Does your doctor talk to you about your weight?
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I find it relieving that my GP doesn't ask. 30 years of doctors harping on my mom and me about how me being overweight/obese is going to kill me is tiring. My GP is more concerned that I don't use birth control.Need2Exerc1se wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »I have pcos and a family history full of type 2 diabetes. Weight loss definitely helps with those issues, which is a big reason why I think my doctor should be at least mentioning weight.
(Aside--I don't mind getting weighed their but I don't like their height measure. It always has me at 5'5.5" when I've been 5'6" for ages lol.
I really do think that doctors that don't mention weight are doing their patients a real disservice.
I absolutely agree.
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Mine does. Just basic questions and common sense recommendations, probably because I've never really had any bad test results that could be related. I expect she would have gotten into it more if I'd ever indicated that I wanted medical help/a referral to a RD, but I never have.0
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The first time I ever had a conversation about my weight with the doctor was last year, when I had a new primary care physician (never any health issues at that point). However, I was the one to bring it up, not her… I said I was concerned about it, and was trying to lose weight. She very nicely asked if I wanted to see a nutritionist, or even a counselor, if the issue was of a more psychological nature. She and I discussed a reasonable goal, and set up a follow-up weigh in appointment. Unfortunately, I gained weight after that, and I canceled the appointment. I am due for another physical, but I'm waiting until I'm lower (it's only been a year, and I don't have anything pressing)!0
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I find it relieving that my GP doesn't ask. 30 years of doctors harping on my mom and me about how me being overweight/obese is going to kill me is tiring. My GP is more concerned that I don't use birth control.Need2Exerc1se wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »I have pcos and a family history full of type 2 diabetes. Weight loss definitely helps with those issues, which is a big reason why I think my doctor should be at least mentioning weight.
(Aside--I don't mind getting weighed their but I don't like their height measure. It always has me at 5'5.5" when I've been 5'6" for ages lol.
I really do think that doctors that don't mention weight are doing their patients a real disservice.
I absolutely agree.
There's a difference between harping and mentioning though.0 -
My doctor used to comment on it every time I went, but only in saying I should lose weight and nothing more specific. When I went a little over a year ago, he specifically recommended MFP and that I eat 1500 cal/day (which I think was a bit too low at the time, really, but at least he didn't say 1200!). That's the only time I did anything about it, and I am so, so grateful to him for the recommendation. It was exactly what I needed. Thanks to MFP, my father is also eating better and exercising (he didn't need to lose weight), and my sister-in-law and two of my friends are losing weight! I'm hoping to get my mother on board one day too.0
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No, not really. The last time I saw my regular doctor, she did a physical. Everything checked out well: blood pressure, cholesterol, all that jazz. I was aware I could lose a little weight, and it took me bringing it up. She was kind and said sure, I could lose 15 pounds, but I am overall in great health. I have since lost nearly 20 pounds, but have been in good health and have not been back to see her for anything yet. I worry slightly about my son's weight as well, as he is on the higher end of the normal range. His pediatrician is the same and seems wary to mention it, though she'll discuss it if we raise concerns. Sadly, I think some doctors are apprehensive to mention weight for fear of hurting feelings when really, a medical doctor is the one person that is very qualified to discuss my weight. I want a doctor to be honest and up front with me if something isn't ideal for my health, be it weight or smoking or abusing sleeping pills or whatever.0
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my doctor lectures me everytime i am in his office about my weight... he congratulates me on losses.. and when i bring up an issue he will tell me if you lose the weight that will help...0
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My doctor has never mentioned it. I'm not diagnosed as obese or diabetic but with a history of diabetes in my family I wish she would bring it up- even if just to mention it's something I should monitor0
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TheVirgoddess wrote: »
I find it relieving that my GP doesn't ask. 30 years of doctors harping on my mom and me about how me being overweight/obese is going to kill me is tiring. My GP is more concerned that I don't use birth control.Need2Exerc1se wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »I have pcos and a family history full of type 2 diabetes. Weight loss definitely helps with those issues, which is a big reason why I think my doctor should be at least mentioning weight.
(Aside--I don't mind getting weighed their but I don't like their height measure. It always has me at 5'5.5" when I've been 5'6" for ages lol.
I really do think that doctors that don't mention weight are doing their patients a real disservice.
I absolutely agree.
There's a difference between harping and mentioning though.
So tone of voice is the difference then, rather than having it said "You need to lose weight. Your body will thank you" every single time you see a doctor. Sorry, but I'll take the "You need birth control because you're married".0 -
My doc knows it's important to me so we always talk about it and she always praises my for my losses.
So many posts I could have responded to! I get the praise but not comments on gains. I bring things up before someone can so I don't get my feelings hurt/get offended (yup a habit that needs to change).. so she never really has the chance. LOL
I've lost a huge amount of weight (strictly changing eating/exercise habits/attitude) over the last several years and kept almost 100% off, so she's very pleased. She's one of my biggest cheerleaders... she's always boosting me up when I knock myself down over what bit I have yo-yo'd. She reminds me how much I've lost and kept off and how proud she is. Positive reinforcement is what keeps me moving forward.
I asked her once and others docs in the past... "How come you don't bring up my weight when I've gained?" Their response? .."would it make a difference?" Nope it would not, up above I read someone share about getting defensive when it's brought up. I feel great shame and likely won't go back to the doc because I take it so personally if it's brought up.
I think a couple of the docs said "A person is very aware when they put weight on"... to point it out to some would only make it worse for them. Also shared is they like the patient to be involved and bring issues up themselves so it's something they know a patient is truly ready to change. Be it smoking, overeating etc.
I agree if we don't want or aren't quite ready to make health changes... someone bringing them up won't do much to help.
Every doc and their patient has a different relationship. I think if a person is hugely/morbidly obese (no insult intended, I don't recall the proper terms as I hate them..because I was once) and a doc doesn't bring it up at some point. Denial continues, sometimes we DO need someone to confront us so I can see some share that it would be irresponsible of the doctor not too.
But in the past years back I would have one bring it up for every lb I gained no matter what good I was doing. Not a method that worked for me.
The End! lol
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TheVirgoddess wrote: »
I find it relieving that my GP doesn't ask. 30 years of doctors harping on my mom and me about how me being overweight/obese is going to kill me is tiring. My GP is more concerned that I don't use birth control.Need2Exerc1se wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »I have pcos and a family history full of type 2 diabetes. Weight loss definitely helps with those issues, which is a big reason why I think my doctor should be at least mentioning weight.
(Aside--I don't mind getting weighed their but I don't like their height measure. It always has me at 5'5.5" when I've been 5'6" for ages lol.
I really do think that doctors that don't mention weight are doing their patients a real disservice.
I absolutely agree.
There's a difference between harping and mentioning though.
So tone of voice is the difference then, rather than having it said "You need to lose weight. Your body will thank you" every single time you see a doctor. Sorry, but I'll take the "You need birth control because you're married".
I don't really see that as harping. I'm sorry it upset you though - I probably would have asked my doctor to make a note on my chart that I'm not interested in discussing my weight.0 -
They did not mention it until I started getting really bad back aches, thank goodness that's in the past. Then I was lectured to walk every day.0
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Mine does. Always talks about how far I have come and looks up at old #s and shows them to me.
But I have been going to her for over 15 years - maybe close to 20 years.
How long have you been going to your doc?
Love that! I too have been seeing my GP for quite awhile, we've got a close relationship and I feel I can say/ask anything of her and she'll be honest back.
Sounds like my docs officeI had lost 120# in the years time and that's all the doctor and her nurse talked about. Best yearly checkup ever!!
MireyGal76 wrote: »My doctor did the opposite. I went in with some stomach issues and she essentially gave me crap. She said that on average, people can be an athlete, or a parent with a full time job, but that most can't be both. She told me that I had to decide what was more important and that perhaps my desire to run and weight train was conflicting with my ability to parent and enjoy life. (Which it isn't, but that's not something she can tell by looking at my weight and height)
Essentially, she made me feel bad for being in shape. She's never commented positively on my health. And my mother (who also sees her), who is almost 100 pounds overweight, doesn't get any grief from her - even though she's having issues with joint and back pain.
Wow, not cool at all! I see you as a wonderful example of health, not a bad parent....I'm sorry she did that too you!
Definitely more opinion than fact involved there. 0 -
Due t the new insurance requirements at work we now have weight as one of our biometric screenings. If u fail a category u have to get on a program with your doctor to help "fix" the failed category. Im currently dealing with it due to my weight but even before that my doctor was all over me about my weight since I gained a lot after I got married. I was up 110# from my wedding day when I started back in Sept.0
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I just remembered that I had one doctor mention my weight. It was my ENT when I was seeing him about sleep apnea. He talked about how weight loss can help with sleep apnea and when I went back this year for a check up he was happy to see I had lost weight. The somnologist who did my sleep study also talked to me about weight loss. Plus, he (somnologist) suggested weightlifting as a form of exercise. I remember it because I had another sleep study done earlier this year and the somnologist kept giving me a funny look and then finally said that he usually remembers people but had no memory of ever seeing me before. I ended up pulling out my phone to show him a "before" picture and he said "that was you?" I told him that I had taken his suggestion to lift weights and I think it made his day.0
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always.0
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TheVirgoddess wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »
I find it relieving that my GP doesn't ask. 30 years of doctors harping on my mom and me about how me being overweight/obese is going to kill me is tiring. My GP is more concerned that I don't use birth control.Need2Exerc1se wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »I have pcos and a family history full of type 2 diabetes. Weight loss definitely helps with those issues, which is a big reason why I think my doctor should be at least mentioning weight.
(Aside--I don't mind getting weighed their but I don't like their height measure. It always has me at 5'5.5" when I've been 5'6" for ages lol.
I really do think that doctors that don't mention weight are doing their patients a real disservice.
I absolutely agree.
There's a difference between harping and mentioning though.
So tone of voice is the difference then, rather than having it said "You need to lose weight. Your body will thank you" every single time you see a doctor. Sorry, but I'll take the "You need birth control because you're married".
I don't really see that as harping. I'm sorry it upset you though - I probably would have asked my doctor to make a note on my chart that I'm not interested in discussing my weight.
I had a doctor when I was younger that blamed EVERYTHING wrong with me on my weight. He even wrote in my file that I was a hypochondriac because he wouldn't look further than my weight when it came to any medical issue. My migraines got incredibly bad because they went undiagnosed for so long thanks to that sitting in my records.
That's the sort of thing that's counterproductive. There's somewhere between not mentioning it and the doctor being an idiot about it that's a happy medium.
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TheVirgoddess wrote: »
I find it relieving that my GP doesn't ask. 30 years of doctors harping on my mom and me about how me being overweight/obese is going to kill me is tiring. My GP is more concerned that I don't use birth control.Need2Exerc1se wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »I have pcos and a family history full of type 2 diabetes. Weight loss definitely helps with those issues, which is a big reason why I think my doctor should be at least mentioning weight.
(Aside--I don't mind getting weighed their but I don't like their height measure. It always has me at 5'5.5" when I've been 5'6" for ages lol.
I really do think that doctors that don't mention weight are doing their patients a real disservice.
I absolutely agree.
There's a difference between harping and mentioning though.
So tone of voice is the difference then, rather than having it said "You need to lose weight. Your body will thank you" every single time you see a doctor. Sorry, but I'll take the "You need birth control because you're married".
That seems really strange and inappropriate to me. Unless there's some medical reason a pregnancy would be dangerous for you or something. I kind of think how my husband and I choose to handle birth control is none of my Dr's business unless I ask for a prescription or it has a direct effect on my health.0 -
I am phobic about the doctor's scale, ever since my pediatrician would mention it every time I went for my physical (FYI, I was NOT overweight-- he would just say, "Be careful-- you don't want to gain more than a lb next year.." ) Oy. Nowadays, the primary care doctors have exactly 6 minutes per appointment to cover any problems that you may have, per insurance guidelines. They don't have time to discuss much, unless you ask. Sad.0
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Yup, I get a lecture each time. It's understandable since I am still in the obese weight range, but it is discouraging when he is dismissive of my progress.0
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When you go in for a check up or even an illness, does your doctor ever mention your weight?
I'm asking because my doctor never does and I think it's odd. Last year when I went in for my annual exam he asked if anything had changed and I said that I had lost 30 pounds. He looked at my chart and said "well I guess you did." I just got out of my annual exam for this year. I've lost 25+ pounds since last year and he never said a word. It surprises me that a doctor wouldn't note this. Why do they weigh me if they aren't doing anything with the data?
My doctor has literally NEVER mentioned not a word about weight to me!!!! I've been anywhere from 189 to 135 and have bounced up and down and now am teatering (and looking to stop that) around the 150 range. In all of that time, I have been in to see him multiple times and he has seen me at all points in this range and NEVER mentioned anything. . . many points in this range aren't within my BMI range and I was unhealthy at various different points in this journey. . . again he said nothing. I guess you don't truly want to touch on weight issues when someone comes in with another problem but I've been there for physicals as well and he hasn't mentioned. . .
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When you go in for a check up or even an illness, does your doctor ever mention your weight?
Absolutely. If nothing else, significant weight change is a symptom of many serious conditions - if the scale is showing a big weight change, he damn well better find out if its me being awesome or if "i dunno, it just happened"!
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My doc always advices as well suggests healthy lifestyle rather than having to opt medicines0
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Unexpected weight gain or unexpected weight loss could be symptoms. If they didn't know you are trying to lose, shouldn't they be asking when they notice the loss? What if you are a new type 1 diabetic... have lost a lot of weight recently because it is untreated, are in severe DKA... wouldn't they want to further explore the reason for weight loss? If not, you could die.0
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mamapeach910 wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »
I find it relieving that my GP doesn't ask. 30 years of doctors harping on my mom and me about how me being overweight/obese is going to kill me is tiring. My GP is more concerned that I don't use birth control.Need2Exerc1se wrote: »TheVirgoddess wrote: »I have pcos and a family history full of type 2 diabetes. Weight loss definitely helps with those issues, which is a big reason why I think my doctor should be at least mentioning weight.
(Aside--I don't mind getting weighed their but I don't like their height measure. It always has me at 5'5.5" when I've been 5'6" for ages lol.
I really do think that doctors that don't mention weight are doing their patients a real disservice.
I absolutely agree.
There's a difference between harping and mentioning though.
So tone of voice is the difference then, rather than having it said "You need to lose weight. Your body will thank you" every single time you see a doctor. Sorry, but I'll take the "You need birth control because you're married".
I don't really see that as harping. I'm sorry it upset you though - I probably would have asked my doctor to make a note on my chart that I'm not interested in discussing my weight.
I had a doctor when I was younger that blamed EVERYTHING wrong with me on my weight. He even wrote in my file that I was a hypochondriac because he wouldn't look further than my weight when it came to any medical issue. My migraines got incredibly bad because they went undiagnosed for so long thanks to that sitting in my records.
That's the sort of thing that's counterproductive. There's somewhere between not mentioning it and the doctor being an idiot about it that's a happy medium.
Absolutely agree. Some doctors are really harsh or ignorant about weight and nutrition and can cause more harm than good - I consider myself very, very lucky to have the doctor that I do.
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Yes my doctor would bring if up most visits. He would generally shoot me pretty straight about it. Would say that im healthy and about average but slightly overweight and lose 15 pounds to be in healthy bmi. I was about a 30 ay the time but more muscle leading to higher bmi. I appreciated him talking to me about it when i consider it the largest factor to my health. If i had a reason togo id love it so he could see the improvment into the healthy range. If you are obese and your doctor isnt mentioning it you need a new doctor.0
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I've had 4 in 12 years, and 2 of them have mentioned it. The second one told me to switch to granola bars as snacks and whole grain everything, which makes me laugh now, because we all know how calorie-friendly granola is... I started losing weight after my first appointment with my new one though, so we still talk about it every year... Last year I had two appointments and had gained back a little for the second one (it was after my vacation, so yeah), but she said she wasn't worried about it, as long as I'm in the normal BMI range she's happy.
I really got to stop planning my doctor visits after vacations though.0 -
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My weight is always a discussion with my doctor for years, especially since I see him every 6 months to check up on my blood pressure meds. I had lost 16 pounds the last time I saw him and he was really happy and supportive about it. I'm totally psyched to see him in September, since my weight has been an issue for decades.0
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