Duromine

[sushee]

I've been checking on this thread every now and again, and am surprised Drs are happily prescribing it for people who only have 10-15kgs to lose. I know that being overweight is being overweight, but surely a drug such as duromine shouldn't be prescribed to those with a BMI in the overweight range, where potential health issues associated with their excess weight doesn't justify the use of such a drug? Where the cost of using the drug doesn't seem to justify the benefit, except in on a purely aesthetic level?

Even with the lapband, you had to be classed as morbidly obese to qualify, or obese if you have co-morbidities (such as diabetes, heart problems etc), yet there seems to be no such restrictions for a drug that, imo, seems to have as many issues (if not more) than WLS.

So I'm confused. Will Drs simply prescribe this drug to just anyone who wants it, without weighing up the cost-benefit to the patient?

Now I've been overweight almost all of my life, and I understand the desire to lose weight. But I think we need to ask ourselves whether using something like duromine when you have 10kgs to lose is the right thing to do, esp when it seems our Drs aren't doing that sort of vetting on our behalf.

BTW my Dr refuses to prescribe duromine.

[Je$$_84]

Sushee- My GP doesnt hand them out freely... both times i have had bloods done to check for pregnancym, blood pressure etc etc... I have about 35 Kgs to loose... and my BMI is in the overweight range.

I personally have stopped coming in this thread. i felt very humiliated and ashammed for coming in here. I know people are only trying to help but personally it feels like people are judgeing and honestly not very nice. I know the mods job is to let people know the bad stuff and i know people dont agree with it but cant people come in here and be supportive Or at least allow the supportive people to do that.

I was disapointed at some of the things said. i thought BB was about support. I have never made a fuss about things but it has honestly made me feel worse for trying to do something about my weight.... I am well overweight, have PCOS and it is extremely hard for me to shift weight in my mid section.

This will be my last post in this thread. Dan, Harmony, laura and whom ever else is in here... GL with your weightloss journey. I wish u all the best. Hope that you can find some support which every way you choose to go... Me i will stick with my GP and his support.

[sassy123]

sushee: my doc didnt freely prescribe these to me either. i had been through other things first and durmoine was the last resort.
my bmi is 34 so i am in the high obese range, its not like i just cant be bothered to loose a few kgs it is more then a few kgs for me.
also my prob is i need help to exercise as when my weigh is high my knees get really bad so i need something to give me a lift and get a bit of weight off quickly to help my knees so i can get in and exercise. they have not hurt once for me while being on this, well other then the burn lol.
i haev had no side effects other then constipation but i get that from most meds anyways so it isnt that dif to me.
i know your only tryin to help and thank you for that.
I guess the high cost helps to keep you determind to stick to it aswell. i dont see the point in paying that much for the tabs then sittin on my butt and eating bad and loosing all that money.

[sushee]

Look,

I am the first person to say that if your BMI is 30 or over, your health is at risk and if medical help assists you in combating that, so be it. So sassy, it's not you I was referring to. I personally have (and would have) tried anything to lose weight if it meant I would be around for my kids, but I do wonder about anyone who would prescribe a drug like duromine to a patient who is only 10kgs outside of a 'healthy' weight range. Esp when 'healthy' as defined by a Body Mass Index actually is considered low by many health professionals, and is an index that created by insurance companies to be able to exclude anyone but the very thin from being classed as 'healthy' and therefore 'insurable'.

So my question was: when someone only has 10kgs to lose, why would any dr prescribe duromine? Or any other drug for weight loss? That is my issue with this. There are members in this thread who only have 10kgs to lose who are wondering if they can get prescribed this drug. That's a worry, imo, and the mods are right to mention at that point that duromine is in fact a strong drug with many side effects, and not some magic bullet.

HeyGoodLooking, I have participated in many threads where I've had my choice to have a lapband questioned. Questioned, not attacked, and I have explained my reasons for my choice and not taken it personally. I don't feel that I, or any of the mods, have attacked anyone's choices, but have questioned the common use of duromine by Drs without accompanying information about the real and common side effects. And in my case, esp in people with relatively small amounts of weight to lose. You can take that as being unsupportive, but I want to clarify that I have no issue with you or anyone else who's actually been prescribed duromine.

I do however have an issue with Drs prescribing it without weighing up the potential cost to the patient with small amounts to lose when there seems to be very little health benefit in the end. If you choose to take offence to my pointing that very real concern out, I apologise but have to say none of what I said was directed at you specifically.

[Muffy]

i felt very humiliated and ashammed for coming in here. I know people are only trying to help but personally it feels like people are judgeing and honestly not very nice.

:yeahthat:
im out too.

[sushee]

I'm confused. Are you all saying that people should ONLY get supportive comments for trying to lose weight (even relatively small amounts like 10 kgs) with strong drugs?

No one is allowed to say anything to question the wisdom of it?

Because I am someone who had 35kgs to lose just last year, and if anyone thinks I don't know what it's like to try to do something about my weight, you're wrong. I had surgery to lose my weight. I would be the last person to want to humiliate anyone for trying to get healthy.

BUT I think there should be a line in the sand. I don't think WLS should be done on someone who is only 10kgs overweight, and no, I don't think duromine should be prescribed for someone who isn't in imminent risk of health problems associated with excess weight. Not when the health issues it causes may in fact not be worth the risk.

I don't apologise for thinking it's unethical for a dr to prescribe it to someone for no other reason than aesthetic reasons.

[Muffy]

Well personally i came in here to get SUPPORT you may not think that 10 - 15kg is much but it is to me.
Its not like i went into this without any thought. PLUS i havnt even been prescribed it yet.

[sushee]

Well RR,

if thought was what you put into it, I'm wondering why anyone pointing out the downside of duromine would bother you. Putting thought into something means knowing the good and the bad.

You may have weighed it all up and decided that you should be on this drug. I don't agree, but that's my POV and I've put it out there. But if someone else was reading this, I would hope ALL the information about it would be out there, not just a bunch of 'supportive' comments about how great it is without any clear indication of the side effects.

Even when replying to lapband questions, I put it all out there, the good and the bad. I think I'm being supportive to someone by letting them know ALL the facts, not just the warm and fuzzy, feel-good effects.

[Muffy]

Im not going to reply, i dont want to say something and get in trouble.

[sushee]

Feel free to PM me, RR.

[Lisa]

Sushee... I am going to agree with you hun.

I know sooooooooo many people who have taken duromine to try to lose the 10-15kgs that have been bugging them. Sure they lost it... but in a year or so they are then trying to lose the 20-30kgs they have put on since stopping them. I am not talking 1 or 2 people... there are about 8 people I know IRL who have had these issues and I am one of them. I needed to lose 20kgs so took duromine and now I need to lose in excess of 50kgs My BF has been on & off duromine for years... she loses some and then gains at least 5kgs more each time she stops them... over a period of 8 years she has put on more than she originally needed to lose. It really is a scary roller coaster and not what I would ever call a quick fix because it might help you lose it, but you will most certainly put it back on again because you're starving your body and most of the time over excerting yourself by excessive cleaning, exercise and lack of sleep.
But... all of this is JMO and I wouldn't want someone going into this blindly.

[sushee]

Lisa,

my Dr has told me the same thing. That because you eventually do stop taking duromine, and because it's not meant to be taken forever, the effects of the hunger suppression generally disappears when you stop taking it, so more often than not, the weight comes back on plus some because your metabolism has been stuffed up by eating too few calories when you were on it.

I'm sorry to hear that it's had that effect on you. I don't think enough explanation about what happens when you stop taking it is given to patients. There is nothing more demoralising than gaining weight you have lost. I wish you luck with your journey, hun, whatever form that takes.

[Lisa]

The thing for me is that my diet didn't change once coming off duromine... I have always tried to eat healthy, but once coming off duromine, about a week or 2 later I found I was ravenous! It was like I had seriously starved myself for 30 days and my body was screaming out for food... even though I know I was eating whilst on the tablets, it wasn't enough to sustain what I was doing exercise wise. I also slowed down my exercise because I was exhausted. I wanted to do nothing but sleep for ages. I guess my body was trying to catch up on the sleep it missed out on... I was honestly a physical wreck.
Stupidly though, I have been tempted to try them again, but thankfully pregnancy & breast feeding have stopped me and commonsense has prevailed... eating right has been the only thing that has actually worked for me.

[sushee]

It's not fun the way our bodies work, I agree, Lisa. My metabolism was shot from years of trying to starve myself into losing weight - all it did was make me gain weight more easily with less food than before.

Eating right is a great start. Even with the lapband I have to watch that I eat well and exercise intensely. There is not easy way out, I've found.

[Schmickers]

Just a note - as we have stated previously, the Mod Team have reservations about allowing a thread to continue that condones the use of duromine as we are concerned about it's side effects. However, we have elected to let this thread continue, as we recognise the need for support for those women who choose to use it.

If you have any concerns about our stance on this issue, then please PM a moderator to discuss it further. Otherwise, I will remind you that publically debating a moderator's decision is against the forum guidelines.

[sushee]

I've had the night to mull it over and I wanted to come back and clarify something.

You are all adults, and I expect that whether your have 3kgs to lose or 30kgs to lose, you've gone into the decision to take duromine knowing all the facts about it, and deciding that, for you, it's worth it.

I respect that. I may not agree but I don't have an issue with anyone deciding that this is for them, if their Dr agrees and prescribes it for them.

I do hope that for everyone who decides to take it though, that you arm yourself with all the knowledge you can about the product, as you would if you were giving medication to your child. Every single thing has pros and cons, and only you can look out for yourself and decide that the pros are worth the cons.

Good luck ladies.

[Je$$_84]

Sushee- I really appreciate you saying that... i wasnt going to come back in here but glad i did. Thanks

[*LovemyKids*]

Ok i am not here to cause i fight i just wanted to clarify something. I am one of the people who said that i have 10kg to lose. The 10kg i want to lose is only what i personally want to lose. If i was to go off what my BMI says i should lose i need to lose 15-20kg to be in a healthy weight range. SO i will be happy within myself if i lose 10kg but to be in a healthy weight range i NEED to lose 15-20kg. Before i had DD i lost 6kg going to the gym eating healthy etc etc, so since then i was diagnosed with hashimoto's disease and i find it VERY VERY difficult to not only get motivated but to even lose 1 or 2kg. So this is the reason i am taking duromine for ONE month to get me started and t motivate me. I have had no side effects and my dr is monitoring me very carefully.

I know that everyone has the right to an opinion and i do appreciate everyones concerns, but i did feel judged when i read these earlier post's. I am not trying to cause an arguement or anything i just wanted to say how i was feeling.

Nikki