Phentermine support

I am currently taking phentermine with topiramate. This is the generic equivalent of Qsymia.

Phentermine is amphetamine - speed. Topiramate is used to treat seizures and is somewhat of a depressant. Both drugs have appetite suppressant qualities.

They are, however, serious drugs and require a prescription. Doctors generally will not prescribe unless you have a BMI over 30 and at least one comorbidity due to obesity, such as high blood pressure.

Qsymia is a time-release, once-a-day pill of phentermine and topiramate. But it is expensive - about $180 a month. Doctors may also prescribe generic phentermine and topiramate. I take one 15 mg phentermine first thing in the morning (it takes all day to burn off ) with a 25 mg topirmate. I am supposed to take a second topirmate in the afternoon but I never do as I do not need it. The generics cost me about $30 a month.

These are low doses of phentermine and topiramate. The topiramate is given in doses far lower than generally given for migraines or seizures and so the risk of side effects is low.

The first two weeks I felt very uncomfortable. Very edgy. But that has gone away. I definitely feel "amped up" in the morning after I take the pills but this goes away by lunch. It is definitely an effective appetite suppressant for me.

Topriamate can effect taste. I can no longer stand the taste of Diet Coke. So after drinking it for decades, I quit cold turkey on February 18th and now drink nothing but water. So that is a pleasant side effect.

My doctor will only prescribe for 6 months then I have to take a 2 month break.

I find the pills very effective as my biggest problem with weight loss and maintaining a calorie deficit is hunger. The pills get rid of hunger, so willpower is no longer an issue. This makes weight loss much easier.

Is it sustainable? No.
Does it teach you to eat properly? No.
Does it teach you to maintain your loss? No.
Does it provide the knowledge needed to maintain your new weight? No.
Does it help you count calories and learn about nutrition? No.

I agree that if you are going to do this, you still need to log your food as it is essential that you learn what proper portions are.

However, if learning to eat properly is simply a habit formed over time, then over the course of, say, 6 months to a year you should learn the new eating habits over that period of time.

However, I suspect that when you stop taking the drug the hunger will come roaring back as the body detects the fat loss and decreases metabolism and increases hunger to try and compensate, and this effect has been seen in the lab for weeks and extrapolated out for years.

So while you may learn new habits, my fear and suspicion is that when you get off the drug the hunger will come roaring back and you will be back on willpower again to try and stick to what you have learned about calorie counting and proper eating. Unfortunately, as my past experience with Redux back in the 1990's showed, willpower usually loses in the end.

But, I'm willing to try it anyway, because it makes the weight loss effortless while I'm on the drug. My mother-in-law lost 60 pounds over last year while on it.

I'm going to ride the train as long as I can to get what results I can.

I am currently taking Adipex (a brand name for phentermine) - I went to the doctor in Jan. weighing 306 lbs. with a BMI of almost 48 -- my BMI is now just under 42 after three months and I weigh 266.6. My doctor will not prescribe more than a three month's supply, and made it very clear that if I were not losing weight or not taking this seriously, she would not prescribe me another month's worth. A full dose did not make me feel very good - headaches, nausea, sleepless, extreme dry mouth. I decided to only take half a dose, along with eating carefully, logging food, and exercising regularly. The doctor told me if I take a half dose, I can stretch out the prescription for 6 months and I will have a more natural transition to doing things on my own. In the beginning, I was very careful to take my half dose every morning and felt like it helped with my cravings *just enough* that I wouldn't eat that extra 200 calories worth of snacks. I am also taking a multivitamin and turmeric supplements. As time has gone on, there are some days I forget to even take the medicine and I still feel very much in control of what I am eating on those days because I have gotten into the habit of eating healthily. I try to eat 100 g of protein a day and keep my carbs under 125 g per day with lots of veggies, water, and fruit. I eat about 1/4th the bread and white flour I used to eat. I go to the doctor each month for them to check my BP and heart rate and to weigh in. Every time, it's been good, in fact, they've all been improving with each visit. I've lost about 39 lbs. I still have enough medication to take for the next 2.5 months or so. At this point, I only take a half dose 5x per week rather than every day. It has been a good experience for me, my doctor has been excellent about monitoring my use and my health, and it's just what I've needed to lose this weight once and for all. Good luck!

mangrothian wrote: »

I'll be blunt and warn you that you wont see a lot of love for phentermine on the forums here.

There have been lots of previous posts in the forums about phentermine previously; I would maybe do a forum search to see what other people's results and opinions of it are.

Any tips for maximum weight loss, nutrition & exercise are the same as if you weren't on it. Eat less, move more.

Phen and PhenD has an entire website dedicated to the drugs and their experiences with taking what was prescribed. I'd suggest taking a look it's quite interesting.

jules6669mfp wrote: »

Jackie9950 wrote: »

I am currently taking phentermine. My doctor prescribed it to me for 2 months. I had a BMI over 40 and I was told I had hepatic stenosis or "fatty liver".

I did notice that in the beginning (the first week) I felt like I was on speed. My heart would pound and I was running around like a crazy person. I also had trouble sleeping the first 3 nights. My doctor warned me that this would happen, but wear off. And it did after about a week. I am on my 4th week taking it, and I have little to no side effects, in fact I have a perfectly normal appetite. I eat 3-4 times a day, exercise 6 days a week. This pill is not a miracle pill by any means. I feel like it helped me get through the beginning phase where I reduced my calories and cut out all the crap food. I know myself enough, that in the beginning if I stumbled or didn't lose weight, I would have acted like a toddler and through a fit and then binged. I know that despicable fact about myself. Now that I am past that phase and I am adapted to eating healthier foods and surprisingly like them, I have reduced the phentermine to every other day and then within the next 2 weeks I will stop taking them.

I think the pills have gotten a bad rap, much like pit-bulls have. People have abused them and horrible things have happened and now everyone thinks they are evil. This drug isn't meant to be on more than 6 months and it is not to be your way of losing weight by any means. I guess I used it as a way to flush my system of all the crap food I felt I wanted at all times.

People will say that phentermine is hard on your body. It might be, but obesity was hard on mine. Phentermine did not hurt me in anyway because I use it properly and I have changed my lifestyle.

Good luck!

I'd like to hear from you after being off them for over 6 months. I've taken them in the past and sure I took off the weight but always put it back on plus some. I didn't eat healthy, lived off of coffee, soda and salads. Several friends had same happen to them. But, maybe you'll do better than us. Time will tell. As long as your doctor is monitoring you and isn't a "doctor" who only prescribes these sort of meds, you should be ok. Though I don't believe they are good for anyone with lots of dangerous side effects, ultimately it's your choice.

Honestly, every medication has a laundry list of side effects. I think the big factor here is, like you said, you didn't change your eating habits. I changed my eating habits 1 month before I started the Adipex, which was recommended by my doctor (which is not just an adipex pusher, he has been my primary care physician since I was a kiddo). I slip up every once in a while and eat crap just like anyone else, but I know that I need to jump right back into making better decisions, and I do. I am very proud of the fact that I have completely stopped drinking soda. I'm fine just drinking water (sometimes with crystal light). I never had a taste for coffee and I went cold turkey from my sweet tea addiction. I try to make a huge effort eating healthy foods. This isn't a fad trend diet for me. I take this pill with a very big dose of reality, which might be why I think I will be fine.
I don't see Adipex as a cure-all for my obesity, I see it as a small step in making changes. Any doctor who puts you on the medication will tell you, it's not forever, and you MUST change your lifestyle. So if I go off the medication and put back on the weight "plus some", that's on me, the only way that would happen is if I went back to eating unhealthy and quit logging and exercising. People who have stumbled or fallen are quick to blame anything but themselves, but like all the Adipex-haters say "Calories in, calories out, and move your body" If I continue to do that, I don't see an issue. I could be wrong, who knows, but that's the plan!

Hi everyone, I've been on Phentermine with B12/fat burner injections to accelerate my weight loss since 3/19 so It's been a little over a month. Total weight loss is 9 pounds in a month. Although I will take any weight loss I get, my expectations before I began the program was to lose about 15-20 pounds since I read other users of phentermine lost that amount in a month.

In terms of exercise, I do kickboxing (die hard Tae Bo fan) jog/walk at least 45 min for at least 4 days a week. I take my body measurements as well and I did lose inches so I would recommend tracking your body measurements in addition to weighing in.

I was given a meal plan of calorie intake of 1000-1200 calories per day consisting of whole wheat, fish, turkey, chicken, lean red meat, fruits, veggies and omit sugar (sugar substitute okay) alcohol, all junk food and don't eat past 7pm. I did cheat on the weekends so I think that may have prevented me from losing more weight. Also, I noticed that when I drank a lot of water, I saw great results on the scale.

In terms of side effects, the common side effect I get is dry mouth. The first 2 days, I was sweating a lot (went away after that) and I got dizzy one day as I tried to get out of bed . My side effects are mild and tolerable for me.
Also, I need to mention that my Phentermine wears off around 4pm (I take 30 mg time capsules once a day at 9am) so not sure if the wearing off is normal.

I will try another round of Phentermine and crossing my fingers that the next month will be a success.

I am in agreement that Phentermine is NOT to be used as a miracle pill, to replace healthy eating habits or be used for long periods of time. Just like any other weight loss pill that is prescribed by a physician, it is to be used to AID weight loss, not be used as the ONLY solution to your weight loss goals. Healthy eating habits and exercise is the key to long term weight loss. Blessings to everyone and good luck on your weight loss journey

I started taking it in mid-March or so, and started using MFP at the same time. I have lost about 25 lbs since I started using MFP religiously and taking the drug. (Most of my initial loss was water weight from edema in my legs)

The biggest benefit this drug has had for me has been the energy. Before I started taking it, I was constantly exhausted. No energy no matter what I did. (I won't go into the laundry list of other problems I have that contribute to this.) Even though I still got hungry while on it, I believe that the drug helped me control cravings in the first two weeks when I adjusted to the calorie deficit, and gave me the energy to add daily exercise to my routine.

My doc prescribed it for me, and I had to get weighed before renewing the prescription. I went off it for a week or so, and will try round 2 starting tomorrow. In the week I was off the medicine, my exhaustion came roaring back. I have been able to keep eating at a calorie deficit off the drug, but because of my low energy, it was more difficult, because I usually eat when I'm exhausted to perk myself up.

I have read by so many of the forum posters here that when they lost weight they had so much more energy. I am hoping that as I lose more weight, my energy will improve and I won't need stimulants like caffeine, this medication, etc.

I haven't had any serious side effects on it, and the speed-like effects wore off after the first day or so. Had my side effects been bad, I would have stopped it at once.

I don't know if this experience helps anyone. My doctor was the one who suggested the medicine, and she only did so when my weight began effecting my health (the edema). I had never heard of it before she suggested it.

I lost weight on MFP a couple years ago and it came back when I stopped monitoring my calories. I used no drug the last time around. The difference this time is my real commitment to CICO and weighing and logging my food. I realize I will probably have to continue to do so for the rest of my life to make this new lifestyle a habit and the weight loss lasting.

*ETA: My weight loss now is about 1-2 pounds per week, which is what I set my MFP goals to be, so nothing crazy fast.

kevinpruitt wrote: »

I believe Phentermine gets a bad rap. It's not for everyone much like any prescription drug, it works for some people and some have bad experiences. Does it make you "speed"? For some it does, others may have a different reaction. My wife for example tried it once and declared it to be a better sleep aid than Zzquil. I feel like it has a place for those who have exceedingly high body fat levels. I also recognize that it is not a long term solution and does lose its potency after so long. I do not believe in the mentality that some have about it being "the easy way out". The only way to lose weight is to expend more calories than you take in. By no means is it the easy way out if you're putting in the work at the gym, on the road or at home. Phentermine, when used correctly to develop healthy eating habits can be a valuable tool when starting. Just remember, when you stop taking it and the medicine is out of your system, you will have only eating and exercise habits to rely on; good or bad.

^ this!

I'm torn on both sides of this argument. Is phentermine safe to take? Yes and No. Does it work? Yes and no.

I began dieting and changing my lifestyle in October 2014 and went the first two months without phentermine. I was losing weight but struggling horribly to maintain a deficit in my calories because I was so hungry ALL the time. In december, I spoke to my doctor, who weighed me in, took my body fat percentage and saw I was classified as "obese". He discussed my medical history, the reported side effects of the medicine and we both decided to have it prescribed to me. I weighed in once a month. I got the prescription refilled twice following my next couple appointments. It assisted with my weight loss, in that, I wasn't hungry all the time and I still kept up with my log in MFP and regular exercise and eating healthy. After coming off of the medicine, about the end of february or so, I saw that having taken the medicine, I was used to eating less and more healthy foods and exercising as a way of increasing my energy. I have come off of the medication safely and have continued to lose weight and hopefully one day will hit my goal. I still continue to see the fitness and nutrition specialist who weighs me in and checks my body fat percentage and looks over my food/exercise log to give her input. I've seen that it helps to have someone professional there to give input and encouragement or constructive criticism. It works logically: during the use of the medication that curbed my appetite, I became used to eating less. As long as I continue to control what I eat and the amounts, my desire to eat like a cow is less likely to return.

On the flip side, there is no "magic" pill or diet out there that you can just pop a tablet, lose weight, eat what you want and sit on the couch and expect to be healthy. I've known people who take the medicine, eat like crap and some lose weight and some don't but either way, those people don't have long term success.

I guess in a nut shell, my weight loss was more due to my changing of eating habits and exercise rather than any medication. The only thing phentermine really did was help me in not being hungry all the time. I've heard that over time, the effects of the medicine tends to decrease so you probably wouldn't want to take it nor would it help long term. Also, this is a controlled substance so as with any medication, (pain pills or what ever) it comes with an obvious risk of abuse and side effects.

Hope this helps!

Jackie9950 wrote: »

I still say if you took the medication, lost weight, stopped taking it and gained more than you lost, that it's not a medication issue. That is an eating issue. The same thing could happen to anybody who loses weight with or without medication. The medication did what it was suppose to during the time you took it, the only way to gain back the weight is to eat more calories than you burn. It was the person that didn't learn during the brief stint of hunger reprieve Adipex gives. That's the reason to take the medication is to try and teach yourself better habits. More than likely, the people who gained saw it as a cure all to their weight issues and didn't learn anything. I don't see weight gain after discontinuing the medication a side effect or a good reason not to take it.

Side effects: They can be annoying. The dry mouth is the worst for me, but it helps me reach my water goals. I feel energized, which also helps me get a lot done during the day. Honestly, I barely notice it in my system anymore and I know that I have this small amount of time while on it to try my best to learn healthy habits.

If I GAIN weight back after stopping I will be the first person to tell you it was my own darn fault for stuffing my face, not the big bad pills fault.

I agree. In my post when I was saying "does it work? Yes and No" I only meant that the medication would be appropriate for some people. If you don't care to change your eating habits and be successful, then it's prob not best to take the medicine.

And I'm with you, in that, the only side effect I ever experienced was dry mouth. This worked in my favor, however, because I noticed I drank much more water during the day. The side effects mentioned rapid heart rate and so on and so forth, which is why it's important to communicate with your doctor about your medical history. For example, a friend of mine can't take it because she is on medication for high blood pressure and it can raise your blood pressure. Again, I think it's ok for some people and not a good choice for others.