Hand in Hand

For years now I have battled my weight to no avail. My weight bouncing up and down enough to confuse any scale.

In January I was diagnosed with a slipped spine. I have had back aches for what seems forever, ever since working in a nursing home when I was eighteen lifting people for a living. However toward the end of 2011 my back aches became worse and began interfering with my work. You see I work in a factory doing ten-hour shifts standing in one spot which agitates the slippage and presses on nerves causing severe pain.

The doctor has said from the beginning a major contributing factor to the back problem is my weight. My weight is pulling on my spine causing it to press on nerves. If I want to control the pain of the slipped spine I have to lose weight and strengthen my core.

After my appointment last friday he decided to send me back to work to “try” it out. I went back to work Monday and part of Tuesday and had to go home due to the pain being unbearable. Back to the doctor I go on Wednesday for yet another visit. We really need to stop meeting in such a manner. 😉 Two things came out of that appointment, hopefully for the better. He ordered an MRI and decided to put me on diet pills.

He did mention back surgery again. I agreed to the diet pills.

I am to accelerate exercise, increase salad intake and take Phentermine to speed up the process. Some may say

Others say it’s dangerous. Phentermine is a “relative” (as my dr. called it.) to the famous FenPhen pill that was taken off the market due to causing a variety of heart problems.

My Doctor did go over the possible side effects and said that he “will be monitoring my valves” to make sure no damage is done. The pharmacist said that it works great for a lot of people, just know the possible side effects and call the doctor immediately if I notice any problems.

Many people have seen great results with this drug, I’m hoping for the same.

My weight and my back issues go hand in hand. So today I started the new plan to get rid of access weight asap in order to relieve the back pain.

You can check out Dr. Joe’s blog that talks about this same issue, also where I got photo #1

http://drjoefawcett.com/2011/09/08/higher-body-fat-linked-to-increased-back-pain.aspx

Day 34 of 365