meds and weight gain

I am having trouble losing weight also. I was started on Seroquel XR and was doing fine with my weight until he upped the dose to 800mg. Now I am stuck at about 149lbs. I exercise 6 days a week which includes 20-30 of P90X and 1-1.5 hours at the gym. I've been doing this for two or three weeks but my weight doesn't budge. The only change that I have noticed is my thighs look a little more toned. I'm calling my dr on Monday. Sorry this is so long.

Do not stop taking your meds. Talk to your doctor(s) about adjusting doses and/or trying different combinations.

Tara- what meds are you on? I'm assuming it's SSRIs (antidepressants) as they are notorious for weight gain.

I am a prime example of this. I was TINY my entire life… couldn't gain a single pound no matter how much food I ate. I was diagnosed with generalized anxiety and panic disorder 3 years ago and had no choice but to start medication for it. I was a skinny but healthy 97 lbs when I started the meds. 3 years later and I have gained 103.5 lbs from all of the medications I've tried.

I've been on:
Zoloft
Prozac
Lexapro (WORKED THE BEST BUT CAUSED THE MOST WEIGHT GAIN)
Celexa
Cymbalta
Ativan
Propranonol
Effexor
Pristiq

I am now 200.5 lbs and considered obese for my height. Because of the rapid weight gain, I developed insulin resistance and reactive hypoglycemia. I am now on medication to stabilize my blood sugar. Insulin resistance makes it very difficult to lose weight… nearly impossible. I haven't been able to lose any weight so far, but then again I am eating way more than I should be and I'm not exercising consistently because of other medical issues.

Honestly, get off the meds if you can. Look into alternative medicine. I have been weaning off Lexapro, Pristiq, and Propranonol for the past 4 months and am still not off them completely. I went from taking 100 mg of Pristiq to 12.5 mg today. I started taking 40 mg of Lexapro and take 10 mg today. And I started taking 50 mg of Propranonol and only take 10 mg today. I can't do the things I want to do because I am not on a therapeutic dosage anymore but I simply couldn't keep gaining weight. Mental health is important but so is my overall health and at this rate if I continued taking the meds I would continue to gain weight and probably die by the time I was 50 from a heart attack or stroke or diabetes, etc. These meds ruined my life, body, self-confidence.

Thanks for all the responses!
I am on :
cymbalta
clozapine
ritalin
abilify
prozac
clonazepam
and birth control..yaz

whew. Seems like a lot I know...I was quite ill.
I was anorexic starting those meds recovered fine but have gone from 90to182lbs...my high weight,
now considered obese.

I dont mind the number as much as the body image woes.its so hard.
I got christmas gifts today that are too tight...BLAH

I'm really shocked your doctor has you taking all of those meds. The drug interactions between them can be quite dangerous. I suggest getting off of at least 3 or 4 of them. Talk to your doctor about this. Also, ask your doctor about Wellbutrin. Wellbutrin does not cause weight gain and I know many people who have had a lot of success with it.

Also look into changing your birth control. Yaz does cause weight gain. I suggest Junel (Loestrin). It is a birth control with the lowest amount of estrogen, therefore, it causes the least amount of side effects. I've been on it for over 4 years and love it.

No no, you will fit in them.

I belive you can have your cake and eat it too (or in this case have your meds and lose weight too). You just have to do some tweaking. Monitor your foods or portions or cut calories, up exercise etc. Whatever, thats what I am doing in the new year. I take seroquel and epival so trust me, I know what you mean

you can do it!