Is fluoxetine cheating?

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  • Maitria
    Maitria Posts: 439 Member
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    Fluoxetine can be an amazing game changer. I take a high dose, and it's helped me so much with anxiety that I actually don't care how it's working. I don't care if it's cheating. I don't see it as such, as it is certainly not a "happy pill." I know I will take it (or some other similar med) for the rest of my life, and the difference in the way I feel makes that a relief. My only regrets are not trying it sooner, and then going to doctors who didn't understand my particular anxiety disorder well enough. Once I got one who did, and put me on the right medicine at the right dose, life has been so different.
  • theCaityCat
    theCaityCat Posts: 84 Member
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    Mental health is as important as physical health. Taking medication for mental health is not cheating. Don't feel guilty about needing and accepting help. If a happy side effect is a reduction in binge eating? All the better. Good luck.
  • I_need_moar_musclez
    I_need_moar_musclez Posts: 499 Member
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    If you've been prescribed fluoxetine then take it. Remember that it has been prescribed to help your mind, so it certainly isn't cheating in any way.

    I found that I initially became hungrier on them and long term (been on 40mg a day since March 2013) they've given me the libido of a trappist monk. Good job I've been single the whole time!
  • onmyown70
    onmyown70 Posts: 233 Member
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    When my little one was younger, and I was going through a bout of depression again, I went straight back on fluoxetine - never before had I actively 'wanted' to, but this time, I knew I needed to, just to be able to continue every day being the person I needed to be. I was tired, listless, no energy (even though I was exercising) and just felt drained and down, and wanted food to help boost me, all the time. So I went back on it, and I regained masses of control. Energy went up, reliance on food went down, I felt like I was taking control and after 6 months I felt able to continue without it. Have a chat with your doc about it. Good luck x

    This provides me with hop, thank you for replying. Did you find it hard to come off? how old was your little one when you went on it- mines now three so I can't blame PND.

    I can't work out if I am just not resilient or I have low serotonin (my aunt and grandmother had PMT and depression when they were younger) . I don't know if other people have better coping mechanisms than me. Some days I think the whole world is against me- and I have to logically tell myself they're not, and I have a quick temper (but maybe I'm just not that nice!!) and of course on these days I crave food... carbs. As i said it's not chocolate brownie I crave, it's bread, cereal, porridge (even!). Of course I would eat biscuits too given half the chance but it's like I have sensed I have a low mood and either my psychological or physiological I crave the carbs to feel that "hmmm"

    Everything you are saying sounds so familiar. Its sounds like you are mildly depressed, but I am not a doctor. Would heavily advise you seeing one asap and telling them your concerns. Also, do they not refer you for some kind of talking therapy, or are there any groups around your area which could help support? Mums/eating groups, overeaters anonymous etc?

    In a hollywood movie, someone would take you aside, give you some therapy, whilst changing your diet to green juices and clean wholesome foods for a few weeks, and you would miraculously feel better. You actually would. The trouble is; its very very difficult to do this whilst you're already feeling so crap, so dependent on food and carbs, and have a full life that is already quite stressful. Maybe buy a meditation/relaxtion cd off amazon, and liste to it every night as you go to bed... you will start sleeping better, so less tried, less craving, more control over your decisions etc etc... try it... can't hurt. While you're in theis constant sugar/carb cycle though nothing will change. I hope you see your doc, buy a cd, start trying to add in some more protein fibres and fats, so they fill you up before you can eat that loaf of bread, and if nothing else is helping, that you get some support xx You are not a horrible / bad person or a failure... you're human, going through a tough patch xx


    I think you're right- I think I'm mildly depressed, and I think that's my "way". I have been severely depressed a long time ago, and then I had no will to eat, that was different. So I suppose what I'm asking is do I take fluoxetine for mild depression, I really think it will be a life long thing... I have always been like this.

    In afraid of fluoxetine, in that my libido plummets (sorry to be graphic! But the I have no drive anyway!). I think the problem is I don't get much enjoyment in anything other than food... But I don't know if that's because good gives me a "fix" as a drug would so nothing would compare. I would love to do the Hollywood green juice and therapy thing, the green juice I could probably down after my five loaves of bread lol. It's so silly I wake every day and feel and do the same thing. The odd day I feel ok (today is one) and I have no idea why today isn't a down day.

    I try and cocoon myself as I'm scared of my low moods. Then everyone gets low moods don't they? I just obviously don't deal with them well and at the time everything seems hopeless, and then I eat and it makes me feel better.

    If there was a non drug cure for mild depression I would love to know what it is!

    Thank you to other supporters, you're encouragement helps.

    Previous poster (apologies I can't scroll down to get your name) but I'm so glad fluoxetine is helping you. I think I have to be realistic too, if I went on it (I have been on it before and everything plummeted when I came off it again) it would be a long term thing x
  • onmyown70
    onmyown70 Posts: 233 Member
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    If you've been prescribed fluoxetine then take it. Remember that it has been prescribed to help your mind, so it certainly isn't cheating in any way.

    I found that I initially became hungrier on them and long term (been on 40mg a day since March 2013) they've given me the libido of a trappist monk. Good job I've been single the whole time!

    Ah the libido thing, sorry to hear you get that too. That's the reason I stopped taking it. I'm a bit worried my husband will divorce me if my libido gets any lower!
  • onmyown70
    onmyown70 Posts: 233 Member
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    Ps sorry to talk about myself again. It's not like my depression is serious - now and them it will dip very low but they are just a few days in the month. I can cheer myself up for a few seconds by running (can't do this any more), or insanely by entering a competition- I have ok idea why I think the adrenalin wakes me up.

    I think I just feel super lazy all the time. Just a "i would rather eat and go back to bed". So I can't work out if I am just majorly lazy.

    Oh Cripes I do sound a mad woman don't i. Oh well honesty and all that...
  • leahraskie
    leahraskie Posts: 260 Member
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    Antidepressants are used for treating most eating disorders, anxiety, panic disorders, personality disorders. They just get your neurotransmitters working properly again, which also might solve your feeling lazy because they are stimulants.

    I wouldn't consider it cheating or weak to use an antidepressant to help yourself. PS, SSRI's suck for symptoms, but it looks like that's the only class specifically used for binge eating.
  • lucent78
    lucent78 Posts: 4 Member
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    It is not cheating and it sounds like with the extra stress in your life at the moment you could use the support. At least until you can get running, etc. back into you life. I was on Prozac for years for my low-grade depression. I switched because of the libido-killing side effect. I do second the opinion of looking into therapy. Working through the issues behind the bingeing and creating new coping mechanisms are (imo) the only real long-term solution - with or without the prozac. I struggle with money and have found a service in my area that offers a sliding scale for counseling services, group therapy that costs much less than private sessions, and programs where you can meet with students/interns in the end of their counseling training for cheap or free. Good Luck.
  • Stella_Mayfair
    Stella_Mayfair Posts: 226 Member
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    Fluoxetine is prozac

    Than hell no it isn't cheating. I am on antidepressants and anxiety meds etc, But they make me hungrier. Plus it is for your mental health (sadly pills over therapy.) Here we have no good therapy I can afford, and I have to take the meds I am on for the rest of my God given life sadly. I wish I was on nothing, if I knew what I know now about the FDA/pharmaceutical companies when I was first introduced to Paxil, life might of been way better.

    I didn't get suicidal thought until I was put on meds and the dr assumed this was due to not enough Paxil/Trazodone etc. I was bullied horrifically in grade school-never once thought of suicide or self destructive behaviour. Now after months of those meds I was a regular at the ER, 11 years later no hope of getting off them.. But that is part of my sob story-maybe it works for you.

    I\d recommend Generation RX to anyone before they go for meds over therapy/healthy food/workouts
  • Stella_Mayfair
    Stella_Mayfair Posts: 226 Member
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    If you've been prescribed fluoxetine then take it. Remember that it has been prescribed to help your mind, so it certainly isn't cheating in any way.

    I found that I initially became hungrier on them and long term (been on 40mg a day since March 2013) they've given me the libido of a trappist monk. Good job I've been single the whole time!

    Ah the libido thing, sorry to hear you get that too. That's the reason I stopped taking it. I'm a bit worried my husband will divorce me if my libido gets any lower!

    **** that is correct!!! Well if he does, he is not your love hun. I am single and when I look at what I put up with in males, I am sickened. More self destructive behaviour. I don't need a male to help me be miserable. Neither do you. You need to help yourself or you will end up binging all your life and never see what a great person you really are. Hugz.
  • ThatRyanPerson
    ThatRyanPerson Posts: 18 Member
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    Years ago I took fluoxetine - but it had side effects- but it stopped my binge eating, or certainly helped me to feel more positive.

    Do you mean phentermine? That's a prescription appeite suppressant. I've never heard of people using fluoxetine (prozac) to counter hunger.
  • Maitria
    Maitria Posts: 439 Member
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    Fluoxetine is used to help reduce binges and is used in the treatment of bulimia. It's not for weight loss.

    OP, you might want to check out symptoms of Dysthymic Disorder and see if you relate to those. If anxiety isn't an issue, there are other meds instead of Fluoxetine that can be energizing and not impact the libido. I would see a psychiatrist, not a GP.
  • KeshiaBeard
    KeshiaBeard Posts: 63
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    Taking perscribed drugs is DEFINITELY not cheating.

    As with other body issues and mental illnesses, binge eating is caused by chemical imbalances in the brain. Medication simply gives your brain a chance to rewire itself. Whilst medication deals with the physical side of things, I highly recommend finding ways to deal with the emotional/mental issues that lead to binge eating.

    I can only speak from experience, but since starting Zoloft at the beginning of the year, my mind has never felt clearer. Medication has put my body in a stable enough state to allow me to deal with the psychological issues that were causing my problems.

    Give the meds a go, but remember they take TIME to work... don't expect to notice any real changes for the first few months. If things don't work out, don't give up, there are countless ways to deal with issues such as these. All the best!
  • trayclay0721
    trayclay0721 Posts: 5 Member
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    Only you and your Doctor can decide whether you really need it or not. If you are in a good place mentally then its easier to take care of yourself in other ways, like exercising and eating right. Good Luck
  • onmyown70
    onmyown70 Posts: 233 Member
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    Fluoxetine is used to help reduce binges and is used in the treatment of bulimia. It's not for weight loss.

    OP, you might want to check out symptoms of Dysthymic Disorder and see if you relate to those. If anxiety isn't an issue, there are other meds instead of Fluoxetine that can be energizing and not impact the libido. I would see a psychiatrist, not a GP.


    I am absolutely sure I have dysthymic disorder- it describes me to T.

    Thank you for taking the time to post.

    I do notice I have to be really careful, my moods can really plummet if I don't get enough sleep, I'm ill, taking any other medications (I'm very sensitive!) and I think I feel better when I have salmon salads for lunch but I never feel like that.

    Also, I have noticed is I have the urge to binge during the day, not in the evening. This is huge for me as my mood lifts in the evening too - which makes me think my overeating is mood related.

    Obviously if I'm too hungry, bored or stressed I eat so there is definitely a psychological response.

    I will reply to some of the other posts. Again people have really reached out and I fee I'm always taking from the groups, but I appreciate it! Muchos gracias x
  • starrylioness
    starrylioness Posts: 543 Member
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    If your doctor places you on a medication, its really not our business to be judging that desicion.

    THIS. Absolutely.
  • onmyown70
    onmyown70 Posts: 233 Member
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    Another random point is I can feel my mood improves if I have coffee (I get a mood pummel two hours post intake though) so if I was severely depressed I don't think a coffee would help! Maybe coffee just improves anyone's mood hence it's popularity! It can work the other way too though and make me tired and grumpy if I have too much.

    As I said before running helped, walking doesn't - maybe slightly, it has to be a long run, after about 45 minutes my mood gets better. However, as I mentioned before, I have damaged my knees now :-( I think that was because I didn't have a correct technique. When I felt low I would get up and go for a run, it was easy. Now I think I'll have to get into swimming, but I don't like it and It's an effort i.e., have to put my child in childcare, get changed, have my kit- towel, shampoo conditioner, it's cold lol I'm a wimp, it's not easy, does that make sense?

    Any way, I'm going off on tangents again. I suppose I'm not severely depressed, I'm not not functioning. But I have off days, and mornings are always bad - but no one loves mornings do they? I suppose what worries me and I can't work out if it's more like an eating disorder it the only things I look forward to, actually feel excited about have been my meals!!! My bingeing is not caused by starving myself!!!

    When I get PMT my bingeing got out of hand, I would say I gained a 14lbs in a week but I didn't care - I went for packets/boxes of cereal and bread. I was manic. I will feel angry and tearful (as many women do).

    So I suppose my low mood doesn't help with eating, and I do worry about my massive weight gains. I Don't eat unhealthily- it's just I will overeat carbs, they can be "bran flakes with raisins" (I never buy these but had access to boxes of them at the wrong time of the month and ate boxes of them!). the weird thing is I have this huge compulsion to eat them and everything to just keep going with the carbs, but at the same time I feel tearful.. So i have thought this an eating disorder, but then I can wake up another day and feel much better, so my hormones are influencing it.

    My husband says I just need to get out and do something, I'm "obviously bored and if I had a stressed job like him I wouldn't have all this time to analyse myself" (my poor husband he is also very supportive BTW but I obviously listen to the criticisms and he is highly driven and focused, he never has that "I can't be bothered" feeling) . However, I don't think I would function at work. I have days where I'm very slow, everything just tires me. Today is a good day, but many are not.

    Keisha - that's great that your mind is clearer since Zoloft (I will read up on this later!). I would describe myself as having a permanent mental "fog" ad often feel very lethargic. As i said, well done you for seeking help and sticking with it.

    I have heard it said that taking SSRI's can "stimulate" neurone, so they function better in the longterm. I don't know if this is true but for me, I was on prozac years ago and would say things got worse after I came off them.


    I suppose none of you can answer for me, but I do greatly appreciate the input, especially from those who have also suffered.

    A side note, my aunt started taking prozac some 10 years ago and her personality completely changed, she has never come off them!

    Any way, thank you all for your input.

    It makes me think eating is actually complex. If you need to lose weight the equation is simple , eat less and do more. However, bingeing feels out of control sometimes, and the mind can be saying "this isn't logical" but it doesn't feel like it's just a hedonistic "one more slice of cake" than needed... it's more like I need carbs... porridge, bran flakes, bread... and quantity, whatever it is I will jet keep going until it's all gone.

    I just want an energy shot please.. I thought about trying b12 injections, if it's good enough for Rhianna...!

    I keep flipping back to the thought that maybe I'm just a very lazy person and I don't have any resilience. When everyone else would scrub themselves down after a fall or when a challenge arises, they work through it, I just go into a frenzy and hide. I laughed when I saw a friend from university (some 10 years ago) she said no one knew I would pass any exams and do reasonably well, I would be about to turn up to a lecture and then think"no I can't face it" and go and buy some food, (in this case it was a bag of apples!) and go to my dorm instead. So maybe I just have a faulty coping mechanism.
  • onmyown70
    onmyown70 Posts: 233 Member
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    PS So I suppose I am posting on myfitnesspal because it is food related. I look for food to bring me up and it does, it's on y mind a lot of the time and it's what gets my pulse racing! temporarily... so whether this is an eating disorder or depression I don't know. Sometimes I can't get any enjoyment from anything else (I adore my family and at night will think how awful I am) and I know I am so lucky to have the life I have. So feel very ungrateful when I think of all those that truly suffer.
  • onmyown70
    onmyown70 Posts: 233 Member
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    If your doctor places you on a medication, its really not our business to be judging that desicion.

    THIS. Absolutely.

    You're all pretty kind, I judge myself so of course, expect it from strangers.

    I must admit though, to see all your posts this morning felt really reassuring. i appreciate you are all strangers but it helps hearing others opinions thoughts
  • onmyown70
    onmyown70 Posts: 233 Member
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    If you've been prescribed fluoxetine then take it. Remember that it has been prescribed to help your mind, so it certainly isn't cheating in any way.

    I found that I initially became hungrier on them and long term (been on 40mg a day since March 2013) they've given me the libido of a trappist monk. Good job I've been single the whole time!

    Ah the libido thing, sorry to hear you get that too. That's the reason I stopped taking it. I'm a bit worried my husband will divorce me if my libido gets any lower!

    **** that is correct!!! Well if he does, he is not your love hun. I am single and when I look at what I put up with in males, I am sickened. More self destructive behaviour. I don't need a male to help me be miserable. Neither do you. You need to help yourself or you will end up binging all your life and never see what a great person you really are. Hugz.

    Ah bless you, I'm sorry you sound like you have had to deal with a bit of stress from others. Do you ensure you take care of yourself these days? eating, sleeping and exercise wise?

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