Lexapro (or other SSRIs) and extreme hunger?

I posted another thread about Lexapro and blood sugar, but I wanted to get insight on this specific symptom that started me worrying about my blood sugar.

I am not 100% positive it's a side effect of the Lexapro, but it seems to line up with when I started taking it (5.5 months ago) and some research shows it's a less common effect.

I feel like I am ALWAYS hungry. And not just a little bit, not to where I'm thinking "Hmmm I could eat something." It's more like "MUST EAT NOW OR ELSE." And it is ALL. THE. TIME. Even right after I have eaten or 30 minutes later. I'm talking stomach growling and feeling like a gnawing pit, feeling shaky, etc.

I've been experimenting with what I eat and when and have noticed a very slight improvement eating more protein, but not enough to make me feel much better.

Moreso than being concerning, it is incredibly frustrating. I'm sick of feeling hungry and I am sick of eating.

My symptoms made me think my blood sugar might be low, but when I've tested, it's actually high normal.

I'm confused.

Has anyone else dealt with this specific symptom? I understood weight gain could be a side effect of Lexapro, but I thought it was because it messed with your metabolism, not because it made you eat 5,000 calories a day.

Oh, and I was on Paxil for years and never had this issue.

SC - I have considered the high acid issue. When I originally went in to speak to my doctor about two months after starting the Lexapro, he prescribed Prilosec, which I took for 4 weeks to try to bring things into balance. In addition I started taking a probiotic, and I have more recently tried taking Tums in the morning and at night. No real change, but it's another thing to discuss.

I was always starving on Lexapro. I put on 50 pounds in the first five months that I took the medication. I never ate that way either. I was always very lean. Suddenly I couldn't keep the weight off or the food out of my mouth with Lexapro.

I'm on Celexa now with Gabapentin. The hunger is not nearly as intense as it was on Lexapro. I still have to be mindful of what I'm eating or how much. I tend to overeat now probably due to having overeaten on Lexapro for so long (4 or 5 years). I don't feel like I'm dieing without food however now.

~TG

Twiggy - Hmmm it was my understanding that Celexa is pretty close in composition to Lexapro, so it's good to know that you haven't had the same "hunger" issue on it as you had with Lexapro. It also makes me feel slightly better that I'm not alone in experiencing this - not to say I'm glad you had to deal with it!

Ughhhh but the thought of switching and adjusting again kills me! It was so hard going from Paxil to Zoloft to Lexapro. Bah.

I'll exhaust all other possibilities first, but good to keep in mind it is something others on Lexapro have experienced.

ETA: I often say I feel like I'll die if I don't eat something. I'm at least trying to keep the volume of food I eat healthy, but there's a big part of me that thinks "I'd feel much better if I just ate a giant bowl of ice cream instead of these cucumbers with hummus." LOL.

Post Edited (RunningOnFumes) : 8/18/2015 1:24:12 PM (GMT-6)

Jennings - I feel ya. I have even stopped working out BECAUSE I'm so hungry and that I feel too week to workout! It stinks! I need to start working out again...Like I said, contemplating a med switch makes me want to cry.