Depo Provera shots causing extreme weight gain?

I just wanted to know what peoples thoughts were on the shot i have gotten it in the past and it really messed thing wup for me. has anyone else had simmalar side effects .. extreem weight gain and also problems with sdeeffects after going off of it .. i am scarred that this drug has effectd me permanaintly. ?

Weight gain might be a side effect of depo, but it's more likely caused by aging and habits.  I was on it for years and years and never gained weight.  I also got it after having a baby (in my early 30's) and lost 50 pounds while on it.  My sister was on it for a year or so, and she gained weight.  Of course she kept gaining after she was off it too. Shes a size 14-16 and I'm a 6-8.  I don't see how it can make you gain weight unless it makes you hungrier or retain water.  Oh- BTW my mom took 1 depo shot after I was born in 1974.  She was skinny for 10 years after that, but still blames it for her weight gain ha-ha!  her and my sister both blame it, not the cheese enchiladas, queso, and desserts.

I also gained 20 pounds on the shot, and I was very active at the time.  I have always had a large apetite, but I never had weight problems prior.  Also, prior to the shot I was one of those wierd chics who only got a short 3-day period every 2 to 5 months.  I experienced light to heavy spotting over the duration of the first shot, my doctor said it was normal and that it takes your body around 6 months to get used to it.  It got worse, I now have a continuous period (2 tampons+ and a pad a day EVERY FRICKIN DAY.  I last had the shot over 9 months ago and have had a nonstop period even longer.

...Obviously the shot is not meant for everyone...

When I started Depo, I was a size 0 and weighed 95 pounds..within two months I was wearing a size 3-4 and weighed  120 pounds! I gained 25 pounds in 2 months.

Yes depo provera started with my weight gain.  I craved a lot of junk food after that which did not help and lost my willingness to exercise.  A job change to a sedentary style one did not help.  I stayed on it for so long because I did not get any migraines on it.  It also made me really spacey and effected my speech in the last 6 months I was on it.  When I went off a total of 2 years later, most of the effects were cut in half but the remaining never really left.  I lost some weight but the majority stayed on.  The bad eating habits stayed behind and my brain was quite "foggy".  I would not recommend that shot to anyone.

I have since found herbs to help with the "brain fog" as that part is what hurt me more than anything.  I take "Estrosense" from Lorna Vanderhaeghe line of health products which is not birth control but is great for the side effects that stayed behind.  With mental clarity, came a willingness to a healthier lifestyle and now a steadily decreasing weight.

I recently got my first one (one week ago actually), and my face hasn't been so broken out in a while.  It's really bad.  I haven't gained anything yet, I've been dieting and actually lost quite a bit of weight so far.  I'm not sure what to do about my acne now!

hlraphael states..."Weight gain might be a side effect of depo, but it's more likely caused by aging and habits.  I was on it for years and years and never gained weight." 

This may be true, but not for everyone.  A common side affect is weight gain.  I have been on the depo for 10 years and over the course of time i have gained about 20-25 lbs.  Once I started noticing the weight gain, I changed my eating habits and started working out 4-6 days a week.  No matter what I did, I still gained.  I have decided to go off the depo because of this and other side effects (loss of hair). 

The depo does make you hungry..Depo-Provera is a progestin injection which causes increase hunger and lowers metabolism.  

Before making such accusations towards someone, you might do a little research on the side effects of the depo shot.

As for the bone density loss, I have had a bone density test and my bones weren't bad and showed what they should for the age that I was at, at the time of the test. 

I was on the shot from age 15 or 16 until I was 21. Way longer than I was supposed to be. Anyways, I'm pretty sure the shot caused me to gain because withina month after I was off it I lost about 10 lbs. It must have all been water weight, because I didn't change my eating or exercise habits at all.

I've been on the Depo shot for about 9 months now. When I went in for the consultation, my doctor assured me that I will gain at least 5 pounds within the first 3 shots.

However.. I actually lost weight since then. [But I'm attributing that to the emotional side affects that you get from the shot. I get depressed about things really easily now, and I've been super hormonally outrageous towards my BF]

I've also been losing weight, but not as quickly as I think I should be.

When I was 21 I tried it and gained 25 lbs pretty fast. When I got off it I had to take hormones because my period wouldn't return. The weight came off without much effort prob because I was very active at that age but I strongly recommend against Depo. It also made me extremely depressed and I had no period for 11 months (That cannot possibly be healthy).

I think everyone responds to depo differently.  I've heard lots of horror stories about depo, but if it was so horrible for everyone doctors would stop prescribing it.  I personally love it. No periods, no ill effects on my sex drive, my acne cleared up, and I'm losing weight faster than before I was depo.  Every type of birth control effects everyone differently.  My doctor has had me try several types of pills and I had bad side effects with each of them.  I suggest you talk with your doctor about your concerns.

hlraphael states..."Weight gain might be a side effect of depo, but it's more likely caused by aging and habits.  I was on it for years and years and never gained weight." 

This may be true, but not for everyone.  A common side affect is weight gain.  I have been on the depo for 10 years and over the course of time i have gained about 20-25 lbs.  Once I started noticing the weight gain, I changed my eating habits and started working out 4-6 days a week.  No matter what I did, I still gained.  I have decided to go off the depo because of this and other side effects (loss of hair). 

The depo does make you hungry..Depo-Provera is a progestin injection which causes increase hunger and lowers metabolism.  

Before making such accusations towards someone, you might do a little research on the side effects of the depo shot.

As for the bone density loss, I have had a bone density test and my bones weren't bad and showed what they should for the age that I was at, at the time of the test.

I think everyone responds to depo differently.  I've heard lots of horror stories about depo, but if it was so horrible for everyone doctors would stop prescribing it.  I personally love it. No periods, no ill effects on my sex drive, my acne cleared up, and I'm losing weight faster than before I was depo.  Every type of birth control effects everyone differently.  My doctor has had me try several types of pills and I had bad side effects with each of them.  I suggest you talk with your doctor about your concerns.

 

This may be true but I was 19 when I took it and ONLY weighed 95 pounds..it too me from 95 pounds to 120 in 2 months! My friend who was 17  and weighed 115 when she took it eventually weighed 200 pounds! I was one of the people who gained weight FAST on it, it was the start of my present day weight problems..I KNOW if I had not took that shot I would have been a LOT thinner now..It seems like it changed something in my body. Also, yes, every drug effects people differently but from knowing MANY people that took that shot, it just takes LONGER to effect some people...My friend that I previously mentioned SLOWLY gained the weight over 5 years..I was the on ewho GAINED REALLY fast...also, my hair started falling out in patches! Trust me EVENTUALLY you will see some problems..THEY SHOULD BAN IT IN MY OPINION!

Ok here's the deal..

When I came to college.. I gained about 25 pounds by the end of Sophomore year. Granted I used to be a tiny littly asian girl.. but still, 25 pounds is a lot to gain.

 

THEN I started the Depo shot.

 

If I had started getting the shot right when I started college, I would have totally blamed it on my weight gain.

But after getting the shot.. I even ended up losing a few pounds over the last couple of months.

 

So to me .. I think you should just blame your over-eating

This is the thing...I personally was UNDERWEIGHT! I had a POOR appetite and COULD NOT Gain WEIGHT...my habits DID NOT CHANGE! I DID NOT START COLLEGE until I was ALMOST 20..I had already GAINED the weight from Depot...IT WAS the DEPO that caused my weight gain...25 pounds in 2 months is NOT normal for a 95 pound woman. I am heavy as heck now and I have not gained weight that QUICK SINCE the SHOT! After my pregnancy, It took me SIX YEARS to gain 25 pounds, NOT 2 MONTHS. Also, my hair CAME OUT IN CLUMPS! My metabolism has not been the same since that shot. It SLOWED it WAY down...my mother always wondered why I gained so much weight in my early 20's..it wasn't in our gene pool to be so heavy so young. I am a small framed woman...you can not tell me that shots is not causing people to gain weight...just like PHEN/PHEN....when a whole bunch of people complain about the SAME thing..it MUST BE TRUE! I wouldn't advise ANYONE to take that shot..I am now afraid of other long term side effects and I only took it once or twice!

I think it's possible to gain a lot of weight on depo, but if you have a healthy livestyle and eat healthy and exercise, I think it may not have such an effect.  Sometimes with any new medicine that changes anything in your body you can gain or lose weight quickly.. even painkillers that they give you after a surgery can make you lose or gain or break out, anything.  It's really all about your body's composition.  I think if you start the shot KNOWING there may be weight gain (a doctor, even the nurse at Planned Parenthood isn't going to give it to you without explaining side effects and reccomending you read up on it even MORE afterwards), then you can try to be healthier and work on keeping your metabolism regular.  Obviously the medication may bring changes to your body, but if you try to be even more healthy, I'm sure that you can counteract any changes.  I'm losing a lot less weight lately than I've been hoping to (Started depo the same week as my diet), but I'm STILL losing.  But then again, it was unrealistic for me to want to lose 6 pounds a week, haha.  I've lost 13 pounds in 3 weeks and I'm still going strong, even WHILE on depo.  I also had an awful breakout when I first started and all I did was increase my skincare regimen to washing/medicating my face 4-5 times a day (with doctor's approval  because my creams are medicated) rather than twice, and my skin is more clear than it's ever been.  So you can blame your weight gain on depo, but I think you could've done quite a bit to counteract it when you first realized the side effects.

I've been on DP 1st time 7 years took a 3 year break and back on for the last 2 years.  I've always had a problem with my weight so can't really blame it on the DP.  The nurse at PP said it causes you to be more hungry.  I believe this to be true.  It puts your body in menopause.   I love it because I have uterine fibroids and was getting heavy periods with a lot of cramping.  My doc said get a hysterectomy I said no way let me go back on the DP, he was not going for it, (I'm in my 40's) so I went to Planned Parenthood and they said it is fine for me to go back on it and stay on it.   My periods stopped after 1 year and my cramping stopped immediately.   I've maintained or have lost weight this last year by just trying to eat more healthy and getting more excersise.  Had a bone density test and it was normal, I do take 2 600 mil of calcium 2x a day.  I've had friends on the DP and they have had no problems.  I cannot take birth control pills because they make me ill.  So every women is different.  Explore your options and realize the risks of any bc before going on it.

Original Post by enchantingimage:

I call bs. It all depends on the woman.

I started the depo shot as soon as I rightfully could after having by baby, a year ago.

I haven't gained a single pound. I was 113lbs prebaby but bounced up to 186lbs in the couple months of carrying my bundle of joy. Due to water retention the doctor couldn't give me anything for it. Since it would've caused birth complications.

 I started the depo shot as soon as possible, my six week checkout after having baby. I also continued to eat healthy, since I already was adding walking/daily workouts to the mix. I've done nothing but lose weight in the last year. I'm currently maintaining 103 - 105lbs. I take calcium suppliments just as suggested.

  Sure. There is a chance of weight gain due to side effects. However, it depends on the woman. There's a chance of getting hit by car crossing the street too. I agree with Erica.  It's bs. Don't fall into the poor me bs side effect excuse.

 Its definately not BS, yes to some extent it can depend on the woman but you are the minority of people who didnt put on weight it seems, there is normal/average weight gain and then extreme weight gain.

I was 7 and a half stone when I went on the depo provera, very skinny, needed to put on weight to look healthy so would have welcomed the extra stone (14 pounds), however, in 6 weeks, I gained 42 pounds, now you cant tell me that is bs? I ate the same I always did, I did the same "lack" of exercise I always did, nothing in my lifestyle changed, except the weight gain and the extreme nature of it, it ruined my self esteem and it went to zero, it all goes on your middle and you look unnatural and not in proportion at all and its the hardest weight to try and lose.  I think its insensitve to some extreme to call it BS when sooo many women have suffered extreme gain in such a short amount of time, you were just one of the lucky ones it seems and I think if it were me, Id be grateful for that.

Yes, moderate weight gain is a side affect, but you can't blame it all on the medication when not everyone has that problem. I've been on Depo for 8 years and didn't gain any weight when I started, nor have I gained weight throughout my usage of Depo (aside from my normal summer/winter fluctuations which are always between 5 and 10 pounds depending how lazy I'm being). I know several people who have also not had any problems with weight gain since being on Depo. You have to hold yourself somewhat accountable for your actions, though; some people say they didn't change their habits after being on Depo, but that may or may not be entirely true. A lot of people change their eating & exercising habits subconsciously and to them, they've not done anything different when in actuality, they have.

Bottome line: if you're afraid of gaining weight with Depo, increase your activity levels or consider a different method of birth control. If you're on Depo and gain a significant amount of weight, see your doctor! You may have another condition (such as an over or under active thryoid) that is causing the weight gain that could be stimulated by the Depo and/or changes in your hormone levels caused by the Depo.

I had depo, gained weight straight after. I hate the stuff, regret taking it.

soo after the effects of the shot have gone, does the weight come off or do we have to workoff the weight? I got the shotin April and have gained 25 lbs.