Zoloft and weight gain (new thread)

I've found this post by chance while searching side effects at 5:30 am after a very disturbing night. First let me start by saying that I am a 38 year old woman and have been taking Zoloft 100mg ( PMS Sertraline) for 9+ years now. I have stopped for approx. 6 months in 2003 but the effects where to hard to deal with so I started back again.

I was diagnose with a severe depression in 2000 and was therefore prescribed Zoloft along with a trip to the psychologist, which helped me immensely. I would say that my life is now in total control and do not feel depressed at all. I really don't know if it's caused by the drugs or by my new take on life but I have never felt better in my whole life. Although, I feel great psychologically my body is a wreck, let me explain...

Before I started on the drugs I was a very fit woman and was VERY proud of my body and general looks. I took care of my self and was always dressed to a "T". I am a designer and make most of my clothes, so I was always very proud to show off a new dress or a new outfit with the body shape I had.

When I first started to take Zoloft in November of 2000 I did not see the changes right away. The changes I saw where more psychological then physical at first. My first stretch of medication was great, no weight gain, no night sweats, no trembling, no spaghetti legs, no memory loss, nothing at all that I can recall (bad memory you know).. I made positive changes in the way I lived my life and in the way I dealt with everyday situation. Basically I stopped sweating over the small stuff.

Since I thought I was cured ( Yeah right) I stopped the medication in December of 2003. OMG what a mistake...I began feeling irritable, anxiety came back and behold the patience meter was very low. I then decided to restart my medication and have been on it since at a dosage of 100mg per day. No really severe sides effects where noted at first but 3 months later here they came and did they ever..

Weight gain, weight gain, weight gain here it comes... My general weight has ALWAYS been at around 110pnds and, as I said previously, I was always proud of the way I looked. At 5'4'' and 110 I was perfect ( for my taste and my hubby at least)..At first I started gaining a few pounds here and there and did not really notice it except for my clothes which where getting bigger in sizes...Time went by and I did not stop to think of my weight until really recently...

I still make my clothes but now instead of making a size 6 or 8 I have to make a size ( hold on to your seats) 18...Oh yeah you've read correctly I went up 10 sizes in less then 6 years that's roughly 1+ size per year ... Now I find my self shopping in big size stores for my pants... Can't buy cute bras anymore, since my boobs are bigger then my head.. I wear granny underwear because the nice lacy ones look like crap on me..Most of my shirt make me look like I'm pregnant (and by the way people of you're not sure if someone is pregnant DON'T ask when she is due...)Can't wear high heels no more because my legs are constantly killing me and forget bending down, I can't even bend down to tie my shoes in one shot because my stomach is in the way...

So to sum it up I went from 110 lbs 5'4'' to 178 lbs 5'0''.... cause that's how short the weight makes me look.

So, although I feel great in my head I feel like crap physically.. Is it worth it.. I wonder sometimes... I have been reading from the older post ( which has been locked because it was getting too long) and have seen that almost EVERYBODY gains weight with this drug and seems to be loosing it magically when stopping...HUM!

I would love to stop using it because on top of the massive weight gain other symptoms have made my life hell... I now experience, insomnia, sever night sweats (I have to change my sheets 3 times per weeks), trembling, major memory loss, nightmares ( which by the way kept me up all night and finally got me out of bed at 5:30 this am), dry mouth, spaghetti legs, sometimes I get blurred vision and daily tiredness ( i have to nap everyday because I can't make it a whole day without sleeping at least 2 hours)..

So all and all I think I would be better without it...I am not a doctor but even if your doctor tells you that the symptoms, like weight gain, are NOT related to the drug it self, it's bogus I think. My doctor has been filling my head with stories that past 30 your body changes but if I look at my 9 sisters, who by the way are ALL in their 40's + they are ALL tiny..My mom, even after 15 children weighed no more then 130.. and my dad well he's a mere 155lbs at 5'10''....I mean you can't pass over basic genetics and say well your body i made different..It HAS been made different BECAUSE of the drugs... Read the other thread about Zoloft and weight gain and search the net, you'll see how many people are suffering from weight gain and other crippling symptoms and who are all taking Zoloft or it's twin PMS sertraline...

Really considering Quitting Zoloft..

Overweight and sad in Canada......

I have no idea whether you should stop or not. I'm considering quitting some of my meds for the same reason, although 1 of them is zoloft. I'm not sure if it's contributed to my weight gain or not but I have no energy and more pounds. I think for now I'm going to stay on zoloft cause it has helped but I stopped talking abilify because I had no energy and I thought it was more due to that med. I'd say if life is more enjoyable when you're on the meds, don't stop- do you have a doc to talk to about it?

I have been on Zoloft aka Sertaline. I started on Zoloft in 1993 at 120 pounds and only 5'2" tall. Now jump to 2009 on Sertaline aka Zoloft and 5'2" tall and 233 pounds. That's not all the meds I'm on though.

HARA

Hi everyone! I'm so glad to have found this website and know I'm not alone. This has giving me hope back and the motivation I need to know that weight loss after Zoloft is possible. I was never really a skinny girl but I was absolutely happy with my body. I was 5'4 and 145 pounds. My weight has always fluctuated but I never weighed more then 150, and I never really excercised. It's funny because back then when i was a perfectly normal weight I always thought I was too chubby. Then I was put on Zoloft in Aug of 08. I thought everything was perfect my mindset was doing great and I actually lost a few pounds and recieved many compliments. Then after about 3 months my weight shot up out of nowhere. Right after Christmas I had an appointment and had gained 9 pounds from my first one in august. They told me it was holiday weight and I believed them. I started watching what I ate but no matter what I did it kept going up and up. I know weight 174 and am incredibly disguested with myself. Even my fat jeans are way to tight and I have terrible times just putting an outfit together. I found this website and immediatly stopped taking Zoloft. The side effects were bad, I'm still very dizzy and I've been off it for about a week. I have outbursts of anger as well but the side effects I can live with. Gaining over 20 pounds, I cannot. I've been working out daily since I stopped taking it and have already lost 2 pounds. I recently had an appointment and my doctor was the one who was suggesting I get off it, while I was still happy with the way I felt with Zolofts help. I was mentioning how upset I was about my weight and she readily admitted it was all Zoloft. So I guess there is one doctor out there willing to live up to the truth about Zoloft.

Hi. I just started Zoloft and am up to 125 mg. I have been having a tough time eating. Food Just turned me off. Have been forcing myself to eat. But there have been brief periods when I have a good appetite. This is mostly bland food. By what I read in forums here the appetite does return gradually for most people. I was going to have my phycisian change to a new med but I'll keep trying for a few more weeks. One question I have is when is the best time of the day to take the Zoloft. I take it at bedtime figuring it will help to sleep with the sedative effect but after work inthe early evening. I usually get a panic attack so I take Rivotril to get through. Would it be too sedating to take it in the morning? Would it work more effectively through the day if taken in the morning? P.S. Glad I found this group!

I will admit that it as I was losing weight from 245 pounds, I felt good when I was at 200 pounds. I felt that was the perfect height & weight for me (Women noticed also. But that is here nor there--LOL). After a while, Zoloft did not work for me.

Hello all, I am new to this group but I found it because I searched Zoloft and weight gain... yep, my problem too. Having been a musician all my life, I always thought my bipolar disorder was (self administered) drug induced. I finally stopped drugging and drinking in '87. I was 32... after being clean for 13 years, I was in a "final" depression... I thought it was the end. I couldn't go on feeling that bad... for months at a time sometimes. We'll I'm sure ya'll know what that's about.

Anyway, a friend of mine got me to the Musicians Clinic, and the wonderful Nurse Practitioner put me on Zoloft right away... I would imagine she'd seen this before. After being clean for more than 13yrs I really didn't want to take "drugs" but at that point, the pain of it all sort of decided for me. Plus I talked to my sponser and several other friends in my support group.

So, that was jan, 2001... it wasn't long before I was taking 200mg. My life really changed, I got away from crazy musicians (like myself) and started playing solo gigs... and everything really improved! I got married a few years ago, and because of the (sexual) side effects I/we talked to my doctor and decided to try 1/2 Zoloft and 1/2 Remeron (I'm living in Europe these days, I don't know if Remeron is availible in the US). So, it helped but the marriage didn't work so I've decided to go back to the 200mg of Zoloft. It was a weird experience moving to the Remeron (because I found I was under dosing for a while and experiencing some paranoid moments with the "voices") and then also weird getting back to the 200mgZ. I don't recommend "cold turkey" with any of these types of drugs.

Now, I'm divorcing my wife, renting a house, and sort of stuck in Europe until I can get all my little "worldly possessions" back home to LA. The reason I'm writing this is not just the weight gain... because a few summers ago I was actually down in my weight... but now it's definitly back up. Ouch!!! But these last few weeks, I found myself in a serious depression... unlike anything I've experience actually. I only noticed it because of the symptoms... sleeping too much, hiding in the house, not taking care of business when I had to deal with another person. It was just me and my little Chihuahua... here at the house... hiding. Yuck!

The strange part was it didn't "physically" feel like it use to... like I said, I noticed the symptoms after almost a week... but it use to be (before meds) a physically painful type depression. So, there you have it. I hope folks can take care of their weight issues... for me, after 46 years of what I can only lookback on as "the crazys"... I'd rather be a little overweight than crazy!

George

Hi just to let you all know that there is light at the end of the tunnel. Ive been on antidepressants for over 20 years and stopped this past Jan because I was sick of killing myself with diet and excercise and not losing an ounce. I stuck at it and have taken up running and knew it would time a while for the meds to leave my system. I hadnt weighed for 3 weeks and bought a new scale last Friday and I was so excited I was 8 pounds down!! and weighed yest and another 2 down, i was 11st 1 in Jan when I started bootcamp and now am 10st 5. I will keep you all posted and am running over 20k a week and loving it as it really is great for depression the runners high is fabulous. So I just wanted to give you all hope. My doc told me on countless occasions that it was my lifestyle not my meds making me fat!!!!! hahhahaha good luck everyone xxx

I never noticed thanks ;)

Im still off my meds and doing fine the odd bad day but I can live with that. I'm fitter and lighter than I've been in years.

Hi Want to quit,

Please talk to your doctor about this. Since you haven't been taking it very long, quitting or switching should be easy. Talk to your doctor about Wellbutrin. It doesn't cause weight gain.

Welcome to the forum...

Hugs, Karen...

Have you tried walking daily? It helps tighten up stomach muscles and burns calories especially if you swing your arms. I walk as much as I can...

Also try wellbutrin, if the doc will put you on it. It can actually help you lose weight. If you haven't tried it, I would ask the doc about it.

I am tall too, so I weigh more. I am really trying hard to get rid of belly fat. It is so hard to do. I do walk as much as possible. It helps to maintain my weight. Though I haven't been on the scales in awhile. I am afraid to. Also remember, if you gain muscle, it weighs 4x that of body fat. So the scales might be higher but you will look smaller.

Hang in there. Keep posting, it does help. I hope you have a good day...

Hugs, Karen...