Anyone else on anti-depressants or other weight-gaining drugs?

I am in serious need of a support group, and I assume I'm not the only one having this problem.  I have been counting calories, seeing a nutritionis t who says I eat ver y well, and exercising five days a week (30 minutes on the elliptical, then strength training) since November and I have not lost any weight at all (in fact I've gained one pound).  I refused to believe at first that this was because of the ONE medicine I'm on that supposedly causes weight gain (Risperdal--though my doctor recently told me it's "famous for weight gain"), but here it is, mid-April, five and a half months later, and since I have lost no pounds and&n bsp;no pants sizes, I guess I have to admit that it's the drugs (I have no idea what else it would be, neither does my nutritionist).  I keep working out and eating right because I hope that when I stop this drug completely (I have recently cut down the dosage) the weight will fly off me, but it's really hard to stay motivated when you see absolutely no results and you feel like there's nothing you can do about it.  Anyone else in this boat?

I'm on the epilepsy drug Eplim (sodium valporate) which is known for adding weight.  I've gained about 40 lbs through it although I know alot of that may be eating junk food and alcohol although I tried to reduce the dose last year (with my Dr's help) and my appetite decreased, unfortunatly I had to up the dose again and I found my hunger increased again and I have become more lethargic - so not a good combination!

Although I know I've been a bad eater in the past I think that I do gain weight too easily. (Maybe I'm in denial)  We'll see what my results are by Aug 1 when I go on Holiday and see if my healthy eating and exercise work!

ellybell-I'm not on any psychoactive drugs any more, but this subject is near to my heart and absolutely infuriates me.  I was on a Seroquel/Effexor combo some time ago and it put almost 30 lb on me despite my best efforts.

It's not good for anyone's state of mind to be fat, and it's not good for anyone's state of mind to be exercising and eating healthy and be packing on the pounds either.  It's an enforced failure and that was the last thing I needed at that time.

I know everyone's body chemistry is different (my mom benefits hugely from antidepressants) and I am not advocating that everyone should stop taking them, but this medicine made it much harder for me to recover from my problems.  I hate it.  The first step to my real recovery was making the decision to throw it all out.

I had the EXACT same problem with Effexor. I went from a thin 100 lbs. to almost 150 in a matter of weeks. I'm not saying it was only the Effexor; I also quit smoking and started taking the Depo Provera shot (that only happened once). But I basically didn't care anymore what I looked like. The doctor told me it would drop off after a few weeks, but three years later I weighed 140 lbs.

I think some people do just fine on anti-depressants. Some people just can't deal with it. Metabolisms are different. I think mine is finally coming back now. I tried four or five different anti-depressants before I decided that I would rather be depressed than pyschotic (as was the side effect of Lexapro for me), suddenly overweight, or have trouble staying awake during the day and going to sleep at night (I don't remember which drug that was). I had all kinds of side effects on anti-depressants and it just wasn't worth it to me.

smallis-See if your doctor can find a good drug for you. I'm currently on Zoloft for Social Anxiety Disorder now and so far I haven't had any problems. Sometimes it takes a bit of trial and error. Good luck!

I was researching some old posts on this site re: antidepressants and weight gain.  Someone mentioned a book called the Serotonin Power Diet.  My book store didn't have it but they ordered it for me.  Apparently two researchers have tried to tackle the unfortunate side effect of weight gain and antidepressants. Anyone out there have any info on it?  I wanted to pass this info on in case it could benefit even one person that has been affected by this. Good luck to all.  Should someone start a group specifically for those of us in this drug induced weight gain HELL?  Just a thought.

I am glad I am not the only one who is having this problem. I have to admit my eating is not that great but since September I have been taking Effexor and I have not been able to lose any weight either. I have two other friends who have gained weight due to antideppressents which are different from mine but they seem to have the same effect on them aswell. I have a doctors appointment in 2 weeks and am going to ask if there is anything I can do about it.

Thought I'd join the discussion.

I was on effexor for 5 years and gained about 20 pounds.  Mind you, I lost about 20 when I first went on it so I think the reason I gained was because it made me crave sweets all the time and want to sleep constantly. 

 I finally went off of it last year and then started on Prozac which is supposed to be a stimulant ( i gained 20 lbs in 2 months) and kept gaining and went off them. 

Now I'm on Wellbutrin and this drug is a GODSEND.  It's a stimulant, increases my energy, my mood, and reduces my appetite considerably.  You can also add it to any antipressant you're taking right now to balance out the weight gaining side effects (or so I've been told and have read about). 

A place for very accurate and good info about antidepressants is

www.crazymeds.org

My doctors appointment was actually today LOL. I haven't weighed myself in a while and this was also my yearly check up. I have gained 20lbs since sept! I was actually mortified about this. I talked to her about the side effects of the medication. I have been excerizing since September consistently for at least three days a week. I am on 75mg and she is slowly going to wean me down to 37.5. I hear that the withdrawl symptoms are aweful but this weight gain bothers me more than the symptoms will. I am supposed to let her know in 2 months how I am feeling and let her know how my progress with the weight is going. If I am still not losing, I might ask her to take me off the meds and use excerise to cope with panic attacks.

I started taking Seroquel about six months ago and it made me HUNGRY all the time, esp. at night. I used to get up in the middle of the night and eat. It was like I had the munchies. Twenty years ago as a teen I smoked weed and got the munchies and seroquel made me feel exactly like that. Hungry. I gained ten pounds and could never get up in the morning. Problem was I couldn't sleep without it.

I am happy to say that since I lost my insurance, I could no longer afford Seroquel and had no choice but to stop taking it. I am sleeping fine and losing weight. I don't get hungry anymore.

I do take Wellbutrin though and will continue to do so because I've tried to go off of it with disastrous results.

I am under a psychiatrists close supervision though and have begun taking Omega 3's for my mood swings and am feeling better than ever actually.

Im on Effexor-XR and so far it hasnt made me gain weight however othr meds i have been on have eg. olanzapine = gained 10kg. Normally its not the drug itself that causes the weight gain, the drug increases appetite and therefor you eat more = weight gain. If you are not already doing so, watch your food intake and the fat content of the food you are consuming. Other than that i would suggest that you speak to you dr about your concerns and see if there is a more appropriate drug for you.

i just got put on buspar. Anyone ever taken this? does it cause weight gain??

. I am really ready to get off my meds. Yesterday I was studying for an exam, got up at a reasonable time with about 7 hours of sleep. I ended up dozing off because my meds make tired and I almost missed an exam because they make me fall asleep in the afternoons all the time. Yesterday was the first time I have had caffienated coffee in almost a year because it brings on anxiety. It kept me up for the whole night which was bad too.

I found a really great site last night which might help you learn about the side effects of your meds

www.crazymeds.org cheers =)

I've been on lexapro for acouple years and gained so much weight, I was alway tiny and went up to 223lbs. I caved sweets and didn't care how I looked . Alway hungry .Weened myself off lexapo over xmas holidays, it took about a month was doing find until husband deceided wanted a divorce after 30yrs.  I was losing weight but I was having trouble trying to work and crying and knew on the medicine I didnt cry. I went back on lexapro 10mg. but now I'm hungry again and wanting sweets. Going to ween back off, 5mg. for a week and 5mg every other day for a week , then 5mg. on 2 days the last week. I'm happy as can be on lexapro but can't control eating and I sleep alot up to 9 hrs. night plus naps.

This topic has scared the HELL out of me. Anti-depressants I've been on in the past: paxil, prozac, effexor, wellbutrin, celexa, luvox, lexapro - was the last one I was on. I believe there have been more but I can't remember them all. I stopped taking the lexapro last Oct. because I could no longer afford it. Since then my depression has gotten so bad that I was in crisis mode and sought help. I found a community behavioral healthcare place who charges on a sliding scale. My first appointment was last week and that was with a therapist. My first appointment with the psychiatrist will be this week. As far as gaining weight - I didn't notice anything specific to any of the drugs - it was more overall lifestyle for me. It really took off when I moved to NJ from CA. I used to be fairly thin and in shape. Now I am not obese but have really put on the pounds compared to what I was before and my body is in terrible shape and that depresses me even more. Now that I will be trying to go BACK on the meds I am terrified about weight gain from what I just read here.

hi well im anti deppresants and things an well myscale at home have broke so while at colige to day i used the pay ones and apparently i have put on weight but maybe it because its diffrent scales or maybe it it the anti deppressant so they realy make you put on weight???

Different antidepressants effect all people differently. Take this from some one who has been on and off a variety of different kinds until my recent one which finally works for me, and from some one who has a degree in psychology.

If your medication is causing you to gain a drastic amount of weight, talk to your doctor about switching. What makes you gain weight may not make the next person gain weight. What works perfectly for me may be the worst thing in the world for you. While one drug might make me gain, it might make you lose. It all depends on what exactly is happening in your brain to cause your depression, and how the drug interacts with it. I really wouldn't recommend taking yourself off of them without consulting your Doctor.

Also, a lot of the time the weight gain is actually more attributed to the depression itself rather than the medication for it. If your depression makes you lethargic and tired, or turns you to comfort food, it's most likely that rather than the pills. But if you are practicing a healthy and active lifestyle and still are packing on the pounds then you should certainly talk to your Doctor.

jasmin-i just posted that site 3 posts above yours...?

I was having a terrible time at work. It was a very stressful negetive, hostile place to be and I just couldn't deal with it on my own any longer. The Doctor put me on Wellbutrin and I took if for approx. 8 months. It really "evened me out" without making me feel sluggish. I really felt great on it. I didn't lose weight but I didn't gain either. I had heard of other people losing weight on it because it does curb your appetite to some extent. I am no longer taking it for several reasons. I no longer work for that horrible place so I felt like I could make it without it (which has worked out great) AND I no longer have health insurance...$140.00 a month is a little steep! I had tried Effexor and really didn't like it. It made me feel like a Zombie and I gained weight really quickly on it.

my sister in law takes effexor. she loves it but she did gain weight. but she does not really care about her weight. go her!

I was given Cymbalta to try. Does anyone have any experience with that?

I just started on Cymbalta for major depressive disorder and I have zero appetite.  I have to force myself to eat and often have nausea as a result.  I've had some really strange side effects, but my bad days don't seem as bad and my good days are getting more frequent.  I hope it works out for both of us....we'll see.  I've been on many antidepressants and gained 70 lbs since 2000.  I've lost over 30 lbs, so far.