dealing with doctors?

Today I finally saw an endicrinologist who is testing my thyroid, adrenal glands, pituitary.  Well, he took blood for the tests, so I assume I will get the result in a couple of weeks.  But, he acted like a jerk in that his solution to my finding it difficult to lose weight is to just eat less and exercise more.  If that was all that it was, everybody would be doing it and the US would be skinny, duhhhh.  I've been working out at the gym for over a year now [3 - 5 days week] and I cut calories significantly since last August, and I barely lost one clothes size all of last year and I'm about to get into all of another one, at least in outer clothes.  I have a few of the thyroid symptoms and I've been told it's low normal.  I may be making too much insulin, which he is looking at also.  My gripe is that he acted like all I need to do is to eat less and exercise more.  I just wondered if you all have had similar experiences with doctors.  This guy said he went to an conference of the international association of endicrinologists and a speaker made the presentation of "this is how you can help people lose weight, by telling them to eat less and exercise more".  I tried to point out that your body needs to be burning while you are reducing food and busting your butt at the gym every day.  So now, I have days that are 1,000 or 1,200 calories or 1,600-1,900 of healthy food and he wants me to eat even less the next two weeks.  Yes, if I get down to 600 calories I can still cut back to 400, but if my body isn't burning it properly, there will still be fat deposits until it starts to totally metabolize itself.  Has anybody else ever had to deal with doctors with this attitute?  I see people who have had the surgery say their doctors didn't want them to have it and were still against it, etc.

I'm 5' 9" tall, age 43, female.  The bmr calculators say I should be able to lay in bed all day and eat 1700+ to maintain my weight of 215, plus create a deficit by walking around and working out.  However, I'm barely losing off the scale or clothes sizes either.  I'm losing a little, but average 0.5 pounds a week or less.  Are there any doctors on here who can give me some insight?

Good grief girlee, you need to run not walk from this cuke.  Any doctor who would even suggest 600 calories, unless he was running a test, is not to be taken seriously.  600 calories is a surefire way to gain weight and ruin a good metabolism.  Especially at the rate you are working out...you run the risk of eating away your own muscle mass.

If he thinks you are producing too much insulin and it comes out that you are insulin resistant, I recommend a low carb diet.  Any decent endocrinologist will tell you that calories in calories out won't work if you have a metabolic disorder.

Please let us know your results...your case sounds interesting.

Mary

I agree with MWY, run not walk away from that dr.  Unless you have had weight loss surgery, I would never even think of eating in the 600 calorie range.  Have you talked to a nutritionist?  I found last spring that while I was on very low calories I stalled for a couple of months...my body just wasn't happy.  Once I brought more calories and a little fat in, I started losing weight again.  It's definitely a delicate balance with what you're eating and how much you are exercising.  It might definitely be worth talking to a nutritionist after you get the results of your tests back.

Hi everyone! I know I know. I've been gone for a while. I've been back lurking, but this post is pulling me out of lurkdome!

I would go back to him and get the results read. He really can't make a good plan for you unless the doctor knows for sure what your lab levels are. If at that time he suggests cutting back to 1,000 calories or less I would do the following. Ask for a hard copy of your lab results, thank him for his time, and never go back. Set up an appointment with another endocrinologist that has been out of residency for less than 5 years. In that field of medicine you want younger and smarter. Look for someone that is affiliated with a university hospital and get a second opinion!

Fall 2007 I had a annual gyno visit. At the time I was at my heaviest. My gyno doctor ordered some simple labs including testing my insulin. It indicated that I was insulin resistant. He referred me to a endocrine doctor and the appoints with that doctor were good. I will have to say the endocrine doc did suggest low calorie diet and exercise, right off the bat. BUT at the time I had never worked out, I had never been on a diet of any sort. I was at my largest. I was 29 at the time and didn't show any other endocrine issues other than high insulin/insulin resistant. I think you and I have totally different issues other than we might both be insulin resistant.

If it turns out you are insulin resistant he is going to prescribe you the drug Metforman. It's a drug that has helped many people lose weight while also lowering insulin levels. Unfortunately, I had a very bad reaction to the drug. It gave me a racing heart feeling, like a panic attack, or heart attach. I had cold sweats and over all I thought I was gonig to die. I nearly called 911 one night, but it started to pass right before I picked up the phone. Just be awar that there are side effects, because I have since been to a new endocrine-obgyn specialist that said "I've never heard of that." At this time I am taking a supplement called chromium picolinate, based on my own internet research. So far, no doctor will give me a definite answer on what they think of me taking chromium picolinate for my high insulin.   Best of luck to you. Feel free to PM me any time on this issue. I know it’s a very scary and frustrating thing to deal with.

thanks for the replies.  yeah duhh i should look for a younger dr who will be more up on new thyroid tests etc.  he didn't specify 600 cals but if i did what he said, i'd get to that level.  i will ask for a copy of my results no matter what happens.  i don't know if i'm insulin resistant or not.  the first machine they gave me to test my sugar was broken so i've had a new one for a few days, and mostly it was about 97.  then i went camping in smokies and ate some sweet stuff without anything else, like trail mix and marshmallows:(  yeah i knew better:(:(:(  so it went to like 132 then, and the next day i couldnt get a reading because it was so cold out there.  it was 96 tonight and i was very very hungry but not yet shaking.  so actually it's two more weeks until i go back there.  i usually eat carbs from whole grains and veggies to avoid spikes.  in prior years and even last month, my sugar would test at 82 first thing in the morning, so this appears a bit unusual to me right now.  so i'll just track it and see what happens when i go back.

Hi Junglebabe

Once again I'm compelled to post!

Being Insulin resistant (high insulin), doesn't necessarily mean you will have high blood sugar. I say that after 1 1/2 year's research on this topic. I am Insulin Resistant, but not a Type Two Diabetic. People with type two (obviously) DO suffer from high blood sugar AND (most people do) insulin resistance. From the research I've read so far (please remember I have no medical training... I'm a lay person here!) most type two diabetics suffer from Insulin Resistance for years before they become Diabetic... if not decades without knowing it. There is hardly any symptoms. I was insulin resistant and had NO clue. I never had high blood sugar, and still don't.

Basically it means that your body is over producing insulin. That goes on for years or decades without you knowing anything is going on. Finally at some point after your body can't take the high level of insulin any more, then your blood sugar is effected. At that point you have the disease of Diabetes and there basically isn't any turning back. Very few people can go back to normal blood sugars without medication after being diagnosed Diabetic.

Basically, you know at this point your blood sugar is normal. More than likely you are not Diabetic. But what you don't know is if your body is producing too much insulin. When you go back to the doctor you'll know for sure, since it was tested. If you do have high level of insulin (Insulin Resistant) then he'll prescribe the medication to lower it. Weight loss and exercise is also the best thing you can do for yourself.

BTW being a IR person does make it super hard to loes wieght. And I was told by my doctor that wieght is easy to put on if your IR.

You know what would be interesting to know?................. what your insulin level was BEFORE you lost the weight you did last year. My insulin level has decreased remarkably after I started my weight loss program. Just a little bit of weight loss makes a big difference when it comes to insulin.

I have my insulin checked 4 times per year. I keep an eye on it just like my weight. I really want that level normal before my body just can't take it any more and become Diabetic like most of the women in my family. I would HIGHLY suggest to anyone to have your insulin tested, even if you have normal blood sugars. High insulin (also known as Insulin Resistance) is your first warning of endocrine problems ahead, like diabetes, if it isn't treated.  

Best of luck to you and please keep us posted!!!!!!

I just wanted to say thanks for this post!! I've heard people talk about Insulin resistance on here, and have been told I'm probably insulin resistant (thats why low-carb/Atkins diets work so well for me) But I've always been confused on what it actually was. I've had my blood tested several times in the recent past, but have never been told what my insulin levels were, or if they were normal. I was tested for diabetes, and told that I dont have it, not even prediabetes, which is good. Do they consider prediabetes the same thing as insulin resistance?? I'm gonna have to ask that too. Thanks, you've given me lots to think about! 

thanks.  well, if there is an insulin problem, it's something that has always been there, because i used to shake if i didn't eat, etc.  i just learned to manage it by eating every 3-4 hours and don't eat sweets in the morning, whole grain carbs, etc.  i guess i'll just have to wait and see.  i am assuming that yes he did test that on the group of tests that he did.  i have read that if your pancreas is making too much insulin for a long time that your pancreas can wear out and therefore you will become a diabetic. 

Hi again,

Regarding your last sentence "i have read that if your pancreas is making too much insulin for a long time that your pancreas can wear out and therefore you will become a diabetic."  Yes, you have that exactly right. Basically your pancreas over produces too much insulin for years or decades and then eventually it just gives out, and then you become a diabetic. Like I was saying before, once someone becomes a diabetic there is almost nothing you can do to get rid of it without taking medication. Then your realy stuck. 

I am not totally sure if "Prediabetes" is exactly the same thing as Insulin Resistance. What I do know for sure is that being Insulin Resistant is one of the biggest warning signs that Diabetes is in your future if it isn't treated! I also know that all the suggested treatments for Insulin Resistance are very similar to the treatments for Diabetes: 1) lower carb meals (like you talked about) 2) plenty of exercise 3) medication called Metforman (many diabetics take this because they are both IR and Diabetic). Like I said before I had a terrible reaction to Metforman and I'm not able to take it. I am almost solely  using diet and exercise to lower my weight AND my insulin level. Also, from talking to two endocrinologist, normal Insulin level is about 10 or less. The very first time I had mine tested it was 31. Way too high!

Having your insulin tested doesn't seem to be something that is done all that often, and I don't know why. I've asked many many people, even health care workers, and it's just a mystery as to why insulin testing by Family Practitioners or Gynecologists (because most women go there once a year and the doctor CAN and DO send pts for this test like mine did) isn't done more often. It's an easy thing to ask for.

I feel so blessed that my old gyno doc had it tested along with my cholesterol and other normal things. That single test truly was a wake up call that saved my life. For once in my life the weight wasn't about 'looks" it was about my health. It really did push me to do it for the right reasons.

I also wanted to add that there are some supplements that can be bought over the counter at any drug store that have seemed to help me. Some people with IR take cinnamon. I take a supplement called Chromium Picolinate. I take 800 IU per day and it seems to be helping. I saw a bigger drop in my insulin after I started taking the Chromium Picolinate for a couple months.

BTW Who told you that you might be IR? Was it a doctor? Did they do any testing for it, or did they just leave it at that? Just wondering :)

Helpful link
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insulin_resistance