anti depressants & weight loss. Help?

Sadiee,
Your best bet is to talk to your doctor.
Your right the internet is not the best tool.
I am on 50 mg of Pristiq, and haven't gained any weight, however, others have.
I think it all depends on your diet and activity levels.
If you have plateaued (2 months or more) I would try switching things up a little.
Hope things work out for you.

Tracy

I'm taking the same medication (but 40 mg of it) and my weight didn't change at all. It's not just myths, Citalopram can either make you gain weight, lose weight or not change your weight at all (and in that case you might get headaches, hallucinations, whatever you're unlucky enough to get). It's different for everybody.

10 mg a day shouldn't change much, though. Just watch your body for a while, most likely it will neither help nor stop your weight loss.

I've taken Prozac and Wellbutrin in the past and neither affected my appetite or weight however they didn't help me so I had to change medications. I've just started taking zoloft for my anxiety/depression and I've experienced a big lack of appetite which has never happened to me before. Also, if I don't take my pill with food it can make me nauseous.

The thing is that medications have different side effects on different people. You won't know how they will affect you until you take them. Some people may experience weight loss because their anti depression medication gives them more energy or they may start feeling better and not binge out of feeling sorry for oneself for example. It also could be like my case where the actual medication affects my appetite.

I have taken Cipramil, Paxil and have just been put on Serntra (the generic Zoloft).

I gained a LOT of weight when I was on Paxil.. I was hungry all the time, plus they ended up having to tie me down because I was having severe hallucinations on it. I think it has more to do with hunger and activity levels than metabolism though, so long as you stay within cals you should be fine (don't quote me on that).

I lost weight weight simply because I wasn't self medicating with food anymore. It also made me stop laying around and get active again. I will say for a while in the beginning I did notice it really made food taste different...things I normally liked just tasted weird. But that only lasted a couple months. So for me, it really jump started my weight loss...now several years later I am thinner, healthier and no longer need medication.

I was on Paxil for a year and it is true that antidepressants cause some to lose weight and some to gain it. I think it is all about how you start to feel once they kick in. Some people may feel like they have more energy without being bogged down by the depression so they become more active, hence the weight loss, others may feel like eating more because they feel better, hence the weight gain. I will tell you that all my life I never weighed more than 95 to 100 pounds. After my first six months on Paxil I gained 17 pounds. I eventually topped out at 130 pounds on it and the weight gain made my depression worse so I decided to talk to my doctor and get off the Paxil. It has been 2 years off of it and I am still battling to lose the weight I gained while on it (was 138 down to 133.6 currently). This program has been really helpful for me. I still battle the depression and anxiety, but I find that exercising helps me feel better so the depression and anxiety don't affect me so badly.

Hi

I'm really confused regarding anti depressants and weight loss, i know google isn't the best tool to use to find answers sometimes but i'm getting alot of mixed messages and i want to know if some statements are myths or facts.

I have been put on 10mg citalopram and some people state they have gained weight, others said they have lost weight; does this just depend on your appetite or is there something in the pill that causes the gain or loss?

does anyone have their own expirience with it, if so, did you notice any difference?

I've seemed to have come to a plateau of my weight loss and i'm not sure whether this is linked to the citalopram or i just need to mix up my routine and eating habits slightly.

thanks

My friend was also in the same situation just like u ....But Antidepressants make him gain weight . I know that part of it is due to not exercising or eating right, but she pretty much doing what she did a year ago yet she gained weight. The only thing that changed was medication. It's discouraging. :yawn:

The only AD I know that doesn't cause weight gain is Wellbutrin. It affects different areas of the the brain and is more of a stimulant. It seems like every psychiatric med has weight gain as a possible side effect. What's up with that?!

I have been on Pristiq for a couple of years on varying doses (anywhere from 50 - 200mg) and can honestly say that any weight gain has been due to poor diet and lack of physical activity. In the past 8 or so weeks I have managed to lose approx 10kg and the medication has not impacted this at all.

Personally I have found that exercise is absolutely brilliant to assist with depression. I recommend you get out and get moving as often as you can.