Posted by Gerard on November 13, 2000, at 9:38:47
I've been on Meridia for about two weeks now, and while I am not weighing (I'm going to save that for the doctor's office, if I get too fixated on seeing progress on the scale it tends to screw me up) my clothes are getting looser.
I'm 30 years old, and I've been overweight since I was about eight or nine. I was taking some speed-like pills for athsma at that age and right after I went off them (changed climates and the athsma got better) my weight went up and it's been a problem for me ever since.
I'm a 72" male with an extremely large upper body, as well as a lot of muscle tissue from lifting weights religiously in years past. It's difficult for me to calculate my BMI because I know that my frame is totally atypical (a tape measure through the widest portion of my chest is 52", and even when I've been close to my ideal weight was at least 50"). However, at 285 lbs, I'm significantly overweight.
I went into the doctor's office looking to try a centrally-active appetite supressant because I'd seen a show on the method of action on The Discovery Channel, and having a B.A. in Psychology tends to make me amenable to those type of solutions. :) They gave me a two-month prescription (strange based on what I'm hearing from people who's doctors will only give them two weeks; either these guys are more trusting that I won't abuse it or I impressed her as a responsible fellow). I'm seeing fantastic results.
The main thing is that I don't have the usual low-blood-sugar doldrums that I have on a low calorie diet, and my energy level is high enough that I can bear to get aerobic exercise every day without it bothering me; that is not typical for me. Even considering my lean body mass is probably nearly 200 pounds, or even more than that, I find myself not really desiring much more than 1000-1500 calories a day. For me, the weight just falls off when I'm at that level. And I'm not getting the usual muscle aches I get on a diet. It seems a panacea to me.
I was told by the doctor that I could use a maintenance dose of this long term, which I am absolutely delighted to pay $3.00 a day for if it works as I hope it will.
And now, on to my question: I'm concerned that Meridia might get pulled from the market arbitrarily like Phen/Fen was. I only say arbitrarily because other nations are not pulling it... and it's an opinion I've heard several times. I never tried Phen/Fen, this is my first diet medication. But if I get myself down to my ideal weight with the help of Meridia and then drop down to a 5mg maintenance dose, I'd hate to see the rug pulled out from under me when I've finally found an answer that might *last* for the first time in the 22 years I've been fighting my weight. Have you heard any rumblings in that direction? Do you think there is any reason to believe Meridia won't be there at some point in the future? Do you see a reason that it would be unhealthy for me to take it in a maintenance mode considering that it has to be balanced against the health cost of severe obesity?
poster:Gerard
thread:48756
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20001102/msgs/48756.html