I have Bipolar disorder, ADD and PTSD and I took Seroquel prn for anxiety. It didn't do much, but my new pdoc pulled me off of it because it causes weight gain and makes cholesterol and triglycerides increase.

I have been on both of these meds.....having had dep/anxiety for 9 years now. Xyprexa made my cholesteral and sugars go up and seroquel gave me tremors so bad I couldn't safely drive. I have now run out of drugs to take so I maintain on 5mg of Clonazapam, 60 mgs of Remeron and Ativan as required. All of these drugs have had a weight gain component to them. Not to mention the various ones we've tried over the year before. I am better off than I was, just wish I could dump the weight considering the healthy eating and very hard workouts at the gym 5-6 days per week for 2 hours.

I didn't have any problems going off any drug slowly, but with Effexor, I was only on it for a couple of months and had withdrawal for 2 months. It was the worst. So I can understand the withdrawal of Seroquel being awful, I wasn't on it that long fortunately, but the Xprexa did wonders for me until that unfortunate blood work that showed the side effects.

Good luck to you all!

I was on Seroquel for several months... during that time I gained probably 25 pounds. I don't think it was just the Seroquel, because I went off it and ended up gaining another 5 pounds, but I don't think it helped my weight loss efforts any. It totally made me more hungry and prone to binging at night (when I took it). However, I was also eating more in general and had stopped exercising regularly as well.

I've been on Seraquel for almost two months. I am taking 400 mg. at bedtime. I have lost 10 lbs. over those two months on Weight Watchers. I am a slow loser so 10 lbs. in two months is great for me.

I don't think the Seraquel is affecting my weight.

I just started taking a measly 50 mg of Seroquel a day for anxiety and insomnia and it isn't doing much. In fact, I feel more panicky, am having vivid nightmares, and have tremors. I think I'm going off. My psychiatrist told me it was the least likely of the antipsychotics to cause weight gain but I think she's sorely mistaken.

Congratulatios on your success.

Seroquel is a med. that you have to build up on. You start at a very small dose and work your way to the correct dose for you. I started at 50 mg. two months ago. Yesterday my psychiatrist upped me to 400 mg.

That said, I am not having any of the side effects you listed.

I have been on Seroquel for 2 and half years now. i have gained about 100 lbs since starting it. i manager to lose 60 but then i started with other meds partnered with seroquel. My only advice, is that constant exercise works to make the weight fall off. sticking to healthy eating and lots of cardio, i need the cardio and weights, seems to be all that works.

Anybody know an effective exercise/ diet regime for people on Seroquel??

I used to be a size 12 -14 and then after taking seroquel for 2 years i ballooned to a size 18. I exercise daily, lately for 2hrs a day doing aerobic exercise. Still, nothing budges. I don't eat sweets, junk food, fizzy drinks etc. My diet is natural low fat etc and portions are small.

It seems this weight gain is abnormal and it doesn't get eliminated in the normal way!

Hi all you Seroquel takers. I was just reading the info about Seroquel and it does say that it will tend to cause weight gain when you are taking high doses. I take 50 - 75 mg. at bedtime and have not had a problem with weight gain. I do think it has been harder for me to lose weight, but I just keep doing my cardio and going to the gym. I have noticed a difference in my body (the way clothes fit, etc.) but I have only lost 9 lbs. in the past 6 weeks. Not bad, but not great either. I know that the Seroquel DEFINITELY helps with my sleep and right now I wouldn't consider stopping. I am also on Lamical for my bipolar, which I really like and it is considered weight neutral.

As for withdrawals, I haven't read much about Seroquel, but I think stopping any med cold turkey gives you a good chance of getting withdrawal symptoms. Everyone talks about withdrawals from Effexor, but I was one of those people who had not trouble at all. Go figure...

Good luck to all taking Seroquel. Maybe there are other meds out there that would do the same job without the weight gain. Just be careful because Seroquel is considered to be the mildest of the antipsychotics. Stronger ones just might make the situation worse.

Hi everyone, brand new here but this thread caught my eye. I have been diagnosed with long term depression, bipolar 2, for over 20 years now. Seroquel was one of the many mood stabilizers I've been on. The last time I was hospitalized, with severe depression and suicidal ideation, I had gained about 40 lbs. since the last time a certain psychiatrist had seen me. He had treated me briefly when I first had moved to that city about 12 years before. Well, after 12 years of meds, including weight gaining meds, I was on seroquel at the hospital and he saw me as he was the attending house physician
. Well, this collosal jerk had the nerve to say "what happened to you? How did you get so big?" Can you believe this from any p-doc, let alone to a patient who is in the hospital for that reason? The kicker is that he himself was at least 100 lbs. overweight. Luckily, I had the wearwithall to say "what happened to YOU should be the question!" Needless to say, once I was stabilized by my reg. doc I was put on lamictil, and have lost a good 40 lbs since, partly from med. regulation but mostly from finally receiving the correct diagnosis of Hashimotos disease after lots of thyroid problems. For those susceptible to weight gain, I think seroquel is one to be watched out for, JMHO.

I take Seroquel for Borderline Personality Disorder (I also take Lexapro and Depakote). Seroquel make me gain weight yes (but so did the depakote) but to me its definantly worth it. Most of my weight gain was also due to my (former) poor eating habits and (former) lack of exercise.

As I said, seroquel was a definant life saver for me, because being a Borderline is not a fun experience to go through. Plus I'm no longer suicidal, homicidal, self injuring, paranoid, depressed, and everything else anymore. So it might take a little longer to get the weight off but to me I'd rather have the extra weight than all the other stuff.

bwahahahahahaha seroquel

that f*cking ******* of a drug. i gained 30 pounds IN ONE MONTH

on top of the 10 pounds here and there from every other med they 'tried'

i hate it. hate. it i'm glad some people here have had good experiences with it...but good lord i hate that drug WITH PASSION. it is the reason i am here... lfjslfkjaslfkjsldfjsdlfkjdslf

I gained a ton of weight on seroquel, but have continued to gain weight since i stopped taking it; my dr said that the SSRI I'm on may be contributing. I've been on it for five years, and she said that sometimes suddenly like five years into treatment ssris can start to cause weight gain. Has this happened to anyone else?

I was put on seroquel at 16 and gained over 50lbs a few months. I did sleep 18 hours a day most days, too! Just want to say that you aren't alone in the meds making you gain.