Weight loss and weight fluctuations: causes and side effects

Hey there, everyone!🙂...

How bad can these constant weight swings actually mess me up?

I’ve been going through a rough patch over the last few months, and I started using food as my little "comfort zone"... which turned into this exhausting cycle of bingeing, then starving myself, then rewarding myself by eating again...
Basically, the scale was all over the place—I lost 20 pounds, gained 9, lost 5, gained 7, you name it... just bouncing around every week or two.🙄... Right now, I've bounced right back to where I started, having regained 13 of those original 20 pounds.👎

Look, the weight fluctuations alone would be annoying enough if I wasn't dealing with all this other stuff... First, my period started acting totally crazy, showing up every 45 or 46 days when it used to be super regular. Then came the massive bloating—honestly, most of the time I look like I'm pregnant👎—plus gas, digestion issues, and that frustrating feeling where I can't even empty my bladder completely without having to go back a few minutes later.🤷 On top of that, I started getting this dull, nagging discomfort under my left rib cage... and lately, my skin has broken out like I'm a teenager again, and my hair is thinning out way more than usual... I just feel sluggish and physically unwell.
I've also been incredibly irritable, miserable, and just stuck in this depressive funk...
Not to mention, my body feels softer than it ever has in my life; I developed cellulite and those "bat wings" on my upper arms practically overnight.👎

I'm honestly terrified that I've seriously messed up my hormones with these wild ups and downs (I did have some high TSH levels a few years ago, but I never went back for follow-up appointments)....
How much damage have I actually done (is it permanent? 😕😢 ) and is there any way I can fix this?

You probably threw them off balance—which usually points toward a prolonged cycle, acne, or hair thinning; essentially the classic textbook symptoms of potential PCOS, though it's hard to say for sure just yet.

It’s the same story over here, and I’m actually dealing with the fallout right now. It might be a bit of a heavy term, but since I’m hoping to get pregnant, I feel like I need to prepare the "groundwork" 😁 so I don't run into complications later or have to resort to fertility treatments.
To be fair, I’ve maintained my ideal weight my entire life, but during a massive period of stress, I started losing weight rapidly (not by choice!), and once things settled, it all came back—resulting in some extra weight. Now, I’m constantly trying to manage it by staying at my baseline weight through healthy eating, exercise, enough hydration, and general self-care 😍. Interestingly, my symptoms didn't even kick in until that stressful period ended. My cycle became irregular too—I was seeing slightly longer cycles of 33, 37, or even 38 days—along with standard bloating, constipation, a much slower metabolism, increased appetite, and acne, which I’d never had before appearing on my lower face at age 28. Then there was the hair thinning and constant fatigue. I rushed straight to my OB-GYN, and the ultrasound showed exactly what I suspected: polycystic ovaries. My hormones showed my TSH was fine, but the LH to FSH ratio was definitely off. I worked on myself—since I couldn't take birth control at the time—but it took an immense amount of patience, willpower, and discipline to get everything under control again. Fortunately, I don't have a severe case of PCOS; it’s more of a borderline situation, and everything stabilizes once I return to my "normal" self (meaning keeping my weight steady). I just have to be mindful of my diet and activity levels. Stress, which cost me quite a bit, is hard to avoid entirely, but I try my best to steer clear of 😁, as well as white sugar (including that stuff they unfortunately market as "brown" but isn't) and those other processed junk foods that are shoved in front of us every day. I likely have a genetic predisposition, but for now, everything is okay regarding my ultrasounds, cycles, and hormone levels. This past winter, however, when I let my diet slip a bit—especially after I quit smoking—things weren't so great. One ovary looked almost certainly polycystic, and my cycle started drifting away from the standard 30-day mark. I could tell just by how I felt. 😉 This doesn't necessarily mean this is your exact situation or what will happen to you; we are all incredibly different, and these fluctuations and stress periods don't affect everyone the same way. My own labs vary and aren't always consistent, and PCOS has a thousand different faces.

You should definitely go in for a checkup, especially if you've already dealt with elevated TSH. Make sure to get an ultrasound from your gynecologist; they can write you a referral for a full hormone panel, including thyroid function. Good luck, and please let us know how it goes. I really hope things return to your "old self." Since it's summer, if you have the chance to go swimming—do it. Get some movement in, try to relax, find an outlet, eat light and natural foods, and try to maintain the weight you were at before this period started. I hope my experience helps you a little, and please don't fault me for such a long post. 🙂

I realize I’ve rambled, but your situation reminds me so much of mine. None of my weight issues were intentional or due to dieting, and unfortunately, I’m facing the consequences. It’s that typical endocrine-metabolic disruption that reflects itself in the ovaries, which then triggers a chain reaction affecting your cycle, hair, skin, weight, and so on. It hits you like a domino effect, causing changes you might not even realize are happening: insulin levels, triglycerides, inverted LH/FSH ratios, elevated androgen levels, hirsutism, etc. It doesn't manifest the same way for everyone, but most people will likely check at least one box on that list. This is something women should be particularly wary of—those who try to lose large amounts of weight very quickly through starvation, only to have it all come rushing back later. They are only hurting themselves, slowing down their metabolism, shocking their entire system, and weakening their immunity, which could lead to serious health issues down the road.

You should probably head back to the doctor as soon as possible to get your TSH levels rechecked. Generally speaking, an elevated TSH points toward hypothyroidism, which typically requires treatment with something like Synthroid. If you leave hypothyroidism untreated, it can really take a toll on your mood, weight management, menstrual cycle, skin clarity, and just about everything else.

🙂It might also be worth browsing through the thyroid discussion thread here.

Grace Ward2 said:Hi everyone, 🙂...

....a few years ago my TSH was high, but I never went back for follow-up appointments....

Hello. I started this thread myself, so please feel free to move it if I’ve posted it in the wrong section. I am 21 years old, and about 20 days ago, I realized my appetite had simply vanished. On that first day, I didn't eat anything at all; by the evening, the only thing I could manage was some fruit, specifically an apple. When I woke up the next morning, I still wasn't hungry, though I did manage to eat a pastry. After that, nothing else for the rest of the day. Over these past 16 days, my weight has dropped from 125 pounds to 112 pounds, and I am 5'5" tall. While I have always been somewhat conscious of my appearance, this sudden change was completely unintentional. I find myself barely eating throughout the day, and frankly, I don't know how I'm even functioning. My blood pressure has been hovering around 80/50, which feels like a dangerous threshold. I kept attributing this loss of appetite to the summer heat, but today, for the first time in nearly three weeks, I tried to eat a substantial meal—some meat and bread—and I have felt nauseous all day long. Has anyone else gone through something similar?

I haven't personally experienced anything quite like that—not that I ever went looking for it, nor was I particularly obsessed with being as thin as possible—but what you're doing is honestly quite dangerous.
I think I’ll try to dig up a few different threads on this subject and consolidate them so everything is in one place for you. Just recently, one girl shared her story, and since I’ve laid out my own experience here, you might want to give both a read. It's really just to illustrate how much this can throw your hormones—and by extension, your entire system—completely out of whack. Beyond that, you're doing serious damage to your metabolism, which won't be the same again. As for those starvation diets? They don't work. That kind of rapid weight loss, where you drop a few pounds in just a couple of days, is never, ever a good sign. 😉

My suggestion would be to aim for smaller, more frequent meals throughout the day, along with plenty of fluids. Of course, when it's sweltering outside during an American summer, nobody has much of an appetite compared to the winter months, but if you start skipping meals, eventually your body just adapts to that "new normal," and you find you aren't even hungry anymore.

Edit: regarding stimulating your appetite, taking a B vitamin can actually help. 😉

Thomas Sanchez6 said:Hey everyone. I started this thread, so feel free to move it if I posted it in the wrong section. I'm 21, and about 20 days ago, my appetite just... vanished. One day, I simply wasn't hungry at all. I didn't eat anything that day—maybe some fruit in the evening, just an apple. When I woke up the next morning, I still had zero appetite, though I did manage to eat a pastry. After that, nothing else for the rest of the day. Basically, over these last 16 days leading up to today, I've dropped from 125 lbs down to 112 lbs, and I'm 5'5". I've always been a bit self-conscious about my looks, but this wasn't intentional. I'm barely eating anything all day long and I honestly don't know how I'm even functioning. My blood pressure stays around 80/50, which feels like my limit. I kept blaming it on the heat—thinking that's why my appetite tanked—but today was the first time in 20 days I actually tried to eat a real meal, just some meat and bread, and I've literally felt nauseous all day. Has anyone else dealt with something like this?

I'm right in the middle of that exact same phase... I don't even know how it happens, but I have absolutely no appetite. I've lost 11 pounds in 20 days. All I can handle is water, coffee, and maybe some fruit, veggies, or ice cream—and even then, if I eat anything, it has to be freezing cold or at least very chilled. I walked past a bakery earlier today and just stared at the woman there like, "How can you possibly do that? 🙂" She was buying hot pastries and she was practically dripping with sweat—it was honestly unbelievable 🙏

Look, it’s true that people tend to lose their appetite when the summer heat kicks in, but this is going way too far. Any time you see a sudden drop in appetite or rapid weight loss, it's a massive red flag that you need to go see a doctor. It could be anything from a physical ailment to something psychological. You can't just ignore it.

Why would it be too much?
If it’s totally normal for someone to pack on 10 or 15 pounds over the winter just by eating more and being less active—so why is it suddenly "weird" when they drop that weight just as spontaneously during the summer? It’s basic math. We aren't going to be sitting around craving heavy bacon, sausages, thick stews, and pastries when it's pushing 90 degrees outside...
Plus, if you already struggle with low blood pressure, stuffing your stomach during a heatwave is a terrible idea anyway—all it does is make you feel even more lethargic and sleepy.

crimsoncanyon2 said:Why would it be too much?
If it’s perfectly normal for someone to pack on 10 or 15 pounds over the winter just by eating more and moving less, why wouldn't it be just as "normal" to lose that weight spontaneously during the summer? It's not like we're lumberjacks craving prosciutto, sausages, stews, and pastries when it's hitting 100 degrees out there...
Plus, if you have low blood pressure, stuffing your stomach in the heat is a bad move anyway. All it does is make you sleepier.

It isn't normal to gain 10 or 15 pounds in two or three weeks, and it isn't normal to drop it just as fast either.

I lost 30 pounds in about six weeks once (it was a thyroid issue), and I wouldn't recommend that to anyone. My hair started falling out in clumps, I caught strep throat that spread everywhere—took me five months of fighting it just to get clear—not to mention my immune system went totally haywire after that. It started attacking my joints and blood vessels. Now I've got a whole list of diagnoses to manage.

Don't mess around with this stuff. If you're losing massive amounts of weight in a short window, there's an underlying cause, and you need to see a doctor.

crimsoncanyon2 said:Why would it be too much?

Because we’re talking about a very short window of time here—it’s essentially a shock to the system. Add in low blood pressure on top of that, and things get complicated. I doubt anyone is actually going to gorge themselves on food—especially not the greasy, fried, breaded, or roasted stuff—only to head straight out into the Sun and jump into the ocean right after—but gaining that many pounds in just a few days is simply too much. If you look closely at those first two posts, you can see how quickly things shift before you even realize what's happening.

melloworca6 said:It isn't normal to pack on 10, 15, or even 20 pounds in just two or three weeks—and it’s just as abnormal to drop weight that fast either.

I personally dropped about 33 pounds in a month and a half (it was a thyroid issue), and I wouldn't recommend that nightmare to anyone. After that, my hair was falling out in literal clumps, I picked up strep that spread through my entire body—which took me five months of fighting it just to get clear—not to mention my immune system went completely haywire afterward. It started attacking my joints, my blood vessels, all that... so now I’ve got a nice little collection of diagnoses to manage.

Don't mess around with this kind of stuff; if you're losing massive amounts of weight in a short window, there has to be an underlying cause, and you need to see a doctor.

That might be your specific situation, but it doesn't mean it applies to everyone... I mean, why is it considered perfectly healthy if someone is on a diet and loses 11 pounds in 30 days? What's the actual difference there?
It's basically the same thing—you can't eat enough to keep up when you're exercising on a regular basis, so naturally, you hit a calorie deficit and lose weight...
Besides, there is a massive difference between losing 11 pounds and losing 33 pounds.

Sophia Wells72 said:Just look at those first two posts—it’s obvious what’s going on here, even if we didn't catch it right away.

Judging by the leak described in that first post, it's highly likely the Candida has already spread quite a bit...

crimsoncanyon2 said:Maybe that’s true for you, but don't assume everyone is the same. If someone is on a diet and drops 10 pounds in 30 days, we call that a healthy, sustainable plan. So where's the actual difference?
It all adds up to the same thing. You can't eat much when it's sweltering outside, plus if you're working out regularly, a calorie deficit is inevitable. Weight loss follows.
Besides, there is a massive difference between losing 10 pounds and losing 30 pounds...

Losing 10 pounds in a month is one thing, but losing 10 pounds in two weeks is an entirely different animal. That's what we're talking about here. This girl wrote that she dropped 13 pounds in just two weeks. That isn't normal.

Go ask any doctor in the country and they'll tell you the same thing: one to two pounds a week is the sweet spot. Anything beyond that starts messing with your health. It's totally fine to lose a bit more weight during a hot American summer, but dropping 22 pounds in a single month is just not right.

crimsoncanyon2 said:...so why is it considered perfectly fine if someone on a diet loses 5 kg in 30 days—which is classified as a very healthy weight loss—if that's the case, what's the actual difference?
It all boils down to the same thing; you can't eat much when it's sweltering outside, and if you're exercising regularly, it’s only natural that you end up in a calorie deficit and lose weight...
Besides, there is a massive difference between losing 5 kilos and 15 kilos...

Nowadays, practically everything is marketed as a "normal" or "healthy" diet. Take one example of a supposedly healthy (medical) diet—where you just eat tomatoes, burgers, and such for seven days. You might drop a solid 4 kilos in a week. People swear up and down that there won't be any yo-yo effect. But there will be; and not only do the pounds come back incredibly fast the moment you return to your old habits, but as a little bonus, you often end up heavier than before, and your metabolism—to put it bluntly—gets absolutely wrecked by every single one of those "diets."

No one here is suggesting that losing weight during the summer heatwaves isn't possible 😉, but rather that rapid weight loss over a short period isn't normal—at least, that's what trainers, gym bros, and doctors will tell you.

And given this kind of heat, combined with poor nutrition and low blood pressure, she certainly wouldn't be able to maintain a daily exercise routine.

crimsoncanyon2 said:The girl in the first post probably already has a significant Candida overgrowth...

What do you mean, Candida? If that were actually the case, she wouldn't be experiencing these specific issues at all. If Candida were the culprit behind cycle fluctuations, acne, and hair loss, then surely it would fall into the category of things that cause them. Furthermore, her TSH levels were elevated. 😉 It really isn't quite that simple or straightforward.

So, I’ve dropped seven pounds in just the last month without even changing my routine, so my doctor sent me in to get my TSH and T4 levels checked. Honestly, I feel totally fine—no issues at all—and my abdominal and heart ultrasounds from three months ago came back completely normal. I guess I'm just wondering... is it actually possible to lose weight just from being super stressed? I'm prone to anxiety, you know? Just asking so I can stop worrying about it, since this isn't exactly the biggest health crisis on my radar right now.

Joshua Gomez54 said:So, over the last month, I’ve dropped seven pounds without even touching my diet or routine, which prompted my doctor to send me off for some thyroid panels—TSH and T4. Honestly, I feel totally fine and haven't had any issues, plus my abdominal and cardiac ultrasounds from three months ago came back perfectly clean. What I'm wondering is if it’s actually possible to lose weight just from being high-strung and stressed out all the time, since that's kind of my default mode just asking so I can stop stressing about it, because frankly, this isn't exactly at the top of my list of things to worry about right now.

Yeah.
Especially if those pounds were extra weight you didn't really need to begin with.

That said, definitely go ahead with whatever tests your doctor is ordering. It's better to be safe.
By the way, along with those, did they run a lipid panel, an electrolyte check, or your blood sugar?
Have you noticed yourself getting super thirsty or having to hit the bathroom more often than usual, even in the middle of the night?

velvetmoose9 said:Yeah.
Especially if those extra pounds were pushing you way past your ideal weight.

But, hey, definitely do those searches your doctor suggested.
By the way, did they run a full panel on your cholesterol, electrolytes, or blood sugar?
Like, have you been super thirsty or running to the bathroom all night?

I’m not really overweight, actually, I think I’m kinda underweight. Anyway, my thyroid and blood sugar results came back, but nothing too crazy yet.🤷

Here’s the numbers:

HEMOGLOBIN A1c (HbA1c) (IMI) 4.9
HEMOGLOBIN A1c (HbA1c) (RAC) 30

TOTAL T4 (ECL) 136
TSH (ECL) 1.96

Based on what it says here, everything looks fine, so now I'm starting to freak out that maybe it's something more serious.

This thread has been dead for a while (miracle, I know), but I figured there was no point starting a new one, so here’s a little necrobump. 😵

So, here's the deal—since Christmas/New Year's, I've dropped about ninety pounds without actually trying. It wasn't intentional. To be fair, I used to be pretty heavy, so losing weight isn't a bad thing, but now it feels like I've swung too far in the other direction.
Years ago, I was sitting at around 230 pounds, and today I'm down to 143. I'm 5'11" and 26 years old. BMI dropped from 32 to 20, which is still technically in the "healthy" range. I know it's not a perfect metric, but there it is.

Here's what I think is likely causing this (if it isn't obvious):

• picking up cigarettes again (about a pack and a half a day, red Marlboros) after being smoke-free for years,
• a pretty high-stress work environment,
• drinking way too much before, though I don't drink like I used to simply because I can't anymore—I used to pass out on the floor, and while I still have some clear spirits here and there, I can barely touch beer anymore.
• gastritis (officially diagnosed at the Mayo Clinic a few months back, though I've had it longer), and I'm not taking Nexium because it gives me massive headaches until they find the actual bacteria.

My blood and urine tests came back fine. My blood pressure has dropped slightly, though it's still high (140/90), and my cholesterol levels plummeted, which is obviously a good thing.
I still have an abdominal ultrasound and an internal medicine checkup scheduled at the Mayo Clinic next month.

Honestly, I wouldn't even be asking if I hadn't kept losing weight (about a pound a week lately, just slower than before since I have zero fat left and have lost a lot of muscle mass). I feel completely drained, and it's getting on my nerves. My bones are sticking out everywhere: ribs, shoulder blades, upper spine, hips, collarbones... you name it. At this rate, I'll look just like Christian Bale in The Machinist. 😲

My diet consists of one normal meal a day (which I sometimes mess up because I just can't stomach food), and the rest of the time I'll grab a cracker, a cookie, or some fruit. Anything more than that makes me nauseous, and I end up running to the bathroom to get rid of it. I start my day with black coffee and a cigarette, but I never really had a "normal" breakfast habit anyway since I have no appetite in the morning.
It's obvious I'm not eating enough calories, otherwise I wouldn't still be losing weight.

Has anyone dealt with anything like this? I'd appreciate it if you could share your experiences. Thanks in advance. 👍

So, ever since I started this job, I put on about 20 pounds—it took roughly a year for that to happen—but then, over the last few months, I actually managed to drop like 33 pounds.
While I was working, my weight was always hovering right there, just waiting to creep up, but then I took two vacations in a single month and ended up losing 9 pounds.
My big realization was that I’d been packing on the weight because I was eating way too much bread—like, I could easily polish off half a loaf—plus, after work, I’d always be snacking on whatever was around, whether it was chips, crackers, cereal, you name it.
Once I saw those first 9 pounds come off, I figured it would be a total waste to quit while I was ahead, so I started being super disciplined—we're talking tiny sandwiches, maybe an inch wide—and I started eating more apples and cutting back on those late-night snacks after work.
And ever since I made those tweaks to my routine, I’ve lost another 22 pounds.

So now I'm wondering, is this kind of progress normal? I actually went to see my doctor recently, and they told me everything looks absolutely perfect.
Back when I was at my heaviest, I was around 163 pounds at 5'8", but now I'm down to 154, though my peak was somewhere around 187.
I can really see the weight loss in my arms and legs, though I still have a bit left around the midsection—I probably need to start hitting some crunches or something if I ever want to see actual abs, which, let's be honest, I've never had in my life.

It would be pretty ironic if some random illness decided to hit me right as I'm finally getting my body back to normal.