Antidepressants

My daughter is on Wellbutrin and it has helped her immensely - she takes that in addition to Zoloft.

She has mentioned that the Wellbutrin has made her lose her appetite - which I've read is a common side effect.

Talk to your doctor - see what he/she says.

Wellbutrin is where its at if you want increased energy and decreased appetite. When I was on a high dose I barely needed food or sleep. All my social inhibitions were dramatically reduced and well... let's just say I loved to chase the boys! haha.

I'm bipolar 2 (leaning depressive rather than manic) and am on a cocktail of meds. Prozac and wellbutrin both seem to be at least weight gain neutral for me. My mother took prozac and lost weight, however she was also doing Weight Watchers and exercising so it's not clear what role it played. It may have just been that it gave her enough of a pick-me-up that she was able to get out there and exercise.

Been on Lexapro for 3 years, didn't impact my weight and was extremely helpful in my case.

Wellbutrin is where its at if you want increased energy and decreased appetite. When I was on a high dose I barely needed food or sleep. All my social inhibitions were dramatically reduced and well... let's just say I loved to chase the boys! haha.

Hmmm... Mallory, is there any chance you might have been hypomanic at all? I have that reaction to some meds. Boosts me up to a little too happy, if you know what I mean. :^)

.Wellbutrin does have a side effect to decrease appetite. It also increases anxiety at least for me. All those medications are all trial and error. Not everyone has the same effects. It takes 4-6 weeks before you will notice difference. most side effects subside. Talk to your doctor and see what works best for you. Also FYI exercising releases the same chemicals in your brain as the pills do Good Luck!:flowerforyou:

I've been on Effexor XR for years - no weight gain from that. I'm also on Fetzima which hasn't made me gain weight. I tried Wellbutrin before, Lexapro, and others like Zoloft but they just didn't work for me. It's more important that you find a med that works for you rather than picking one based on the potential to gain weight, in my humble opinion.

This study touts the benefits of the active ingredient in turmeric (no side effects), saying it's as effective as Prozac. I've added it to the mix lately. :-) http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/07/31/study-finds-turmeric-is-effective-as-prozac-for-treating-depression/

Also, exercise, exercise, exercise.

I've had lots of therapy and while it helped, I've always had to do a bunch of things to be able to function.

Best of luck. Message me anytime.

I take Pristique and have no issues with weight gain. My wife on the other hand, took another type (forgotten) and she had weight loss issues. Now that she no longer takes it, her weight loss has improved. I am so very proud of her.

I would concentrate first on finding the drug or mix of drugs that work for your depression. For me it's the generic for Prozac (fluoxetine) and generic Welbutrin (bupropion). I add a Syrcadian Blue SADD light from about August through February. I've been treated for depression for decades. I never noticed any particular effect on weight except that when the depression is bad, I tend to self-medicate with excess food. Like many in my father's side of the family, I tried self-medicating with alcohol. That doesn't work and has the worst long-term bad side effects of all. Exercise like walking, vitamin D, and eating a healthy, well-balanced diet do help.

Clinical depression sucks but you can certainly live with it and have a good life. My life-long friends call me the happiest depressed person they've ever known. Seek things that make you happy like the beauty of art and music, kitten videos, flowers, etc. They won't cure your depression but they help strengthen you to fight its symptoms. Give yourself time to escape from yourself with some escapist fiction. It's hard to pay any attention to depressive thoughts when you are worrying about whether the heroine will escape and find the real killers! Do some small thing good for the world so you feel useful. I volunteer at the local food bank.

Do seek counseling periodically to learn new things about how you, yourself, think and how to work on getting yourself out of self-defeating patterns. Keep an eye on what works and what doesn't long haul. And don't beat yourself up. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and, as the song says, start all over again. Life is good.

Heidi

I have been on almost every antidepressant in the book.

Currently, I am taking both Pristiq and generic Wellbutrin together and I have had zero weight gain side effects. In fact, in the past 80+ days I've lost 36 pounds. :bigsmile:

I also went through ALOT of therapy to help me deal with the root of my depression. I am pretty sure you said you are seeing a therapist. Don't stop that just because you start taking an antidepressant. I don't believe in miracle pills either, but I definitely feel better and I can tell when I don't take my meds.

Keep doing what you are doing, I promise it can get better for you.

I've been on everything under the sun- Prozac, Prozac Weekly, Sarafem, Pristiq, Lexapro, Celexa, Wellbutrin, Paxil, Effexor XR, Depakote along with some Xanax, Klonopin, and Ativan. Over 18 years, they've had me on everything under the sun. The first time I came off of Effexor XR, yeah, it wasn't pleasant. I didn't detox correctly. The second time, right before I had my daughter, it was a breeze. This isn't a drug you can just STOP taking. You have to step down period (with the 37.5), usually combined with a lower dosage of another anitdepressant- such as Prozac. Within a month, I was completely detoxed from it all with zero withdraw symptoms. The only drug I had a severe reaction to was Depakote. I ended up in the ER with it. It was a very, very wicked drug for me, but I know it has helped many others.

I am now on Effexor XR and Topamax. I have really good results with both, and as far as weight issues go, neither caused weight gain.

The biggest thing I'd suggest is talk to your doctor. I don't know what your official diagnosis is, and I know that certain drugs work better for certain people. Even though Depakote is a drug that is commonly given to those who are struggling with Bipolar/Borderline, it messed me up horribly, and had I continued taking it, ultimately, I would've most likely ended up dead. You just don't know until you take them. It's trial and error. I've taken so many that didn't do anything. Lexapro made me extremely mean. Celexa made me cry all the time. Paxil made me incontinent. High doses of Effexor XR made me depressed, while the lower dose (75mgs) level me out correctly. It's hard finding the right combination, so if you are able to find something that works well for you, not saying it's a *bad* thing to try out something new, because you may find something better, but it may take some trial and error along the way.

I take citalopram, has changed my life as was really struggling with depression and anxiety, In terms of weight loss it actually suppresses my appetite and im never hungry so has not stopped me losing weight!

My doctor was reviewing my medications in relation to weight gain and he said the only one that I was on that doesn't cause weight gain is wellbutrin and I super trust my doctor, so I'd say it's worth a shot (it's also really cheap so that's an added bonus!)