Are there any other questions i should be asking my sister's doctor?

[tenderheart22]

Hello I have a concern for my sister, she is 16 yrs of age and weights 285 lbs. I'm taking her to the doctor tomorrow about her weight issues and concerns. She tries to lose weight on her own by cutting alot of foods out and go for long walks but nothing seems to help. Since her last visit to the doctor 2 wks ago she has gained 9lbs. Im at my wits end of what to do. I'm going to be asking her doctor to check her blood sugar and thyroid is there any other thing i should ask her doctor to do for her tomorrow!!!


A Concerned sister!!!!

[Ranaesheart]

What a WONDERFUL and CARING Sister YOU Are!!!  Thank YOU for reaching out and asking the question.  As you can see, there are a lot of caring people here with a wealth of information.  Personally, I have to agree with what is said .. both medically, psychologically and with the secret eating.  I attest to these from personal experience.

Does your sister expressed to you that she WANTS to lose weight?  Sometimes if a person is not ready .. or with an eating disorder .. we are not able to control the urges to eat.  If she is sincere, have her join us here and implement the weight, exercise and mood trackers.  Next, she needs to write down EVERYTHING she eats .. that means keeping an accurate account of all food/liquids that cross her lips .. by using measuring utensils.  At the same time, have her record her moods because in short order you/she will be able to see a correlation between feelings and overeating.  

Having suffered with this throughout my life, I am more than willing to work with her on learning new behaviors and changing her lifestyle .. as are the other members of the community.  This can be a source of constant support and encouragement .. a place to share information .. and a safe place to be honest about where she is and what she is feeling.

Please tell her, for me, that I truly urge her to address this now.  I spent most of my life overweight and unhappy .. I only wish I had tackled this earlier in my life for both self-esteem and health issues.

Hope you'll let us know how the doctor's appointment went .. we're all here to help.

Very best wishes .. and gentle (((Hugs))) to you and your sister.

[PMoon]

A lot of kids hide their eating if they are stressed or depressed about something and embarrassed by their weight. She might be eating more than she says she is.

It's easy to find a vending machine, a fast food restaurant on the way home from school, etc. Watch what she is eating. Good luck.

[lucindamartinez]

Welcome!  What a good big sister you are.  ; )  Glad to have you here and you stick with us.  I agree with twehner....ask about the blood sugar, thyroid, and depression as well.  The doctor may also have some other suggestions so far as tests go.  Just wondering....does your sister have any other health problems that you know of?  If so...these might play a factor and so may their medications, if any.  But above all.....I definitely second twehner, keep on hanging with your sister and with us too!  Lots of good information here that I believe would be of immense benefit!  

Check out this health page....http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/Weight-Loss/Weight-Loss-and-Nutrition-Myths/show/399?cid=129.....There are also several other topics there that might be helpful in getting started.  I particularly enjoy the one about Baby Steps to Weight Loss.  

[twehner5]

First of all, it sounds like your sister is lucky to have such a loving and concerned sister.  The world is out there ready to tear her down...I hope that's not already what has happened.  

The other thing that comes to mind besides the possibilities that you will mention to the doctor would be depression.  Unfortunately, doctors are too quick to prescribe pills for that AND they are apt to cause weight gain.  IF the doctor suspects depression, you might ask if any medications are weight-neutral...  I have no idea if any of them are or not.  Just watch her on ANY Rx for depression.  I have heard that teenagers are more susceptible to serious adverse reactions, including suicide, on prescriptions for depression.  Now, that might be yesterday's news, but please be very careful!

As far as diabetes and/or thyroid OR if it is none of these things, the doctor might just say it takes more time.  HANG WITH HER!  And, stick with us!  Read lots of posts and feel free to respond.  That's how we get to know each other.

Welcome, by the way!