Anti-Depressants and Weight loss

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  • lilo1971
    lilo1971 Posts: 16 Member
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    I was on Prozac and in a year’s time I gained 70lbs! Unfortunately I need to be on anti-depressants so the doctor changed me to Lexapro and I have been doing really well and able to lose weight too!
  • beckylawrence70
    beckylawrence70 Posts: 752 Member
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    I'm on Celexa and no weight gain at all, been on it for a year now.
  • christina721
    christina721 Posts: 37
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    I was on zoloft and it did nothing for my anxiety and I gained 10 lbs. I was put on prozac but it made me really tired. I am starting paxil tomorrow so we will see how that goes.
  • wxchaser
    wxchaser Posts: 178
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    I've been on Lexapro for a year and that hasn't stopped me from losing weight. Actually, there haven't been very many side effects from it either. Maybe some stomach discomfort when I first started to take it, but it's gone away.
  • girliegirl3773
    girliegirl3773 Posts: 22 Member
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    I've been on Celexa for a few years. (I gained 30 lbs in 2 years) My doctor told me that the anti-depressant and birth control would make it very hard to lose weight. I've gotten off of BC, but don't want to stop Celexa because it makes me feel so much better. I know that I have to work hard, but I'm willing to do it!
  • LoreleiWalks
    LoreleiWalks Posts: 143 Member
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    I was on Lexapro last summer and gained 20 pounds. Yikes! Fortunately, I was able to wean off of it and am now managing my anxiety/depression without prescription meds. I know that being completely free of medication is not an option for everyone. I have a friend who also gained on Lex, but is now taking a combo of that plus Wellbutrin. She is happy with that as far as treating her depression and her ability to lose weight. My experience on Wellbutrin was horrendous, but everyone is different. I would talk to your doctor about your concerns and see if he or she has any suggestions. I feel your pain. Weight loss + antidepressants = frustration!!
  • kimi72
    kimi72 Posts: 17
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    I was on Wellbutrin for years and loved it. I never gained weight didn't lose my sex drive and it also helps if your trying to quit smoking. It's a wonderful drug. I would recommend it to anyone.
  • april1126
    april1126 Posts: 65 Member
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    I am also on setraline which is generic for zoloft and I have low thyroid so I also take synthroid started working out and have lost a few pounds in 2 months but it is hard to lose weight before I found out about my thyroid I was 30 pounds lighter .I have been working out 6 days a week and staying within my calories .
  • N4monsters
    N4monsters Posts: 44 Member
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    Welbutrin helped me loose weight, suppressed my hunger, and helped with my depression
  • stillshining
    stillshining Posts: 4 Member
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    Effexor is one hell of a drug. I didn't feel a damn thing on it - I couldn't even cry. I was on a very high dose for depression, anxiety and an eating disorder. Mind you, I feel as though it encouraged my eating disorder since I was in such a zombie state I barely noticed I was putting my body in turmoil. I felt nothing. So glad I'm medication-free now. There have been a few studies on Prozac and how at higher doses it helps with bulimia. I'm not too informative about that though and have no experience.

    Overall, I found my trials with anti-depressants didn't effect my weight. I don't have the best insight though but I thought I'd throw my two cents out there. Birth control and weight gain on the other hand... Ugh!
  • Megume
    Megume Posts: 74
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    I was on Zoloft for almost a year, and gained nearly 40lbs. Oddly enough, the chemical in our brain, Seratonin not only makes you happy, but triggers your body to hold onto and gain weight.. hence, fat and happy.

    Some people are more seratonin sensitive than other.. turns out, I'm extremely sensitive. My doctor took me off as soon as my bloodwork showed the levels in my system. I was then placed on Pristiq which is seratonin and one other chemical. It helped a lot and made losing my excess weight a lot easier.
  • _HeathBar_
    _HeathBar_ Posts: 902 Member
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    About 10 years ago I was taking Wellbutrin for depression and to help with my ADHD. It caused me to lose a lot of weight and I was already a very skinny teenager at that time.

    I just didn't feel like eating... ever. It just made me really thirsty so I drank a lot of water and never ate anything.

    It also helped me cut back on my smoking. I went from a pack a day to about 5 a day.
  • jennifergaudette
    jennifergaudette Posts: 23
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    No problem sug :) My mans on it as well. So you can imagine the good times we have!! :D
  • FLGatorGrl
    FLGatorGrl Posts: 33
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    I have been on many anti-depressants and finally Wellbutrin is what works best for me. Paxcil was the one that caused the weight gain 40+ lbs. Wish I could get off of the meds completely but have tried numberous times and just does not work out and then it takes 2 to 3 weeks to get the meds regulated. Just talk to your Doctor and if they will not change your meds go to another that will listen to you.
  • ElectricMayhem
    ElectricMayhem Posts: 214 Member
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    I tried every drug listed by everyone here over the course of about 10 years to find one with the least side effects and what worked best for me and that ended up being Cymbalta. i did really well on it for about 5 years and then decided to stop meds all together about a year ago and i feel great! Zoloft was by far THE WORST of all that i tried (i actually broke out in hives after about a month of taking it so had to stop), it made me feel like a zombie- no feelings at all and i slept horribly and gained weight (can't remember how much)... good luck in finding the right one for you!
  • tiffanyvc
    tiffanyvc Posts: 99
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    Here's my two cents as a psych nurse:

    There are so so so many medications out there, and each one effects every body differently. You need to find the one that is right for you. Talk with your doctor and try other meds. There is nothing wrong with that. What causes one person to gain weight may cause you to lose weight. No different than other meds - give me Aleve for my headache, because Tylenol doesn't seem to touch me. Whereas my coworker swears by Tylenol.

    The only psych meds that I've seen cause major weight gain are certain mood stabilizers and a few antipsychotics.

    But, my point is, talk to your doctor - there are many options out there!
  • harley_rose
    harley_rose Posts: 236
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    I too was on Zoloft, gain a good 40lbs with it, it really didn't help my depression it made it worse... I didn't realize how bad until I got into a motorcycle accident and the pyscho told me that the anti-depression I was on was making it worse for me.. I was put on Wellbutrin, it was like night and day for me... It took my body about 3-4 months to adjust but I found the drive to cut back on drinking my beer, found the drive to eat right and plus exercise... Sometimes you just don't realize that anti-depression are making you worse...

    Good luck to all
  • Bentley2718
    Bentley2718 Posts: 1,690 Member
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    People have different reactions to different drugs. A lot of people so far have said Wellbutrin has contributed to weight loss, although the prescribing information suggests that this is true in clinical trials, it does not mean that this will be true for you.

    If you are unhappy with the weight gain, I recommend you discuss your options with your doctor. You also probably want to weigh the potential benefit, of perhaps not gaining more weight on Zoloft, against the risks of changing medication (which might lead to even more weight gain, loss of any improvements you've seen on your current meds, etc.).
  • hwoody0705
    hwoody0705 Posts: 1
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    Wellbutrin has worked well for me. More than anything, though I have found that the more I exercise, the less side effects I see.:smile:
    I also had reached a plateau where I couldn't lose weight and when I started watching diet and working with a trainer, it has helped. Overall, I have tried several antidepressants, tried Prozac, and it made it so I didn't sleep. Switched to Lexapro and did ok, and then I started to have issues, so now I have been on Wellbutrin for several years and LOVE it! Above all, talk to your MD. They can recommend things that will help!
  • lizard053
    lizard053 Posts: 2,344 Member
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    I have taken all sorts of different anti-depressants and managed to lose weight while my symptoms were controlled. Unfortunately my symptoms kept coming back and I kept gaining it all back. My symptoms are under control right now with pristiq and nortriptyline. I only got them under control when adding the nortriptyline! I don't know if the (really expensive) pristiq is even doing anything at all! I'm also hypothyroid so I take Armour for that.
    prozac - good drug, pooped-out quickly
    effexor - not bad, gave me the jitters
    welbutrin - made me a lizzy monster
    zoloft - great success, useful for many years, then pooped out
    pristiq - no different result from zoloft, but not as good as zoloft was

    Yes I gained weight. But I took it off too. No problems losing weight with zoloft at all. Just gained when it pooped out on me. I have to take Xanax whenever my anxiety gets high, but I'm not complaining too much. It works well. I've lost and gained and lost and gained, now I'm losing again. Hopefully for good this time!

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