Question about gaining massive amounts of weight in short times.

fleecygirl2014
fleecygirl2014 Posts: 6 Member
edited November 21 in Health and Weight Loss
So heres the issue, I have always been overweight, not just a little.. alot! I finally had surgery and lost half of myself, it was amazing! And as i know, its a tool, not a cure, so i started to eat healthier and work out, however, its been 3 years since then and i have been struggling to lose 40 pounds to reach my bmo, Let me tell you its a struggle due to this fact that I have pcos that they refuse to treat. [whole other cup of tea, one doc wanted me to have a baby and another refused to believe the first because the readings where not what she thought was pcos] So, I am quite honestly drug free so thats not the issue, the issue is.. i can gain 5 pounds overnight, now.. water weight you will think, as did i, so i struggled on with my 1200 calorie diet, doc said "try cutting back a bit more" so i went to 900, and gain 5 more pounds.. in 5 more days, oh right, and periods stopped, doc thinks it due to weight gain, I feel like a balloon, now.. utter and total fasting will give me some weight loss, but i know those pounds will only return, and try desperatly to stick in the 900 calories, this has been a cycle too, the last time i went from 199, to 192, and bounced up and down for a year, got birth control for a month and lost 9 pounds that month, no more birth control [doc refuses to give it to me saying thats what holds my weight and my periods will start again when i lose the weight] and for the last year, its been a terrible yoyo of up up up weight, and maybe down a pound that returns. I have been writing all my calories and food all this time, gym, two jobs that keep me very busy yet all this nonsense. Please tell me someone has an idea.. other then a new doc i already know, there just aren't any in my hick town that are taking people. Pcos? can water cling like this for years? should i drop to a 500 calorie diet? Im so clueless.

Replies

  • Muscleflex79
    Muscleflex79 Posts: 1,917 Member
    So heres the issue, I have always been overweight, not just a little.. alot! I finally had surgery and lost half of myself, it was amazing! And as i know, its a tool, not a cure, so i started to eat healthier and work out, however, its been 3 years since then and i have been struggling to lose 40 pounds to reach my bmo, Let me tell you its a struggle due to this fact that I have pcos that they refuse to treat. [whole other cup of tea, one doc wanted me to have a baby and another refused to believe the first because the readings where not what she thought was pcos] So, I am quite honestly drug free so thats not the issue, the issue is.. i can gain 5 pounds overnight, now.. water weight you will think, as did i, so i struggled on with my 1200 calorie diet, doc said "try cutting back a bit more" so i went to 900, and gain 5 more pounds.. in 5 more days, oh right, and periods stopped, doc thinks it due to weight gain, I feel like a balloon, now.. utter and total fasting will give me some weight loss, but i know those pounds will only return, and try desperatly to stick in the 900 calories, this has been a cycle too, the last time i went from 199, to 192, and bounced up and down for a year, got birth control for a month and lost 9 pounds that month, no more birth control [doc refuses to give it to me saying thats what holds my weight and my periods will start again when i lose the weight] and for the last year, its been a terrible yoyo of up up up weight, and maybe down a pound that returns. I have been writing all my calories and food all this time, gym, two jobs that keep me very busy yet all this nonsense. Please tell me someone has an idea.. other then a new doc i already know, there just aren't any in my hick town that are taking people. Pcos? can water cling like this for years? should i drop to a 500 calorie diet? Im so clueless.

    do you weigh your food with scales?

    this. it is very, very, very, very unlikely you would be gaining fat on a 900 calorie diet...
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    BigNate17 wrote: »
    Alright guys it seems like everyone is missing the point where she says she had surgery to lose half of herself. I'm assuming it is bariatric surgery? If that is the case, then it is absolutely possible that 1200 calories is too much. I know people who have done that surgery as well and were told to stick to about 1000 calories a day with multiple other dietary restrictions.

    However, I'm no expert in the field so my suggestion to you is to find a medical professional that can give you better information. It would help if you consistently track your calories and weight and can show them your diary.

    But we don't even know of OP is tracking accurately, surgery or not.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    If you are gaining 5 lbs overnight it's not fat. It's water. You really need to see a different doctor and get a good diagnosis. You can eat so few calories that you are dizzy and lose your hair and that won't address the problem of chronic water retention from a medical problem. You need to address your medical issues. Find a doctor that will work with you and not against you. Ask for a dietetic referral to get a diet that works for you.
  • xvolution
    xvolution Posts: 721 Member
    Has your doctor done any tests on your kidneys? Depending on how well your kidneys function, you can gain a lot of water weight in a very short period of time. Do you have any signs of edema (swelling of any body parts, usually the extemities)? I'm very susceptible to edema and can gain a few kilos in water weight in just a few days if I'm not careful.
  • BigNate17
    BigNate17 Posts: 65 Member
    edited August 2017
    kimny72 wrote: »
    BigNate17 wrote: »
    BigNate17 wrote: »
    Alright guys it seems like everyone is missing the point where she says she had surgery to lose half of herself. I'm assuming it is bariatric surgery? If that is the case, then it is absolutely possible that 1200 calories is too much. I know people who have done that surgery as well and were told to stick to about 1000 calories a day with multiple other dietary restrictions.

    However, I'm no expert in the field so my suggestion to you is to find a medical professional that can give you better information. It would help if you consistently track your calories and weight and can show them your diary.

    its one thing to stick to a certain calorie limit because of surgery....but she was saying she is GAINING on 900 calories per day - and thats just not how it works (surgery or not).

    That is definitely how it works, the surgery reduces the patients stomach size to that of an egg meaning that it takes less food to fill up the stomach.

    Whether or not your stomach fills up does not determine whether you gain weight or not. Whether you have had bariatric or have a normal size stomach, you will not gain weight eating 900 calories.

    OP, if you are not using a food scale, please get one and use it for all solid and semisolid food for at least 4 weeks and see what happens. And if your doctor is really telling you what you typed in your OP, you need to do everything in your power to at least get a one-time second opinion on the various medical issues you are dealing with.

    Sorry, I should have been clearer. What I was trying to say is OP also mentioned that the surgery has taken place 3 years ago. This could mean that she might have stretched her gastric pouch in the process leaving her to think that she is consuming her same 900 calories when in fact she is consuming more to fill her stretched pouch. Also under normal circumstances no one should be gaining weight on 900 calories a day, however we don't know what kind of medical issues are in play here. Although 5lbs in 5 days is most likely water weight.

    Again, I have little to no knowledge about your surgery or any other health complications so all I can recommend is seeking a medical professional.

    I do agree with everyone saying to purchase a food scale and try to accurately log her calories, however the issue might be deeper than that.

  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,011 Member
    BigNate17 wrote: »
    kimny72 wrote: »
    BigNate17 wrote: »
    BigNate17 wrote: »
    Alright guys it seems like everyone is missing the point where she says she had surgery to lose half of herself. I'm assuming it is bariatric surgery? If that is the case, then it is absolutely possible that 1200 calories is too much. I know people who have done that surgery as well and were told to stick to about 1000 calories a day with multiple other dietary restrictions.

    However, I'm no expert in the field so my suggestion to you is to find a medical professional that can give you better information. It would help if you consistently track your calories and weight and can show them your diary.

    its one thing to stick to a certain calorie limit because of surgery....but she was saying she is GAINING on 900 calories per day - and thats just not how it works (surgery or not).

    That is definitely how it works, the surgery reduces the patients stomach size to that of an egg meaning that it takes less food to fill up the stomach.

    Whether or not your stomach fills up does not determine whether you gain weight or not. Whether you have had bariatric or have a normal size stomach, you will not gain weight eating 900 calories.

    OP, if you are not using a food scale, please get one and use it for all solid and semisolid food for at least 4 weeks and see what happens. And if your doctor is really telling you what you typed in your OP, you need to do everything in your power to at least get a one-time second opinion on the various medical issues you are dealing with.

    Sorry, I should have been clearer. What I was trying to say is OP also mentioned that the surgery has taken place 3 years ago. This could mean that she might have stretched her gastric pouch in the process leaving her to think that she is consuming her same 900 calories when in fact she is consuming more to fill her stretched pouch. Also under normal circumstances no one should be gaining weight on 900 calories a day, however we don't know what kind of medical issues are in play here.

    Again, I have little to no knowledge about your surgery or any other health complications so all I can recommend is seeking a medical professional.

    I do agree with everyone saying to purchase a food scale and try to accurately log her calories, however the issue might be deeper than that.

    Got it. Yeah, I didn't realize that was what you were getting at :drinker:
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Shame OP never came back...
  • fleecygirl2014
    fleecygirl2014 Posts: 6 Member
    edited August 2017
    Thanks for all the responses! Sorry I am slow at returning, i forgot to add i work two jobs full time, very active lifestyle believe it or not. So, more info, in the three days in since i wrote this, I've added on another 3 pounds, so.. more weight issues there. I have been carefully weighting all foods, i use a diary and have jotted everything down for the last two years, my scale is pretty spot on, and ages ago i dumped everything from my house that could cause hidden eating. When i say i jot things down, i am starting to ensure every bit of salt, pepper and butter and whatnot are added in there. I've always had period issues, and I was wondering if that is a huge part of the gaining recently. However I don't know how to fix that without birthcontrol and as i said, Doc just says i"m fat and to lose it, I kid you not. Mind you thats what they said before surgery as well, and that only "cured" the period issues for a few months, but they where more willing to give me birth control then due to the fact you aren't to get pregnant for two years.. I'm in the third so they dont see the point now I assume, Asking about it gets ignored. I am still trying to get a new doc, but the next city is a five hour drive one way and I still am trying to find one that will take me on. I have been tested a few times for cancer and such which is always a concern, but always so far so good, Could this be due to menopause? Someone said that I could be going into early .. very early menopause and that could be why.
  • fleecygirl2014
    fleecygirl2014 Posts: 6 Member
    Btw, I'ma add in there that in the past I tried Jenny craig and weight watchers after, both i gained weight, or no movement at all, Its really flustrating because it always boils down to everyone assuming I'm just lying and overeating. If that was the case I wouldn't be looking for answers. Hence the diary as well, It had occured to me that perhaps even eating less, it was higher calories, and even with me adding in calories, in the last.. 7 months, never eating over 1200 calories, my food for a day is usually 900 to 1200 at tops.
  • rheddmobile
    rheddmobile Posts: 6,840 Member
    You haven't mentioned your height, but less than 200 lbs is not that fat unless you are really short. Your doctor sounds like you need a new doctor badly enough to drive to a larger city. Can't you simply ask for birth control for, like, birth control reasons? Maybe from a clinic?

    I gain and lose about five to seven pounds of water weight daily which is not that unusual for a larger person, depending on the time of day. But if you are gaining it and then it never goes back down, that's definitely cause for concern.
  • fleecygirl2014
    fleecygirl2014 Posts: 6 Member
    I am 5,5 and I agree 100 percent with that, the biggest issue is that small towns, everyone uses the same doctor and its really hard to get a new one. As for birth control, they all require a doctors note where I live, the clinic is actually where my doctor is located, but yes, the gain usually all sits in my chest and stomach.
  • fleecygirl2014
    fleecygirl2014 Posts: 6 Member
    edited August 2017
    Matt_Wild wrote: »
    If you are gaining lots of water very quickly for no reason, and you know you are not eating more than you should you need to see a Dr and ask for blood tests.

    Large increases in water for no reason, can be an indication of many issues and so needs a medical professional, not a forum.

    I have been? I think you've missed the point in my asking here, nor read my post fully on how i have seen my doctor a few times. I am looking for people with much the same issue to be able to explore other options, I don't know if its the pcos that causes the water retaining? Or if this is something other people have dealt with for perhaps too much sodium. Or even if its pre menopause. My doctor seems unconcerned.
  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,590 Member
    Change doctors. Something is wrong. Look online to find a doctor who specifically treats PCOS.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Please change your Diary Sharing settings to Public: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings
  • andeey
    andeey Posts: 709 Member
    Consider finding an Endocrinologist if you think you have PCOS. They are better suited to assist with that type of diagnosis and help you find the right medications, if needed. Your GP may just not know enough about the nuances of your potential issues. Good luck.
  • loneda
    loneda Posts: 103 Member
    When i say i jot things down, i am starting to ensure every bit of salt, pepper and butter and whatnot are added in there.

    If you haven't been logging butter, then there are probably a lot more small but high-calorie items you haven't been logging. This would result in weight gain.
  • fleecygirl2014
    fleecygirl2014 Posts: 6 Member
    I always add in the butter and sauces actually, or count them with the item i eat, also i log on my phone phone which isn't the same account as here, so I shall start a new one here today. usually eat the same foods over and over so you'll get a good idea very quickly.
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