Gaining weight due to antidepressants?

jenn_is_trouble
jenn_is_trouble Posts: 114
edited October 6 in Health and Weight Loss
I've been on and off different anti-depressants since my late teens and now at 27, I just got swtiched from Celexa to Wellbutrin. The doctor told me that Wellbutrin tends to work well for people that have had side effect issues with other medications... having a lack of sex drive sucks when you're a newlywed! (Hence why I wanted to switch to a different medication!)

I know that everyone reacts differently to these kinds of medications, but I was reading up on the possible side effects of Wellbutrin and I noticed that weight loss is actually one of them. Have any of you experienced this?

I've been on it for about a month now and haven't noticed any changes in my weight, but now that I making these healthy chages to my lifestyle, I'd like to be aware of what could be coming (since medications like these have a cummulative effect). I have a follow up appointment with my doctor later this month, so I plan to fill him in on the changes I am making as well and see what his adivce is for moving forward.

**EDIT**

Should have had that title read "Losing weight" instead! Oopsie!

Replies

  • TNTwedell
    TNTwedell Posts: 277 Member
    I had the SAME problems - one of the main reasons why I started having to diet in the first place.
    My doctor put me on Prozac and within 3 months, I had gained 18lbs.
    She finally switched me over to Celexa and I've been on that for 4 or 5 months now. Obviously, havent lost the weight I gained, and the sex drive thing (I just got engaged) isnt a super fabulous sideeffect either.
    I havent noticed anything different either - except that I stopped GAINING weight.

    I keep thinking I should swtich over to Wellbutrin too - let me know how it goes -
  • Rynatat
    Rynatat Posts: 807 Member
    I was on Wellbutrin & gained after being on it for an extended time (over 1 year). I've actually gone completely off all anti-depressants since I discovered that exercising on a regular basis really works better with better side-effects (I do hard-core workouts which forces the body to produce more serotinin & learn how to use it). I know what works for me doesnt work for everyone, but after well over 15 years of going between different meds I finally decided that was not how I wanted to spend my life.
  • jenn_is_trouble
    jenn_is_trouble Posts: 114
    I was on Wellbutrin & gained after being on it for an extended time (over 1 year). I've actually gone completely off all anti-depressants since I discovered that exercising on a regular basis really works better with better side-effects (I do hard-core workouts which forces the body to produce more serotinin & learn how to use it). I know what works for me doesnt work for everyone, but after well over 15 years of going between different meds I finally decided that was not how I wanted to spend my life.

    I really hope that down the road, I can get off all of the medication as well and stay that way. One reason the doctor was thinking that I might be having these bouts of depression is because I am chronically low in Vitamin D ( I had no clue it could impact mood), so he has me on a 2000 iu a day supplement. Hopefully after the stress of the holidays and whatnot (my husband and I are in the process of buying our first home), I can re-vist the idea of a timeline for getting off the medication for good!

    Thanks for the input!
  • santamommy
    santamommy Posts: 88
    I was on welburtin for about a year and gained about 20...everyone I tried I gained and finally I gave them all up. I have heard of people loosing taking it. Good luck on getting it straightened out.. :)
  • AmyinMD
    AmyinMD Posts: 33 Member
    Congratulations, Rynatat, for getting off antidepessents!
  • BrittanyErin1217
    BrittanyErin1217 Posts: 8
    Almost all antidepressants have that side effect. Unfortunately for me I am bipolar and meds look like a lifetime thing right now, I also take an anticonvulsant as a mood stabilizer with weight gain as a side effect. So my doctor is monitoring my weight and we will have to change all the good things I have going with them right now if I keep gaining weight, one of the reasons I am starting this diet. But watching what I eat and moving a little more I have already lost 3.7 lbs in a little over a week. Lets see if I can keep the pace up.
    <3
  • maryd523
    maryd523 Posts: 661 Member
    Hey, have any of you watched the documentary "Food Matters"? In it, they discuss the amazing anti-depressant qualites of niacin (vitamin B3). Apparently, high dosages really, really help with depression, not to mention lots of other great benefits.

    I haven't done much research on it, since I'm not depressed myself, but I have been taking it the last few months because of the toxin-cleansing it does. I would encourage you guys to check into it. Anytime a natural cure will work over a drug...that is an excellent thing.
  • prairiegirl1966
    prairiegirl1966 Posts: 5 Member
    I suffer from GAD (General Anxiety disorder) and the doctor put me on Pristique. I lost 10 pounds in the first 2 months because it suppressed my appetite. It worked well for my anxiety with the bonus of losing weight and feeling better about myself. It also caused dry mouth which meant I was drinking well over 10 glasses of water a day. Then it turned on me... 6 months later I had my appetite back, lack of sex drive, energy and sleep. It costs 100.00 a month to be on. It is my dream to get off the drug and deal with my anxiety with exercise and diet. Once my leg is better, I want to walk. My fitness pal is great for keeping me in check with what I eat. Unfortunately I gained a pound today where I lost one last week. WTH?
  • stalksthedawn
    stalksthedawn Posts: 32
    I'm bipolar and gained over 50 pounds from my meds but I am also on a lot of them.

    I'll have to be on meds for the rest of my life but I'm trying with the weight loss and from what I've seen, nearly all the meds I've tried have been notorius weight-gainers, with the exeption of Topomax but I don't believe that one is an antideprerssant (plus it made me suicidal :frown: ).

    Anyway, I've never tried Wellbutrin but I hope it works for you!
  • jbpretty
    jbpretty Posts: 221 Member
    I started Welbutrin about the same time I stared losing weight in 2010. It definitely didn't hinder me at all. It might have helped me, I can't say for sure. I went off it about a month ago and I'm still going strong. Who knows maybe it gave me the boost I needed to change my ways. I'm on Topomax and now just started Abilify. I'm terrified the latter of the two will cause weight gain so I've upped my game so-to-speak.

    You're right though, Wellbutrin is known to cause weight loss in a lot of people. I think if anything the Wellbutrin made it so I didn't eat when I was stressed. I wish you the best. :)
  • widmar
    widmar Posts: 72
    I am on wellbutrin right now. I have been on so many other antidepressants and bipolar meds. My weight hasn't changed at all and my libido has improved a lot. My goal is to make excercise and diet my "medication" eventually. Good luck!
This discussion has been closed.

Categories