have our last baby, I could tell an immediate improvement on my weight and also on that very hormonal feeling.