Gained 25 pounds in the last year, hungry 24/7

[madbrain]

I am starved almost all the time. If I don't eat something at least 5 times a day, I am weak and can't do anything. I have gained 25 pounds the last year. I am up to 160 lbs now which is my all-time-high . I think my HIV infection was about one year ago, so that seems to coincide. My VL is still low and tcells high so I'm not on meds. Has anyone had the same experience ? And what did you do about it ?

[J.R.E.]

I am starved almost all the time. If I don't eat something at least 5 times a day, I am weak and can't do anything. I have gained 25 pounds the last year. I am up to 160 lbs now which is my all-time-high . I think my HIV infection was about one year ago, so that seems to coincide. My VL is still low and tcells high so I'm not on meds. Has anyone had the same experience ? And what did you do about it ?

Can't say that I've had that experience of weight gain, prior to the start of meds. When I was diagnosed positive in 1985, and until 2002, my weight was always very consistant. In 2002-2003, I went the other route and loss 30 pounds of muscle and weight through wasting. After I started on meds, the weight came back on very rapidly.

You need to discuss this issue with your doctor. Tell him how much your eating on a daily basis. HIV drains the body of energy. So what are your current numbers ? Viral load and t-cell count? Other infections in the body can also drain the energy from you. Talk to your doctor, and let him/her know how you feel, perhaps some other tests can be taken.


http://www.aidsmeds.com/articles/Fatigue_7533.shtml

Take care----Ray

[aztecan]

Hey Madbrain,

I never experienced this until I quit smoking. Then I gained weight.

There are so many things that can cause this to happen, It could be anything from diabetes to being distraught. It may not be related to HIV at all. I would definitely see your doc and see what he/she thinks.

Maybe a visit with a nutritionist would help?

HUGS,

Mark

[shadowfluid]

This happens to me every other week and lasts for days.
I've had HIV for almost a year and was diagnosed in early May.  After a few weeks, it finally hit me and I couldn't stop eating. I know it's anxiety because i never had this problem before my diagnosis.  Also, if I'm hungry right after I eat a full meal and take a xanax....my appetite seems to lessen a little bit.  I already have a high metabolism so I now associate hunger with anxiety. Hunger has almost brought on panic attacks. =/
I researched it and I read that it could be due to an overactive thyroid....but I'm sure yours is fine.

[madbrain]

Hi,

You need to discuss this issue with your doctor. Tell him how much your eating on a daily basis. HIV drains the body of energy. So what are your current numbers ? Viral load and t-cell count? Other infections in the body can also drain the energy from you. Talk to your doctor, and let him/her know how weal you are, perhaps some other tests can be taken.


http://www.aidsmeds.com/articles/Fatigue_7533.shtml

Take care----Ray

I went to the doctor yesterday. Did another CD4 and VL test. But it won't be due for another week.
I was supposed to do it every 3 months due to my good numbers, but I did it 2 weeks early.
I also have fatigue (there is another thread about that I posted a few weeks ago in the "living with HIV" forum).
So far I have gone for bloodwork weekly for a month and no tests have found any kind of infection.

[madbrain]

Hi Mark,

Hey Madbrain,

I never experienced this until I quit smoking. Then I gained weight.

There are so many things that can cause this to happen, It could be anything from diabetes to being distraught. It may not be related to HIV at all. I would definitely see your doc and see what he/she thinks.

Maybe a visit with a nutritionist would help?

HUGS,

Mark

I went to a nutritionist last friday. She prescribed me a blood sugar monitor. I have been poking myself all week. Every single reading has been in the normal range, I have been between 83 and 122 . So, not diabetes.
I'm not a smoker and have never smoked (I can't stand being around smoke in fact).

Thanks.

[madbrain]

Hi,

This happens to me every other week and lasts for days.
I've had HIV for almost a year and was diagnosed in early May.  After a few weeks, it finally hit me and I couldn't stop eating. I know it's anxiety because i never had this problem before my diagnosis.  Also, if I'm hungry right after I eat a full meal and take a xanax....my appetite seems to lessen a little bit.  I already have a high metabolism so I now associate hunger with anxiety. Hunger has almost brought on panic attacks. =/
I researched it and I read that it could be due to an overactive thyroid....but I'm sure yours is fine.

Sometimes I feel almost faint when I am hungry/starved and I can't stop eating. Do you ever feel that way ?
I had a TSH (THYROID STIMULATING HORMONE) test done on tuesday. The result came back yesterday, and as with every other test I have done since may, normal ...

Component             Your Value     Standard Range     Flag
TSH    2.9    0.2-5.5 uIU/mL    

[madbrain]

I also have fatigue (there is another thread about that I posted a few weeks ago in the "living with HIV" forum).

That thread is at http://forums.poz.com/index.php?topic=13285.0 .
And the malaises continue . Last one was last night, before that last saturday. And the week before 4 days in a row from friday to monday.
Getting worse. And the doctors at Kaiser have no idea of what's going on at all for 2 months.

[zachysmom]

HI There,
I know what your're feeling, I get that way as well. It seems in the last year I have not been able to stop eating for more than 3 hours at  a time. If I don't eat something I feel extremely weak and light headed, I'm peeing alot and also gaining weight really effortlessly!
In fact I have an appt with my doc later this week to discuss having tests done to check for Diabetes and Thyroid problems.
I though for a long time that the dizziness was a side effect of the meds, and the dizzy spells  actually scared me so bad, I developed anxiety from it which in turn led to constant panic attacks in public.
I only really started thinking in terms of Diabetes or something else after I posted a thread about it on this forum and Aztecan really showed me the light on it.
So I'm waiting to find out what the ID doc has to say, if it's related to HIV or something entirely different.
Please keep us posted, as I will as well.
Much love,
Nicole

[madbrain]

Well, I got my latest lab results from last week yesterday , the nurse at Kaiser gave them to me. I will discuss them with the doc friday. Significant decline in CD4 - 738 to 569 . But the CD4% actually went up a bit. The VL is still in the same ballpark.

I got the result of my vitamin D level too - still low at a total of 15 ng/ml. My total was 12ng/ml in january. They are both considered a severe deficiency. Normal level is above 80 ng/ml. Anything below 20 is seriously bad. I started taking 1200 IU of vitamin D supplementation per day in february. The normal daily intake is 400 IU. I think I will need to be switched to a much higher dose when I see the doc friday.

I have been suffering with stomach aches since thursday, only had one good day on saturday . But that's probably diet-related, I am trying to eat more vegetables and my body does not agree too much with that.

No dizzy spells since thursday on the plus side, though.