New to Phen with lots of anxiety.

[Good]

First question....am I the only guy on this board ?
Second- My doc added phen as an additional prescription to Welbutrin for depression. I insisted after prior prescriptions put weight on me, that I would only take a prescription that would NOT put weight on me,....thus the Phen. I have had trouble sleeping for years and am also on Klonopin.

My questions are this......

Is Phen going to be an insomniacs worst nightmare ?

With any successful weight loss with Phen, does the weight (plus some) come back after Phen?

Is anyone using this as an supplemental prescription for depression ?

I am overweight and should lose 50+ lbs but am not convinced that is the reason the Doc issued the Phen.

Is this drug related to Phen Phen that was so controversial and dangerous ?

Please do not hesitate to bombard me with information. It will be greatly appreciated.

[suthrngirl]

Hi good , obviously i'm not a guy but i can answer a couple of your questions. Phentermine IS part of the combination of phen/fen that caused all the problems a few years ago BUT phentermine is the good one . Fenfluramine/Pondimon was the bad drug. They took it off the market and don't make it anymore. I had some of it when they recalled it and i mailed it in and got a check back for it.

As far as the sleep thing goes it can cause you to not sleep . I take my phen early like 6:30 in the morning to give it time to wear off- plus i work out hard before i go to bed and that wears me out. I don't have any problem going to sleep . My problem comes if i get wakened in the night . Then i have trouble getting back to sleep.

Some people can't deal with these side affects but i've lost 20 lbs in 5 wks and that makes it worth it to me.

When you get off the pills if you don't continue to eat right then yes you will gain your weight back. It only makes since. Phen helps in reducing your appetite but you have to learn to eat right then keep it up.

As far as the depression thing. The 2nd week i was on Phen i was horribly depressed and i don't have problems with depression. After that week i got over it and haven't had that problem since. It can wack you out sometimes though. You just have to remember it's the pills making you feel that way and then you can overcome it.

Hope I've helped in some way. I wish you luck

[Abbi]

Hi Good,

I am not a guy either, but my impression is that if you wait for a male to answer, you will wait a long time since this board seems to be dominated by women.

Suthrngirl is right about phentermine being the good drug in the phen/fen combination. If you want to read more about it visit the web sites for the National Institutes of Health, and the New England Journal of Medicine. The writing, especially at the NEJM is directed to physicians, and is dense for the lay person but it should allay your concerns about phentermine.

The cardio-pulmonary problems so widely reported in the media were linked to the phentermine-fenfluramine COMBINATION. Gasoline and matches each have their individual risks but together they are explosive. Sorry, I never could resist a pun.

I felt better after reading the sites mentioned and other material (I typed phentermine into the google serch engine).

Of course, phentermine has many possible side effects, and you, with the advice of your physician will have to weigh those against the perceived benefits.

I had developed such a level of desperation about my weight that I decided that the risks were exceeded by the benefits.

Initially I was in disbelief when the doctor gave me phentermine. I went to a "diet doctor" who gave me the actual capsules in a paper envelope as a part of my visit fee. I wondered if he had a supply in the back room of a drug that I thought had been pulled from the market. I was worried that I had somehow stumbled into some sort of a black market distribution point for discontinued drugs.

You can probably tell that my confidence in this doctor was not high (and I am not going back to him because I did not appreciate his manner). Anyway, I did some research and learned that fenfluramine was the drug that was no longer being manufactured. Naturally, I was very relieved. (A perfect example of a little bit of knowledge . . .)

Phentermine has been in use for several decades as an approved appetite suppressant. The Phen/Fen COMBINATION had not been given sufficient study for its long term effects.

YES, if you don't maintain good eating/exercise habits you will regain all of the weight, and probably because you'll feel so bad about it you will gain MORE. In that respect phentermine is like all other diet plans - they don't work long-term unless you make permanent changes in your lifestyle. I'm planning to grow eight or ten inches so that my weight will be height proportioned.

As a lay person I would assume that phentermine will make your insomnia worse. Insomnia seems to be a commonly reported side effect. However, with the combination of drugs that you are taking and your own unique physiology maybe you won't experience a worsening of your insomnia. Maybe the Wellbutrin, Klonopin and Phentermine combo will each act to ameliorate the other's side effects. (Someone may know the answer to this but clearly I don't so it is time for me to say good-bye!)

Best of luck to you!

Abbi

p.s. I have lost 20 pounds in just over a month on phentermine. (Just in case I don't grow any taller I've been watching my portion sizes, drinking lots of water and exercising.)

[This message has been edited by Abbi (edited June 18, 2001).]

[bubba]

Hi Good.You're not the only guy on the board!I've been taking phen for about 2 weeks.It's working great and I'm losing weight.

[Cotteng]

Another guy here. this board is dominated by women, but it sure is nice to read the success stories.
I dropped 5 pounds since i started on Monday. I hope to drop 30 pounds in 3 months.

[Lylii]

Hi All,
I started taking Meridia back in Feb and quit because it is so expensive. I did lose weight, about 22 pounds in 3 months or so, and yes it was slow, but it was worth it. I had to quit because my body got used to it and it stopped working. Now I just got my ** for phen today, going to start tomorrow. Reading all your stories about your sucess has really gotten me excited! I am just nervous though about the side effects. I had a bad experience with over the counter diet aids and my heart nearly burst it seemed.
I also believe this will aid in depression. I am also taking Wellbutrin, it doesn't work so well, but I think the phen may help my mood.

Wish me luck!!

[MizBhavn2day]

Definitely not a guy called Miz. Fellow insomniac. Yes, It gets worse. Lots worse as you probably know from the date on your post. Sometimes I go for 26- 32+ hours before FINALLY sleeping my allotted 3 hours! But, the good thing is those 3 hours do a lot more good now than before Adipex. I have found mood swings to be a problem. Whatever the emotion, it is exaggerated. I'm usually either laughing hysterically, bawling my eyes out, screaming angrily at the top of my lungs, or grabbing desperately at those 3 hours. Though I am not taking any med at the moment, I have had prior problems with depression and nerves. Migraine headaches..... Anyway, I seem to have actually improved with this medication. Phen IS a stimulant. My doc calls it legal speed. I do over-react a lot! But, I am, for the most part, happier. Not only from taking med but actually seeing the result. I am about 3 1/2 months into this thing. I've lost about 28-29 lbs. Makes a big difference in how you feel about yourself! Accomplishment is hard to be depressed about. I do, for no reason, sometimes, still burst into tears or lock myself in the restroom and hide for an hour- but they are much less frequent. Seems my biggest change is not being able to shut-up and now I talk really really fast. Not normal in Alabama. These folks have a hard time keeping up. We are a very laid back people. The thing I note that is good is your mentioning your doc like you do. You are confident in his/her ability it seems. I am monitored monthly. At that time,I make a list of side-effects and questions, which I make them answer. (they do it anyway) I advise doing the same. Remember every tiny thing. And don't be afraid to ask- you won't sound stupid- don't believe me? Read my post on my side-effects! And my doc didn't even grin (though I felt like a complete idiot!)Good luck to you- and please keep me informed. You struck a nerve with me. I would like to keep up with your progress.