Losing Weight While on Antidepressants?

I can't relate personally but I have heard really wonderful things about this book, the Serotonin Power Diet, which helps people on anti-depressants eat the right foods and deal with the appetite changes. It comes highly recommended. Best of luck!

I'm on antiphycotic medication as well and it has caused me to gain about 35 pounds so I know how it feels!! I'm tryin to lose the weight while on the medication too! It can be done

Wow, i created an account just to respond (to this really old thread) and do they ever want a lot of info! Anyway, I just wanted to add my experiences:

Cymbalta - no weight gain (or loss) - I think this is common for this antidepressant, I could see it resulting in weight loss if it worked really well for you but for me it was just enough to get my head above water so no exercising (and for the first 3-5 years, I maintained my weight within 3-4 pounds til I had a baby)

After baby, I started in mirtazapine, and thinking it was cravings left over from when I was breastfeeding, didn't worry...gained 15 pounds, which was exactly what I lost the week after gibing birth, so I was basically 8 months pregnant size post baby.

Tried a few things after that (always keeping Cymbalta), sleep is always my real problem so I lost 30 pounds treating just that but unfortunately with sleep you eventually need something long term (i.e. an antidepressant, not sleeping pills) and I'm now on tricyclic antidepressants and an antipsychotic which work fantastic for energy, mood, sleep, etc. (I'm writing this at 6am! 6 months ago, I had not gotten up at 6am...well, pretty much ever) but gaining weight.... quickly! Like 8 lbs in a week and a half. I've cut back my doses til I can see my doctor but don't know what to do anymore. Maybe switch out Cymbalta for Wellbutrin? I was almost at a point where I could exercise, but now i'm more tired with the extra weight. I just don't know what to do. I see a specialist but it takes about 6 weeks for an appointment so i'll see my GP....might ask about metformin too. I just hate piling on the medications, but i'm so close to being a regular person again.

What antipsychotic do you take, if you don't mind sharing? I have bipolar disorder and have taken most of the newer atypicals at one time or another (Seroquel,Zyprexa,Risiperdal, Geodon, Abilify etc). I gained dramatically on Seroquel and Zyprexa but if I'm going to be 100% honest it was because I just didn't give a flying fig about what I put in my mouth. I finally felt better mentally but the cravings for sweets and carbs were INTENSE. Sure I didn't have to gain, but the cravings coupled with being in an already fragile state mentally, are pretty hard to combat. Of course I would not have had I not taken in more than I was burning, but there you go. I had good results when my psychiatrist switched me to Risperdal (good results meaning I stopped gaining, although I still didn't LOSE any of it), unfortunately I had the undesirable side effect of beginning to lactate again (I was about 6 months past weaning my youngest at that point so it was weird to have milk again). Geodon made me so sleepy all the time that I couldn't tolerate it any longer and quit it within a week of falling asleep while driving (!!!!!), but Abilify has been my godsend. I take 20mg a day which is a pretty high dose. We are considering dropping it to 15 and then maybe 10mg, but my doc has more confidence in my ability to reduce it and maintain, mentally, than I do :laugh:. I will still probably give it a shot though.

My current cocktail of meds is so much smaller than it was in the beginning, at one point near the start of my roller coaster ride I was taking 26 pills a day now I'm down to just 3 meds in 4 pills a day (well 5 if you count the magnesium supplement I take).

I'm telling you this to also tell you that there are options. If you find that an antipsychotic/antidepressant combo is working for you but you are finding the rapid gain, maybe instead of ADDING Metformin (which is a drug primarily taken by diabetics and women with PCOS, if you didn't know, to help control insulin related function), maybe you could switch to a different antipsychotic. Not all of them will cause increased cravings in all people, so finding the one that works best with your individual brain chemistry is a worthwhile effort. Additionally some of them (Seroquel and Zyprexa specifically but I believe the others as well to a much lesser extent) are strongly linked to developing diabetes, which is why you're supposed to have bloodwork drawn so frequently when you're taking them. Not being able to battle the cravings only makes the probability greater so finding one that doesn't cause these cravings or that doesn't cause them as intensely is a better option if possible.

Wow - I'm so glad I found this forum. I have an appointment with a psychiatrist next week to discuss an antidepressant prescription. I've been increasingly depressed for the past 3 years, but have been resistant to medication because I experienced significant weight gain (30 pounds) from taking Paxil about 20 years ago. When I started taking Paxil, I was in my 20s and never had a weight issue. Once I went off it, I started exercising and the weight came off no problem. But now, I'm in my 40s and at my heaviest, thanks in large part to self medicating my depression with sugar, carbs and a sedentary lifestyle in front of the tv. I'm hoping the psychiatrist can steer me towards a prescription that is at least weight neutral and lifts the fog of depression.

I know different drugs work differently on people, but I feel like I'm in a catch-22. I can't keep sinking in this depression, but I can't continue to gain weight, yet one is fueling the other. I appreciate the insights you all have shared. it's just comforting to know weight loss is possible while on medication. Thanks!

I was put on Risperidal and it made me gain weight like crazy. I talked to my doctor about it and he was understanding and put me on Lamictal which he said can actually cause weight loss. It hasn't made me lose weight, but it's set me back to normal so I can lose weight when I try. You might ask your doctor if he's willing to try another anti-depressant with you.

I am on a bunch of medication right now for two different things. I am lamictal and Prozac for bipolar and ptsd( was onigh zoloft but it caused me to gain weight so it was switched for prozac). They have no caused me to gain any weight or get any cravings. (Thank god!) I DID find out that one of the sleep meds i was on (remeron) which is NATORIOUS for causing MAJOR weight gain. My doctor took me off that as soon as he found out i was gaining so much weight. I am also on trazadon. Once the doctor took me off remeron and Zoloft. I have noticed that it isnt easy BUT my mood has improved and the weight is SLOWLY comming off. You just have to talk to your doctor. Weight gain can cause depression and that is counterproductive to what your doctor is wanting to do lol