That’s it, nothing more. Well, DUH! I came to THAT conclusion without medical school or the white lab coat!

My endocrinologist: “Whoever figures that out will win a Nobel Prize.”

Another time I had lost over 100 pounds. I went for an internal and the PA who was doing it glanced at my belly, asked if I recently lost weight, and after I said yes, she said “Someone needs to do some crunches”. Yes, my feet were still in the stirrups.

I’ve had other experiences with doctors that really has lead me to believe that the only reason to consult them about weight loss is to make sure there isn’t an underlying condition or a risk factor.

I will not take dietary advice from anyone who hasn’t read Gary Taubes’ book. They don’t have to agree with it, but they had to have read it. Right from the beginning he points out that treating obesity as a disease of too much food is like treating alcoholism as a disease of too much booze.

I started 2007 at a weight so high I couldn’t weigh myself on my scale (highest weight it records is 335). I considered going to the doctor’s office to get a good weight, but I didn’t want lectures (plus I was afraid I might not be able to be weighed at the office). I know I weighed over 350, but I have a suspicion I might have been closer to 400. May 2007 I started low carb (Atkins). By mid-June I could weigh myself on my scale. This morning I weighed 255.5.

Sometimes I wish I had the “clinical record” of my start weight and proof of the drastic improvement in my blood panels. But going to a doctor for weight loss advice? I’ve lost so much weight over the course of my life (at least 4 times I’ve lost over 100 pounds). I know about eating less and exercising more. Weight loss is not a moral issue, but unfortunately many doctors and many thin people view it as such.

and portion control was getting me nowhere, or hardly anywhere at all, to be honest. What’s worked for me is increasing my exercise and general physical activity (which my GP told me I didn’t need to worry about since I was already walking over an hour a day). And even if I end up eating greasy, gross, protein-rich, white-flour-based cafeteria food in large portions (because of work), as long as I’m getting in a goodly amount of exercise or just plain low-impact physical activity, the pounds drop off of me.

As they say, muscle burns more energy than fat. Since I’ve moved close enough to walk to work, and the grocery store, and all the places I hang out, the pounds have dropped right off of me. My GP still stresses portion control. I want to hit her. :)

… But I think I’ve given up on her. She paid no heed to me and my nasty headache problems either, telling me that I needed to do something drastic about my inexplicable high blood pressure, or I would have to face some nasty consequences in the future. She hardly once thought there might be a link, or that the headaches were an issue worth looking into. Thankfully (if you can say that) this neurological disorder I’ve been diagnosed with actually causes high blood pressure, and suddenly we have an explanation, and a key to solving my woes. … no thanks to my GP.

In fact, one of my main reasons for taking the time to figure out how to lose weight and improve my health is because I was starting to have a lot of scary health issues that I strongly suspected were due to carrying around way too many extra pounds (sleep apnea, hypoglycemia, plantar fasciitis, back pain).

I knew I couldn’t afford to see a doctor about any of these issues and god forbid if any of my parts or systems break down. I’ve lost 80 pounds so far and beat all the aforementioned issues. Say yay for being poor as a great motivator!

Congrats on your amazing journey. You have quite the sense of humor :)

Though, at the time I was 19-20 years old, and still very healthy despite being 264lbs when I began. If I were older or if I had a health problem like diabetes or high blood pressure or something, I probably would have consulted my doctor to see if there was anything I should avoid doing/eating.

I *AM* considering seeing a dietician to figure out why, after all the exercise I do and how healthy I eat, I keep getting “stuck” at 186lbs. But I see it as a last resort since i can’t seem to do it by myself. Also, the fact that I did lose so much on my own and kept it off for years will, I hope, make the dietician respect me and my abilities to care for myself.