Wellbutrin and weight loss

Some years back I heard that wellbutrin helps some people to stop smoking so I went to the doctor and asked him to prescibe it to me for that reason. My urge to smoke diminished within a couple of weeks, bareley wanted a cigarette anymore, BUT I started coming home with a bag of candy, icecream, gummy bears and so on EVERY day after work and would wolf all of it down the same evening!! Wellbutrin triggered a sugar craving in me like I never experienced before, needless to say I threw them out.:noway:

I have been on Wellbutrin XL 300MG for 5 months now for depression and have lost 30 pounds WITHOUT a single days workout.It did give me a headache for weeks at first and sometimes I do still get some but as long as I'm not depressed I can over look that.

I use 450mg Wellbutin for 2.5 years. My Dr. told me it does not cause weight gain, so I could not use it as an excuse for my recent gain. LOL

I have been on several different antidepressants over the years but have been on Wellbutrin XR 150 mg for quite a while now along with some other psychoactive medications. I think it can be very difficult to assess the effects of medications when you are being treated for depression and other mental health conditions given the impact of those problems themselves on your mood. When you are depressed your appetite, energy level and sleep all often change. I have checked several of these medications including Wellbutrin, Celexa, Lexapro in Lexicomp, and ALL of them are associated with both increased appetite and decreased appetite and ALL of them are associated with weight gain and weight loss. You will notice that I say "associated with" not "cause". That is because drug studies can rarely determine cause and effect relationships and because the drug companies basically report any symptom anyone had while taking a medication during a drug trial. They have no way of knowing whether the drug actually caused that symptom. I am simply trying to point out that it can often be hard to know with any certainty that taking an antidepressant is the reason you lost or gained weight.

I was prescribed it to lose weight and to help me kick my carb addiction. I have no depression. It made me jittery, which did help me lose weight. Once I got over that side effect, the weight loss went away, and it didn't help with the carb addiction. What did help was finally making myself cut out a lot of carbs. Once I managed to get out of the carb cycle, I lost weight again.

Wellbutrin worked great for me and I lost a lot of weight. Some of it was anxiety related. One of the biggest things that helped me get off all meds was diet. I had to totally get off sugar and white flour and my anxiety and depression went away. My prayers go out to you for wellness : )

Hi.
I have been taking prozac 60 mg for the past year with 200 mg wellbutrin. At first everything was fine and then I gained 10lbs in less than a month. I went to my doc she put me on celexa 40 mg and stopped the prozac. i still take the 200 mg wellbuterin. I am so fearful of the going weight thing I feel it will make my depression worse. I have been on the celexa for 5 days now taking it at night and the well butrin in the am. Yesterday I ate all day and never got full. Any advice on the time I take my meds or if this is a good combo?

Im new to taking this medication! Ive never been on any anti-depressant before, ive actually been against it because my sister has been on a lot of different anti-depressants and ive witnessed her gain about 50lbs on each meds! But ive read alot about this medication for the past couple days and Ive heard about 90% of good things about it! Im overweight anyway, so im hoping to lose some weight! I started taking Wellbutrin on Tuesday and Today is Sunday and so far ive been okay! Not having trouble sleeping! I have a headache sometimes but i dont think its from the meds I just chalk it up to having three kids! If i dont eat frequent small meals throughout the day, I get this burning feeling in my stomach! Similar to the feeling of being hungry but not quite! Its not anything i cant handle, if it means i wont be a crazy person all the time! I'l wait it out and see what happens!

I don't take wellbutrin but I take Abilify, Lexapro, and Effexor and gained 50 lbs on them.

Why do you guys think people gain weight on these medications? Do you think they affect your metabolism, or is just good old fashioned calories in/out?

I have been on wellbutrin for about two weeks i have noticed that my appetite is completely gone I've lost 8lbs in 6 days. I have also noticed my nicotine craving are gone so know all i have to work on is the habit (WONDERFUL). I absolutely love this med it has diminished my anxiety unless something huge has happened in my life then i have a panic attack but they're manageable so far. I had never heard of wellbutrin suppressing the appetite but I am super glad of it. I have diabetes so I just eat when I start to shake because I know my sugar is low but it is hard to get me to eat because every time i think about eating i get sick to my stomach i just have to get over it and push through. My attitude is different I have noticed I'm not as high strung as i once was I kinda just am like it is what it is and whatever happens happens I love it

I am on Oxcarbazepine, Wellbutrin xl, buspar, vistaril, seroquel xr, trazadone, zoloft. I just can't seem to find something that works for me, Instead of switching things up, my dr just keeps adding stuff. The Wellbutrin is new in the last month and I am experiencing so much anxiety I havent been able to leave my apartment for the last week. I just don't know what to do anymore.

Honestly, I would get another doctor.

Sometimes you have to switch doctors to find a better fit for your needs.

Trust me I know and not just talking out the side of my neck.

You also may want to be a little proactive in your health plan with him/her. Meaning, discuss your concerns with him/her and let them know what you are experiencing and do not just settle for what they give you if it is making you worse. Speak up and let them know.

Sometimes it takes several different combinations to finally get it right. Hang in there. I know its hard and so stressful and I feel for you. I really do. But, it will get better. Just gotta hang in there.

Wellbutrin did nothing for me, I was on it for 6 months and just stopped taking it.. I have been on lexapro for 6+ years and it is amazing!

I am on Prozac and have continued weight loss. If anything, my urge to binge is now 0%. Food and emotions just don't mix for me anymore, which is quite a relief! I think this is why it's often used for treating bulimia. Not to mention I'm much happier and more inspired to love myself and treat my body with the respect and food it deserves. )

I was on it to help me quit smoking....It gave me heart palpitations, whacked out dreams, and made me go frigging nuts...like literally crying one second, then happy the next, then ready to kill someone right after that...kinda nuts. I did however lose 5 lbs my first week on it...but after day 13 I couldn't handle it anymore...and I have been on quite a few things for depression. I think it is worth a try, just watch yourself on it and if you start feeling odd call your doc right away:)

i had a similar experience. i took it about 10 years ago to help me quit smoking. initially i loved it although it killed my appetite for food, beer, smoking, sex...pretty much everything. i felt energized even though i hardly slept from being amped up & the vivid crazy dreams. I was very animated & extra talkative for a few weeks, at first i thought it was kind of fun & that i would adjust...

but it turned into causing me to have almost violent reactions to silly things. Then paranoia set in. it was pretty bad. i mean, i didn't get to the wearing tinfoil hats level, but it might have one day if i did not stop. after my doc upped the dosage it got much worse and i had a lot of palpitations. once i realized these things were not temporary side effects that i would get used to and that i was actually getting worse & worse every day i called my doctor. unfortunately he was not a very good Dr. He told me it was all in my head & those things were not listed as side effects of Wellbutrin so it had to be from something else. I knew that these things most definitely were caused by the drug so i quit it cold turkey & switched doctors. (btw, i do not recommend cold turkey, it is much better to taper off these types of meds. the withdrawal was HORRIBLE & it can be dangerous to stop suddenly like that) eventually i got back to normal. but it took weeks, months even. and it was a very unpleasant experience for me.

A lot of people do very well with it & i hope that you do, just be mindful that there are some of us that can have a bad reaction. So i agree 100% to please be careful & contact your doc if you feel any extreme side effects like personality changes or palpitations. and make sure that he/she takes you seriously if you mention adverse side effects. if not it is time for a new doc.

good luck to you!

I was on paxil for major depression disorder and went from 140 to 167 lbs. I am starting to wean off of paxil while starting Wellbutrin sa. I have gone up 2 pants sizes Alot of my clothes no longer fit. I will report back later to this thread if I have any luck losing weight on Wellbutrin. Just hopefully I can make it through the paxil withdrawal...