Weight gain on anti-depression meds

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Dyl1789
Dyl1789 Posts: 2,933 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Has anyone found a change in anti depression med brands has caused weight gain? I have been on a particular brand for a while and had a different one given last script and have gained about 4kgs in a month. Anyone else found this happen to them?
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Replies

  • shaunshaikh
    shaunshaikh Posts: 616 Member
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    It's something I've discussed with my psychiatrist. There are certain meds that do contribute. From what I understand though, it influences potentially water retention or appetite, but if you're religiously managing your CICO with MFP it shouldn't make a difference for fat gain. I've discovered the same thing for steroids which I have to take on occaission for allergies.
  • Dyl1789
    Dyl1789 Posts: 2,933 Member
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    I've just noticed this last month on the different brand a weight gain and minor change in mood when I first started taking them, am going to avoid that brand in the future
  • Dyl1789
    Dyl1789 Posts: 2,933 Member
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    Well on brand I've been ok on, just this other brand has made me put weight on, forking frustrating!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,992 Member
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    mktom29 wrote: »
    Most anti-depressants will make you gain weight. I work in mental health and the saying is... you either gain weight or become crazy.

    Eh, my brother has serious mental illness and this is not true for him. I have mild-moderate depression and anxiety, and this is not true for me. I take Wellbutrin. He takes a plethora of meds, several of which are associated with weight gain. However, he is active, and consumes very little empty calories.
  • doittoitgirl
    doittoitgirl Posts: 157 Member
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    I gained weight on one I was on for a while. I talked to my doc and started a different pill and lost weight the first few weeks. Sometimes you just have to find the one that works best with your lifestyle and with side effects you can deal with.
  • Dyl1789
    Dyl1789 Posts: 2,933 Member
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    Yea, it just seems to be this one brand, first (and only) time I've had it, so I have a pic of it now, will just say I don't want this one
  • Hannahhime
    Hannahhime Posts: 52 Member
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    I've been on Zoloft for a few months and I've noticed it's a lot harder for me to lose weight compared to what I used to. It feels like no matter how much I eat, I'm still hungry afterwards! My appetite is huge! My energy levels aren't what they used to be either because my meds make me so sleepy all the time..... I lost 35 lbs back in 2016 and gained a lot of it back this year. Trying to lose it all again, but managing my appetite is just so much more difficult than it was before.
  • spionen
    spionen Posts: 4 Member
    edited September 2017
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    I used to be on sertraline/Zoloft for depression, and I don't think I noticed much in the way of gaining or losing.

    As for other meds (neuroleptics), I've been on aripiprazole/Abilify and managed to lose quite a bit of weight on that. I was also briefly on risperidone/Risperdal and holy **** did I balloon during that time. I couldn't shovel food into my face fast enough. It was like every time I looked down I had another plate of cake or something in my hands, it was seriously like I was on autopilot or something. I barely even noticed I was doing it.

    My understanding is that antidepressants tend to cause an increase in appetite nearly across the board, although I've heard Wellbutrin is one of the better ones. Antipsychotics are absolute garbage for weight control, though.

    Edit: I know this isn't really related to your topic anymore, but because I've gotten myself on a tangent: I work with a mentally ill population, and of course this is PURELY anecdotal and using a very small sample size, but oddly I've noticed that all the men I work with have stayed at a healthy weight while on meds, while all the women have gained huge amounts of weight, like some of them literally doubling in size. I wonder why?
  • kami3006
    kami3006 Posts: 4,978 Member
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    I've been on a couple different anti-depressants (currently on Zoloft) and hunger/weight gain has not been an issue for me. I actually have zero side-effects from Zoloft. I needed to lose about 15 pounds before starting them years ago and when I finally started counting calories, the weight fell off. I've since maintained, bulked and cut a few times without issue.

    Finding the right med is a crapshoot but it's been a lifesaver for me. Once I found lifting, I was able to cut my dose in half as the exercise helped way more than just running or yoga.
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,831 Member
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    I've been taking anti-depressants since the mid-1990s. I haven't noticed any particular effect on weight or weight loss. If I eat at a deficit, I lose weight. If I eat with reckless abandon, I weigh twice what I ought. I was fat long before I started taking anti-depressants and remained fat long afterwards.

    To me, controlling how much I eat and losing weight is an optimistic act. I am much better able to maintain optimism and take care of myself if my clinical depression is treated. The "family tradition" of self-treating with alcohol seems more prevalent among those who haven't accepted the pills and extensive counseling.
  • hayleyf6051
    hayleyf6051 Posts: 52 Member
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    I haven't noticed weight gain with them, I think it's more about how you're feeling and eating. If I feel down I eat loads and I often get quite upset about how I look, but it's how you feel that may make you eat more, not how the tablet works in your system.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,992 Member
    edited September 2017
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    spionen wrote: »
    I used to be on sertraline/Zoloft for depression, and I don't think I noticed much in the way of gaining or losing.

    As for other meds (neuroleptics), I've been on aripiprazole/Abilify and managed to lose quite a bit of weight on that. I was also briefly on risperidone/Risperdal and holy **** did I balloon during that time. I couldn't shovel food into my face fast enough. It was like every time I looked down I had another plate of cake or something in my hands, it was seriously like I was on autopilot or something. I barely even noticed I was doing it.

    My understanding is that antidepressants tend to cause an increase in appetite nearly across the board, although I've heard Wellbutrin is one of the better ones. Antipsychotics are absolute garbage for weight control, though.

    Edit: I know this isn't really related to your topic anymore, but because I've gotten myself on a tangent: I work with a mentally ill population, and of course this is PURELY anecdotal and using a very small sample size, but oddly I've noticed that all the men I work with have stayed at a healthy weight while on meds, while all the women have gained huge amounts of weight, like some of them literally doubling in size. I wonder why?

    Is there a difference in the activity levels of the men and women you work with? Can you encourage the women to be more active?

    While on the same meds, my brother gained weight while in a hospital, inactive, and fed more calorie dense foods, and lost it once he got out and was able to be active and had less calorie dense foods.
  • Dyl1789
    Dyl1789 Posts: 2,933 Member
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    I'm just as active when I was on this other brand to the new one, but have notice the last month my weight increase, the only thing I can out it down to was the change in brand for my meds.
  • SpirituallyBlonde
    SpirituallyBlonde Posts: 35 Member
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    I'm on an anti depressant also , haven't changed brand but i feel it has definitely hindered my weight loss, its annoying asf.
  • singingflutelady
    singingflutelady Posts: 8,736 Member
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    mktom29 wrote: »
    Most anti-depressants will make you gain weight. I work in mental health and the saying is... you either gain weight or become crazy.

    You work in mental health and label people crazy? I have been on just about every major anti depressant and didn't gain weight or become crazy
  • RUNucbar
    RUNucbar Posts: 160 Member
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    Mirtazapine messed me up. I switched from an SRRI to it and I gained 17lbs in two months although my intake went down because I just wasn't hungry. I was also sleeping more, 11:30pm to 2:00 the next afternoon so that may have been what did it, though I must have not moved at all as my intake was hovering around the 1,000 mark.

    But yes, it's a thing. Some meds do it more than others though, hard as it is, I would suggest trying to ignore it. Focus on your symptoms for now and finding something that works. Once your depression is under control, then worry about your weight.
  • Meghanebk
    Meghanebk Posts: 321 Member
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    I've been on moderate doses of zoloft and wellbutrin for years at various times, and neither made me gain weight. They both eventually helped me lose weight: less depressed=more energy=more likely to get exercise and less likely to live off higher calorie convenience foods.
  • ashliecampbell
    ashliecampbell Posts: 8 Member
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    Hannahhime wrote: »
    I've been on Zoloft for a few months and I've noticed it's a lot harder for me to lose weight compared to what I used to. It feels like no matter how much I eat, I'm still hungry afterwards! My appetite is huge! My energy levels aren't what they used to be either because my meds make me so sleepy all the time..... I lost 35 lbs back in 2016 and gained a lot of it back this year. Trying to lose it all again, but managing my appetite is just so much more difficult than it was before.

    I also take zoloft and find it impossible to lose weight. I'm not always hungry but they said it can mess with your metabolism. They tried me on so many different anxiety/depression medicines and the 1st year I gained 70lbs. I was depressed bcuz I lost my dad. It's been 3 years of being on medicine and I've been on Zoloft the last year or so and it was the one that worked for me. Now I'm ready to get off them and try to lose weight.

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