I need to loose weight before I go on hormones

[Caramason1971]

Hi folk I need to loose weight I top the scales at 335 pounds I fear if I turn upto the clinic this size I will be refused help and turned away my problems are I have a umbilical hernia the size of a football and a condition called pernicious anemia.  I know I have to loose weight as I want to be put on hormones and down the line get surgery but don't know how to do it 

[VickySGV]

Get in contact with NHS and apply for the Gender Clinic is the very first thing.. If you have the conditions you describe you also need to get your primary care team going on helping you with getting on a diet and exercise pattern that will help you get on a healthful diet and sensible exercise routine.

[tracy_j]

I would agree with Vicky. There are waiting lists for clinics and this current lockdown will not help. As you probably will not get to see a doctor for referral I would suggest contacting the nearest (or one of choice) by telephone for guidance ( https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-body/how-to-find-an-nhs-gender-identity-clinic/ ). - Update: I see from another post that you have contacted your doctor. I am not sure of detail as I have not used the service but you may be able to glean good information ready for when you can or maybe even register with them.

 

Tracy

[Caramason1971]

my doctor told me that they were not referring anybody due to coronavirus at the moment i want to know with my health problems what are best way of loosing weight i have emailed them this morning to see if there is any help they can offer me 

[Lou10]

Hi Cara

 

Firstly, good luck with your journey. It must be quite hard at the moment with your GP not doing referrals. If you look at the GIC websites they've lots of advice on that side of things. There was talk some time ago about self referrals but, I don't know if that ever came to anything. 

 

From what I've heard current waits for a GIC are around 2-3 years which although scandalous is a time that you could use to get some extra pounds off. There are private options too if you have some spare cash. Personally, I found Slimming World to work well. If I see my weight creeping up I generally go back to a SW plan for a month or so. I did find it a bit harder to shed the pounds after HRT started, that's not unusual due to female hormonal levels being linked to higher body fat/muscle ratio. 

 

As far as surgery goes, there is a BMI limit. I had surgery in Brighton and their BMI requirement for genital surgery is below 28. They are higher for FFS. I'm not sure if that's the same for CX and Parkside et.al but it's worth looking into. 

 

I suppose one one positive to come out of the CV-19 isolation is it will allow you time to look into things. 

 

Take care

 

Lucy

 

 

[DeeDee]

Hi Cara, I agree with Lucy, don't look at the waiting time as a bad thing - it is frustrating, but the alternative is to pay privately which most of our brothers and sisters Stateside have to if they cannot get insurance, and the bills could blanche vegetables (and with current covid-19 I doubt much of that is still happening) and the NHS will get there when they can. Use the time to work things through on your own, if a question pops up, see what you can do to answer it. I suspect most of us will put a little weight on as boredom eating tends to go hand in hand with staying inside and being stressed - but there are pleanty of workouts you can do from home regardless of your age/ability and even a regular walk if you don't already is a good start. Check with yopur GP by phone what they would recommend for someone with your health conditions. I started exercising via walking/jogging to try and lose weight, but tend to self sabotage as I am an emotional eater and reach straight for chocolate and stodge as soon as I feel bad about something. I am a lot fitter than I was, but still weigh the same as I did 12 months ago but I have a yellow summer dress I will slim down enough to fit into!!

[Jani]

Thats a good idea about watching your stress eating.  I read an article recently about that as it is something that many will probably do as we are all stuck in the house.  I also like your idea @DeeDee about having a favorite piece of clothing as a target to fit into better.  Positive goals are always a good motivator.  

 

Any exercise you can do on a regular basis will also be helpful.  Start with a short 10 minute routine and work your way up as you feel comfortable. 

 

Jani 

[Maddee]

Increase water intake.  Regular short walks as suggested.  Get rest.  Try not to push too hard too fast that will aggregate your conditions and possiby set you back. 

 

You can do this Cara.  You can have a better life too.  

Step at a time. 

You matter too.

Actually, you are already doing it. 

Congratulations hon!

[Caramason1971]

On 3/29/2020 at 4:34 PM, Jani said:

Thats a good idea about watching your stress eating.  I read an article recently about that as it is something that many will probably do as we are all stuck in the house.  I also like your idea @DeeDee about having a favorite piece of clothing as a target to fit into better.  Positive goals are always a good motivator.  

 

Any exercise you can do on a regular basis will also be helpful.  Start with a short 10 minute routine and work your way up as you feel comfortable. 

 

Jani 

good idea that i want to start by going from a 28 into an 18/20 so buying a dress in that size off ebay

[Guest]

Hang in there, Cara. I have a small umbilical hernia as well. Yours is much larger. The weight loss will benefit you greatly for the repair of the umbilical hernia. Find someone who knows how to do a decent hernia repair. Eliminating the binge eating helped me tremendously. During my self-loathing period I figured it would never matter what my weight did. I did not care. It was very destructive. When I got my umbilical hernia and I found out what was entailed, that woke me up. Then I realized why I was binging and why I had gotten into this self-destructive cycle. No more. 

 

I started doing intermittent fasting and it has eliminated the binging. I no longer crave sweets. The one thing that I realized was the need to add a decent multivitamin to my regimen. Good luck!

Sincerely

Katie