Citalopram- and weight gain or loss stories?

Curious_101

Hello,
I just started taking Citalopram for Anxiety and I am terrified to gain weight!!! From what I read the average person does gain weight!
I would love to hear peoples personal stories..

bryannakay

I started taking Citalopram about 3 months ago! To be honest, I have gained weight but I know for a fact it had NOTHING to do with the medication and had everything to do with the choices I was making. Also, in the last 3 weeks I have lost 7 pounds so I know I can lose weight Don't be worried about something that hasn't happened yet! Also, how much are you taking? Usually the start up dosage is not very much to make a big impact on your weight!

HelloImKelsey

I also take citalopram and gained weight... But certainly NOT from the medication. I've managed to maintain my weight and lose weight while on citalopram. I just have horrible will power and eat everything in sight.

barbiegirlie2

I have gained over 40 pounds since I started taking citalopram two years ago. My doctor is concerned about that, so I am weaning off of it now.

bianca_gardiner

Curious_101 wrote: »

Hello,
I just started taking Citalopram for Anxiety and I am terrified to gain weight!!! From what I read the average person does gain weight!
I would love to hear peoples personal stories..

My husband has taken citalopram for 5 years and is the same weight he's always been. Might be different for did ppl

blueridgeloner

I have lost all my weight so far while taking Citalopram. Although I am weaning off of it now.

missbirrell

I took Citalopram for a long period at least twice and did not gain weight.

kbmnurse

You should not gain weight unless your calories in are > calories burned. Be careful with taking meds like Citalopram (Celexa). Have you spoken to a mental health professional about your anxiety?

BodyByButter

I am on Citalopram. I am losing weight. It is definitely possible.

ourtruelovewillneverdie

I take it and I didn't gain weight on it. I lost for the first month I started taking it because I wasn't interested in food at all. It's the only antidepressant med I've been on that hasn't caused weight gain. I've been on it for about a year.

drabbits3

I lost 20 pounds on Citalapram. I think the weight gain might be more from the general "can't get my sh** together" anxiety feeling than the meds!!! That's how I felt until I finally made myself make better choices.

slaite1

Citalopram has very mild side effects. If you are depressed and not eating, you may gain a little weight once you start feeling better and begin to eat again.

On the other hand, if you overeat when you're depressed (me!!) you may lose weight. I sure did. That's bc I was so depressed I wasn't getting out of bed and mostly just ate and occasionally made a half-assed attempt to workout. One of the first things I noticed when the medicine started to take effect was my ability to stick to an exercise routine. Once I felt better, I ate better as well. It depends.

But ssri's are not the same as some of the older antidepressants and/or mood stabilizers and don't typically mess with your hormones and metabolism in the same way. If you gain, it's because you are eating more!

emilyesq

I've been on Celexa for a year or so and never noticed any weight change (at least, nothing that I could justify blaming on the meds). Of all the SSRIs I've tried, it seems to be the easiest on my system.

Now, Effexor basically turned me into Snorlax (size comparisons included). All I did was sleep, sometimes up to 22 hours in a day, so I'm pretty sure the reason I gained weight was because my TDEE was basically that of a bed-bound person. In my experience, the only reason I ever gained weight on any SSRI was because of that - they made me sleep all the time while I still ate like a person with an active lifestyle and a strenuous job. The weight was bound to creep up.

skiextrm

I was on it and did not gain weight. But I did stop biting my nails! I stopped taking it because it made me tired, though. I like Prozac better for SAD.

ETA: spelling and additional stmt.

mykaylis

gained 20 lbs for each new psych med i went on (i'm on several, citalopram being one of them) with the exception of bupropion (wellbutrin) which made me lose

such is life. i don't like being morbidly obese but it's certainly better than being suicidal.

lemon629

I took Celexa many years ago and lost weight. I had no appetite and couldn't sleep. My depression got much, much worse. I only took it for about a month, though.

Lots of people gain weight on anti-depressants, but not everyone does. I gained a lot on Effexor, but the weight gain was the least of the problems that Effexor caused.

Aim to stay on a medication as short term as possible. Start counseling so you can learn ways of dealing with anxiety rather than taking a pill. (Cognitive behavioral therapy can help tremendously, and a lot of the time it only takes 5-6 visits.) Otherwise you will find yourself taking additional medications to counter-act side effects which then have their own side effects, and/or augmenting with additional pills when the first one starts being less effective. It is a rabbit hole you don't want to go down if you can help it.

rebeccamorgan58152

I've been on and off citalopram (and now escitalopram) for almost 20 years, I find that they don't really cause any major weight changes for me. Perhaps a bit more water retention than usual. My partner lost significant amounts of weight, since he was finally motivated to get off his backside, stop snacking and playing games all day and get a job. See how you go, everyone has a different reaction to them.
Now, the contraceptive pill, that's a different story, I blow up like an angry, spotty balloon.

moodyblues93

I used to take celexa about 7 years ago when I was in 8th grade I went from being 143 pounds at 14 to being 119 pounds by freshman year of high school. But the drug stopped working (which is a phenomenon that sometimes happens for no reason) and every other drug I was on since caused weight gain especially Paxil.I gained 50 pounds on it.I was put on Lexapro last week to control both my depression and anxiety. Lexapro (escitopram ) and celexa (citalpram ) are sister medications.Lexpro is next generation Celexa.Its supposed to have less side effects or something. But I don't remember having any side effects on Celexa.But lexapro males me feel hazy.But some stories have told of significant weight gain on lexapro.But I feel if you loose weight on the precedent medicine you should be fine taking the next generation one.

Keith3481

I've been on and off citalopram and risperdal for the last three years. I'm a 5'7" man and started at 164. I gained about 20 lbs to 185 when I first went on it because I got lazy and stopped exercising. After I got used to the medication I picked up exercising again and lost all the weight I gained. Then I went off the medication because my doctor wanted to see if my condition was permanent and I stayed around 164 for about six months. When it was clear that I needed to be on it permanently, he put me back on citalopram and risperdal and I got lazy again, this time I gained all the way up to 204. It was clear that I needed to make a change so I picked up exercise again at the beginning of this year and changed my eating habits. Now I'm down to about 175, losing about 5 lbs a month and I'm headed back to 164 lbs. So I think it is possible to lose weight on citalopram if you are committed to weight loss and burn more calories than you consume. If you are already at a healthy weight, it is possible to maintain your weight on citalopram as long as you don't get lazy like I did. It is also possible to gain weight on citalopram if you run a calorie surplus. Bottom line, it's all up to you and your commitment to weight goals. MFP is a great tool to help you achieve those goals.

mbaker566

each medicine affects each individual differently, which is why we need so many

I gained and lost on it.

EmilyCody2015

Hi friends, I am new to fitness pal so please forgive me if this question has been answered - I currently take citalopram, and have for about 1 year. In the past I have taken lexapro for a few years and it wasn't a great fit for me. I have also gained some weight in the past year but am not sure if that was caused by citalopram (or just gaining weight due to depression/not taking care of myself). I'm wondering now whether the weight gain is due to citalopram? I hadn't really kept track before, but it's probably around 10 pounds. If anyone has any advise would greatly appreciate it.

Sweet_Heresy

I've been taking escitalopram (lexapro) since February and I've lost 30 pounds...i mean, not directly BECAUSE of the medication, but it helped immensely with my depression. I had the energy and motivation and just generally gave a crap enough to start taking better care of myself, whereas before I went on it, I gained alot of weight living off of cheeseburgers and Bacardi.

I'm under the impression that any weight gain/loss from the medication is due to appetite changes. I didn't eat much the first week or 2 cause it made me a little nauseous.

choppie70

My husband lost about 35 lbs while he was on citalopram.