I'm on week 1 of taking Alli. No side effects at all. Of course the threat of TE's has put the fear of God into me so I keep the fat down.

 My concern is seeing good enough results that will make me buy another bottle.  

I just finished week one (lost 2.5 pounds), and didn't have an TEs until today.  I have to say it was my fault though.  I had two to many slices of pizza the night before.

I will say that I am thankful I was home and had not dressed yet for the day.  I just jumped in the shower, cleaned up, and started over (this time with a panty liner on).  I did have a few more "episodes" through the day, but, I had that trusty panty liner, so I just changed it and went on with my day.

I made me stop and think about the things that I have been putting into my body.  YUK.  It really did look just like pizza grease...

Week two, here I come!

glensue:

Great idea, What on earth will men do who take alli?

Well, I'm male and thus far I've only had a couple of minor treatment effects that were by no means emergencies... by TE's, I mean only that I could tell a difference from "normal," but certainly not problematic.  I tend to purposefully hit the restroom a little more often, when I don't really "need" to do so, and no problems here.

I have exceeded my fat grams on only a couple of occasions, and about 24-48 hours later I was reminded of the fact, but not in any traumatic way.  I agree with your doc to the extent that fiber adds some bulk (and is a good thing anyway) - that's useful in keeping you aware of the fact that you need to go - but I would NOT start bulking up on extra fiber too quickly; that alone will likely cause similar effects to alli's TE's.  I disagree with your doc's feeling that the TE's are inevitable, however.  Ultimately, in my case, anyway, I have been in complete control (so far) of whether I have any TE's.

Just adding a light weight jacket or a sweater or sweatshirt to tie around your waste in case you leaked thru to your pants (you never know) until you can make it to a safe place to change!

I too packed a similiar bag......haven't had to use it really yet - the only thing I've had to do is to change a maxi pad - which I wore on a day after I think I had too much at a meal.  I place it in my undies a little farther "back there" than I normally would - so it will cover the correct areas!  Works like a charm...but I must say bright orange on those things does look weird as opposed to the normal brown-red we ladies are used to seeing.  Okay, officially grossed my self out now!

 Good luck!

Wanted to mention that it is not a bad idea to put one of those little waterproof pads people use for babies (10x10" square usually in 3 packs) under where you normally sit such as work chair, car, recliner, etc. This stuff is NOT fun to get out of furniture and I can only imagine the embarrassment of having a work chair soiled. Also, and at the risk of offering too much info, I have taken to tucking a little wad of toilet paper into the old crackola and it has done a phenomenal job of keeping any leaks from even getting to the pad. Not the most comfortable for a minute, but you get used to it and it is WAY more comfortable than leaking through your clothes!! Perhaps a nice option for our male friends who can't tote an emergency pack.

Good luck to all. I have actually not had to use these items in some time as I have adjusted nicely to the meds and the way I'm eating seems to allow for minimal TE's.

 Take care!!

Maybe it is be. I see nothing wrong with an oops bag. As a women who has a monthly period. I have always walked with wipes, liners, and sanitizers. And keep a little spray in my desk drawer because I am not the only one using the bathroom. Women should always have these things on them. My stuff fits nicely in the bottom of my bag. And considering an over-sized bag is the style. You can drop a couple of extra things in there. And for those of us with young children. We always have a stray pamper and wipes in there. So what is the difference now. That stuff is not a major weight difference. LOL. Men--- I am sorry I don't know what to say......

I bought alli a few weeks ago and put off using it until I could get a day at home (with nowhere to be/go) to try them in case of any 'accidents'.  I have kept my fat under 15g per meal and have not had any 'accidents' at all.  No orange, greasy leakage or uncontrollable bowel movements nor do I wear pads/liners (as I have read in other posts) at all.  I have to admit, I was scared at first, but the fear of these 'accidents' is what keeps me honest and keep me on track.  I also have a lot of friends who are leary to try this because of the horror stories they have read on the internet. I read one story where this woman said she had pooped her pants 3 times in one day!  Three times!! Wouldn't you catch on after the first accident?!?!  When Thanksgiving comes around, I plan on skipping my pills, and enjoying the day with my family and friends, but not going hog wild like I have in years before.  Bottom line, if you stick to it, you won't have to worry about accidents or carrying an oops bag.

Thank God I was at home, and didn't need an Alli Oops bag!  I THOUGHT I had experienced a TE way back at the beginning of my Alli journey.  I stand corrected! 

On Saturday, my a bunch of my husband's co-workers got together and we decided to have a bon-fire.  Everyone brought a dish to pass.  This is the first time that I have been to anything like this since starting Alli.  I knew that I was heading into scary territory, so I did not take an Alli.  I was still very careful about what I put on my plate.  After all, I am proud of the 35lbs that I have lost and am not looking to put any of it back on.  We took a veggie tray to the gathering so I knew there would be some "safe" munchies.  I am in no way bashful about being on the Alli diet and definitely let people know so that they are not offended when I pass up their dish.  The hosts assured me that the hamburgers were very low fat because that's the only kind that they eat.  My burger had ketsup, lettice, and tomatoe.  No cheese or mayo or anything like that.  With my burger I had a bunch of veggies.  When we left that party I felt so proud having passed up everything else even though some of it was really talking to me!

Well folks, whatever their idea of very low fat is, it's not the same as Alli's idea of low fat!  The next morning is the first time that I have ever experienced the nasty orange taco meat grease looking stuff!  NASTY!  The next time we go to such an event, I will have one of my Jennie-O turkey burgers with me to throw on the grill.

One good thing that I can say about it is, I know my pipes are clean now!  Infact, I don't weigh in until Thursday, but as of this morning, I'm down 2 pounds.  I'm sure my oil spill had something to do with that!  Even as nice as it is to see the scale working in my favor again, the TE's are just not worth it!  Now that I see just how ruthless that little blue pill can be, I will be walking the straight and narrow!

This is what I was wondering, if treatment effects can be offset with imodium or similar over the counter medicines.   Anyone with any insight on this?

I have just started today and plan on taking the first Alli pill Thursday.  I'm looking for responses on treatment effects with users that have stuck with the 15 gr. of fat per meal.  Have you had any issues?  I'm going to assume that if you do not go over the fat grams allowed, there are no TE. Right?  I'm a little leary due to the fact I work in an office building and the ladies room is down the hall and shared by all on that floor.

Hi Denise21,

A treatment effect can occur when you consume too much fat. The effect is the excess oil leaving your body, not diarrhea. This means that any medications that control diarrhea will not have any impact on the effect.

Good luck,

Betty Kovacs, MS, RD