antidepressants and weight loss struggle. talk to me.

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13

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  • jlplove
    jlplove Posts: 25
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    I have been on Zoloft for 6 years I packed on 30 lbs! Going off of Zoloft is not an option. I started this diet 4 weeks ago, and have lost 8 lbs! You can do it!!! Diet and excercise and loving support from Friends and family! You can be on a anti-Depressant and lose weight! It is possible!
  • teamryanmama
    teamryanmama Posts: 4
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    When I get depressed I stop being depressed and start being awesome instead. True Story.

    This isn't very helpful :( You can't just decide to stop being depressed
  • Skinny_Jeans_Soon
    Skinny_Jeans_Soon Posts: 326 Member
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    Just my experience - I had the same concern so I quit taking them at the beginning and lost 83 pounds. It was hard to transition off of them (on prozac since I was 18). The exercise makes a huge impact on helping also when not on meds.
  • A_New_Horizon
    A_New_Horizon Posts: 1,555 Member
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    I am with you, and I don't know which anti-depressant you are on. I have been on them since Nov. Before the anti-depressants, I was down 62 lbs - well over time the weight started coming back on - it was steadily coming back on (like 1-2 lbs/week). I was on Celexa during that time. Well, about 2 months ago, I went to my dr with the weight concern. I had worked far too hard to allow all this weight to go back on. She switched me to Wellbutrin, and I have quit gaining weight. Right now, I am maintaining. You see I really can't do much when it comes to exercising because I am suffering from a knee injury. I am just happy that I am not gaining anymore - I have put on about 25 lbs from my lowest weight back in Nov, but I am still much smaller than what I was almost 2 yrs ago when the scale almost hit 200 lbs. I know once I can get my knee back to normal AND get off the anti-depressants in time (after my divorce) I can get the weight back off. Right now, I am just trying to maintain. It is doable with alot of work - trust me!!!!
  • tbskipp
    tbskipp Posts: 184 Member
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    When I get depressed I stop being depressed and start being awesome instead. True Story.
    That's not how depression works. Nice idea though.

    THIS!
  • Angie_Fritts
    Angie_Fritts Posts: 263 Member
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    I take Wellbutrin XL and it does not have the side effect of weight gain. Thank God.

    I would sugges talking to your Doctor about possibly changing your meds. But it is my understanding that Lexapro is supposed to be weight neautral. I don't know anything about Prozac.

    Good Luck!
  • MinMin97
    MinMin97 Posts: 2,676 Member
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    A few years ago I experienced depression for the first time ever.
    Took me by surprise!
    Now I can empathize with those who experience this.
    My experience was to get complete healing from it:
    Use exercise as part of your treatment! The healing combo for me was exercise, stress reduction, vitamin d3, fish oil and St John's Wort (herb) extract. ( I took the herb for 6 months, and sometimes take it during the winter months as preventative).

    PM me if you want more details.

    Best wishes and blessings!
  • A_New_Horizon
    A_New_Horizon Posts: 1,555 Member
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    When I get depressed I stop being depressed and start being awesome instead. True Story.

    You can't just "stop being depressed". It is a medical fact that it is usually an imbalance in hormones (which is my problem).
  • danasings
    danasings Posts: 8,218 Member
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    When I get depressed I stop being depressed and start being awesome instead. True Story.

    I wish it worked this way!! :)
  • DelilahCat0212
    DelilahCat0212 Posts: 282 Member
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    Prozac took away my appetite...for a week. I also didn't sleep much that week. It's not doing that anymore. Thankfully, I'm only on it to get off Celexa (no brain zaps...yay) and in a week or so I will taper off the Prozac for good.

    I wish I could have taken Wellbutrin - it turned me into Cranky McCrankerpants when I took it alone or with other meds. I was wayyyy too agitated.
  • ahinescapron
    ahinescapron Posts: 351 Member
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    I was on Lexapro for 5 years and could not lose an ounce on it. I switched to Viibryd and have been able to lose. Every person's body chemistry is different, so you really need to find what works for you. I would express your concerns to your doctor and discuss options for medication.
    Also, please ignore the advice to stop taking meds and simply exercise. Exercise can be a good part of your treatmen and can help control weight gaint, but not taking medicine is not an option for many of us. Some people really don't know what severe depression is like and how destructive it really is.
    I hope you are able to find something that works for you!
  • betsywalton
    betsywalton Posts: 22
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    Best advice is talk to your provider. Cymbalta is an SNRI (same class as Effexor). Weight gain isn't normally a side effect, but could be caused by something else going on with your drug regimine or your metabolism. Wellbutrin, recommended here by a few respondants, is a different class of anti-depressant. It also helps with smoking cessation if you happen to be a smoker. Celexa is a good SSRI, similar method of action as your Cymbalta, but may work better. Whenever you are taking SNRI or SSRI you should taper off (and on). Don't stop suddenly or you may experience negative side effects. If you taper up or down, you won't have those issues.

    Your depression may also require counseling to complement the pharm therapy. Have you tried that? This is especially important in post partum situations such as yours.
  • amelia_atlantic
    amelia_atlantic Posts: 926 Member
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    When I get depressed I stop being depressed and start being awesome instead. True Story.
    That's not how depression works. Nice idea though.

    THIS!

    It's a quote from the T.V. show How I Met Your Mother. I'm sure the person that posted it is not trying to be cruel...
  • Gizziemoto
    Gizziemoto Posts: 430 Member
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    Also, please ignore the advice to stop taking meds and simply exercise. Exercise can be a good part of your treatmen and can help control weight gaint, but not taking medicine is not an option for many of us. Some people really don't know what severe depression is like and how destructive it really is.

    So true! I take my meds every day and have found that adding exercise has helped too. I will never be without medication (did that once and did not turn out well) and plan to continue to exercise not just for my physical health but my mental health as well.
  • MinMin97
    MinMin97 Posts: 2,676 Member
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    When I get depressed I stop being depressed and start being awesome instead. True Story.
    I think I about had this attitude before experiencing depression/anxiety myself.
    It's not a joke!
    I never take meds, don't even own aspirin/tylenol. Had 5 babies completely natural, no meds/procedures.
    BUT When I got depressed/anxiety, I started looking at my husband's drug book!! (he's an orthopedic nurse)
    So don't think you can just muscle your way out of this with bootstraps and tough love! Depends on your situation and life dynamics!
    Fortunately, I was able to address my situation naturally, as stated in my above response in this post.
  • sevsmom
    sevsmom Posts: 1,172 Member
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    It's been ages, but at one point I was on wellbutrin/lexapro combination. I was already scary skinny from my divorce-diet (NOT recommended!!) and needed some help. The combo actually pushed me down another 6 lbs to 124 (and while I'm 5'5", that weight looks AWFUL on me). I ate like a horse, but stayed at 124 for 6 months. Then I slowly gained the 6 lbs back. Then, I met someone new, and fell in love, stepped down off all the meds. . . and after marrying, life stress, another baby, juggling 5 kids, and what not. . . popped up to 168 not pregnant or postpartum (and THAT weight does not look good on me either!).

    I hope you find a some medicine which helps your emotional stability and actually helps you feel hopeful and excited. I know that it's possible!!!
  • spikefoot
    spikefoot Posts: 419
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    Some people are saying that you can just lose weight on them. That is not true because depending on how they effect your body they can cause weight gain even if you are doing all the right things.

    You have a few approaches from what I can see:

    1. Don't take them and focus on fixing the things in your life that bother you. Sometimes this is not always possible (not situational or cannot be changed) and I realize that.

    2. Take some that don't cause weight gain but don't help you feel less depressed.

    3. Take the "right" ones and gain and accept how you look and be happy.

    All of these options sound a little damned if you do, damned if you don't and kinda contradict the purpose.


    In the end I would say stick with them and a healthy lifestyle for a bit and get a good understanding of what the problem is, you can always switch meds and you can always get off them and go without. Everyone is so different in the way they will react. Perhaps just make a list of the pros and cons.

    Good luck :)
  • confettibetti
    confettibetti Posts: 405 Member
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    When I get depressed I stop being depressed and start being awesome instead. True Story.

    me too! :-) Chin up buttercup, and like others have said, try a different medication! I take generic prozac, once weekly, and my weightloss is slow, but steady.
  • wxchaser
    wxchaser Posts: 178
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    I never struggled with weight until I
    A) had 3 kids
    and
    B) went on antidepressants.

    Feeling hopeless right now.

    I saw everyone's success pictures last night and at first it was encouraging and the more I looked the more down in the dumps I got. I'd just like to look like a lot of people's BEFORE pictures.

    Is there hope? I'm okay with never being a size 6 again but dang I'd like to lose another 10-20 pounds (lost 20ish last year).

    I have to stay on the meds, so not taking them isn't an option.

    Would love to hear from people who have successfully lost weight while on Prozac/Lexapro/etc...

    I was on Lexapro and I managed to lose 17lbs before an injury sidetracked me. I'm back on my diet and back at the gym.

    I know you can do it too. It's tough when you're on antidepressants, but once you start regularly exercising, things get better. You start to feel better, and eventually you'll feel so good, you won't need the drugs anymore. That's what happened to me. I've been off the Lexapro since March and I couldn't be happier going to the gym 6 times a week. It's motivating to just go for half an hour or more and work out because it gets the natural feel good chemicals working in your brain.
  • ElicitDreams
    ElicitDreams Posts: 73 Member
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    I was on Lithium for 2 months and not only was it nasty stuff for me, but I also gained 30 pounds and now I can't seem to get any of it off. It definately sucks having the need for an antidepressant AND the need to lose weight and not being able to get either under control. (While getting the meds to work is awesome, having them counteract the weight loss aspect is daunting.) As much as I hate hearing this myself, it helps if you just focus on one of those things at a time. While I have not completely lost sight of my WL goal, I've sort of put it on the back burner to make sure I'm mentally ok first. I still work out and I still eat well, it's just not my main focus now. Maybe you could give that a try? Whatever you do, don't give up on either goal. I mean, they say losing weight is mostly mental, right? It's equally as important as proper diet or exercising.

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