Health Journey Update Number Two

Conditions and Medications

Fibromyalgia
Anemia - Iron twice a day
Hypothyroidism - Levothyroxin once a day
GERD - Prilosec twice a day
Low Vitamin D - Vit D twice a day
High Cholesterol - Lipitor once a day
Diabetes - Metformin twice a day, Jardiance once a day
Sleep Apnea - Use CPAP nightly
Hypersonmia/ADHD - Adderall 3/day
Bipolar II - Rexulti 1/day, Welbutrin 1/day, Effexor 1/day
B Complex once a day
Biotin once a day
Fish oil twice a day
Calcium/zinc/magnesium once a day
Zepbound 5.0- Once per week

Symptoms

Extreme fatigue at times
Lack of focus
Bouts of pain in muscles and aching
Headaches on and off
General sluggishness

Labs

5/2/25 Labs
A1C: 7.8 (High)
Cholesterol: 162 (Normal), Triglycerides: 180 (High), HDL: 48 (Low), LDL: 97 (Normal)
Vitamin D: 26.1 (Low)
Sodium: 135 (low)
TSH: 1.138 (Normal)
Iron: 31 (Low)

Weekly Stats

Zepbound 5.0 started
Starting Blood Sugar: 150
Current Blood Sugar: 109
Starting Weight: 279
Weight: 266.9

Symptom Management

Still struggling to figure out the Adderall dose times. I was taking one in the morning, one at noon, and one at 5, which seems okay, but I'm still exhausted in the evening. Not sure there is a good solution to this problem. I have been feeling more energy during the day, and have been doing more with less naps. I have been trying to limit my naps to twenty minutes, as I found that thirty minutes is the threshold to falling into deep sleep. I've been increasing my water intake, in particular during the week. The weekend is really the only time I have soda other than one a day during the week. I feel like I take so many pills it is ridiculous. My psoriasis is also flaring up, which is annoying. For now, I'm trying over the counter lotion to see if it helps. I also have a bit of seborrheic dermatitis on my forehead (I thought it was dry skin but turns out, it's not).

Current Irritations

New section! So, being on a GLP-1 has led me down the rabbit hole of weight loss and maintaining it. And oh, good goddess, are people assholes about people taking these meds. Like I have seen the most horrible comments on how they should be banned and "why can't people just be healthy" instead of taking them. Do people not understand that with that massive list of problems and meds I take that it is virtually impossible to lose weight and improve my health without help? I have tried everything. Starvation diets, of course, don't work. I never tried fad diets (I know they don't work) and have monitored my macronutrients and tried to eat fresh fruit and vegetables. I found I most the time don't eat enough to make the minimum calories that most weight management programs recommend. I've tried Noom. I've tried other very expensive programs (Lose It isn't too bad), and with my physical limitations, getting moving more than I do is difficult.

In hot weather, I cannot go out in walk due to my meds making that dangerous. I can't walk for long periods of time without pain due to my feet and hip anyway. I have a bad shoulder as well, and that makes any sort of weight training difficult. I know these all seem like excuses, but honestly, I've tried these things. I move a lot, I get between 2500 and 6000 steps in an average day, and that's not counting after work. My job is not a desk job, and I'm frequently walking between places.

This idea that diabetics like me are at fault for our condition is another thing. I have literally been the same weight for fifteen years, never gaining, never losing. My A1C has hovered at pre-diabetic for that entire time. It would raise a little, then I'd get it back down with good diet. Then, I broke my foot. I was stuck at home in a boot for six weeks, and told to stay off it as much as possible. And, lo and behold, the next month I found my A1C had shot into diabetic range. This isn't uncommon with people on the edges of being diabetic. I had gestational diabetes, so my likelihood of developing the disease was extremely high.

Also, these people going on and on about artificial sweeteners. Like, you know how long they've been around? And yes, there are people sensitive to them that shouldn't use them. I am not one of them, and neither are many diabetics. I want to enjoy my life, and if that means baking sugar free brownies and having one, dammit, let me. Just because I'm diabetic doesn't mean I shouldn't be able to enjoy life a little bit, and have a coke zero when I want one. I mean, seriously, get off the goddamn soapbox about something that doesn't even affect you.

Artificial sweeteners do NOT affect blood sugar (I've tested this), and that damn sure don't cause diabetes. This one argument I got in, the lady used the "just try eating a whole bag of sugar free gummy bears and see how they affect you" and I'm like, you fucking eat a whole bag of regular gummy bears, you're going to be sick then, too. Dose makes a poison. Just like the cancer scare. Mice are fed thousands of times more of a substance that a human could ever consume to develop those issues. A regular person, consuming a regular amount of something is going to be fine. Unless you're chucking two pounds of sweetener a day, I think you're gonna be okay.

Okay, anyway, that's all for today. Have a wonderful day, and I hope your health journey is awesome.