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Weight Gain for everyone?

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Posted 1/22/2007 2:10 PM (GMT 0)
does everyone gain weight on their antidepressant???

i know it varies from person to person but im just wondering what your experience has been like

Posted 1/22/2007 2:52 PM (GMT 0)
i weighed about 150 pounds when i started taking zoloft about 9 years ago. after about 2 years i started putting on weight. in a little over a year i gained about 40 pounds. i now weigh about 50 pounds more (200) than i did in college. but it didn't really start until i left college and got my first desk/office job. my eating habits began to change and i didn't get as much exercise. i was able to lose about 30 pounds on weight watchers a while back. but i put the weight back on. so in my case, even though i put on 50 pounds or so in a little over a year, i think it had more to do with lifestyle than the zoloft. that's something i have never really been that sure about. but i do know that even if it was the meds, it's possible to lose the weight. it's not like you put on weight and then it's impossible to lose it unless you go off the meds, which i remember one person trying to tell me.
Posted 1/22/2007 2:59 PM (GMT 0)
As you know it is different for everyone. I personally do not take meds so I can not attest one way or another. Hang in there and I wish you the best.
Posted 1/22/2007 6:06 PM (GMT 0)
Effexor hasn't affected my weight at all.  I haven't had any problems with weight gain since I've been taking it and increasing the dosage didn't make any difference either.   I'm not sure whether it's a side effect of every antidepressant or whether it's an individual thing.  Sometimes if you have been suffering from depression and anxiety you can lose your appetite and once the meds start to work, your appetite can come back when you are feeling better so that may have something to do with it I'm not sure.
Posted 1/22/2007 7:30 PM (GMT 0)
did you have a lot of panic attacks when u first started effexor or more anxiety?

Victoria said...
Effexor hasn't affected my weight at all.  I haven't had any problems with weight gain since I've been taking it and increasing the dosage didn't make any difference either.

 

I'm not sure whether it's a side effect of every antidepressant or whether it's an individual thing.  Sometimes if you have been suffering from depression and anxiety you can lose your appetite and once the meds start to work, your appetite can come back when you are feeling better so that may have something to do with it I'm not sure.

Posted 1/22/2007 9:28 PM (GMT 0)
I gained about 10lbs on lexapro. I am trying to work it off though.
Posted 1/22/2007 9:44 PM (GMT 0)

jaymay said...
did you have a lot of panic attacks when u first started effexor or more anxiety?

Victoria said...
Effexor hasn't affected my weight at all.  I haven't had any problems with weight gain since I've been taking it and increasing the dosage didn't make any difference either.

 

I'm not sure whether it's a side effect of every antidepressant or whether it's an individual thing.  Sometimes if you have been suffering from depression and anxiety you can lose your appetite and once the meds start to work, your appetite can come back when you are feeling better so that may have something to do with it I'm not sure.


i'm not victoria, but i can tell you that when i started zoloft the first time, and when i started it again several months ago after a year-long switch to lexapro, i experienced significantly more anxiety for the first month or more. i think i'm pretty sensitive to it. lexapro didn't seem to have that effect on me, but it seemed to stop working after a while so i went back to zoloft. unfortunately the zoloft doesn't seem to be working as well as it did before, if at all. so i have an appointment with a therapist next week and will see if he suggests something new. hate switching meds because of the transitional periods and the unexpected results. but i may have to.
Posted 1/22/2007 9:50 PM (GMT 0)
I dont take antidepressants but I do know if anxious or depressed I would go literally days w/o eating
I went to 88 lbs and I know now to eat a few small meals daily
my valium when I do take them give me an appetite but I still am not able to eat lots of foods due to my crohns 'Lyn
Posted 1/22/2007 11:09 PM (GMT 0)
I'm taking Effexor and Xanax and I've actually been LOSING weight, not gaining. I've lost 25lbs since August.
Posted 1/22/2007 11:55 PM (GMT 0)
For me personally .... no.... I've been on Lexapro for a while and for the first two months I was losing weight...

the doctors are always concerned my weight is too low... so I'm actively trying to put on weight... but my weight fluctuates a lot so it's hard to keep on the weight.

I'm at 116 pounds and I'm 5'7", whereas four months ago I was 108 pounds, and even then, my weight some weeks will drop to 112 or less...

I've always been this way though, it's really hard for me to keep on the weight.

Twiggygal~

Posted 1/23/2007 12:11 AM (GMT 0)
Before taking Zoloft I had a hard time eating and was losing weight.  Have been on Zoloft for five years now and weigh 9lbs more.  I don't blame the Zoloft because I don't excercise and have now reached 40 where its harder to lose weight. sad    Watching my diet and going to at least start walking everyday and should drop 5lbs by summer (god willing).
Posted 1/23/2007 1:33 AM (GMT 0)
Paxil was the "fat pill" for me. It worked great, but I couldn't stop pigging out. Zoloft was much better, but they can all do it to you, especially over the long run.
Posted 1/23/2007 1:13 PM (GMT 0)
I was on Zoloft for 7 months. At first I actually lost a few pounds due to feeling tired and sick. I kept hearing about weight gain and was thinking maybe i was a lucky one.

As my dose was gradually increased, so did the weight gain.  Didn't notice it much a first since it was only a few pounds (3 or 4) BUT the last dose increase went up to 200mg and I gained 10 pounds in 4 weeks. I did absolutely nothing different and still worked out 5 days a week. I felt really bloated around my abdominal region like I was pregnant again. My DR didn't believe that it was the Zoloft but I knew that it had to be. I find it hard to believe to this day that I gained 14 pounds in 6 months since I am a small frame person and the most I have ever gained was when I was pregnant and besides that maybe a couple pounds here and there. I think we all know our bodies and how they work. I took myself off the Zoloft and I am still battling to lose this weight.

Has anyone else had a hard time losing the weight they gained? Usually I can work out more and eat less and it comes right off. This time it feels different, like my body is just messed up. I am trying not to get depressed over it but it would be nice to fit in my clothes again confused

Posted 1/23/2007 1:24 PM (GMT 0)
The higher your dose, the more side effects. I never completely lost the Paxil weight and while Zoloft has been much better in that area, it definitely put some pounds on me.

Unfortunately, this is the trade-off with meds. With the SSRIs, weight gain and sexual dysfunction are the two biggest problems that cause people to switch or stop the drug.
Posted 1/23/2007 4:19 PM (GMT 0)
jaymay,

I believe the last post by Geebs is right on the money.  I experience both loss of sex drive and weight gain after taking effexor for a few months.  Eventually, the weight gain stopped after about 25 pounds.  The extra weight did concern me after I stopped taking Effexor.  However, my panic attacks are back in full force so I'm considering Effexor or another medication again.

Hang in there....the weight gain might be worth feeling better! :)

Posted 1/23/2007 6:21 PM (GMT 0)

how many mg were you on b4 the panic and anxiety stopped

also how was it when u first started effexor (XR)?

Jamie28 said...
jaymay,

I believe the last post by Geebs is right on the money.  I experience both loss of sex drive and weight gain after taking effexor for a few months.  Eventually, the weight gain stopped after about 25 pounds.  The extra weight did concern me after I stopped taking Effexor.  However, my panic attacks are back in full force so I'm considering Effexor or another medication again.

Hang in there....the weight gain might be worth feeling better! :)

Posted 1/30/2007 11:49 PM (GMT 0)
i hope that happens for me lol maybe like 10 or 15

neecy2k said...
I'm taking Effexor and Xanax and I've actually been LOSING weight, not gaining. I've lost 25lbs since August.

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