For most of my adult life, I have been on a weight loss and gain yo-yo with a BMI range of 25 to 30. When I set my mind to it, I can lose weight healthily (1-2lbs per week) via weight watchers, but I constantly feel starved and eventually fall off the wagon.
I've always (for as long as my memories go back) been inflicted with a consistent and persistent large appetite for mostly healthy foods (just too much of them). I previously combated that with regular vigorous exercise 30-90 minutes per day.
However, in the past 6 years, I turned 30, had 6 ankle surgeries treating a serious injury, had 2 babies, and worked full time. Needless to say, I've been slowly losing the battle of the bulge.
My ankle makes it extremely difficult to get any meaningful calorie burning exercise on a regular basis without using up a couple hours a day. And most other diets leave me feeling starved.
I'm finding myself jealous of the morbidly obese who qualify for lap banding, though I would never intentionally gain weight in order to meet those criteria myself. Whenever I bring this topic up to my health care providers, they gloss over the importance of exercise and diet,and minimize the concern since I've always had a BMI of 30 or less. Of course, this offers nothing for my physical limitations to vigorous exercise, and my "appetite disorder" as I call it.
My thyroid labs are normal, and I'm otherwise very healthy with the exception of needing effexor for mild anxiety/depression. I do not believe that the effexor is in any way the problem since I've only been on it for a year, and my problems go back way longer than that. My only other medications are mirena (levonogestrel IUD), multivitamin, calcium, omega-3, and occasional NSAIDs for ankle pain.
What are my options? What do you suggest for my situation? My body image problems are affecting my daily self worth. My current weight is about 170 and I'm 5'3". Just 6 months ago, I was 139lbs - to give you an example of the yo-yo.