Weight gain caused by anti-depressants
snooks44
Posts: 3 Member
Hi guys! Wondering if anyone else is in the same boat. I was on Zoloft from October 2018 and now I’m tapering off due to the weight I have gained but wondering if anyone else gained weight with this medication. If so did you ever get back to your “pre weight” before meds. I’m the heaviest I have ever been!! ☹️ any tips would be appreciated !
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Replies
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There are so many variables at play here. Starting off, during the time you were on Zoloft, were you accurately tracking your calorie intake and exercise?12
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Antidepressants=wt gain.29
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I've gained 30lbs while on Lexapro 30mg daily for a year. I've since tapered off and learned how to accurately track the food I ate. I've lost the weight, but figured with this site's help, that it likely still comes down to the calories of the food you eat.
That was a few years ago. I've been on Paxil without any crazy weight gain, even though doctors say that one is prone to doing that to people. Currently...I'm back on Lexapro, but I take 20mg daily, and I've gained 10lbs but surely because I've been bingeing on sweets. In January I lost 5lbs in a month or so by tracking my calories and watching my food and exercise.
If you haven't done so, best advice from this site - buy a simple Amazon food scale, and actually weigh and measure and record EVERY SINGLE BITE or SIP you get. Do it for at least 2 weeks and you'll see patterns.
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We're in the same boat Snooks.
I had gained 100 lbs from psych meds years ago and lost it kept it off for 9 years but then they put me on Vraylar and i gained 50 lbs in 3 months. I'm off the Vraylar now and not gaining anymore now.
Yo the person who wants to know about your calorie intake during your time on Zoloft.....
Do you know what it's like to be on a medication that makes you hungry?
You try to curb your appetite with a cup of coffee or a glass of water.... or maybe a slice of bread or a couple crackers... still doesn't work
Or
You have already had your meal and 30 mins later you go what the heck??? I already ate what is wrong with me??? You ignore it, go to bed hungry.... takes you forever to go yo sleep because your stomach is growling and churning with hunger pains ....
And you can't get anything from your doctor to reduce your appetite because they are all stimulants..... And they can't give you a stimulant with psych meds....
You wouldn't be hungry in the first place if it wasn't for the stupid med...
She asked if anyone was successful in losing weight after stopping the med....
She didn't ask to be judged on how she gained the weight
Apparently you don't know what it's like to be on such a med.
When you do..... let me know how ya did counting those calories...
Your comment just ticked me off to no end!
RUDE!44 -
I actually had the reverse happen. I was at my heaviest when I wasn't on my anti-depressants because I used food to cope. If I'm feeling low, that's when my urge to overeat is the highest. If you are struggling on your current meds, maybe you can try another? It took years of trying different things to find the one that worked best for me with the least negative side effects.6
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Just an FYI, a lot of people here have a history of being on antidepressants (among other meds). It's not really the best to just assume someone has no experience with something when you have no basis for that assumption. Even if you do have some basis, assumptions are just that.Coffee0ooYummy wrote: »We're in the same boat Snooks.
I had gained 100 lbs from psych meds years ago and lost it kept it off for 9 years but then they put me on Vraylar and i gained 50 lbs in 3 months. I'm off the Vraylar now and not gaining anymore now.
Yo the person who wants to know about your calorie intake during your time on Zoloft.....
Do you know what it's like to be on a medication that makes you hungry?
You try to curb your appetite with a cup of coffee or a glass of water.... or maybe a slice of bread or a couple crackers... still doesn't work
Or
You have already had your meal and 30 mins later you go what the heck??? I already ate what is wrong with me??? You ignore it, go to bed hungry.... takes you forever to go yo sleep because your stomach is growling and churning with hunger pains ....
And you can't get anything from your doctor to reduce your appetite because they are all stimulants..... And they can't give you a stimulant with psych meds....
You wouldn't be hungry in the first place if it wasn't for the stupid med...
She asked if anyone was successful in losing weight after stopping the med....
She didn't ask to be judged on how she gained the weight
Apparently you don't know what it's like to be on such a med.
When you do..... let me know how ya did counting those calories...
Your comment just ticked me off to no end!
RUDE!23 -
Hi guys! Wondering if anyone else is in the same boat. I was on Zoloft from October 2018 and now I’m tapering off due to the weight I have gained but wondering if anyone else gained weight with this medication. If so did you ever get back to your “pre weight” before meds. I’m the heaviest I have ever been!! ☹️ any tips would be appreciated !
My friend had the opposite and lost 15 lbs when she started on them last fall. Honestly I think it depends - she was very "unsettled and paced a lot, so probably lost because of her anxiety". Log what you are eating (weigh measure everything) and be careful of getting off them if the depression issues are still around or your issues are severe. Maybe look for food substitutes lower in calories. Like 40 cal bread instead of 70-90 cal slices. It's hard to reduce what you eat - but the calories actually matter a great deal. I read absolutely everything I buy now, and look at the sugar content. I do get extra fat dairy, because that works better for me - but still count the calories. Big weight gains come from the calories taken in. Honestly I could mindlessly eat a bag of potato chips without noticing. Therefore I don't buy them anymore unless I'm going to plan to eat them for a set duration. They just can't be in the house. Also depending on your age, we can eat the same, but every decade after 20, our metabolism does slow down.5 -
Just an FYI, a lot of people here have a history of being on antidepressants (among other meds). It's not really the best to just assume someone has no experience with something when you have no basis for that assumption. Even if you do have some basis, assumptions are just that.Coffee0ooYummy wrote: »We're in the same boat Snooks.
I had gained 100 lbs from psych meds years ago and lost it kept it off for 9 years but then they put me on Vraylar and i gained 50 lbs in 3 months. I'm off the Vraylar now and not gaining anymore now.
Yo the person who wants to know about your calorie intake during your time on Zoloft.....
Do you know what it's like to be on a medication that makes you hungry?
You try to curb your appetite with a cup of coffee or a glass of water.... or maybe a slice of bread or a couple crackers... still doesn't work
Or
You have already had your meal and 30 mins later you go what the heck??? I already ate what is wrong with me??? You ignore it, go to bed hungry.... takes you forever to go yo sleep because your stomach is growling and churning with hunger pains ....
And you can't get anything from your doctor to reduce your appetite because they are all stimulants..... And they can't give you a stimulant with psych meds....
You wouldn't be hungry in the first place if it wasn't for the stupid med...
She asked if anyone was successful in losing weight after stopping the med....
She didn't ask to be judged on how she gained the weight
Apparently you don't know what it's like to be on such a med.
When you do..... let me know how ya did counting those calories...
Your comment just ticked me off to no end!
RUDE!
Seeing that I’m bipolar, that comment made me laugh more than anything.
I wish I didn’t have extensive experience with meds, Zoloft included, but that’s life.
That being said, understanding CICO still becomes key. Even when a med changes the equation somewhere along the line.
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Thank you for the responses. I really do try to eat healthy but I could Always do better. It’s a struggle. I guess I must have fell off it was just super hard to try and not eat when my stomach was aching cause i was so hungry. Hopefully getting of this crap will help! I do exercise 5 days a week! ☺️ i hope anyone else struggling with depression is able to find happiness! 🙏🏻8
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Nah, I was on venalaflaxine for a year then switched over to Zoloft and have now been on it for over a year. I can honestly say that the medicine didn’t make me gain weight, my eating habits did. Antidepressants can cause a lot of different emotions and side effects in you including increased/decreased appetite. More than likely your eating habits contributed to the weight gain, not the pill (although it could of made you more hungry but the pill just doesn’t slam you with fat, but could have some water retention from the pill.)6
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Also with the increase of appetite with it, you don’t need medicine to decrease your appetite. It’s called self control. Plus there’s things you can do to help yourself from snacking. Drink more water, brush your teeth, have a small healthy snack, eat something high in fats or protein (tends to fill you up more), keep yourself busy, or just tell yourself “no.” I know it’s hard but if you want this, gotta have the self control to do so!10
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Hi guys! Wondering if anyone else is in the same boat. I was on Zoloft from October 2018 and now I’m tapering off due to the weight I have gained but wondering if anyone else gained weight with this medication. If so did you ever get back to your “pre weight” before meds. I’m the heaviest I have ever been!! ☹️ any tips would be appreciated !
I don't think I was on Zoloft long enough to notice increased appetite leading to weight gain. It killed my libido and desire to and ability to orgasm.
I tried about a half dozen ADs before settling on Wellbutrin, with which I've been very happy.
My tip for weight loss - find which foods satisfy you the most for less calories so it is easier for you to create a calorie deficit, and move more.
Regular exercise is key to my mental health. (I realize this does not apply to everyone.)2 -
I started Zoloft in October 2018 also. While on Zoloft I started logging and weighing my food and have lost 41 pounds and am 6 pounds from my goal weight.7
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Just an FYI, a lot of people here have a history of being on antidepressants (among other meds). It's not really the best to just assume someone has no experience with something when you have no basis for that assumption. Even if you do have some basis, assumptions are just that.
Lol tell that to the one who judged her....
I've been on meds since I was 14.... I'm 46 now. I would never ask someone that question.....
Get real19 -
Coffee0ooYummy wrote: »Just an FYI, a lot of people here have a history of being on antidepressants (among other meds). It's not really the best to just assume someone has no experience with something when you have no basis for that assumption. Even if you do have some basis, assumptions are just that.
Lol tell that to the one who judged her....
I've been on meds since I was 14.... I'm 46 now. I would never ask someone that question.....
Get real
Except it was a valid question. Meds don't magically put weight on you from nothing. Either they increase your appetite, or lower your energy, or both. Many people blame meds for their inability to lose weight as if the meds make it impossible - they don't. They change part of the equation, which means you have to change your efforts. That's all.16 -
rickiimarieee wrote: »Also with the increase of appetite with it, you don’t need medicine to decrease your appetite. It’s called self control. Plus there’s things you can do to help yourself from snacking. Drink more water, brush your teeth, have a small healthy snack, eat something high in fats or protein (tends to fill you up more), keep yourself busy, or just tell yourself “no.” I know it’s hard but if you want this, gotta have the self control to do so!
Generally, exerting self-control takes a certain amount of mental resources that tend to be low in depression. Far better to find strategies that don't rely on what is an unreliable resource.
Brushing one's teeth to avoid eating is usually associated with anorexic behavior.13 -
magnusthenerd wrote: »rickiimarieee wrote: »Also with the increase of appetite with it, you don’t need medicine to decrease your appetite. It’s called self control. Plus there’s things you can do to help yourself from snacking. Drink more water, brush your teeth, have a small healthy snack, eat something high in fats or protein (tends to fill you up more), keep yourself busy, or just tell yourself “no.” I know it’s hard but if you want this, gotta have the self control to do so!
Generally, exerting self-control takes a certain amount of mental resources that tend to be low in depression. Far better to find strategies that don't rely on what is an unreliable resource.
Brushing one's teeth to avoid eating is usually associated with anorexic behavior.
Right, when I am sleep deprived I don't have the mental resources to make healthy choices. So instead I work very hard on my sleep hygiene to prevent sleep deprivation in the first place.5 -
I think for me Zoloft def. lowered my energy level. I’m always tired. I’m hoping with making better choices I’ll be able to lose the weight I gained. If you’ve never been on a psych med it’s super hard to just not eat. You’re always hungry and it like hunger pains. 😩2
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I think for me Zoloft def. lowered my energy level. I’m always tired. I’m hoping with making better choices I’ll be able to lose the weight I gained. If you’ve never been on a psych med it’s super hard to just not eat. You’re always hungry and it like hunger pains. 😩
it does depend on the medication and the person. zoloft had no effect on my stomach. lexapro made me unhungry. wellbutrin gave me vertigo so not hungry. remeron made me starving2 -
magnusthenerd wrote: »rickiimarieee wrote: »Also with the increase of appetite with it, you don’t need medicine to decrease your appetite. It’s called self control. Plus there’s things you can do to help yourself from snacking. Drink more water, brush your teeth, have a small healthy snack, eat something high in fats or protein (tends to fill you up more), keep yourself busy, or just tell yourself “no.” I know it’s hard but if you want this, gotta have the self control to do so!
Generally, exerting self-control takes a certain amount of mental resources that tend to be low in depression. Far better to find strategies that don't rely on what is an unreliable resource.
Brushing one's teeth to avoid eating is usually associated with anorexic behavior.
Be careful making broad statements like that. I use this strategy every night to avoid nighttime snacking and I know many other people who use this same strategy. I am not and have never had any type of anorexic behavior.12 -
I'm currently on venlafaxine, lamotrigene and amipiprazole (Effexor, Lamictal and Abilify). My own experience is that they stimulate your appetite while making me really tired (although hard to tell if it's the depression instead).
Of course, I was just about to throw a hissy fit and blame the meds for the weight gain when I started using MFP and tracked my eating for just a week. I found out how much I was over eating and how low my tdee is. I've been trying to keep to my target calories and I've lost 11lbs in 11 weeks. I now worship at the alter of CICO.
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magnusthenerd wrote: »rickiimarieee wrote: »Also with the increase of appetite with it, you don’t need medicine to decrease your appetite. It’s called self control. Plus there’s things you can do to help yourself from snacking. Drink more water, brush your teeth, have a small healthy snack, eat something high in fats or protein (tends to fill you up more), keep yourself busy, or just tell yourself “no.” I know it’s hard but if you want this, gotta have the self control to do so!
Generally, exerting self-control takes a certain amount of mental resources that tend to be low in depression. Far better to find strategies that don't rely on what is an unreliable resource.
Brushing one's teeth to avoid eating is usually associated with anorexic behavior.
Be careful making broad statements like that. I use this strategy every night to avoid nighttime snacking and I know many other people who use this same strategy. I am not and have never had any type of anorexic behavior.
This. I do it for the same reason and I have never suffered from anorexia. I’m also a fan of minty breath vs tasting what I just ate all evening long.
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You mean the one who made my point pretty elegantly by noting that a. she has bipolar b. she has experience taking Zoloft and c. she's on a number of different psychotropic medications? Again, that's some assuming you did, some really impressively inaccurate assuming.Coffee0ooYummy wrote: »Just an FYI, a lot of people here have a history of being on antidepressants (among other meds). It's not really the best to just assume someone has no experience with something when you have no basis for that assumption. Even if you do have some basis, assumptions are just that.
Lol tell that to the one who judged her....
I've been on meds since I was 14.... I'm 46 now. I would never ask someone that question.....
Get real
Whether you like it or not, weight loss and gain comes down to how many calories you're consuming vs how many calories you're burning. It is only logical to ask the OP if she was tracking her calories while on Zoloft because how else would she have gained weight (not water weight) other than eating more calories than she burned? If you think that's judging then I'm not sure what to say other than maybe pointing to a dictionary definition of the verb "to judge".
While it might seem to you like you're some sort of unique person by having been on meds for the bulk of your life, I can assure you, you aren't. I wish I could say otherwise.
Signed,
One of the many forum members who deals with chronic mental health issues19 -
I think for me Zoloft def. lowered my energy level. I’m always tired. I’m hoping with making better choices I’ll be able to lose the weight I gained. If you’ve never been on a psych med it’s super hard to just not eat. You’re always hungry and it like hunger pains. 😩
Honestly I gained both while on and not on psych meds. I tried over a dozen before realizing that meds weren't going to touch my depression (I suspect ketamine might help, but given that I'm hopefully going to grad school within a year and a half, I probably wouldn't be able to stay on it). I honestly don't remember any of the ones that I was on, Zoloft included, making me especially hungry. That said I'm also someone who will forget to eat when I'm especially depressed. Think the, "I'm not able to get out of bed" sort of episode.
edit: Let me be clear, I'm talking about the legal use of ketamine to treat depression. One of my previous psychiatrists, who worked at teaching hospital, and I discussed that I would have probably been eligible for a clinical trial.4 -
magnusthenerd wrote: »rickiimarieee wrote: »Also with the increase of appetite with it, you don’t need medicine to decrease your appetite. It’s called self control. Plus there’s things you can do to help yourself from snacking. Drink more water, brush your teeth, have a small healthy snack, eat something high in fats or protein (tends to fill you up more), keep yourself busy, or just tell yourself “no.” I know it’s hard but if you want this, gotta have the self control to do so!
Generally, exerting self-control takes a certain amount of mental resources that tend to be low in depression. Far better to find strategies that don't rely on what is an unreliable resource.
Brushing one's teeth to avoid eating is usually associated with anorexic behavior.
I don’t see how that’s associated with anorexic behavior I can see if it is to avoid eating ALL together but to avoid snacking, I think it’s a great option so you don’t go over calories.4 -
magnusthenerd wrote: »rickiimarieee wrote: »Also with the increase of appetite with it, you don’t need medicine to decrease your appetite. It’s called self control. Plus there’s things you can do to help yourself from snacking. Drink more water, brush your teeth, have a small healthy snack, eat something high in fats or protein (tends to fill you up more), keep yourself busy, or just tell yourself “no.” I know it’s hard but if you want this, gotta have the self control to do so!
Generally, exerting self-control takes a certain amount of mental resources that tend to be low in depression. Far better to find strategies that don't rely on what is an unreliable resource.
Brushing one's teeth to avoid eating is usually associated with anorexic behavior.
Be careful making broad statements like that. I use this strategy every night to avoid nighttime snacking and I know many other people who use this same strategy. I am not and have never had any type of anorexic behavior.
Exactly!0 -
Fitgirllife72 wrote: »magnusthenerd wrote: »rickiimarieee wrote: »Also with the increase of appetite with it, you don’t need medicine to decrease your appetite. It’s called self control. Plus there’s things you can do to help yourself from snacking. Drink more water, brush your teeth, have a small healthy snack, eat something high in fats or protein (tends to fill you up more), keep yourself busy, or just tell yourself “no.” I know it’s hard but if you want this, gotta have the self control to do so!
Generally, exerting self-control takes a certain amount of mental resources that tend to be low in depression. Far better to find strategies that don't rely on what is an unreliable resource.
Brushing one's teeth to avoid eating is usually associated with anorexic behavior.
Be careful making broad statements like that. I use this strategy every night to avoid nighttime snacking and I know many other people who use this same strategy. I am not and have never had any type of anorexic behavior.
This. I do it for the same reason and I have never suffered from anorexia. I’m also a fan of minty breath vs tasting what I just ate all evening long.
Yes!0 -
I wasn't on Zoloft, but I *was* on Lexapro. Never before in my life had I had trouble maintaining a nice lean weight.
But I gained 30 lbs in 10 years on Lex and it was all I could do to keep it from being even more.
Eventually -- out of desperation-- I stopped taking Lex, and immediately began losing weight with NO OTHER lifestyle change. After a couple of months I went on Prozac which so far has not impacted my weight. I've lost 24 lbs in 18 months which may sound excruciatingly slow, but since I already ate healthy and exercised there wasn't a lot of room to make major changes along those lines.
From what I've read, Zoloft is one of the SSRI's most associated with weight gain. (More so than Lexapro) See if your Dr. will work with you to try a different SSRI.5 -
I think for me Zoloft def. lowered my energy level. I’m always tired. I’m hoping with making better choices I’ll be able to lose the weight I gained. If you’ve never been on a psych med it’s super hard to just not eat. You’re always hungry and it like hunger pains. 😩
Lots of AD's besides Zoloft. Talk to your doctor.2
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