Aa
Hungry but full
I dont know why this happens, and I wish I had soem sort of answer, or idea other than, "You're mom is skinny so its okay if you are" but I am way under weight, im an 18 year old male, and I fluctuate between the weight of 110 and 112 ever since about 9th grade. No one I know weighs that less, i'm terribly skinny, but I dont look unhealthy, and I still have lots of energy, and I still do sports, and im active but I still weigh that less. I talk to other guy friends, and they're talking about weights and they are all amazed at my weight, its uncomfortable, im not terribly weak, I carry around a huge bass drum around a field for hours a day, so I'm guessings its not too bad. But I need to know why im not gaining weight. or Why, sometimes when im hungry and then I end up eating a little, i dotn feel like eating much anymore. That rarely happens but it still does. Any help would be appreciated.
Dear Someguy24,
I can relate to your problem because I am underweight and try very hard to gain weight. I am about to turn 44 (female) and I struggle to keep my weight above 100 pounds. I am 5"2. As you get older, generally you weigh more than you did when you were younger. So this is worse than it may sound. My doc told me I should weigh 20 pounds more than I do.
As you may already know, try finding any info on the web or bookstore on weight loss and it's all about how to lose, not gain. (Maybe if we wrote a book on the weight gain problem, it's be a best seller since there are none to be found!)
The first symptom I had w/ the weight loss was just what you described.The medical term is "early satiety" meaning you feel full before your supposed to. I would feel hungry and then full after only a few bites of food. I'd eat until I felt sick-which was at most 3-4 bites of food. (I still struggle with this). I have often felt like I had a stomach virus but was having to make myself eat any way.
I'm not a doctor and can't give official medical advice, but please let me suggest a few things- This is very important- Go to the doctor if you haven't. If a doc doesn't seem concerned, find one who is. Any good doctor will run tests or refer to a specialist of some kind. My primary doc referred me to a GI doc who immediately did an endoscopy( After both of them scared me to death unnecessarily by saying upfront that they needed to rule out cancer, which I knew I did not have and is very unlikely) and I was diagnosed with something called "Gastroparesis" (I can't spell it), aka "delayed gastric emptying" meaning what I eat sits in my stomach far longer than normal leading me to feel full all the time.
Prior to that I was repeatedly told (and It was not), it was stress, anxiety, medication side effects (all of this has been ruled out).
For me, I lost @ 45 pounds over a period of months without trying to lose at all. I work to keep over 100 by drinking ensure and weigh daily to make sure I don't drop lower b/c if I do I increase the ensure. But it's not normal to have to work so hard to maintain the weight I'm at or for you to have to work to reach a weight that is within your ideal weight for your height and frame.. (If you haven't, you can find a chart which will tell you a range that's right for you on the web- try webmd or goggle weight chart.
It is NOT normal to be so underweight, be careful of anyone who says that it is no big deal (docs included). It not normal to not be able to eat a full meal either.
You can do all the many things I would guess you have been told you can do to gain weight, and maybe they would work, but if you remain underweight that much or have to try so hard not to, there is something causing it.
There can be many causes. I've kept notes in my case. I have had multiple sclerosis for 4-5 years (No one is sure how long I had it b/f being diagnosed) and it seems to me that my eating problem began after having this a couple of years and no doc has said for sure, but I can't help but wonder if this is related. I still don't know. It's possible b/c MS can damage the part of the brain (the hypothalamus) that controls appetite and other related things but it's not one of the more common symptoms.
But if you had MS, you'd typically have to have had other symptoms before something like this. So don't worry about that one. (my opinion, only)
But I have done a lot of research, know which sites give accurate info. It's my understanding that one common cause is diabetes. But there can be many other reasons, such as an over active thyroid. (My thought is that you sound as if this might be you also b/c of your energy level, there is a simply blood test to check your thyroid and it's easily managed by a little pill and is fairly common) . I was hoping this was what caused my problem because all you have to do is take medication because it's not usually a major problem. There are probably many others, I know of those two b/c I've been tested for them so many times. As I said, any good doc will run tests.
I would suggest you work hard to find out the underlying cause, in my unprofessional opinion, I'd say something's up, could be something very minor or easily treated, but if it turned out to be that your diabetic or have another condition you need to catch it early because almost always if something's caught in it's early stages, it's more effectively cured, treated or managed. For example, Diabetes, the majority of the time, is very treatable if found early and rarely leads to serious complications if the person does what their supposed to. (I wish I could say the same about MS), Some would say an underweight person is not likely to be diabetic but there is medical evidence to the contrary. But being diagnosed at your age is not real common. I have stressed a lot that all of this is just my opinion and it's based on my personal and some professional experience, as a social worker, research and seeing many doctors- mainly b/c of having MS. It took 2 Neurologists and 1 MS specialist to say I had it before I would believe it. I try not to every sound like I know what a person's problem is because I've had so much "unprofessional medical advice given to me" that only causes more of a problem than help most of the time.
I'm sorry you have this problem, know that no one else understands that doesn't and how hard it can be to know you have to eat and try so hard and that it is so hard to do. I hope you get the answer you need. a good website is (something like this)- The national association or institute for gastrointestinal disorders just for info- google it, I can't remember the exact name of the site.
I would be very stubborn with a primary doc or change to another if he doesn't see it as a problem and insist on a referral to someone- it may need to be a GI or an endocrinologist (They deal with all types of hormonal/glandular problems including diabetes, thyroid problems and other things.
Hope all goes well for you. I still struggle with the problem and though it's been given a name, there has not been a good solution for me or a definite reason. It's still somewhat possible it could be some of my MS medications, but I think I've ruled them out. My GI doc gave me a prescription called Reglan which makes your food leave your stomach quicker, (if it's determined that that's the cause). enabling you to be able to eat a lot more. I couldn't stay on it b/c later it was said it can cause complications with MS. It did help me eat a lot, and I'm about to have to go on it again for a short while and take a chance. Even so, the delayed emptying is not a disease but a symptom of a disease, not necessarily something serious but something that needs to be diagnosed for reasons I stated above.
If your on any medication, you may want to learn all that you can about the side effects, even the best docs most of the time don't tell you about all of them. RX.com is a good site with accurate drug info or just google the med. Just be wary of websites if you google, that's why I've suggested a few. If you need more just say it and I'll tell you some more. I've had to use them in my work so know which ones to rely on and which ones to avoid.
Good Luck, and I hope to see a future post stating that you've gained so much weight your having to buy a whole new wardrobe. (btw, i would say stay legal in your attempts to gain weight, but again that's just me)
I can relate to your problem because I am underweight and try very hard to gain weight. I am about to turn 44 (female) and I struggle to keep my weight above 100 pounds. I am 5"2. As you get older, generally you weigh more than you did when you were younger. So this is worse than it may sound. My doc told me I should weigh 20 pounds more than I do.
As you may already know, try finding any info on the web or bookstore on weight loss and it's all about how to lose, not gain. (Maybe if we wrote a book on the weight gain problem, it's be a best seller since there are none to be found!)
The first symptom I had w/ the weight loss was just what you described.The medical term is "early satiety" meaning you feel full before your supposed to. I would feel hungry and then full after only a few bites of food. I'd eat until I felt sick-which was at most 3-4 bites of food. (I still struggle with this). I have often felt like I had a stomach virus but was having to make myself eat any way.
I'm not a doctor and can't give official medical advice, but please let me suggest a few things- This is very important- Go to the doctor if you haven't. If a doc doesn't seem concerned, find one who is. Any good doctor will run tests or refer to a specialist of some kind. My primary doc referred me to a GI doc who immediately did an endoscopy( After both of them scared me to death unnecessarily by saying upfront that they needed to rule out cancer, which I knew I did not have and is very unlikely) and I was diagnosed with something called "Gastroparesis" (I can't spell it), aka "delayed gastric emptying" meaning what I eat sits in my stomach far longer than normal leading me to feel full all the time.
Prior to that I was repeatedly told (and It was not), it was stress, anxiety, medication side effects (all of this has been ruled out).
For me, I lost @ 45 pounds over a period of months without trying to lose at all. I work to keep over 100 by drinking ensure and weigh daily to make sure I don't drop lower b/c if I do I increase the ensure. But it's not normal to have to work so hard to maintain the weight I'm at or for you to have to work to reach a weight that is within your ideal weight for your height and frame.. (If you haven't, you can find a chart which will tell you a range that's right for you on the web- try webmd or goggle weight chart.
It is NOT normal to be so underweight, be careful of anyone who says that it is no big deal (docs included). It not normal to not be able to eat a full meal either.
You can do all the many things I would guess you have been told you can do to gain weight, and maybe they would work, but if you remain underweight that much or have to try so hard not to, there is something causing it.
There can be many causes. I've kept notes in my case. I have had multiple sclerosis for 4-5 years (No one is sure how long I had it b/f being diagnosed) and it seems to me that my eating problem began after having this a couple of years and no doc has said for sure, but I can't help but wonder if this is related. I still don't know. It's possible b/c MS can damage the part of the brain (the hypothalamus) that controls appetite and other related things but it's not one of the more common symptoms.
But if you had MS, you'd typically have to have had other symptoms before something like this. So don't worry about that one. (my opinion, only)
But I have done a lot of research, know which sites give accurate info. It's my understanding that one common cause is diabetes. But there can be many other reasons, such as an over active thyroid. (My thought is that you sound as if this might be you also b/c of your energy level, there is a simply blood test to check your thyroid and it's easily managed by a little pill and is fairly common) . I was hoping this was what caused my problem because all you have to do is take medication because it's not usually a major problem. There are probably many others, I know of those two b/c I've been tested for them so many times. As I said, any good doc will run tests.
I would suggest you work hard to find out the underlying cause, in my unprofessional opinion, I'd say something's up, could be something very minor or easily treated, but if it turned out to be that your diabetic or have another condition you need to catch it early because almost always if something's caught in it's early stages, it's more effectively cured, treated or managed. For example, Diabetes, the majority of the time, is very treatable if found early and rarely leads to serious complications if the person does what their supposed to. (I wish I could say the same about MS), Some would say an underweight person is not likely to be diabetic but there is medical evidence to the contrary. But being diagnosed at your age is not real common. I have stressed a lot that all of this is just my opinion and it's based on my personal and some professional experience, as a social worker, research and seeing many doctors- mainly b/c of having MS. It took 2 Neurologists and 1 MS specialist to say I had it before I would believe it. I try not to every sound like I know what a person's problem is because I've had so much "unprofessional medical advice given to me" that only causes more of a problem than help most of the time.
I'm sorry you have this problem, know that no one else understands that doesn't and how hard it can be to know you have to eat and try so hard and that it is so hard to do. I hope you get the answer you need. a good website is (something like this)- The national association or institute for gastrointestinal disorders just for info- google it, I can't remember the exact name of the site.
I would be very stubborn with a primary doc or change to another if he doesn't see it as a problem and insist on a referral to someone- it may need to be a GI or an endocrinologist (They deal with all types of hormonal/glandular problems including diabetes, thyroid problems and other things.
Hope all goes well for you. I still struggle with the problem and though it's been given a name, there has not been a good solution for me or a definite reason. It's still somewhat possible it could be some of my MS medications, but I think I've ruled them out. My GI doc gave me a prescription called Reglan which makes your food leave your stomach quicker, (if it's determined that that's the cause). enabling you to be able to eat a lot more. I couldn't stay on it b/c later it was said it can cause complications with MS. It did help me eat a lot, and I'm about to have to go on it again for a short while and take a chance. Even so, the delayed emptying is not a disease but a symptom of a disease, not necessarily something serious but something that needs to be diagnosed for reasons I stated above.
If your on any medication, you may want to learn all that you can about the side effects, even the best docs most of the time don't tell you about all of them. RX.com is a good site with accurate drug info or just google the med. Just be wary of websites if you google, that's why I've suggested a few. If you need more just say it and I'll tell you some more. I've had to use them in my work so know which ones to rely on and which ones to avoid.
Good Luck, and I hope to see a future post stating that you've gained so much weight your having to buy a whole new wardrobe. (btw, i would say stay legal in your attempts to gain weight, but again that's just me)
Hey guy, There are several things you can do to put on weight. I would pick up a protein shake like Astros18 stated; they taste horrible but are really good for you. Try eating things high in carbs, bananas work well.. If those don't work, try using the help of the magical herb Marijuana. It can be safely ingested by turning it into butter, or you can vaporize it. It will give you the appetite of a 500 pound man. Plus, you will have plenty of fun experiences. So try to get a medical marijuana card, It will help you plenty.
We are all born with a certain body type. The important thing is that you eat healthy food. It sounds like you are getting exercise and you are strong. We are also born with the ability to know when we are full. You are lucky that you listen to your body and stop eating when you feel full. Most people don't and that's why they are overweight. There are protein shakes on the market which will give you some extra calories. Stay away from sugary foods and soft drinks, make sure your nutrients are good ones, not wasted ones.
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