Antidepressants and weight gain

I wouldn't put too much thought into online reviews of medications. People are far too quick to jump to the "I'm gaining weight and just started this new medication so it is the medication making me gain weight". A pill cannot make you gain fat if you are eating properly. Speak with your doctor about what is the best one for you. Keep your calories in check (not too high, not too low, tracking properly) and exercise and you will be fine.

I recently went on anti-depressants after experienced a prolonged bout of depression (12 months), during which time I lost nearly 10kg. After going on anti-depressants I have put back on about 6kg. I know that is not due to the anti-depressants, but rather to a happier lifestyle which has involved a lot of socialising and excessive indulgences. Time to behave myself.

memes_74 wrote: »

Hi..I have some questions for those of you how may be on anti-depressants. I am going to doctor tommorrow to get on anti-depressants. My anxiety and depression is getting worse and my moods are somewhat unstable right now. I have a very high anxiety job, (Licensed therapist working in a mental hospital), so it seems right now I may need a little help. My concern is after researching I have noticed they all cause weight gain. Is this what those of you who are taking them or have experienced. Can anyone tell me which one is least likely to cause it.

Thanks so much for your help

They don't all cause weight gain. Some are more prone to, but what they usually do is increase appetite - which is something you can control if you're mindful of it.

I'm on two different anti-d's and I've avoided weight gain on both (actually I've lost 69 pounds).

I'm happy to tell you which meds I'm on, privately if you'd like to know - just shoot me a PM.

Everyone will react differently to medication it's one of those things where you have to really communicate with your doctor clearly so he/she can adjust the dose maybe switch the medication. The first one I was on helped some but I still had my panic attacks and it might've attributed to my weight gain, which is how I ended up on MFP. I've been on a different medication for almost two years now and I feel awesome!
But medication was my last resort, after trying the natural/holistic route.

memes_74 wrote: »

Hi..I have some questions for those of you how may be on anti-depressants. I am going to doctor tommorrow to get on anti-depressants. My anxiety and depression is getting worse and my moods are somewhat unstable right now. I have a very high anxiety job, (Licensed therapist working in a mental hospital), so it seems right now I may need a little help. My concern is after researching I have noticed they all cause weight gain. Is this what those of you who are taking them or have experienced. Can anyone tell me which one is least likely to cause it.

Thanks so much for your help

I have been on antidepressants for many years (12 to be exact). The one thing to keep in mind is that they are very powerful drugs that work on your brain chemistry, and some of that can include increasing appetite or causing cravings and possibly actually altering hormone production that can affect metabolism (which is why long term use is one common risk factor for diabetes).

The main way to counteract these effects is to be aware of them. Be very diligent in your logging of food and see if you gain on a lower calorie diet. If your doctor is a responsible one, he/she will have you keep a mood log where you can log your ups and downs, but also make sure you log your hunger and food cravings so you can see if there is a trend.

"Which ones didn't cause weight gain" is very individual. One may cause someone to gain, but the next person may lose when starting it so that is an impossible question to answer. Also, is it the medication that is causing the gain, or the medical problem the medication is treating? Depression and anxiety frequently lead to overeating.

Good luck and don't be discouraged if the first one you try is not right for you.

memes_74 wrote: »

Hi..I have some questions for those of you how may be on anti-depressants. I am going to doctor tommorrow to get on anti-depressants. My anxiety and depression is getting worse and my moods are somewhat unstable right now. I have a very high anxiety job, (Licensed therapist working in a mental hospital), so it seems right now I may need a little help. My concern is after researching I have noticed they all cause weight gain. Is this what those of you who are taking them or have experienced. Can anyone tell me which one is least likely to cause it.

Thanks so much for your help

Memes,

I'm sorry you are going through a hard time. I've never taken antidepressants before, but I have one friend who took them and lost weight due to lack of appetite. She was surprised, because she'd been told that it increased appetite.

Since you've done your research, perhaps you are a bit ahead of the game and can be aware of intake.

I'm on antidepressants. Before I started taking them I had a terrible diet. Since starting them I've cleaned up my diet and lost weight.
If you read the labels and side effects of most medication there is weight loss or gain, itchy, vomiting all sorts. The best thing you can do is get the help you need from the antidepressants. Your mental health is just as important as your physical health.

Gained 30 pounds on Celexa. Which is why I am now using MFP. I have been off of it for 7 months. It is labeled the Devil Drug!!!!

I have been on zoloft for about a year.

I think (no evidence, just my opinion) that depression, at least in my case, was an appetite suppressant. I just didn't care about food. I never went out with friends or anything, because I was depressed.

Once you are out of that, you eat more, which causes weight gain.

It also, however, allows you to exercise. So now you just have to monitor intake and burn, and maintain a deficit.

Some medications will cause you to gain weight, for sure. They can slow metabolism, increase appetite etc. Yes, your appetite may naturally increase just because you are feeling better, and not necessarily because of the medications. There have been studies done and some are more likely to cause weight gain, some are more likely to be weight neutral, and some even will cause weight loss. Just be sure to monitor it and speak with your doctor about it. Effexor and Citalopram are more weight neutral. Wellbutrin will most likely cause some weight loss. And medications like Seroquel and Prozac have been known to cause weight gain.

bkerr30 wrote: »

I have been on wellbutrin for about a year and haven't experienced any negative symptoms. Also from what I have read it is one of the few that doesn't reduce your sex drive either. Not sure if that is a concern for you, but as a newly married person it was for me

I can verify this statement. My husband has no complaints. XD



OP: I'm on Wellbutrin, and as far as I can tell, it doesn't make me gain weight, or even increase my appetite. The thing is, there are antidepressants that can alter your appetite, but it's a side effect and not every person is going to have the same side effects. Keep your logging habit and watch your calories, and make sure you give it at least a month before you put anything down to a side effect. Well, except life threatening ones, which will show up very quickly!

many antidepressant cause constipation or to retain fluids. So you are not gaining fat, you are just holding onto other matter. On the other hand when the symptoms of depression go away, one's appetite comes back.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/in-depth/antidepressants/art-20049305

memes_74 wrote: »

Hi..I have some questions for those of you how may be on anti-depressants. I am going to doctor tommorrow to get on anti-depressants. My anxiety and depression is getting worse and my moods are somewhat unstable right now. I have a very high anxiety job, (Licensed therapist working in a mental hospital), so it seems right now I may need a little help. My concern is after researching I have noticed they all cause weight gain. Is this what those of you who are taking them or have experienced. Can anyone tell me which one is least likely to cause it.

Thanks so much for your help

Hi. Everyone reacts differently to medications. What may cause weight gain in one person might cause weight loss in another. Either way, the antidepressants themselves don't make you gain. They can increase your appetite which in turn causes weight gain. If you continue to log your food you likely will not gain. People gain because they end up giving into the increased appetite and take in a surplus amount of cals.

That being said, I take prozac. It actually caused me to lose weight because it lead to more energy to exercise and killed my appetite:

I hope it helps too! Definitely keep open communication with your prescriber and pay attention to your body. But DONT OBSESS! If you are looking for weight gain, you will find it! I would also agree with the recommendation for blood work - thyroid issues, for example, can add to depression/mood disorder symptoms and also metabolism.
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I've been on anti depressants on and off since I was a teen, so about 15 years now (wow that's a long time when I really think about it!) but I have dysthymia which means I'm depressed every day, not just episodically. That's why I continue to take ADs. I've been on a ton and while I've found that SSRIs do not work for me (I need lots of brain chemicals reached, I take small doses of Wellbutrin, Prozac, and a regular dose of Lamotrigine (lamictal). ) I don't think I've ever gained weight as a side effect. I gained weight when I started grad school four evenings a week after full time work, but that had to do with sitting on my butt all day and not the antidepressants.

Wellbutrin is known to have less negative side effects as far as weight, sluggishness, and sex drive, but if your anxiety can get really bad like me, it can increase that a million times. So I take a little SSRI to counteract that. I think you will be alright. I know Seroquel and Zyprexa make most people gain weight but are not usually prescribed for depression/anxiety except as last resorts or Seroquel to sleep. But that increases appetite, which is something you can work on gaining control of.

Ok, long winded response, but basically, as others have said, the help to my functioning in life is way worth any possible gains I might experience. Lying in bed crying instead of eating may result in a lower weight but I don't Effie care, I want to feel better! Good luck, it's always a bit of trial and error don't give up.