Comments on Cranky Fitness: In Which Jo Gets Extremely Crabby.

Wow, you sound a lot like me. Twenty pounds into ...

2009-11-24T12:15:55.423-05:00

Wow, you sound a lot like me.

Twenty pounds into a 70 pound weight loss I had my first and unbelievably painful gall bladder attack. Two months later, I also had pancreatitis as well as a totally jacked up gall baldder...and a trip to the ER that resulted in the gall bladder getting taken out (thank goodness...I was like 'get it out!'...those attacks are insanely painful).

I'm more worried that your doctor seems to be concentrating on your weight and not possible gall bladder issues. I was diagnosed with PCOS 8 years ago, and the endo I went to sounds like your guy...all hung up on my weight and didn't pay attention to anything else. He ended up putting me on metformin without doing ANY insulin tests...just because he assumed I must be insulin resistant because I was FAT.

Well, guess what? I was not insulin resistant at all, and the met made me horribly, horribly ill.

And I never, ever went back.

Since you are a nurse, I'm sure I'm not telling you anything you do not know, but I just want to encourage you to find a doctor who really listens and don't hesitate to 'dump' those that don't cut it. Some doctors seem to think that a person's weight is to blame for everything, and then ignore other really serious problems.

Good luck!

Also, I'm in pre-nursing courses right now, and I'm super excited about being a nurse someday!!!

Just discovered this blog and I finally feel like ...

2009-11-22T11:57:09.425-05:00

Just discovered this blog and I finally feel like I'm not alone with my feelings about myself and my body. Thanks!

Thanks, all, for your comments. A couple of points...

2009-11-21T05:22:51.481-05:00

Thanks, all, for your comments. A couple of points:

AnonOstrich and JavaChick, please note: I know I'm fat. That's why I'm doing Weight Watchers--believe me, it's not for fun. Although, even after this last 20 lbs comes off, I'll still be "overweight" by BMI standards....but I'll be overweight with some really kick-ass, cut triceps.

Miss L. et al who took issue specifically with the word "fat": I have no problem with the word "fat". It's merely a descriptor of my food-baby, and doesn't describe my brain or my personality or anything that matters. I'm fat. *shrug* What bugs me is that Dr. Dorko didn't bother to look at anything else.

And, for everybody who had tips on gallbladder management: Thanks so much! I've been tested sixteen ways now, and am just waiting for the results; in the meantime, the doc gave me a scrip for Zantac, which (*whisper it softly*) seems to be working so far. Who knew? Maybe I was just hyper-acidic all this time.

Again, thanks everybody for your feedback. It made me feel a whole, whole lot better.

I am really sorry that you had to go through all t...

2009-11-21T04:07:33.500-05:00

I am really sorry that you had to go through all that. I can't believe a doctor would even express himself/herself that way. To use the word 'fat'is just nasty and unnecessary and it certainly does not encourage weight loss.

My money's on you outliving us all!

2009-11-21T02:49:57.864-05:00

My money's on you outliving us all!

That doctor needs to have his license to practice ...

2009-11-20T23:33:19.285-05:00

That doctor needs to have his license to practice set on fire, run through a shredder, pureed in a blender, and flushed down the toilet.

So, so very sick of this crap.

Bench press as much as I do and then you may tell ...

2009-11-20T23:05:53.676-05:00

Bench press as much as I do and then you may tell me that I am overweight. Tool.

I'm so sorry you had to go through that. But reall...

2009-11-20T22:03:25.404-05:00

I'm so sorry you had to go through that. But really happy that you've shared your experience here.

It's awesome that Linda Bacon, the HAES lady herself, commented here!

Also, Gretchen left the web address of the blogsite "1st, Do No Harm". You should check that out when you get the chance. Unfortunately, the kind of knee-jerk reactionary medical bigotry you experienced is all too common, and with sometimes tragic results.

BTW, on a very loosely related topic: I read on the Intertubes today that Oprah had the lady who was mauled by a chimp on her show. And this lady is extremely disfigured, missing her hands, blind and with much of her face missing, and can only eat food through a straw. And Oprah said something along the lines of, "Well, at least you won't have to worry about your weight."

WTF?!?!?!?!?!

This is our world ladies (men too, but especially ladies). Illness and disease pales in comparison to being, OMG fat!

To be fair to Oprah, I'm sure she was trying to bring some humor into a tragic situation, but really, she should know better.

Definitely time for a new doctor!!!! And when you ...

2009-11-20T19:56:43.675-05:00

Definitely time for a new doctor!!!! And when you find one, maybe you could write him a letter or email letting him know exactly why you won't be using his services (or paying him) anymore. If there's a website where you can post a comment about his practice, you could post this.

You sound like my twin! I finally had my gallbladd...

2009-11-20T19:44:54.775-05:00

You sound like my twin! I finally had my gallbladder out at 45. You can keep the gall bladder limping along on a low-fat diet (under 20% of calories) but eventually it will have to come out.

I'm 49, 5'5 and 167 lbs (down from 180 a few years ago)and always between a 12 & 14 (curvy). And really strong and prone to brusing. For me the secret is to limit sugary foods & drinks (including the ones with fake sugar), and to keep an eye on those carbs. I still lapse, but it's never far from my mind.

TIP: the flavored seltzers without the fake sugar (Canada Dry, Talking Rain, and the generic organic variety at QFC) are awesome. Fizz + taste!

That doctor is going to feel pretty darn silly whe...

2009-11-20T19:33:12.465-05:00

That doctor is going to feel pretty darn silly when he reincarnates as a cockroach.

Karmic payback's a bitch.

I'm sorry you had such a negative experience with ...

2009-11-20T16:55:34.639-05:00

I'm sorry you had such a negative experience with your doctor. If you happen to have a similar experience with your new doctor (you'll get a new one, right?), I suggest asking what he would recommend to someone like you who wasn't fat. Because guess what! Thin people have gallbladder problems, too.

Even if you commit to losing that weight, isn't there ANYTHING he can recommend in the meantime? Weight doesn't just vanish because you decide it should!

Good luck, and hope this was a false alarm.

Sorry to hear you were treated so disrespectfully....

2009-11-20T15:59:21.168-05:00

Sorry to hear you were treated so disrespectfully.

Good luck finding someone with a better bedside manner and I hope you get your possible GB issues resolved.

I said goodbye to mine a couple of years ago and was very pleased with the results.

What a crap doctor! I would have walked right out ...

2009-11-20T15:50:17.350-05:00

What a crap doctor! I would have walked right out on him and told him to kiss my a$$!

Like others have mentioned BMI isn't the greatest indicator of health. I myself am in the overweight BMI range but after I got my body fat % taken I was told by a medical professional that I don't need to loose anymore weight. I'm one of those women who carries more muscle because of how I workout. I was trying to kill myself to make it into the normal BMI range and it wasn't happening and now I know why cause my body was at a healthy place already.

Ridonkulous. He's your doctor, not your mother. ...

2009-11-20T15:50:16.656-05:00

Ridonkulous. He's your doctor, not your mother. At least be helpful and not just critical.

I'm one of those folks that carries way more weight than most people think (I'm often 20 pounds heavier than what people estimate). Partly because I carry a lot of muscle, partly just my frame. My BMI says I'm nearing obese. Yeah freaking right.

Keep rockin' it. Girls rule...dumb doctors drool. :) And definitely time for a new one.

Ugh. Yep, sounds like an arrogant jerk to me. An...

2009-11-20T14:41:36.002-05:00

Ugh. Yep, sounds like an arrogant jerk to me. And given what you told him about your regimen, he couldn't think of anything more constructive to say than "You're fat, you need to lose weight?"

Given that BMI is not the most useful number for gauging fitness, I wonder why more doctor's offices don't have those body fat meters that they do at the gym? You'd think that would be a far better indicator for advising a patient on how much body fat they need to lose.

Good luck with finding a new PCP, and I hope you can get your issue resolved soon!

People can be overweight & still healthy & fit. Wa...

2009-11-20T14:33:13.408-05:00

People can be overweight & still healthy & fit. Was this guy even in shape... you know sometimes they are not even in shape themselves & are handing out advice they do not follow... OR did he have a short man complex... I know, getting into bad joke territory! :-)

I am glad you are looking for a new doc. There was no excuse for this guys behavior.

I always weight more than a lot of people at my height but they see I have muscles.

Brush away his crap & have a great weekend!

I'm your height and within a few pounds of your we...

2009-11-20T14:07:10.616-05:00

I'm your height and within a few pounds of your weight. I don't have your training routine and I couldn't lift a washing machine if it were sitting on my foot. Find another doctor.

@Anonymous poster who talked about ostriches: BMI...

2009-11-20T13:37:02.365-05:00

@Anonymous poster who talked about ostriches:

BMI is a terrible indicator of health. The author of the formula even states that it should not be used to determine the health of an individual. It was invented by a mathematician and sociologist in the mid-1800s for the purpose of aiding social science education. A much better indicator of health is body fat percentage, because it accounts for a person having an elevated lean body mass and differences in frame size.

Have you seen Kate Harding's Illustrated BMI Project? It's very eye-opening. http://kateharding.net/bmi-illustrated/

I've had this reaction from doctors too. And when ...

2009-11-20T13:31:41.852-05:00

I've had this reaction from doctors too. And when a doctor does that to me, I find another doctor. They have to learn to deal with all sorts of people with compassion or get out of the business.

Last night I wrote "I don't need a BMI chart to te...

2009-11-20T13:16:22.440-05:00

Last night I wrote "I don't need a BMI chart to tell me I'm healthy, my body tells me I am".

Good luck finding a new doc!

Hey, welcome to the FA fold! If you're looking for...

2009-11-20T13:03:38.654-05:00

Hey, welcome to the FA fold! If you're looking for books, I'd recommend Kate Harding's new one Notes from the Fat-o-Sphere. All of the facts, plus the great snarky attitude and the examples that show that they've been through it all too.

Also, check out the First Do No Harm blog - http://fathealth.wordpress.com/
You're certainly not the first person to have a doctor focus only on your fat and not on the actual problem. Which is why I'm having so much trouble convincing myself to find a doctor out here - I'm right on the cusp of "morbidly obese" and I just don't want to deal with it.

What a f*cking asshat your doctor is. I really ho...

2009-11-20T12:28:08.060-05:00

What a f*cking asshat your doctor is. I really hope you write him a "Dear John" letter when you leave his practice and tell him exactly why you left.

I had gallbladder issues in May/June of this year and ended up having mine removed in July - after experiencing that kind of pain with the attacks, it was the best thing to do. Hope you get some answers before your next cheeseburger (and btw, that was what triggered my second attack)!

I love reading your blog--it gives me so much moti...

2009-11-20T11:52:36.433-05:00

I love reading your blog--it gives me so much motivation...and with a sense of humor, which is hard to find on a fitness/weight loss blog. I'm sorry you had to put up with such a crappy doctor. Sounds like he needs to realize that people are not numbers and statistics.

Thanks so much Linda for contributing to the discu...

2009-11-20T11:50:13.947-05:00

Thanks so much Linda for contributing to the discussion-- I've heard great things about your book and about the HAES movement!