Wow~ well anyway, so as you know I started on Meridia on July 1st. So today is July 5th. I feel great! As you probably know I have been super worried about the side effects.
The first day I had a little dry mouth and felt a little "spacey".
Day 2, I felt great but still wanted to eat. Still dealt with a very mild dry mouth and quite tired. Drinking a LOT which is good. So the dry mouth is actually a blessing as I have always needed to drink more.
Day 3 I was very tired but felt good. Noticed my weight was the same as the starting day, so thinking it would probably just take time to set in.
Yesterday (Day 4) I noticed that my constipation has come back with a vengeance. I finally was able to go, but went out and bought a ton of prunes, veggies and fruits, not to mention fiber bars and cranberry juice. I have always had consitpation since my thyroidectomy, and only recently had it under control with stool softeners, until I started this medication, of which constipation is also a side effect. But I was aware of this, so now I have to probably start my Metamucil again along with the prunes and stool softeners. Pretty sad too, considering when I weighed first thing in the morning I was DOWN 2.5 LBS!!! Woo! It is starting!!!
Today is day 5. I am super pleased to only have the constipation issues and mild dry mouth, compared to some who have terrible side effects from Meridia. This morning I lost yet another .5lb. So in 5 days I have lost 3 lbs. WOW! That is great!!! All the reviews I have read are averaging about 10 lbs a month, so I might just hit that!
I have noticed yesterday and today as well, that I have an upset stomache when I eat so perhaps I am finally feeling that 'full feeling' only, it is after I eat, not during or before. SO I will just have to cut my portions in half. I really want to stay at 1200 calories, but I am lucky to eat 600 - 800 calories a day. They say that isn't good for you, but when you aren't hungry, it is hard to force yourself to eat.
Hubby and I are going on our honeymoon in December so I hope to lose at least 50 lbs by then. That would be WONDERFUL!!!
Anyway, so far so good on the Meridia. Like I said I was really concerned about taking it because of the deadly side effects, but I am taking my pulse regularly and will monitor my blood pressure often. So far pulse is staying right around 72 to 80. Perfect! Don't feel any palpitations or heart racing, but since I started with low blood pressure, Meridia may just raise mine to a "normal" level. Hopefully I won't have to deal with the side effects of hypertension or tachycardia anytime soon. I am just glad I don't have the horrid headaches that others have dealt with using Meridia! I am truly blessed~
Will keep you updated! Wheeee, I am finally losing weight! 8 lbs to date (5 lbs in 6 weeks before and 3 lbs in 5 days now) Love it!!! :) Back to the gym tomorrow. Hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July!!!
Oh and I found FitDay today. Am excited to get started with that. :)
to be continued...
Monday, July 5, 2010
July 1, 2010 Update
Well it has been about a month since my last post. A lot has happened. First and foremost, my mammogram came back normal!!! It's hard to know what normal is when you are fibrocystic and have a ton of lumps. But hey, that is great news!!!
Of course I had to wait a long time before going to see Dr. F again. But I finally saw him a few days ago. He said that my levels are now on the high side. So he is now dropping me back down to 200mcg of the Synthroid. He said I am doing well otherwise, and advised me to begin taking Meridia. After all the research, I was quite unsure if taking it would be beneficial to me. But in the past 6 weeks since seeing him last, I have only lost 5 lbs and that is with eating right and exercising 4-5 days a week for a minimum of an hour. AND I am finally able to sleep. I feel great on the 225 Synthroid, but if he says the safest way to do this is to lower it to 200, then that is fine with me. Gosh I have worked so hard to lose weight and everyone I talk to, with thyroid issues all tell me it is nearly impossible to lose when you are hypothyroid.
SO I got my (very expensive 139.99/mo) perscription today and took it as soon as I got home. The pharmacist talked with me about it upon my request, because it still makes me nervous after my dealings with the Phentermine that totally screwed me up. He said my biggest concerns on this drug should be raised blood pressure (which I am not worried about, due to normally having low numbers such as 96/64), insominia, fatigue (yes, I was like, ok, so I will be tired but unable to sleep... gotcha. lol and also minor complications such as headaches, constipation (which I already have DAILY due to being hypo) and dizzy spells (I would prefer not to be dizzy, thank you).
I haven't told anyone I am taking this, because I don't want to sound weak for even CONSIDERING taking another weight loss pill, even though my dr highly recommended it. My BMI as of today WITH the 5 lb weight loss (according to the Mayo Clinic BMI online calculator) is 38.1. Holy obese city!!! Not good at all. So I need to lose a minimum of 47 lbs to get into the "overweight" range. That sounds obtainable. So my first short term range is officially going to be 50 lbs. (will most definitely break that down into two 25 lb increments.
SO, today, July 1, I have officially begun a very new "help" for my weight issue. I will continue to research, eat right, work out, and try to keep my stress levels to a minimum. From what I am dealing with right now, eating and working out alone, I am averaging about 1lb of weight loss per week. Which is GREAT, hey, I will take it. Better than gaining right? Supposidly, people on Meridia average about a 5-10% weight loss when taking the 10mg like I am. I am going to take a leap here and say that is for a 3 month dosage. I don't know for sure, will have to keep researching, but I am going to leave it at that for now just to be on the safe side. SO if that is the case, in 3 months I should lose around 20 lbs or so. So on the average, I am going up a half-pound per week, for a weekly weight loss of 1.5 lbs from the Meridia. (again just sticking with this to be on the low side for my sanity's sake. If I lose more than that, I will be thrilled. If I don't, well I won't be disappointed.)
So the way I see it (correct me if I am wrong), if I am already losing 1 lb a week average, then the 1.5 lbs a week (average) from Meridia, would it be safe to say I could lose up to 2.5 lbs a week with Meridia, Eating right and Exercising???
Maybe I am wrong, but that would be GREAT! So 2.5lbs X 12 weeks is around 30 lbs. 10 lbs a month. I will take that!!! (although if you remember, I lost 60 lbs in 4 months doing it by myself last year). So who knows where this new journey will take me but you can bet I will be updating here more often, (probably weekly) now that I should actually be seeing some changes. YAY!!!
I measured and weighed when I began working out. I have since been weighed, but in the morning, I will measure and see if any changes have been made there, plus I will have a Meridia starting point on both weight and measurement.
I can't wait to see where I am at, come October 1, 2010 when my 3 month supply runs out. (pending of course I don't have any of the blood pressure issues, etc.
;) To be continued...
Of course I had to wait a long time before going to see Dr. F again. But I finally saw him a few days ago. He said that my levels are now on the high side. So he is now dropping me back down to 200mcg of the Synthroid. He said I am doing well otherwise, and advised me to begin taking Meridia. After all the research, I was quite unsure if taking it would be beneficial to me. But in the past 6 weeks since seeing him last, I have only lost 5 lbs and that is with eating right and exercising 4-5 days a week for a minimum of an hour. AND I am finally able to sleep. I feel great on the 225 Synthroid, but if he says the safest way to do this is to lower it to 200, then that is fine with me. Gosh I have worked so hard to lose weight and everyone I talk to, with thyroid issues all tell me it is nearly impossible to lose when you are hypothyroid.
SO I got my (very expensive 139.99/mo) perscription today and took it as soon as I got home. The pharmacist talked with me about it upon my request, because it still makes me nervous after my dealings with the Phentermine that totally screwed me up. He said my biggest concerns on this drug should be raised blood pressure (which I am not worried about, due to normally having low numbers such as 96/64), insominia, fatigue (yes, I was like, ok, so I will be tired but unable to sleep... gotcha. lol and also minor complications such as headaches, constipation (which I already have DAILY due to being hypo) and dizzy spells (I would prefer not to be dizzy, thank you).
I haven't told anyone I am taking this, because I don't want to sound weak for even CONSIDERING taking another weight loss pill, even though my dr highly recommended it. My BMI as of today WITH the 5 lb weight loss (according to the Mayo Clinic BMI online calculator) is 38.1. Holy obese city!!! Not good at all. So I need to lose a minimum of 47 lbs to get into the "overweight" range. That sounds obtainable. So my first short term range is officially going to be 50 lbs. (will most definitely break that down into two 25 lb increments.
SO, today, July 1, I have officially begun a very new "help" for my weight issue. I will continue to research, eat right, work out, and try to keep my stress levels to a minimum. From what I am dealing with right now, eating and working out alone, I am averaging about 1lb of weight loss per week. Which is GREAT, hey, I will take it. Better than gaining right? Supposidly, people on Meridia average about a 5-10% weight loss when taking the 10mg like I am. I am going to take a leap here and say that is for a 3 month dosage. I don't know for sure, will have to keep researching, but I am going to leave it at that for now just to be on the safe side. SO if that is the case, in 3 months I should lose around 20 lbs or so. So on the average, I am going up a half-pound per week, for a weekly weight loss of 1.5 lbs from the Meridia. (again just sticking with this to be on the low side for my sanity's sake. If I lose more than that, I will be thrilled. If I don't, well I won't be disappointed.)
So the way I see it (correct me if I am wrong), if I am already losing 1 lb a week average, then the 1.5 lbs a week (average) from Meridia, would it be safe to say I could lose up to 2.5 lbs a week with Meridia, Eating right and Exercising???
Maybe I am wrong, but that would be GREAT! So 2.5lbs X 12 weeks is around 30 lbs. 10 lbs a month. I will take that!!! (although if you remember, I lost 60 lbs in 4 months doing it by myself last year). So who knows where this new journey will take me but you can bet I will be updating here more often, (probably weekly) now that I should actually be seeing some changes. YAY!!!
I measured and weighed when I began working out. I have since been weighed, but in the morning, I will measure and see if any changes have been made there, plus I will have a Meridia starting point on both weight and measurement.
I can't wait to see where I am at, come October 1, 2010 when my 3 month supply runs out. (pending of course I don't have any of the blood pressure issues, etc.
;) To be continued...
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