Weight gain that doesn’t make sense

CosmicOwl said:

Hello,

I have a history of diabulimia and am working really hard on taking my insulin, however it makes me gain significant weight (2 dress sizes within a month) just from doing my insulin. I don’t eat unhealthy foods often, infact I have a habit of restricting so my daily calories are not enough. I also have a physical job so I am really confused as to why I gain the weight so quickly and dramatically. None of my clothes that fit me 2 weeks ago fit me now, it’s so embarrassing and it’s making me want to stop taking my insulin again overall I have gone from a size 12 to a size 18 since the beginning of the year.

I’ve wondered if I have thyroid issues as I’ve shown symptoms for a long time but my blood tests keep coming back as normal. I even only drank tea and ate veggies for 3 days and still gained weight.

Has anyone had a similar experience before or know what I should do? I also feel like the insulin I take doesn’t do much in regards to controlling my sugars, I increased my basal and it’s just not doing a thing…my endocrinologist just says I need to keep taking insulin but the weight gain is severely getting me down now and I don’t want to spiral out of control again.
I just feel so stuck.

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I know this sounds harsh BUT insulin doesnt make you put on weight. It’s what you put in your mouth. I had Bulimia for many years and was under the illusion about insulin.

If you were omitting insulin due to your diabulimia, and are taking your insulin now, it may be a situation alike to newly diagnosed who gain weight after starting insulin because their body has been lacking nutrients for a while because of a lack of insulin.

CosmicOwl said:

I also feel like the insulin I take doesn’t do much in regards to controlling my sugars, I increased my basal and it’s just not doing a thing…my endocrinologist just says I need to keep taking insulin but the weight gain is severely getting me down now and I don’t want to spiral out of control again.

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Finding the right dose takes time. The dose needed between patients varies a lot (some need only a couple of units, others need a couple of 100) and the only way to find your dose is slowly upping it until you find the dose that works for you.
So your endo is right, you need to keep taking your insulin if you can.

Are you getting any help with your eating disorder (diabulimia is classed as an eating disorder even if you eat 'normally' but don't take the necessary insulin)?
Fighting an eating disorder is a very hard fight, and one you likely can use some help with. An endo telling you to 'just take your insulin' is not very helpful, even if it is what your body needs.

I'm tagging @AndBreathe for you, she hasn't had diabulimia, being a T2 not on insulin, but she did overcome an eating disorder and knows much more about it than I do.

Wish you all the best!

Oh boy, @CosmicOwl . You're going through it.

I can't comment on your insulin situation too much as I have no lived experience in that regard, but as @Antje77 says, I have recovered from an eating disorder that impacted me during my late 20s. My only comment on your insulin would be to take it and where you can, keep your blood sugars in a decent range. (Oh, I know little, but I do know that that can be easier said than done!) Omitting your insulin and ending up with DKA would be totally awful and just add more problems.

In terms of why you are gaining weight, that's a difficult one and possibly a number of things are in play.

You mention that your weight gain has been significant since the beginning of the year. Has your behaviour changed in that time? Has your bulimia been in a better or worse place in that time, or have you made any changes in terms of your bulimic behavior?

There are so many things that could potentially being going on, from an erratic thyroid to your body being in a form of starvation mode and slowing your metabolism.

It is excellent that you are in an active job and keeping up with that. What are your energy levels like?

People with autoimmune conditions sometimes have more than one. Autoimmune thyroiditis can be very erratic with the individual's thyroid working better or worse, depending on the level of antibodies at the time. That it cam fluctuate means it can also be a bit trickier to diagnose, until the thyroid is damaged badly enough to show more consistent anomalies.

In terms of how you move forward; that's a toughie.

My suggestion would be that for now, you concentrate on eating nutritious food, so ensuring you have adequate amounts of protein and and healthy fats. Levels of carbs are up to you, but you definitely need nutrients for your body to work efficiently. Living on cucumber, watermelon or whatever, for more than the odd day, is never going to lead to a healthy outcome