Weight gain after withdrawal

Hello everyone, anyone with weight gain at the end of taper/withdrawal? I have gained about 30 lbs through out medication and taper and CANNOT seem to lose it no matter what I try. Anyone with this experience? How long does it take before it all normalizes? I have benzo belly but the all over weight gain and inability to lose is the concern. I would appreciate any tips/ tricks/- advice

 

The only way that works for me is to exercise and religiously count calories.  Easiest diet I ever did was when I got up and biked 18 miles every morning.  I could enjoy a full 2000-calorie food intake for the day and lost weight pretty rapidly.

 

(I need to do this again - this covid inactivity has put some weight on me)

I've easily gained 10 lbs in just 4 months.  I've cut out all the tasty sugary desserts and only eating nutritious healthy meals but I'm pretty inactive due to my symptoms, so I figure I'll just diet and exercise when I'm doing better.

I sure wish I could gain weight!!!

 

I can hardly put on a pound!

 

What are you guys eating that resulted in a weight gain - I need to do that!

I guess I do eat a lot of carbs, but I feel like that is what my body needs to get quick access to energy.

 

I do 1 slice gluten-free bread with butter with first cup of decaf coffee (7am)

Plain oatmeal with cinnamon/banana/walnuts (9:30am)

Lunch is turkey/rice or potato/ another slice of gluten free bread/butter

mid afternoon snack is apples with peanut butter or similar fruit/good fats

dinner is meat or fish/potato or rice/vegetable prepared with olive oil and sea salt

final snack of tea with graham crackers (here I cheat with the wheat but it is minimal)

 

Also every day I consume one Ensure max protein (only 150 cal) which has enough vitamins/minerals to help my recovery without causing me any sensitivity issues which I would have taking higher levels of supplements.  I usually just take a few sips all through the day to help with blood sugar drops.  Also very tatsy.  Also drink orange juice here and there for Vit C.

 

I'm sure my calories are adding up to more than I'm burning, but I'm ok with that as long as it's nutritious and giving my body what it needs.

 

Hope this helps....

I guess I do eat a lot of carbs, but I feel like that is what my body needs to get quick access to energy.

What you are describing is "carb craving" which is a sure sign of insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is a large part of the disease process for heart disease, diabetes, stroke, etc. If you don't take active measures to reverse insulin resistance, it is a condition that will progress. Why? Because your body will crave carbs more and more and you will gradually continue to consume more. It's just like being dependent on a drug. The remedy is just the same, which is get off the sugar like you'd get off a drug, expect withdrawal symptoms (mainly to do with mood) just like when withdrawing from a drug, but also expect your life to improve in the weeks and months if you can make a permanent life change.

 

It's heartbreaking to see conscientious people fall for this trap. It's really difficult to try and get the message out there about what needs to be done. Imagine that a large chunk of the population is taking cocaine several times a week because they think it's not that harmful. I feel just as helpless trying to explain why people should drop the sugar. Nobody wants to believe that it can be so bad precisely because they are hopelessly addicted. Because not many people are saying what I'm saying, it can be ignored and nobody has to address their harmful behaviour. I wish I could make people understand the huge benefits 

I think you should see your doctor about it before doing anything drastic. Apparently this withdrawal can cause a bunch of different kinds of blood sugar issues. For instance, like you I’ve seen many people have blood sugar drops. I on the other hand go through high blood sugar spikes and had to be put on a continuous glucose monitor and carb count.  I’ve lost over 40lbs and would greatly like to gain it back , I look like a skeleton!  Weight gain can also come from too high blood sugars. You can buy a regular finger stick monitor for cheap at any pharmacy, and check your blood sugars before and after eating. To get a more accurate feel of what’s going on for you, as opposed to just guessing.  Or again, see your doctor and they can do testing to give you answer.

I would also like to add that my issue with blood sugar has nothing to do with my insulin production. My A1C is a beautiful 4.9 which is an amazing number. Most people without blood sugar issues have anywhere from 5.2 to 5.7. I wasn’t able to pin point why I was having the spikes until I got the continuous glucose monitor. My issue is with digestion not insulin. Mainly in the afternoon sometimes then evenings as well my body digests refined carbs and added sugars ridiculously slow. So that’s why I’m having spikes. Instead of my blood sugars peaking an hour after eating then going back down. My body digests the food super duper slow and breaks down and releases the sugars very slowly, so my pancreas doesn’t know how to keep up. Because of the slow digestion my blood sugar will go to 120 and stay there for like 2-3 hours, instead of one big peak and then fall like normal. Again I don’t have an insulin issue. It’s a digestion issue which is VERY common for this withdrawal but again affects each person differently. I imaging people with low blood sugars have fast digestion issues instead of slow like I do.

The carbs turn to sugar in your body.  Sugar causes weight gain.  This is because your body holds on to the fat and adds fat because it thinks it is starving.  It is starving in a way.  It starves for nutrients.  The metabolism slows way way down.  A balanced diet that is very low in carbs and high in proteins and vegetables balances your system.  And just sugar is about the worst thing.  Totally empty calories. 

 

On the flip side, extreme weight loss is super high metabolism.  It is difficult to turn that around, but it can be done.  Speaking as a person who suffered anorexia for many years, I had to learn to count calories up.  I had to eat that 2000 a day and do it consistently.  At the worst of it many years ago, I ate whatever I could stomach.  I just ate.  I drank a lot of Ensure+.  But real food and enough of it was the only remedy.  It didn't matter if I was hungry.  I couldn't feel hunger, as I had shut it down.  Just chew and swallow. 

 

I used to faint from hunger.

 

I had anorexia from age 10 until into my 40s.  I had periods of remission and normal behaviour.  But it always came back like a thief in the night.

 

I now weight a very healthy 128, which is a medium size for my small frame.  I eat.  I enjoy food. 

 

Withdrawal was a challenge, but I maintained a normal weight through out.  I stopped sugar, gluten, lactose, caffeine.  I ate a lot of protein.  I ignored cravings. 

 

Winnie, what to eat to gain weight?  I think just eat enough.  If you eat 2000 healthy calories a day you will even out.  Also, try not to get totally empty.  Eat maybe 5 times a day instead of 3.