Depression and Weight IssuesHave you been diagnosed with depression, are possibly on depression medication, and find it affects your weight loss efforts? Post here for support!
Just to add another experience to the mix. . . I was on Wellbutrin XL for a year before switching to Cymbalta about a month ago. The first few weeks on Cymbalta I gained five or six pounds and it was easy to see that I was retaining a lot more water. This past two weeks I have been cutting back on sodium and drinking more water - three of those extra pounds have dropped off. Cymbalta has really been great for me in other respects and has significantly reduced my chronic pain issues. Looks like I'll have to be even more careful about what I eat but it is so worth it - even if I end up cutting back on calories a bit.
Good for you!!
I'm so glad that the Cymbalta is working for you.
I think you are doing the right thing by drinking more water,cutting the sodium,and the calories.I'm sure more pounds will fall off with a few of your changes.
I was recently put on Seroquel and I'm nervous about gaining weight. I've read that it will up your appetite, making you feel hungry even after you've eaten, and I really don't need that. I don't want to gain any weight, I'm kind of scared.
I need the medicine, since I'm bipolar and every now and then I'll just get so mad at something that shouldn't make me that mad, and I have this obsession with washing my hands. The doc thought Seroquel was the appropiate medicine for me and I want to take it to be better, but I don't think I'll take the dosage she told me to take. I'll take a bit lower and see what happens.
Does any one have any experience with Seroquel?
Seroquel does cause weight gain in some people.. someone I love dearly gained what, 50 lbs (that he needed, trust me) and then lost it and then some when he came off of it.
if it gets to be a problem for you, ask your doctor about Abilify or Geodon. they're both for bipolar treatment.
actually, I started reading this thread to see if anyone mentioned Seroquel.
Hi. I suffer of clinical depression and i started to gain weight with thr drugs. A doctor diagnostic me wrong with bipolar disorder, wich i don`t have and give me tegretal that make me gain a lot of kilos. Then i started with a new doctor who make tests and consulted with other doctors and say that i`m not bipolar and put me in the right medicine, even she give me something to help me with my diet last year and it helped, when i remember the name i will post it
There is now scientific proof that certain meds can make you gain (or lose) weight. It might not be true with you, however; because not all meds work the same on all people. It's not that the *meds* themselves cause the weight gain, it's how the meds "effect" you.
Do a google on medications & weight gain, you'll find a lot of useful information. Here's a blurb from one of my searches:
Antidepressants can affect weight in several ways:
They may increase or decrease basal metabolic rate without changing caloric intake.
They may affect hormonal changes and increase appetite.
Unexpected weight gain can increase the difficulties associated with psychiatric and seizure disorders by further aggravating mood instability and low self-esteem.
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs)
SSRIs comprise one of the major classes of antidepressants currently being prescribed by primary care physicians. At first, SSRIs were thought to be associated with weight loss and reduced appetite. For a while, they were even marketed as anti-obesity drugs. It is now known that long-term use of SSRIs is associated with weight gain.
If you'd like to read more - here's a link to the whole article. It really is quite interesting! http://www.netnutritionist.com/fa12.htm
Thanks for that info. My own personal experience is that meds definitely affect weight. The worst are antipsychotics. As well as the changes outlined above some of the meds interfere with your body's ability to recognise that it is full, or can stimulate your appetite so you eat more.
Interfering with hormones has a huge effect not only on appetite, but on how satisfied and full you feel after eating.
I've been on pretty much every type of anti-depressant. Prozac-it made me have horrible nightmares. Lexapro-didn't seem to make any difference. Wellbutrin-made me extremely angry and I would bite everyone's head off, but I did lose weight. Zoloft-made me gain 65lbs, the doctor said it wasn't the medicine but I know it was because now I'm slowly losing the weight. It also made me unfeeling. I didn't care what was going on I always felt the same. I hated not having any emotions. Cymbalta (I'm currently on this one)-seems to be working ok but I've only been on it for a couple of months so we'll see. I have noticed that I don't sleep as well but I can deal with that. Sometimes I wonder if anything will ever work for me. Do any of you feel that way?
I'm on Cymbalta right now. I just started it a week ago, so I don't notice anything yet. As soon as I get a job and some insurance, I'm going to get tested for thyroid problems. I swear I have them. Just can't afford the tests right now. But something better change, cause I'm tired of gaining weight like crazy. I even stopped eating junk food.
Many doctors believe our stories are anecdotal. I am currently on Zoloft, for about two years, and it is the best drug for me. However, I couldn't figure out for about the past year why I was having this god awful body odor near my boobs. It was so humiliating, and so unatural, that it made even me queasy. I started plastering my whole body in anti perspirant.
Anyhow, I came across someone else on the net with the same thing. Guess what the smell was from?? The interaction of the zoloft with the underwire metal in my bras! And I mean, I had bought so many different bras because I thought it was the padding ..... but that is not *evidence* so the doctors don't put much stock in those things.
On Paxil I gained a ton of weight. I don't think it is that they make you gain weight, but maybe slow down your metabolism. Then if yo are used to eating a certain way, you don' realize until it is too late.
But just a note: Now that I am on Zoloft, my cravings for carbs are easier to control. They don;t go away, but I don't feel I *need* them to make myself feel better.
I'm also on Paxil and while I thank God that my mental state in much better, it has caused me to gain weight. Motivation is the key. I'm trying to get my butt out of bed in the morning to exercise but it's hard.
