Ask the Therapist
Celexa and Weight Gain
I am very desperate. I having been taking medication for years now for depression, anxiety,
OCD, social phobia, all the meds cause weight gain really bad , which puts me in a very depressed state.
I eat well, work out at the gym and still no luck in losing weight.
I was wondering if you no of a medicine that does not have weight gain as a side affect. I have used paxil, zoloft, and celexa.
Celexa made me feel the best but the weight gain is too much for me to handle. It is wrecking my life. I am trying 5 HTP right now but not having much luck. Very
depressed.
please help
Welbutrin can induce weight loss in some instances, but in most it will induce weight gain. One thing to be aware of with Celexa is that it is not the drug that is completely responsible for the weight gain. Like many, although not all, of the SSRIs Celexa causes a metabolic increase that increases your appetite - it makes you a card craver. One of the things to watch is what you are consuming and how much. As Tim mentioned you may want to reference the comment I previously made on this subject. If you go to the gym and work out, as you indicated, up your cardio or mix cardio and weights (e.g., 2 weight exercises, 10 minutes on the recumbent bike - 2 weight exercises, 10 minutes on the parabolic - 2 weight exercises, 10 minutes on the stepper). Also, decrease the weight you are using and increase your reps (15-20), then every week add 2-5 lbs to the weight your using and try and keep the reps at 15-20. All of this will push and maintain your heart rate, which is the key to weight loss.
Also, don't make the fatal mistake of forgetting that muscle weighs more than fat. It's not how much you weigh..it's how your clothes fit. Throw out your scale and buy a tape measure.
