UNCLE!

Yea... I'm yelling "uncle".   I just can't win here... I  c a n ' t  win! I'm so freakin' frustrated. I'm eating right, I'm exercising (even though it hurts like a mutha).. I'm doing it ANYWAY!   Now I'm up 2 lbs.     I'm not going to win this one.. am I.  I've fought two rapid fluid weight gains in the past month and a half.  One was 9 lbs.. one was 15 lbs (both over the course of 2 days).  It took weeks to dump that fluid only to see that I was right back where I started from.  I go down to 222, then back up to 226.  I want to SCREAM!  Lately I can't seem to find a ketone with both hands and a flashlight other than "once in a while".   After getting on the scale this morning, I'm afraid to eat.  No egg.. it's out.  I hope I don't get hungry and if I do I think I'm just going to ack a tablespoon of coconut oil in.  

I've kind of been out of touch here between my trip to KY and my mom being in the hospital this week since I got home......but weren't you going to see a doctor about kidney function?  Did that ever transpire?

How IS your mom... I thought I read something about pneumonia.. my mother went through that several times.  How is her treatment progessing? Rheumatologist has to refer me to nephrologist.  I have NO understanding of how this all works.  I went to the rheumatologist for my scheduled appointment (thank goodness Jon was with me or he wouldn't have believed what happened next).  After sitting there an hour, they said they never received my records from my doctor in Florida and they couldn't see me until they received them.  I told them I didn't understand... I know my numbers from test results.  They said they need PROOF that I'm in pain.  I thought to myself... "c'mere... lemme slap you hard so you can experience it first hand".     On the way home I got a voicemail saying "ooh.. we found them.. but we can't see you until next week now that you've missed your appointment". ::throwing hands in the air::   I didn't MISS my freakin' appointment!!!  I am SO not into this.  I think I live in a medical wasteland. I'm greatful I saw the shrink FIRST or he would have pegged me for an anger managment candidate.  This was interesting too.. the shrink gave me EFFEXOR on Monday and started me with a therpist on Wednesday.  Well.. sad for him .. I know how to read!  OMG.. the horror stories I read about this drug.. egads.  Needless to say, I'm handing the schtuff back to them at my next appointment.  You gotta be kidding.. they give ya a drug for depression that is not only HIGHLY addictive but makes a person even more depressed?  Does this make sense?  Alrighty...looks like anger IS going to be my "issue".. LOLOL   Yanno what.. I'm JUST frustrated and blowing off steam.  I just need something to run smoothly.  I need to see a weight loss.. I should be well on my way to onederland by now and I'm going in the wrong direction.  I need a doctor's appt that actually STICKS.. LOLOL   I need a clear day so I can clean out my garden and get my broccoli in the ground (don't ask me where that came from).   pfffffffffffft.. who knows.

Doctors are enough to drive you crazy...even if you weren't before..LOL!!  I think if we could charge them for our time spent, they might think differently....our time is important too.  Sorry you had such a bad experience and hope the next appt. goes smoother.  I know what you mean about reading the side effects of these medications....my doctor wanted to put me on an anti-arrythmic for my episodic a-fib and one of the side effects was an irregular heartbeat.  WTF? My mom was misdiagnosed with pneumonia...turns out she has congestive heart failure, but is coming around nicely with IV Lasix.  She just got back Monday night from a week in Cancun with her boyfriend (at 84) and I think the combination of the heat, saltier foods and being on her feet so much plus the plane ride was all too much.  (She said it was worth it, though)  Tough old broad! You know your body a whole lot better than me, but when I look at what you eat each day...I wonder if you're eating enough?  I know my body would shut right down into starvation mode and my metabolism would be zilch if I ate that little.  But you've been at this longer than me and know how to deal with your diabetes....not at all telling you what to do.  That's what amazes me about all this....we all react so differently. Hope you get to the bottom of all this once and for all.  Hang in there!

WOW.. God bless her heart.. your mother.  84 and vacationing and saying that CHF was "worth" the trip.  You're right.. tough bird.  Amen... I have my bad days when I don't eat enough.. but for the most part .. it's a lot when you look at the calories.  I may have 2 chicken thighs for dinner and those suckers could be as high as 400 cal each depending on how big they are.  I try to go easy during the day because I know that simply because I'm serving others, I'm going to pick on the food... so I just plan for it.  Last night I pigged on shrimp, mussels and scallops! The next thing I'm questioning is the caloric intake of folks who have had WLS and lost MASSIVE amounts of weight on calorie restriction as WELL as malabsorption.  If they don't shut down, why would any of us?  I don't know the answers to this one and I believe both sides so... I'm at a loss with this.  I can't even form an opinion. I don't know what's going on with my sugar today... woke at 150 and it's still high at 135 with NO food.. just coffee.  I wonder if the recent stress is causing an insulin response. I just wanna see progress... and I want to stop aching.

The next thing I'm questioning is the caloric intake of folks who have had WLS and lost MASSIVE amounts of weight on calorie restriction as WELL as malabsorption.  If they don't shut down, why would any of us?  I don't know the answers to this one and I believe both sides so... I'm at a loss with this.  I can't even form an opinion. Let me take an educated guess at this one, since this is my department. First-- I DO shut down, 'k? I am losing much more slowly than any post-opper I know-- and I think it's largely because they have me eating 850 calories a day when the successful people I know who are as far out as I am are eating 1000-1200 by now. But I am compliant (for now) so I am losing slowly. Price I pay for listening. Second-- here's a key difference: We supplement. We consume 64 oz. of water every day. We have labs done to assure we're in normal ranges. We supplement some more. And we eat a very high percentage of protein in our diets. And then, the smart ones, well...we supplement some more. No kidding-- I take 25 nutritional supplements A DAY. Twenny-five! Third-- Everybody has a different metabolism. Everyone. Get your RMR tested and find out what you can/should consume. It's a much better way to go than guesswork based on some insurance company's charts and graphs. I lost weight really easily pre-op because I hadn't wrecked my metabolism with years of yo-yoing--- most people don't have that luxury. Most people have struggled, and their struggles cause havoc metabolically and for life.

By the way... you look MOVELUS DOLING!

effexor is a GREAT drug. it was the first anti-depressant i ever tried and i had amazing results within likea week (usually anti-depressants take about 4-6 weeks to start working).  i have to get off it for other reasons after about 2 months and sadly, i have never found another drug or drug combination that has worked as well. my mother also took it for years with no problem. it is a fantastic drug because it worked on all 3 systems - dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine. it is NOT addictive. you do need to wean on and wean off it slowly to avoid a withdraw syndrome, but that is pretty run of the mill for most psychotropic meds. bottom line - all drugs have side effects that some people will experience. especially if you are searching the internet - you can always find good and bad experiences. no sure what makes you think that it would make you more depressed.  honestly, i don't think your psychiatrist will care about you deciding not to take it. you went to him to get his advice about medications. he gave you his recommendation - whether you take it or not, that's up to you. you'd be surprised how often that happens - people want drugs, go to the doc, then decide not to take it. its not a big deal to the doc.  i do think though based on what you have written about here that it is the therapy side of things that is going to help you in the long run. research says that the best treatment is therapy + drugs, but its all up to you.

Andy, with love and respect...... Just to clarify.. I didn't go there to get his advice on medications....   and to be honest.. I really don't give a crap whether they care if I take it or not.. .. I just don't like how they leave things out of the disclosure and I reacted.. I have that right.  What makes me think that it'll make a person more depressed is on Drugs.com.  Seems to be unbiased information.  I always look things up before taking it no matter what it is.  No.. I'm no expert.. but increased anxiety, agitation, suicidal thoughts.. blah blah.. sounds like it'll make it WORSE.  I don't need any more anxiety. If the word "addictive" doesn't work.. how about "dependence"..  if I have withdrawal symptoms... I consider my body was definitely addicted.  Been there.. done that.. got the t-shirt. wore it out. "people want drugs, go to the doc, then decide not to take it."    Do you really think I went there for drugs?  lol    If drugs are all I want I can pick them up on any corner in the city.... been there, done that too. I'm glad you didn't have any problem with this medication and really, I didn't post what I posted to antagonize you in any way... that's simply not my way.  I am not insuling you in any way...  I'm not putting down anyone who takes antidepressants (I have a sister who has to live on 4 different meds)..   it just simply is not a road I wish to travel having had my share of addiction/withdrawal and the whole bag of horrors that goes along with it... and it IS horror. Can we just agree that what works for you may not be my thing?  You're right.. everyone is going to have an opinion, and you know what they say about opinions.  .

i'm not saying you should take anything. but that's what psychiatrists do - they are medical doctors. they give out medication. they receive very little training in therapy or anything else other than meds. you had said you didn't want meds way back when you were talking about making these appointments, which i guess is why i was confused that you would choose to go to psychiatrist first. it doesn't really matter to me what you do. i'm just saying exactly what you said to me - you can find good and bad opinions on just about anything in the world. side effects are a part of any meds and each individual has to weigh those possible consequences with the possible benefits. its an extremely personal choice. whenever i post on here, i think about everyone who might be reading these messages, not just only about the person who posted the message and gear my responses toward both. maybe someone else reading this just started effexor and it could be their saving grace. who knows. as an fyi as far as the increased suicidality. the most dangerous time for a severely depressed person is right after they start taking meds - when you are super depressed you don't have the energy to kill yourself. when you start meds, you get more energy but aren't necessarily feeling any better. that's why they have found an increase in suicidal stuff after starting treatment. its not specifically related to the meds themselves, but they have to put the black box on there.