input on my diet and dealing with antidepressants

Silverfoot · May 2014

Hello. I'm in need of some guidance.

I'm 32 years old. I am 5'3" and 180 pounds. My weight is evenly distributed. I have never been a thin person although I have been thinner than I am now. In high school I was 150-160 pounds. I thought I was fat then and of course I was compared to most teenage girls, but I was a lot thinner than I am now. So my goal is to get back to 150.

Here's the problem. Well there is two main issues. I'm on an antidepressant and I have PCOS. My thyroid has been checked and my insulin levels have been checked and I know the thyroid was normal but I can't remember the insulin test... I suspect it was normal since the doctor never called me to discuss it.

I started on Paxil in college and gained the extra weight. Then a few years ago I went off Paxil and within a very short time like 1-2 months I lost nearly 20 pounds. I wish I'd kept a log of what I was eating because I don't *feel* like my eating changed at all. But I suffered the worst withdrawal symptoms and my anxiety was 10X worse than it had been before going on Paxil, so I decided I needed to go back on an AD. I suffered through the symptoms almost a whole year before I just couldn't bare it any longer.

I was put on Celexa in hopes that it would work similarly to Paxil without the weight gain side effects. It has helped my anxiety. I still have a hint of some of the Paxil-withdrawal symptoms but they are manageable. I gained back even more weight this time and I feel like a cow.

I'm not that active and I'm not sure how I could squeeze in time at the gym because I work a very long day and then I ride my horse which takes a long time. I usually get home late. But anyway, I don't really feel working out would help much although I'm not opposed to doing it if I can figure out how to squeeze it in (I am moving soon and I will be across from a lake so I'm thinking I might be able to find myself a rowing skull and go out early mornings--I know how to row). But I've been more active at different periods of my life and it's never helped me lose weight. Once for 6 weeks I worked as a working student 6 days a week and they were long days on my feet the entire time with lots of walking/physical work and I didn't lose anything.

So I guess I will have to focus on food. But the thing is I feel like my diet is not horrific. But I guess I just have to come to terms with the idea that, even if it's not that bad of a diet I need to go beyond average and in order to lose weight. It's not a great diet because I don't cook. I don't have time to cook and I live by myself so I feel bad to cook anything and have to throw away a lot of ingredients that don't get used up in time. But my work has a nice cafeteria so what I do is have a big lunch and then a small dinner. Here is kind of the average day for me:

breakfast is a piece of toast and vanilla lowfat yogurt with frozen blueberries (about 2/3 of a cup total).
lunch is a bigger meal like one day I had roasted chicken breast, string beans and stuffing or sometimes I'll get a turkey cheeseburger etc. Sometimes I will eat sweet potato fries but not a lot. Sometimes I will have a decent sized choc. chip cookie. And ice coffee with sugar and milk--I think I will go and buy some sweet n low for my coffee. So like those are kind of the worst of my current diet.

I'll have an afternoon snack of soy or almond milk, fruit and some crackers maybe. Then for dinner I have a bowl of cereal or oatmeal and decaf tea.

I don't feel like this is the diet of someone who weighs as much as I do but obviously for me I need to just suck it up and eat less and eat less crap. Like no more cookies or sugar. Why I am putting it off though is that I love having those cookies. I don't have them every day. Maybe 2 or 3 times a week. And I really hate vegetables but I know I need to eat more of them. They just make me feel disgusting.

I'm so tempted to just go off the antidepressant but then I won't be able to function. What do you guys think. Is there maybe some kind of diet out there that would be easier for me to stick with and that might work? Anyone else have experience with antidepressants and losing weight?

Any ideas for what I could eat for dinner besides cereal or oatmeal that would be lower in calories/healthier for me and easy to make? Obviously I could eat salads but if you have any ideas that isn't salad that would be fantastic.

Fit_Chef_NE · May 2014

I started at similar height and weight as you and even had a similar diet. I honestly cut out all breads, pastas and sugar. I decided to start with just a week to see how I could handle it. It was so freaking hard but by the end of the week, my carb cravings were gone.

Since then I have not re-introduced any gluten products back into my diet. I eat a LOT more veggies than I used to (Pretty much some veggies at all meals) and I have tiny bits of sugar in there. I also give myself something to look forward to everyday.

I trick myself by eating my salad or veggies first, while the rest of my food cooks. Then I have a tasty protein and starch or dairy product to enjoy without those pesky veggies. Sometimes I really enjoy eating the veg but often I just shovel it in. I find by starting with the veggies, then eating the protein and then the starch, I don't always have room left to eat the carby stuff. I am losing weight and still enjoy a potato almost everyday. I also indulge in dark chocolate and berries most nights.

By cutting out the bread and grains, I don't have the extreme hunger I had before and I can actually eat more food with less calories and end up just as full. There are other benefits I have discovered from changing my eating patterns and the longer I go, the more I enjoy it.

rm33064 · May 2014

As long as you aren't suicidal or have extreme symptoms you should definitely be working towards stopping taking anti depressants. It sucks that they started you on them so young. Are you really supposed to be medicated for the rest of your life? Doctors are too quick to prescribe them and as you found out when you came off them, they can be physically, emotionally, and mentally addictive and it can be debilitating when you stop taking them. Hopefully you are working with a therapist on your issues with the goal of freeing yourself from the medication. It's not as hard as you might think, people do it everyday. Start by making healthy food choices and MAKE yourself be more active. Food is the most abused anxiety drug and exercise is the most underutilized anti depressant.

Fit_Chef_NE · May 2014

As for ideas: I will bake chicken breast (brushed lightly with olive oil and seasonings) with some roasted veggies (zucchini, squash, onions, carrots, parsnips, eggplant etc) and then make myself a baked potato or potato wedges. If I don't have time to roast the veggies, or have some leftover chicken I need to use up, I will make a salad, but I don't make a salad to torture myself with. I make a tasty dressing from scratch, throw berries, scallions and 1/8 cup of cheese on top and then add the chicken to it. I also throw a tablespoon of toasted walnuts or pecans in the salad for some crunch.

Another salad I LOVE is Spinach and bacon salad. It's under 500 calories. I cook 4 pieces of bacon, then add onions and garlic, stir it into the bacon grease (reserve the bacon bits on the side) and pour the grease into a bowl and add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and a teaspoon of Dijon mustard. This will become the dressing. Then plate a big bowl of baby spinach topped with the onions and garlic, then toss in the dressing. Top it with the crumbled bacon, half a sliced avocado and one hard boiled egg. (You can change up the toppings a bit like using tomato and cucumber or whatever you prefer). It's tasty, filling and does not feel like diet food.

MaggieLoo79 · May 2014

Hmm...I'm on celexa and am having a terrible time losing weight!!! I've gained 40 pounds!!! Sounds like I need a trip to the doctor for some new meds. Thank you for sharing this. I hadn't realized this was a side effect. :flowerforyou:

Silverfoot · May 2014

Thanks for everyone's input.

I did try the south beach diet two years ago. I did the 2 week no-carb thing but my cravings for carbs only increased. I wanted to murder someone for an apple by the end of the 2 weeks and when it was over I binged out on carbs.

Also exercise actually makes me feel more depressed. It's strange but a year ago I tried the couch to 5k. I didn't have a job then so I had plenty of time for exercise. And every time, while I was cooling out I would suddenly get a wave of very very sad/deppresive feeling. Thankfully, I've been through that before when I was originally put on Zoloft and ended up in the hospital, so this time I knew what was going on and just waited it out each time.

I still would like to exercise if I can make time for it somehow.

Anyway, yeah I had the worst pyschiatrist while I was in college. I had mild depression which I have had my whole life. But he just stuck me on Zoloft and I guess I just thought, why not give it a try. Talking therapy has never helped me. Then I ended up having a very bad reaction to the Zoloft--becoming very depressed and suicidal and ending up in the hospital. Then they switched me to Paxil. The ADs never actually have helped my depression, I still have the same depression I've had my whole life, but I don't have anxiety anymore. I used to get very severe anxiety every night and Paxil took care of that.

But then after being on it several years I felt like I could go off it because I had a handle on my anxiety and I would be ok. I was already on the lowest dose so I had to get a liquid solution and decrease it so slowly--it took months and months to come off it because every time I went too fast I would get brain zaps. Then finally when I was off it I started getting horrible withdrawls--mood swings, very irritable, sexual side effects, then the anxiety came back except twice as bad as it was before I was on the Paxil. I started having anxiety about every day stuff which I didn't have before. I still kind of have that anxiety a little and some of the other withdrawal symptoms but anyway, I waited all this out for almost a year. I liked being 15-20 pounds lighter!

Finally I just couldn't deal with it any more so decided to go back on AD. Sometimes I think I should just switch back to Paxil because Paxil did a better job at some stuff than Celexa does and since I gained more weight on Celexa then I did Paxil... But sometimes I think I should try to go off the AD but then I worry about the anxiety coming back. I functioned with my anxiety all my life but the severity of my anxiety after going off Paxil rendered me non-functioning. And I can't afford to miss work and go through that all over again.

The funny part is that the ADs never did anything for my depression which is mild anyway. I've come to learn to live with my depression. But the anxiety is not livable and the other withdrawal problems are not livable. But maybe I will try to talk to a doctor to find out if there is some other kind of AD I could be on. The doctor I talked to, when I went back on an AD, said the only reason ADs make you gain weight is because they increase your appetite. I do think I noticed that with Paxil. I was hungry quite a lot and other people would make light of it, that I was always hungry. But I don't feel that on the Celexa. I mean I go quite a long time without food without thinking about being hungry.

Just wanted to add, I thought maybe because I've just started my job in Feb, and my diet has changed since then and I feel like I'm eating less than I used to before the job, that maybe I'd lost a little bit of weight. I just weighed myself and I have gained 2 pounds.

J_Remps · May 2014

Hi there,

I just started antidepressants and gained 20 pounds in a couple months already without even noticing it. I didn't THINK my habits changed, but now that I think of it, I remember being hungry all.the.time! I've only fluctuated 5-10 lbs up and down for 25 years until now.

Eat carbohydrates, but not too much, as they DO help with serotonin production. I like carbs at lunch, but I heard they're better in the morning. If we're talking carbs to help serotonin - that's simple carbs.
I would introduce more protein into your diet at the morning and for supper to keep you fuller longer. The carbs you are eating are good - oatmeal is great, and keep the carbs whole grain.
Try drinking water before your meals. If you don't have a lot of veggies you may not be getting enough fibre. Eat more beans?? Or drink metamucil with water before your meals for fibre and to fill you up. (assuming you're low in fibre).

Like a previous poster said - make sure you have something to look forward to in the day.

Light exercise if you can. I'm just starting to regain energy and have a hard time exercising myself.

I have a bachelor of science in nutrition and work in human nutrition research if you have any specific questions. Good luck with everything. Trying to lose weight while during depression/on anti depressants isn't easy

The weight gain doesn't help me feel good!!

Add me if you want

-Julia

FatFreeFrolicking · May 2014

I've been on antidepressants for 3 years for generalized anxiety and panic disorder. I was 97 lbs when I started the meds and gained 111 lbs over the past 3 years because of the medications. I've taken Zoloft, Prozac, Celexa, Cymbalta, Effexor, Pristiq, Lexapro, Ativan, and Klonopin.

Not only did I double in size because of these horrible drugs, I developed insulin resistance which is a side effect of these medications. Insulin resistance makes weight loss very, very difficult and slow. My endocrinologist has told me a million times I won't be able to lose weight unless I eat 500-800 calories a day which he wouldn't recommend for me because I only have 40 lbs to lose to put me at a normal weight.

I would suggest having metabolic testing done… specifically to find out your basal metabolic rate. Antidepressants mess with your metabolism (slow down your metabolic rate) and having PCOS also makes weight loss challenging.

You don't have a lot of protein in your diet. With PCOS it's important to keep your blood sugar stable. In order to keep blood sugar stable, you should be eating 3-4 oz of protein at every meal. People with PCOS often have insulin resistance so I will tell you what my dietician told me to do: 30-45 g carbs per meal and 15-30 g carbs per snack. NO simple carbs. Stick to complex carbs only… sweet potatoes, brown rice, quinoa, whole grain bread, steel cut oats, veggies, and fruits. Be careful with fruits because some have more sugar than others. Berries are low GI. Green grapes and green apples are better than red grapes and red apples because they have a lower carb content.

I personally don't eat any breads or pastas. I also eat gluten free because insulin resistance and gluten don't mix.

A typical day for me looks like this:

Breakfast: gluten free steel cut oats, flax seeds
Morning snack: banana, nuts, or greek yogurt
Lunch: 4-6 oz meat, brown rice, sweet potato, or white potato, veggies
Afternoon snack: KIND bar, gluten free rice cakes, or organic popcorn
Dinner: 4-6 oz meat, brown rice, sweet potato, or white potato, veggies
Late night snack: gluten free pretzels or smoothie made with hemp protein powder

ruthejp13 · May 2014

You have gotten some great advice. Do you own a heart rate monitor? Very intense exercise for a short period of time will help with the depression, better than medication. You don't need a gym to do jumping jacks as fast as you can for a couple minutes once per hour. Rowing should really help with the anxiety.

Eating right is how you lose weight. Exercising is for warding off illness and helping with the depression. Do as much exercise as you can but don't expect weight loss from that. Hopefully with exercise you can get off the medication, still feel good and then drop the weight through diet.

Silverfoot · May 2014

Thanks again. Exercise doesn't help my depression, it seems to just make me wicked sad afterward like I was on the Zoloft. It's strange I know because everyone says exercise helps depression.

I'm feeling like the biggest balloon which is making me depressed LOL. I wish I could go off the meds. I keep thinking about it. But then I remember how awful the withdrawals were and they didn't go away. I gave it a long time before I gave up and went back on the ADs. And the doctors are so useless about it because they don't know anything about these drugs.

MaggieLoo79 · May 2014

I went back to my doctor and complained about the weight gain. He swears that it isn't the medication. He says I'm too stressed out - high Cortisol levels. To him, that explains why most of the weight gain is in my stomach. I told him how depressed I'd become with the weight gain. He changed me to Pamelor (?) which is supposed to give me energy (anti-depressant/anxiety). He also put me on Adipex (prescription diet pill) for one month to jump start the weight loss while the new medication kicks in. I've restarted counseling to learn better stress management techniques. I'm on day 3. I hope it works. I'm about ready to take a razor blade and get rid of the stomach fat myself. Urgh!!!

Tippy05 · May 2014

I started out in a similar place. Similar stats and I'm also on AD. After having my second son I just couldn't lose the weight and was doing an hour of cardio a day, everyday. The weight just wasn't coming off and I got even more depressed about it. I was exhausted and stressed. I started worrying that I was never going to lose weight. I never logged my food before. I assumed that because I wasn't eating "junk" all day, there was no way my food habits had anything to do with my inability to lose weight.

I was wrong! I was WAY overestimating how much I was eating. For example, my bowl of cereal was way more than a serving, so when I thought I was only eating 140 calories, it was more like 300 calories... and that was just breakfast. The handfuls of 'this' and bites of 'that' all added up too.

A few months ago I changed jobs and my schedule, so with a husband a different shift and two young boys, a gym wasn't an option. I had to really focus on what I was eating. Once I started logging my food, I realized there was a huge difference between what/how much I THOUGHT I was eating and what I was ACTUALLY eating. Now I'm on track and although the weight loss is slow, it's more than I've seen with exercise. I realize now I was doing it all wrong. I'm only a few months into this new process but it seems to be working, so hopefully I'm onto something.

If rowing is something you like and something that will get you going and will make you feel better, ABSOLUTELY DO IT! In the meantime, I suggest closely monitoring what you're eating. Get a food scale, measure/weigh everything and be honest about logging it. The people here are super helpful and have given me a lot of good information.

Losing weight is hard and slow. It's not altogether fun, either. If you really pay attention to what you're doing and can find a way to make some small changes (more protein, LOTS of wate, fewer carbs, EVEN MORE water...) you'll start to see a change. I promise. It'll be slow and you'll get a step back for every couple of steps forward and you'll want to give up many times, but don't. Especially with the depression/anxiety, I suspect it will be very easy for you to want to throw your hands up and say "forget it, why bother. This isn't working either" (it was for me and still is at times), but don't. It will get easier and the cravings WILL go away in time.

You can do this!

Add me if you want. Good luck!!

runnergirl0419 · May 2014

Depends how your depression affects you, but mine simply made me feel so low and not able to get out of bed. I started on Zoloft and gained weight immediately which in turn made me feel worse. Went back to the doctor and she put me on Wellbutrin which has made an unbelievable difference. My mood is ten times better everyday, I feel motivated and excited, and it SUPPRESSES my appetite. I can go the whole day without even thinking about food. It is the best decision I have made! So if you want to stay on an AD but don't want the side effects of weight gain, discuss the possibility of switching to Wellbutrin.

mushu0517 · May 2014

try meditation. it's helped my with my bipolor depression.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/01/07/260470831/mindfulness-meditation-can-help-relieve-anxiety-and-depression

justformel · May 2014

I agree with the suggestion of Wellbutrin. It also helps suppress my appetite and helps with my depression.

input on my diet and dealing with antidepressants

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