Posted by Jani on February 23, 2001, at 20:08:12
In reply to Re: about Weight gain and Meds., posted by Shell on February 23, 2001, at 12:14:24
I have gained between 10-15 lbs. on Effexor over a 1 year period. Am watching my diet and have been exercising (aerobic and circuit training) diligently for over a month. I have still not lost any weight. My MD says it is not the meds but it also happened on Celexa 2 years ago. Lost those pounds when I was switched to Welbutrin, but then I suffered from severe agitation and "brain flashes" and a feeling of "nerve twitches in my neck". Now, on the Effexor I am chunky again (better to have my peace of mind and a little extra weight than to be depressed)but am weaning off as I am past the crisis and hopefully am coping well. Down to 37.5 every other but am having trouble quitting totally. If I don't take the pill on the third day, I begin to have the nervousness and "head or brains electric shock type feelings. I will follow up with all of you when I finally am off the Effecor about a month.
Jani> I've only taken two of those drugs, Effexor and Wellbutrin.
>
> I have a pretty good idea of how those affected (or didn't affect) my weight, but I checked my DietWatch program to be sure (btw, I really like DietWatch and recommend it if you want to keep track of what you eat each day).
>
> My impression was that Effexor had no effect on my weight. I checked and found that over the four months I took it, I lost two pounds. I think that is probably fairly insignificant.
>
> I know that I have lost weight while taking Wellbutrin. I checked and since I started it in December, I have lost 10 1/2 pounds. I do have to tell you that that has all been since January; I certainly didn't lose any over the holidays! However, I didn't gain then either, so that is something.
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> The reason I think I have lost while taking the Wellbutrin is that I have simply been more able to stick to a diet than I was before. I just don't find myself thinking about food nearly as much and find that that feeling too full now really bothers me. It isn't that the weight has just started to go away because I'm taking it. I am eating better (and less) and doing more exercise. I think the Wellbutrin simply helped improve the depression (so that I am motivated to exercise) and removed some of the food cravings.
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> Hope that helps,
>
> Shell
poster:Jani
thread:54655
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010221/msgs/54715.html