Which anti depressant does NOT cause weight gain?

[Pavlova]

Have been on Mirtazapine for nearly two years, and have so far put on 2stone! Am extremely upset at this, not to mention that my cholesterol has soared to 7.3.

My psychiatrist is not keen to change the drug but am gradually wearing her down by my constant whinging that I really do not want to go into my middle late years as a roly poly!!

Having spent hours on the internet looking for an antidepressant that will control my late onset depression (Started when I was 50-presumably menopausal) and not put on weight which as you can see by my cholesterol is not a good health profile. I do not smoke and my B/P is always low. No idea of family genes as am adopted.

I would be most grateful if you could suggest a medication that might be a good alternative to Mirtazapine. Wellbutrin or Cipramil spring to mind but need a medical head on this problem.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and hopefully offer some good advice.

One good thing is that The Psychiatrist does not see me on long term medication but wants it to continue for three yearsin total.

That still leaves me with another year to go!

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

Wellbutrin is the most frequently recommended medication when weight gain is an issue.  You can also get some help with the emotional eating patterns that cause weight gain by going to www.masteringfood.com

[leigh47]

I was on Wellbutrin for a few years and didn't gain a pound.

One month on Zoloft and I gained 5 pounds...and that was with working out 5 times per week at my gym. For some reason, some of the antidepressants make you feel hungry all the time and makes you crave the "dreaded" carbs.



I hope you feel better soon.

[Lerry]

Hi,



I take Lovan 20 and sometimes I feel like skipping meals but have something to keep up my health.

[mcla]

I have been taking Zoloft for a little over a month and have lost weight.  I do tend to lose weight when I am doing through stressful times.  The medication has been great for anxiety and depression.  I am not wanting to lose weight but I would rather lose than gain.  Zoloft may be a good alternative for you.

[Timmy256]

Cymbalta is not supposed to cause weight gain.  I just stopped taking it and have had a hard time with dizzyness and brain zaps.  Anyone have this problem?

[AndyDep]

I've been on mirtazepine for a year and have put on a stone and a half. (I don't eat much so it must be the meds)



A



(also on chlorpromazine and procycledene)

[iddm1981]

I can't seem to find an anti-depressant that I can tolerate that doesn't make me gain weight.  I've tried Prozac, Lexapro, Wellbutrin, and now Cymbalta.  The wellbutrin gave me chest pain.  The others just don't do a whole lot for the depression, especially since I've added almost 30 lbs!!! (That's depressing in itself!)  It's not my diet.  I even tried eating 300 cal/day and still gained.  Now I'm just trying to eat sensibly.  A friend said her doctor put her on dexadrine with the anti-depressant.  Anyone out there with experience on that or have any other suggestions of meds to try?  I can't take the tricyclics due to other health problems.  Also, my cholesterol went sky high once I did start on the anti-depressants.  I'm beginning to feel like the med that supposed to help me feel better is making things worse.  Any ideas are appreciated!!!!

[Jasara]

Effexor 75-150mg worked well for me as an anti-depressant that prevented weight gain. Actually think I lost weight on it and have been on it for 2 years now.

[Starzstuff]

Parents have joined a mental health watchdog group asking the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to investigate misleading advertising that could be forcing up drug sales and placing children at risk. They want the FDA to issue a warning letter to manufacturers—and, thereby, send a warning to psychiatric and patient groups they fund—that “Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder” (ADHD)—and other mental disorders—cannot be promoted or advertised as “neurobiological” or caused by a “chemical imbalance” when scientific evidence does not support this. This follows a complaint last week to the FDA from 20 doctors, supported by actresses Kirstie Alley and Kelly Preston, urging stronger pediatric warnings on psychiatric drugs.



The complaint is one of many expected in light of the June 28, 2005 FDA warning that stimulants drugs prescribed to children can cause suicidal ideation, psychotic or violent behavior, and adverse cardiac effects. The FDA has already ordered a “black box” warning for antidepressant use in children because of suicidal reactions. Parents of adolescents who died or committed suicide while taking psychiatric drugs have supported the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) in its submission to the FDA, urging them to provide information to consumers that psychiatric drugs do not “correct” any scientifically substantiated chemical imbalance or neurobiological psychiatric disorder.



Steven and Vicky Dunkle from Smethport, Pennsylvania, are still trying to come to grips with the death of their 10-year-old daughter, Shaina, on February 26, 2001. After being prescribed an amphetamine for “ADHD,” Shaina suffered a seizure in the doctor’s office. Mrs. Dunkle rushed to hold her, where, minutes later, she died. An autopsy determined that Shaina had died from drug toxicity. Today, the Dunkles are members of a nationwide parents’ group, ABLECHILD.org, who receive hundreds of complaints from parents that have been forced to put their child on a psychiatric drug—largely for “ADHD” that they thought was neurobiological or similar to a physical disease.



Advertising for “ADHD” stimulants has claimed the condition is a “neurobiological disorder” and the American Psychiatric Association on its website says that medications are prescribed because they “may correct imbalances in brain chemistry.” Yet in a recent media interview, APA president Steven Sharfstein said they have “no lab test” to determine this.



The National Institutes of Health advises there is no “valid test for ADHD; there are no data to indicate that ADHD is due to a brain malfunction.” The FDA agrees, “There is no biological test for ADHD.”



Dan and Celeste Steubing from Winchester, Virginia, testified before an FDA Hearing into antidepressants on September 13, 2004. In July 2003, their 18 year-old son, Matthew, had jumped to his death from the Cooper River Bridge in Charleston, South Carolina. He’d started taking an antidepressant, Lexapro, shortly before graduating from high school. “Matthew was a happy and healthy child with no prior history of depression…He loved sports, loud music, pretty girls, cool cars and Seinfeld…He had plans to join the Air Force ROTC program. He did not plan to die,” Mrs.Steubing testified.



In an interview with CCHR, available on its website, Mrs. Steubing says that when Matthew starting feeling disillusioned, a psychologist diagnosed him with a “chemical imbalance” causing depression and recommended an antidepressant. “How do they know it’s a chemical imbalance? They did no test, they did no blood test. They did nothing except listen to his symptoms and diagnosed him with a chemical imbalance. And treat him with a drug that killed him,” Mrs. Celeste says. “As parents, we have a right to make an informed decision regarding our child's care,” she told the FDA.



Dr. Karl Hoffower, a health care advisor to CCHR says: “Psychiatrists and ADHD organizations with pharmaceutical funding advertise ADHD as a ‘neurobiological disorder