My MS is Making me Fat!

Thank you for this interesting, and for me timely, article.  Yes, I have gained a lot of weight and have been wrestling with losing it for the past year, but I cannot really blame it all on MS.  Like you I have multiple reasons for gaining the 60 pounds I gained within a few years after I stopped working 11 years ago and now drag around with me.  I have identified these reasons, but there may be more:

1. I had an Intrathecal Morphine Pump for chronic pain implanted and while it brings me incredible relief from my pain,  the constant flow of morphine into my Central Nervous System affects my already low metabolism;

2. Depression from having to stop working and shortly after the end of a multi-year relationship with a man that I loved very much added to my inactivity but also gave me good reason to eat comfort foods, like Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream and not care what I looked like;

3. The progression of my MS further reduced my physical activity, to the point where I could no longer walk a mile or more of city streets and now have to use a walker to go anywhere more than a block or so, depending on the day.

4. In a 14 month period I broke both my wrists, my tib/fyb and my hip, requiring a total of 8 surgeries to fix, including plates in both wrists, rod in my right leg and a full right hip replacement, as well extra surgeries when my right leg became severely infected. I couldn't walk much or do anything physical for almost two years, and I don't have to tell you what that can do to a person's physical and mental health.

5. I am a "woman of a certain age" at which time our metabolism naturally slows down and our bodies go through various changes.

The combination of these forces of nature, and my own failure to take action, left me greatly overweight.  My efforts to lose weight by self-monitoring my food intake was disasterous. I joined Jenny Craig and had immediate good results, and then I had an exacerbation, fell out of the routine and that was that.

 I also joined a pool for exercise classes and have not been very good at all about getting there.  The whole process of getting there, working my way to the pool, getting out of the pool, taking a shower and getting dressed exhausts me just thinking about it.  I love the 1/2 hour in the pool exercising and if I could just twitch my nose and be there, I'd do it every day. Am I making an excuse by saying it is exhausting thinking about it? Maybe.  But I know how after I take a shower and get dressed every morning in my own apartment I often have to lay down for a few minutes or at least sit down and rest for a minute and I never feel like I am making an excuse for that.  I very often feel completely drained after I go through the whole morning ritual.  Does anyone else feel that way?

I am motivated again for a similar reason that motivated you.  I have an 11 month old grandson and I noticed that I have very few pictures of the two of us, which makes me sad. I have pictures of him with my sisters, friends, but no recent ones with me.  I know it is because I look so terrible in the pictures and I am committed to doing something about that.  I want my grandson to have pictures to remember me by, and I want him to have good memories.  So, I am going back to Jenny Craig and this time I will stay with it, and I will do my best to get to the pool a few times a week.

My initial reasons might stem from vanity, but I know I will be healthier and will feel better if I lose this weight, or at least most of it.  Thanks for reinforcing my decision and sharing your story.  I wish you the best in your efforts to lose the next ten pounds and to be healthier.

I used to enjoy running and playing tennis and now, I walk with a cane. I still have my cardio strength so so use a spinning bike possible, but my muscles are weak and my balance is off so I am limited to a stationary bike.  The best think I can do is do what I can!

I think there are many reasons we gain weight after diagnosis.  Of course, there is the reduction in exercise because we are less able, and as both Denise and Merely Me pointed out, we forget to pay attention.  There are other things to distract us, just when we suddenly feel the need to be distracted.

Perhaps during the initial diagnosis should include a warning to watch our weight. My first weight gain was as the result of steroids. Yes, "if it's not one thing, it's another."

As long as we know about it, things will be okay -- don't you think?

You Know it took me 14 months to take off the 48 lbs I gained thru 2 very hard pregnancies, and now its back and I don't understand because with three kids I really do still stay quit active. But it sure is a downer for me -cause every has their little nitch mine always been my weight- I have always been very proud of how I stayed in shape until I had my last two children(both by c-sections) and it took me awhile to take it off but I did and now its like nothing I do is helping!

So trully understand- but I was also told by the doctors that of the meds would put weight on or make me swell, today I look like I'5 months pregnant(thank God that can't  happen again)!

Lets all be ok with the fact that we can still move period.

love to all

ladygraycloud/Suzanne

Hey Merely:

You always come up with the most interesting topics! Now, wouldn't it just be so unfair if weight gain was related to MS?

A colleague of mine told me recently that her aunt was just diagnosed with MS and added, "One of her symptoms was weight gain." I bit my tongue. Here I was, standing in front of her, thin as can be. How could she really think weight gain was a symptom?

I think if you're prone to weight gain, MS just makes it worse because it's more difficult to stay active with MS. My muscle tone is worse, my lung capacity is worse and for the first time I have cellulite on my legs because of significantly reduced exercise. That's because of lack of exercise, made more difficult by having MS. Being over 40 now doesn't help either.

For me, the summer heat makes me feel physically sick and if I spend too much time in the sun, I can lose my appetite for a week and drop weight quickly. Is that from the MS? I'm assuming my intolerance for heat and sun is related.

Like others here, I'm active when and how I can. It makes me feel good both physically and mentally.

Yes, I have gained weight and I do somewhat contirbute it to MS. I just dont have the energy that I used to. I cant seem to do real physical excercse anymore. I can still walk and swim but lets face it thats not going to burn as much weight as jogging or aerobics. I just try to do what I can and I could do much better. I know I need to eat better! But eating bad seems so much easier for some reason. So my weight gain I think can be controlled even though I have MS I just will have to work harder! Lots of lukc to all

Thank you for sharing, I notice that I will lose 10-15lbs( mid-cycle) to gain it back. I don't think it's the disease, but in a way it is because I can't work out like I use to. I eat very healthy it's my mobility that's my issue. I've found the pool to be my best friend these days, I feel so strong while swimming and I've noticed I'm trimming down, this time it's looks like muscle not water gain.

It is very hard for me to lose, but i'm hopeful I just feel better at my normal weight it's not about vanity for me ...  like it was many years ago.

This is really good stuff. I think those who are faced with MS often convince themselves they need to conserve their energy and strength and that leads to inactivity, as well as depression causes many to eat to cope.

I had many of the same things you described and after a few years I finally understood how and when certain things were happening to my body so I could adjust.

Currently I do a lo carb diet where 4 days I try and do lo carbs then one day of carbs then back to 3 or 4 no carb days. This helps keep weight down plus firms the muscles with the amount of exercise I can do.

Good article!

I have also gained weight after MS, and the curious thing is that I also lost my appetite after MS.  How then did I gain weight?  MS. 

i have ms and my weight gaining has gone up i was 115 now i am 133

This one has plagued me this time.  I was steadily losing weight when the last exacerbation started.  By month 2 I was given Lyrica for the pain in my right eye and throughout my body.  I am not happy about taking any prescriptions; but will when my physician feels it is necessary.  6 weeks after starting Lyrica I was 18 pounds heavier; only a small amount of the weight can I attribute to the ocassional "comfort eating". 

As some of you know I recently ended a 6 month long exacerbation that I feel might have been so drawn out due to the 6 different medications they had me on.  When I felt as if I was coming out of "it" I decided to stop all of my meds to see if it would make any difference; it did. There is no way of knowing for sure; but I've already lost 5 pounds-although it has taken an entire month for it. 

I'm still not able to exercise for longer than a few minutes-the overheating sets me into a suedo exacerbation that lasts for a while.  I am also inclined to believe that along with the medications that we have to take; our body not digesting and evacuating properly has a lot to do with it as well. 

It seems that no matter what the question is, we all seem to come back to the question "Would ______ be different if I didn't have MS?"  Well, I hold to my belief that I would not weigh 200+ lbs if I didn't have MS.  I know that genetically the women in my family are not stick thin but I also know that without exercise my metabolism just gets slower and slower.

Prior to my MS, I loved to walk.  I walked miles and miles and was able to keep my weight down if I ate sensibly.  Now it is irrelevant how sensibly I eat, if I can't boost my metabolism, I will gain weight from a carrot stick!  After working full time and barely keeping up with my housework, there is no energy left for anything resembling exercise.  My arms and legs feel like large weights are tied to them and my lack of coordination and balance don't help!  Then we need to add the excessive sweating that comes if I so much as empty the dishwasher! 

Honestly, do I think that the MS has made the difference when it comes to my weight (and health)?  You better believe that I do!

-Barb

I lost 44 punds after being diagnosed. It takes so much to walk that I think I burn more calories now. Also having an incurable disease made me lose my appetite.

Hi. Just read your posting. Two points.

1. MS may no make you gain weight, but interferon and prednisone sure can. I work out six days a week, two hours of day. I've gotten up to the point where I can run five miles and do some pretty crazy strength training. Rehabbed the MS pretty well from some substantive disability. That being said, since I got on Rebif, I am always five to ten pounds heavier than I should be for my level of exercise. I should look like a prize fighter. I look reasonably fit. If I stop working out, then I'd blimp out. I was previously a naturally skinny guy.

2. If you have MS and your child has autism, then you need to get your doc to run heavy metal exposure screens on both of you. Prime mover in both illnesses. Possibly arsenic, mercury, etc. Also, Lyme disease has been linked to both. I have it and had it. I am a concurrent Lyme and MS patient.

I believe we have all come across this issue somewhere down the line.  I just remember a scenario when I first started going to the Neurologist and he said this, "A guy came into his office with MS and was in a wheelchair.  The MSer goes, Why am I gaining all this weight?  The Doctor's answer was, Well if you don't move at all and eat McDonald's hamburgers all day long I guess you will gain weight !!!" 

What I got out of this comment was DO NOT put in more calories in your body then what you are able to burn in that day.  Make sure that your activity throughout the day seems to be burning more calories than what you are eating or you will be having this problem.  With us we can't burn calories like a regular person who can do cardio workouts where we can't even Yoga, seems a little difficult to me because don't you need balance to do those moves.

I find that Floor Exercises or hanging on to the door frame or in a chair type of exercises rule for me because you can't FALL DOWN if you are already on the floor, hanging onto the wall or sitting in a chair.  I even tried doing laps in a pool but I can use my arms like everyone else so all I was doing was working my butt by hanging onto one of the floating boards and kicking my legs.  This way I can find what exercises work for my at the time, how many reps I can do and it doen't cost you a monthly Gym Fee.  You are also very independant once doing these because you know what you can do and not have people giving you incorrect advise on what they think you should be doing or how.

One other reason I like these exercises is it works our muscles strength which is not MS's problem but the nerves which tell the muscles what they are going to do.  Sometimes what we want it to do is different than what it does.  With these movements all the time the muscles get stronger, which help went we loose balance to getter get a grip on something before we actually fall.

I would also like to know who said, "Being sick is cheap".  Wrong.  We are eating very well and I have being researching, learning the proper way to actually cook and shop and people always go to me "Well what do you actually eat then?"  my response is that I bet we eat better than you and with better ingredients that out of a box.

All I can say now is that not only do we have the disease to deal with but everything else has to change in our lifestyles as well but think of it this way, "We will become healthier & stronger without even really knowing it."

I was diagnosed almost 3 months ago and, as we all did, I examined my life and re-set my priorities quickly!  I have been on my road to getting in shape, I always feel that if I lose weight that is an added benefit, but the feeling you have when you are exercising is a natural high.  My problem prior to being diagnosed is that when I was in shape I would always tell myself I will never stop working out again, it feels so good.  Then...life gets in the way, schedules get hectic, kids need (fill in the blank), and it slowly happens again.  Now I have a new serious reason why I can't let myself fall into the trap.  I try not to be hard on myself, I haven't ran in a week, but I will get back to it next week.  I know that the weeks leading up to this week I have done more exercise than I was doing before, so I use that to keep my spirits up. 

One thing that I find helps me push myself is that I know if I don't run or workout, it is always in the back of my mind that one day I won't physically have the choice and I will be wishing that I could do it when I can't.  So I need to take advantage of what I have every day and use my current capabilities to the fullest.

I gained about 50 lbs. within a year blaming it on my MS, all of this because used to be an avid weightlifter which took place 3 times a week. I had a little muscle & strength, I felt sxo good & healthy. Now that you say it could be due to deppression, I was probably depressed that my body wasn't working like it used to. So I gave up almost entirely, I tried to pick up where I left off, but I find it a little more difficult. So now I'm going to alter my eating habits & diet. Thank you for making me see that I may have been deppressed, now I'll evaluate my lifestyle.

Corrina

Hi, I have had Ms for over 20 years and the only time I got "fat" was when I was given Nortriptyline and Neurontin for the burning and itching from MS.  My hunger button actually got turned off.  Did you ever think that MS meds will do this to you - steroids make you gain weight too.  Just a thought, thanks for sharing!

Hi, I have had Ms for over 20 years and the only time I got "fat" was when I was given Nortriptyline and Neurontin for the burning and itching from MS.  My hunger button actually got turned off.  Did you ever think that MS meds will do this to you - steroids make you gain weight too.  Just a thought, thanks for sharing!

Eat More Weigh Less by Dean Ornish has some very interesting information at the  beginning of his book about how the body reacts to diets and exercise.  Major thing is that dieting makes your body think that you're facing a famine.  It will work harder to keep your fat not use it up.  Also, very heavy duty exercise tells the body that you're in some kind of fight or flight situation.  The body will respond by using carbohydrates and not your fat.  I don't care for his meatless, cheeseless diet.  He himself does not recommend any kind of diet change that will be only temporary.  i want to continue to eat meat, cheese, and eggs.  Before I knew I had MS, I used to be overweight and had an eating disorder.   My therapist once told me "I hope you will always eat as much as you want."   When I realized I was eating more than I wanted, a lightbulb went off in my head.   Now I eat as much as I want.  If I crave something I go buy it because I'll eat a whole lot of stuff I don't want until I get that cookie or piece of cake. I no longer have major cravings for sweets, now its for healthy food I didn't save up enough energy to go to the store for or to prepare.  Still working on that!