Lexapro/Celexa weight gain issues!

AlyssaLynette
AlyssaLynette Posts: 13 Member
edited October 4 in Health and Weight Loss
I have high anxiety and mild depression. I take Lexapro (have taken Celexa w/same problem before). They both cause weight gain! Does anyone else have this problem? How did you work around it? Did you change medication or discontinue it?

Replies

  • dkvote
    dkvote Posts: 58
    BIG PROBLEM with it...also on water pill...bad combination! I quit taking it and the doctor gave me buspar instead...
  • WordToYourMamma
    WordToYourMamma Posts: 31
    I have been on several meds for depression/anxiety, including Celexa. I currently am on Cymbalta, which does not cause weight gain. I like it better too. Actually, I think like 4% of people on it lose a couple pounds. It kind of dulls your taste buds, some. Makes mine feel funny anyway. Don't know if that's the reason some people lose weight.
  • Gigi_licious
    Gigi_licious Posts: 1,185 Member
    BIG PROBLEM with it...also on water pill...bad combination! I quit taking it and the doctor gave me buspar instead...

    I think your new meds are causing some discoloration of your skin....might want to get that checked out.
  • megz4987
    megz4987 Posts: 1,008 Member
    I took lexapro for a year and didn't gain weight. Infact, I lost 10lb in 2 months mildly being cooperative with Weight Watchers.
  • khartley535
    khartley535 Posts: 151 Member
    I've been taking Lexapro since the beginning of May, and my Dr. doubled my dose at the end of September. I haven't had any problems dropping weight since I started here mid September.
  • lisacandoit1965
    lisacandoit1965 Posts: 36 Member
    I am a pharmacy tech and have heard that Wellbutrin causes you to lose weight too
  • Marig0ld
    Marig0ld Posts: 671 Member
    Everyone is different, of course. I had crazy weight gain on Lexapro, but I also was eating tons and tons of garbage food and not giving a crap about it. Zoloft wasn't so bad, but my mom gained a ton when she was on it. Just keep an open dialogue with your doctor about your reaction to meds and he/she will assess your needs (if they're a good doc, of course)! To be honest, regular exercise helps me more with my depression than meds ever did. But you gotta stick with it, and that's the hard part.

    Best of luck to you :-)
  • ahinescapron
    ahinescapron Posts: 351 Member
    I was on Lexapro for about 5 years. It did not cause my weight gain (having babies and fertility treatments did that), but it did make it almost impossible to lose weight. I work out a lot and have for years and I count every calorie, but my body just doesn't want to give up the weight. Everyone is different, though, and it depends on your individual body chemistry.
  • dkvote
    dkvote Posts: 58
    Oh and one more thing...when I was prescribed the Buspar...I didn't end up taking it, but it is supposed to work sooner than most of the others that take awhile to get into your system...good luck!
  • dkvote
    dkvote Posts: 58
    :blushing:
  • shovav91
    shovav91 Posts: 2,335 Member
    I was on Lexapro for a while and gained a LOT of weight. I don't take it anymore... I try to deal with my anxiety and depression in a more natural way now. Exercise helps so much as well. Best of luck! Feel free to message me with any questions.
  • TXBlonde81
    TXBlonde81 Posts: 78 Member
    I have been on a few different ones. I found that Effexor and Lexapro didn't work for me so I was still, depressed and therefore, gained weight. I was only on Cymbalta for 1 week before I changed meds. I'm currently on Prozac and Wellbutrin and feeling so much better. I haven't noticed weight gain. I am retrying MFP and exercising so I'm hoping to see the weight loss.

    I think the main thing is making sure the medicine is working for you. If it isn't then you might still have depression and weight gain associated with that and not the meds.
  • it_be_asin
    it_be_asin Posts: 562 Member
    Effexor and Celexa didn't cause me to gain a gram. They may or may not cause weight gain in others.
  • kristin335
    kristin335 Posts: 26
    I'm actually a resident physician, and all the research I've read in professional journals indicates Wellbutrin (Buproprion) actually aids in weight loss, but it hasn't been shown to be as effective in managing anxiety and depression as some of the other options available. Something to keep in mind, and possibly to discuss with your doctor if this would be a good option for you.
  • AlyssaLynette
    AlyssaLynette Posts: 13 Member
    Thank you all for the response. It helps to hear from others dealing with similar issues!
  • inlander
    inlander Posts: 339 Member
    I had the same problem - actually, I'm on Celexa currently (prescribed 40mg) and it wasn't so much that the Celexa caused the weight gain as much as (1) it lowered my inhibitions and self-control and (2) it made the weight kind of hard to LOSE. Two things that don't combine to create a healthy girl, ha. In October, I began tapering down the medication on my own and am now taking 10mg daily. I'm attempting to completely get off them by mid-November; if you want, add me as a friend on here and you can see if that causes any kind of drastic change in my weight. ;) If you're interested, there are some supplements you can take that you can replace your SSRI with ... but that's only if you feel comfortable weaning yourself from your medication. If you don't think you're ready, I'd definitely recommend staying on the SSRI and just exercising a lot to make up for the metabolic resistance that the drug seems to cause. Mental health needs to be #1.
  • AlyssaLynette
    AlyssaLynette Posts: 13 Member
    Great advice, Inlander. I am considering weaning back on the Lexapro a bit. I can't imagine stopping it, but eventually... maybe. Just maybe, once I am weaned back enough I can imagine stopping!
  • Espressocycle
    Espressocycle Posts: 2,245 Member
    I gained 8 lbs after I went on Celexa. That was before MFP though. Since I started monitoring calories on this site my weight loss has been steady and in line with my goals.
  • TXBlonde81
    TXBlonde81 Posts: 78 Member
    Great advice, Inlander. I am considering weaning back on the Lexapro a bit. I can't imagine stopping it, but eventually... maybe. Just maybe, once I am weaned back enough I can imagine stopping!

    Maybe next time you see your doctor you can mention the weight gain/loss issue and maybe they can cut one medication and add another or just switch you. I remember complaining about lack of energy and no interest in exercise and my doctor added in Wellbutrin to help with the energy issue. Maybe see if you can add that in?
  • mochaphobic
    mochaphobic Posts: 92 Member
    I gained over 30 pounds on Lexapro while actively trying to maintain my weight. But it made me so sleepy the first 2 months that I ate to stay awake in the car. It was a bad med for me and it took me a year to call the dr's office and say I was weaning off it, mostly because I was told to stay on it every time I complained. I ended up switching doctors. My new one prescribed Wellbutrin and Xanax and they help my anxiety (and seasonal depression) much better.
  • stephanie_RN
    stephanie_RN Posts: 1 Member
    I was on Lexapro for about 2 years, been off for a week now...I gained 40 pounds while on this med! Hoping now the weight will be easier to take off! I'm going to try to deal with issues in a natural way exercise etc.
  • BT1988
    BT1988 Posts: 48 Member
    I am on Lexapro right now. At first I was 10mg and had some good weight loss but then he put me on 20mg and I cannot lose weight for the life of me! My depression is under control but I am so scared to get off Lexapro. I don't know how to medicate myself naturally. I have a lot of anxiety and mood swings without my medication. I do take a lot of vitamins along with my lexapro. I take 2000mg of Omega 3 everyday along with 1000 mg of b12 and a multivitamin. If anyone knows what else I can do to not fall into depression and lose my weight....please help me =(
  • MzBug
    MzBug Posts: 2,173 Member
    I was put on Lexapro after my father passed away (7 years ago). I had some major side effects... sweat pouring hot flashes, ringing in my ears (took months to go away), weight gain and very bad mood swings. It just didn't agree with me. Since I have always had some rather strange reactions to medications I only took half the dose that the doctor prescribed to start. When I went for a follow up 45 days later I told the doctor what was going on....he DOUBLED the dose! And added Paxil. I never filled them. I weaned myself off the Lexapro and never looked back. A couple years later I was massively stressed out at work, couldn't sleep, couldn't eat, working 16 hours a day 7 days a week... I asked the doc for something to help me get some sleep. He put me on Wellbutrin when I refused to take Lexapro. Again I had some massive side effects. The worst was the restless leg syndrome....I couldn't sit still for 5 minutes, couldn't lay down, and forget sleeping! I was falling asleep while standing and driving! I stopped taking that too. I used SamE for a while and that helped with the stress issues, and Melatonin helps me get a good restful sleep even if at times it was less than 6 hours.
  • Espressocycle
    Espressocycle Posts: 2,245 Member
    I gained 10 lbs on Celexa, but since then I have lost 20 here.
  • redtamberine
    redtamberine Posts: 1
    I actually lost about 8 pounds on Lexapro, but it quit working for me and when my MD switched me to Effexor I gained at least 5 pounds back.
  • iNkedFiTmama
    iNkedFiTmama Posts: 277 Member
    I must have got lucky b/c I'm on celexa and I've ready plenty about the weight issues, freaked me out & made me wanna stop taking it ..but that isn't a pretty picture either :| but I didn't really have trouble losing weight on celexa..so far lol.

    *I got it after pregnancy for PPD so I started off bigger & had to lose the weight.
This discussion has been closed.

Categories