Medication for Binge Eating

f6bhhcjzcy
f6bhhcjzcy Posts: 1 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello :)
I have been suffering from my binge eating disorder and finally decided that I need additional help. I went to a doctor who specifically works with patients who have a BED and she prescribed me with a anti-depressant (lexapro) it worked for a while with treating both my depression and eating disorder and then I slowly went back to my old terrible eating habits. She now prescribed me with lexapro AND Bupropion I am worried about becoming a “zombie” or loosing my personality. Does anyone have any suggestions, or has anyone ever taken these medications and let me know if it worked for your relationship with food?

Replies

  • ddsb1111
    ddsb1111 Posts: 871 Member
    Are you also in therapy?
  • MaggieGirl135
    MaggieGirl135 Posts: 1,030 Member
    Please talk to your doctor about your med concerns. Not a doctor, but knowledgeable of these two meds, I can’t imagine that they would zombie-ify you.
  • loulee997
    loulee997 Posts: 273 Member
    edited December 2023
    f6bhhcjzcy wrote: »
    Hello :)
    I have been suffering from my binge eating disorder and finally decided that I need additional help. I went to a doctor who specifically works with patients who have a BED and she prescribed me with a anti-depressant (lexapro) it worked for a while with treating both my depression and eating disorder and then I slowly went back to my old terrible eating habits. She now prescribed me with lexapro AND Bupropion I am worried about becoming a “zombie” or loosing my personality. Does anyone have any suggestions, or has anyone ever taken these medications and let me know if it worked for your relationship with food?

    Do you know if you have ADHD? I had a problem with overeating when depressed or stressed. Anti-depressants didn't work for me. But starting ADHD meds helped my emotional dysregulation --and weirdly helped my binging and my depression.

    Bupropion usually gives focus and energy. Lexapro lifts depression. They do not normally cause 'flattening' of a personality. Some meds will do that--but it is not likely with these two--but ask your doctor.

  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    loulee997 wrote: »
    f6bhhcjzcy wrote: »
    Hello :)
    I have been suffering from my binge eating disorder and finally decided that I need additional help. I went to a doctor who specifically works with patients who have a BED and she prescribed me with a anti-depressant (lexapro) it worked for a while with treating both my depression and eating disorder and then I slowly went back to my old terrible eating habits. She now prescribed me with lexapro AND Bupropion I am worried about becoming a “zombie” or loosing my personality. Does anyone have any suggestions, or has anyone ever taken these medications and let me know if it worked for your relationship with food?

    Do you know if you have ADHD? I had a problem with overeating when depressed or stressed. Anti-depressants didn't work for me. But starting ADHD meds helped my emotional dysregulation --and weirdly helped my binging and my depression.

    Bupropion usually gives focus and energy. Lexapro lifts depression. They do not normally cause 'flattening' of a personality. Some meds will do that--but it is not likely with these two--but ask your doctor.

    There was another woman who used to post regularly a few years back who also had ADHD and issues with binging. ADHD meds helped her as well.

    @f6bhhcjzcy I take Bupropion and love it. No zombiefication whatsoever.

    Did your doctor review the risks of taking Bupropion and Lexapro at the same time and are you closely medically supervised for this?
  • loulee997
    loulee997 Posts: 273 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    loulee997 wrote: »
    f6bhhcjzcy wrote: »
    Hello :)
    I have been suffering from my binge eating disorder and finally decided that I need additional help. I went to a doctor who specifically works with patients who have a BED and she prescribed me with a anti-depressant (lexapro) it worked for a while with treating both my depression and eating disorder and then I slowly went back to my old terrible eating habits. She now prescribed me with lexapro AND Bupropion I am worried about becoming a “zombie” or loosing my personality. Does anyone have any suggestions, or has anyone ever taken these medications and let me know if it worked for your relationship with food?

    Do you know if you have ADHD? I had a problem with overeating when depressed or stressed. Anti-depressants didn't work for me. But starting ADHD meds helped my emotional dysregulation --and weirdly helped my binging and my depression.

    Bupropion usually gives focus and energy. Lexapro lifts depression. They do not normally cause 'flattening' of a personality. Some meds will do that--but it is not likely with these two--but ask your doctor.

    There was another woman who used to post regularly a few years back who also had ADHD and issues with binging. ADHD meds helped her as well.

    @f6bhhcjzcy I take Bupropion and love it. No zombiefication whatsoever.

    Did your doctor review the risks of taking Bupropion and Lexapro at the same time and are you closely medically supervised for this?

    I'm allergic to Lexapro and I had an adverse reaction to Wellbutrin....so I'm not the best person to ask. I have weird reactions to drugs.

  • BikingChronicle
    BikingChronicle Posts: 4 Member
    Try Vyvanse, or Adderall. I use it for narcolepsy and binge eating and have had great results with adherence to a regime.
  • stegeem
    stegeem Posts: 165 Member
    I take medication for my bipolar. I didn't want to take medication because I thought it would change my personality, but I was a strong Christian at the time and wanted to be obediant to my parents, so I started taking it. I found that it DID change my personality, but for the better. I was happier, more successful, more energy and more pleasant to be around. Medication isn't always a bad thing.
  • actual_bears
    actual_bears Posts: 2 Member
    I'm on Vyvanse for my ADHD, but it is primarily a BED med! Many doctors are iffy on prescribing it, especially primary care doctors, because it is a stimulant, but it helps my focus AND my binge urges a ton, so my psychiatrist is happy to keep me on it long-term. I saw Adderall suggested, too, but bear in mind Adderall and Ritalin both give many people some pretty intense heart palpitations. Vyvanse has never done that for me, personally.

    For the record, I'm on buproprion, Abilify, AND Vyvanse. All affect my brain and I've never felt like a zombie on them, and I'm on a pretty high dose of bup. My partner is on Lexapro and also isn't zombified. From my experience it's all about dosage. If you feel like a zombie, lower your dose. If the lowered dose doesn't help enough, you should be on a different medication. Unfortunately, it can sometimes take time to find the right combo of meds. It took me about six months to find what worked for me. :)
  • cfleishans
    cfleishans Posts: 1 Member
    Vyvance works great. It is prescribed for BED.
  • lisaartemis324
    lisaartemis324 Posts: 12 Member
    loulee997 has a great insight. I struggle with binge eating for years (along with anxiety) and I recently got diagnosed with ADHD as an adult woman. Dopamine plays a role in ADHD and binge eating is a way for those of us with ADHD to get their fix (crunchy, sweet or salty snacks....surprisingly chips over apples for crunchy...and sweets over fruit). I was put on an ADHD medication and it was incredible how different it made things for me - my anxiety and intermittent depression were from managing my ADHD myself (unknowingly).

    I would encourage you to explore the idea of looking at whether you may have ADHD (anxiety and depression are associated with this and ADHD can often get missed by health professionals). At the very least have it ruled out as anxiety, depression, binge eating are all associated with ADHD (comorbidities).

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