here's an update on my whole cymbalta experience - it sucked! i took it for 6 days and it was the worst. i felt so completely awful. it made me so sick to my stomach and i could barely eat. i had no energy and couldn't sleep, but was restless at the same time. i was dizzy and walked around in a complete fog, it was soooooo out of it most of the day. it made my eyes dilate and i could barely see and couldn't focus my eyes. it gave me headaches and increased my depression. so, needless to say, i was pretty miserable and i stopped taking it.

i called the dr today and asked him to prescribe me something else and he gave me a prescription for lexipro. but...
i have heard so many BAD things about lexipro (as i did cymbalta). I AM DEATHLY AFRAID OF GAINING WEIGHT on the meds. i have been doing tons of research on it, and just about 99% of the patients taking lexapro gain a lot of weight.

what to do? i CANNOT and WILL NOT take this med if it makes me fatter - my goal right now is to lose weight, not pack more on.
HELP HELP HELP HELP HELP PLEASE!!!!!! I NEED ADVICE ASAP!!!
gabrielbeth

I don't know anything about Lexapro and of course I'm not a doctor. Have you had a heart to heart about your Doctor and your symptoms and what kind of meds help you need? I read some of your old posts and it looks like zoloft isn't working for you anymore. Have you tried Wellbutrin? If you have a seizure disorder, it's out, but I loved it for depression and helping me with my cig quit and emotional eating.
If you eat right and exercise you can overcome almost any tendency of a prescription to make you gain.
Lastly, I'm not sure where you got your info, but a quick check of webmd.com doesn't even mention weight gain as a possible side effect, though loss of appetite is an infrequent side effect. If your doctor recommends you try it, maybe you should?
Again, I am not a doctor or even in the medical field. You should ALWAYS take your doctor's word above anything you might read, especially on an open, public message board.
Good luck! So sorry about your loss, that must be devastating.

I tried Lexapro and had serious issues with nausea, so obviously I didn't gain any weight. A friend of mine has been on it for a year or so now and has lost a substantial amount of weight, plus it's taken care of her anxiety issues. Another friend of mine was on it for a while for issues related to anorexia. Neither of them had any negative side effects whatsoever and it worked like a charm, which is why I was so bummed when it didn't work for me. Then again, I'll almost always get every single side effect for any medication, so I'm probably not a good example. I figured out pretty quickly that it wasn't for me. If you trust your doctor and he thinks it's worth a shot, you might want to at least try. You can always go off it if it doesn't work for you. Plus, it seems like getting help for the depression might be more of an immediate concern than losing the weight. Being thinner won't be any fun if you're still struggling with the depression. I hope everything goes well for you- keep us posted!

Oh Gabriel, I'm so sorry you had a bad experience with Cymbalta Would your doctor consider letting you try Prozac? As many people I know who have been on it and still are on it have NOT gained weight and they did not have any of the reactions you had. IMHO, it seems to be one of the more gentle medications (but everyone IS different). My Mom, my sisters and myself have all been / or are still on it and have lost weight with it.

Hang in there hon, I know you can.... your very strong and you do deserve to feel better w/out gaining weight...but don't panic, if you feel 100% sure you don't want to take a med, then don't... follow your instinct.

Let us know

Leenie

I've had trouble with nausea with everything I've tried ... so I take my paxil at bedtime and only a half tablet ... which seems to work for me.

i am actually going in to see the dr next week instead of calling him for a new prescription. maybe if i sit down to talk to him, he'll help me better. i might ask him to put me back on zoloft since it's been 2 yrs since i have taken zoloft. or i might ask him to put me on prozac. i have some family on prozac and they love it and have all lost weight and kept it off for years. we'll see! i'll keep you guys posted. thanks for all the advice!
gabrielbeth

I soooo understand your frustration, but when you said all kinds of red flags went off in my head.

Your GOAL RIGHT NOW should be to "get better". Whatever kind of depression or whatever you're suffering from that made you go on these kind of meds to begin with - you cannot be healthy physically if you are not healthy mentally.

I am fighting the pounds like everyone else here. And in this specific realm, I am fighting depression. I have decided that no matter how much I want to lose weight, I want to live normally again even more. I don't want that suicidal thought fleeting thru my mind; I don't want to walk around in a fog, or hide under the covers when I could be OUT IN THE WORLD, being a normal woman.

So I have decided to get WELL in my head first... then I can tackle my weight problem. Currently, I am taking Celexa. I was on Wellbutrin, but it just wasn't helping me. I've only been on Celexa about a week, but I can tell a difference in my appetite. It's not as "hefty" as it was. Bonus! - and I AM FEELING BETTER.

Good luck to you - let us know what your doc says!

Good for you.... your worth the fight and please let us know what the doc says.

I think you're right on the money about going to talk to your Doctor. You need to discuss the side effects in person. I was surprised, one time when I went, that some are worth waiting until they pass and some (in the doc's opinion) need to be addressed right away.
We also talked about the fact that in my state, at the time, I probably wasn't a real good judge of what was happening. I needed to be patient and so how things worked over time. At about 6 weeks, I realised that I'd been feeling pretty good for a little while. Then my doc refilled the script for me.

Lexapro worked great for me.......had a tough time coming off of it, but NO side effects while I was on it at all.

Try it.

Personally, I don't buy into the theory that many of these medicines make people gain weight.

If you don't put it in your mouth, it can't wind up on your *ss!!

I don't know what strength of cymbalta you are on .. but the doctors around here are easing people into it because of stomach upset .. and I don't know if you have insurance or what so it might not be financially possible ..but i work in a pharmacy ..and alot of docs here are putting the person on the lowest dose possible but taking it twice a day so to much doesn't hit the stomach at one time ..then after about a month or so switchin to the higher dose once daily. it might take a lil work with insurance .. we have had one or two want the doctors to call and explain why they are doing this but after that it usually isn't a problem ..they ok it and you are on your way. maybe its an option for you .. i don't know .. also docs have been getting tons of samples in our area to help them do this .. start someone out lower and move em up slowly .. maybe one of these options will help you .. but its an idea to talk to your doctor about .. like i said i don't know the strength you are taking or anything so i can't say if this might be a solution or not.. good luck

I second the idea that your first goal should be to get better. What is the use of losing weight if you aren't well enough to enjoy it, eh?
Anyways.. have you tried Wellbutrin? very little negative side effects for me. And wellbutrin kills the appitite. I had no need to eat anything at all, I had to make myself eat or I would go a day or more without food, because I just wouldnt feel hungry. It helped me break out of my plateau of over 4 months and lost 6 pounds in 1 week @_@... this was before I relized I was hardly eating much because of the meds. But it's still comming off, I just have to work out a bit more.
it may work for you.

That just goes to prove that different meds effect different people in different ways. Wellbutrin did NOT help my appetite, & it did NOT help my depression. In fact, I ate MORE while on Wellbutrin. And sank further into depression.

But Celexa is helping me - on both counts. Not such a hefty appetite & I am really feeling the fog lifting!

i just got back from the dr's office and after a long chat about the depression, grief, weight issues, and meds, he has put me on wellbutrin xl. he told me that wellbutrin is used for weight loss, so that might help me kill two birds with one stone in regards to weight loss and depression. he said that it will not help me with worry and anxiety, which i am worried about (go figure), but we'll see how i feel. i am actually excited about this med, i can't wait to start it tomorrow morning!
thanks for all the advice!!!
gabrielbeth

I have taken Lexapro. It made me sick as anything!!

My mother takes Welbutrin. She has had great results and has lost some weight.

I am not currently on anything.

Erika Leigh