Hiya Everybody

I have asked my gp about being prescribed xenical or orlistat and he has refused saying its a false loss and would rather i lost weight myself.

I am really struggling and have gone upto 18st as i have been struggling with my depression.

I am now at the point of changing my gp to one closer, i'm in penilee and gp in paisley, been in the practice all my life but my original gp has rertired and my new gp cant even spell my daughters name! this is really annoying me!

does anybody know a gp in or around the g52 area that does prescribe orlistat or xenical that i could consider changing 2?

thank you

laura x

Sorry, can't help you with a GP but good luck on your quest,

KB

Hi Laura,
I'm sorry I can't help you with changing GP, but I just wanted to say good luck.
Xenical and Orlistat are the same thing (Xenical is just the trade name for Orlistat) Many GPs prefer people to lose some weight on their own before starting Xenical, just to prove their motivation and ability to lose weight, but it sounds like yours is downright stubborn .
Saying that Xenical is a 'false' loss is totally incorrect as well. Xenical is a helping hand, but you still have to put in the hard work yourself. In a way Xenical helps teach you to form new eating habits, which will hopefully stick with you for life, not just while you're taking the tablets.

If I were you, I'd try eating as though you were taking Xenical (foods with no more than 5g fat per 100g, and no more than 15g per meal) keep a food diary, learn as much as you can about Xenical, and then go to either a different GP at your surgery, or a new GP altogether, and explain exactly what you've been doing and why you'd really like to try Xenical.

It frustrates me that it all seems to boil down to what your GP's personal thoughts are regarding weight loss, rather than anything else. My GP is fantastic - I did have to keep a food diary for a couple of weeks, and lose a little weight by myself to start with, but since then they've been happy to keep prescribing even though my weight loss can be a bit slow going.

I really do wish you the best of luck Laura - let us know how you get on.
xx