Mommy and Adipex: A Love Story

I never thought I would take a weight loss drug, mainly because even though people rave about their effectiveness when they first come out, they're usually found to have certain undesirable side effects later on. Not your run of the mill side effects like diarrhea, dry mouth, or loss of sex drive, but really big side effects-- like making your heart explode.


Adipex (phentermine) is related to amphetamine and works by decreasing the chemicals in your brain that tell you you're hungry. It also speeds you up and can have unwanted side effects, though I don't think anyone's heart has exploded. It's supposed to be prescribed for short term use, and doctors are also supposed to provide patients with counseling on how and what to eat so they can keep the weight off once they stop taking the meth phentermine.

There are a few clinics that are notorious for handing out prescriptions to anyone with $100. Very few doctors, at least that I'm aware of, actually follow the guidelines. There's a semi retired doctor that my husband works with who works part time doing weight loss counseling with employees at the hospital. He lost a bunch of weight himself and has put a lot of time into researching realistic ways for people to accomplish permanent weight loss, and while he doesn't prescribe it to everyone he attempts to help, he will prescribe it if you meet a few basic criteria (like not being insane, not being a drug addict, and not having a condition that might cause the drug to make your heart explode) and agree to follow a few basic rules. You have to have blood work done up front to make sure your thyroid is okay and you're not deficient in any vitamins. You have to agree to follow a low glycemic diet-- permanently-- and meet with him once a month to monitor progress. You only get a month's supply at one time, and if you don't come back to see him you don't get a refill. If you gain weight, you don't get a refill. He will only prescribe it for a maximum of six months, and after that you better have developed new habits, or you'll blow back up quicker than you lost it.

So I went to see this guy two weeks ago. He spent about an hour talking to me about how to change my diet permanently, and it was encouraging because it's something I did before and maintained for about 3 years. When I was diagnosed with PCOS at age 20, I learned that a low glycemic diet (similar to how a diabetic should ideally eat) was the only way to go if I wanted my ovaries to do what they're supposed to do. I followed it religiously and it became second nature. I lost 80 pounds. Then I moved to Hattiesburg, where I was living in a dorm room with almost no money to buy food somewhere besides the school cafeterias, and I gained it back in about a year. I also lost all my good eating habits and went back to being another fried chicken eating fat ass from Mississippi. Having been fat, been thinner, and then fat again, I'm qualified to say that life is so much easier when you're not fat. Everything is easier. I can't think of one part of life that isn't improved.

I've been taking the drug and following the diet for two weeks, and I've lost about 9 pounds.

I'm not a speed freak. I do not enjoy the feeling of being sped up. Dr. P. warned me that some people just couldn't tolerate that feeling and chose to stop taking the drug after a few days. I figured I would be one of them, but wanted to give it a try.

The first few days were intense. I did feel weird a lot of the time, but quickly learned that I felt better as long as I didn't go too long without eating. Going half the day with no food is easy to do on meth phentermine, but if you do it for a few days in a row you'll eventually feel like crap. So far, I haven't had any dramatic side effects. I have had a dry mouth and a couple other minor issues, but no exploding hearts.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to alphabetize my 800 cd's.