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losing weight after effexor
I gained 20 lbs in the last 3 years that I was taking Effexor. I have tried everything. I'm eating less & working out more. I started taking Paxil but that didn't work at all as I have anxiety issues. Anyhow Effexor did wonders for my attitude however after 3 years I am now convinced that it was the cause for all the excess weight. Anyhow I was wondering if the weight comes off after I get off the meds? or am I stuck with excess weight forever in which case I will be contacting my doctor because they lied to me.
My situation is very similar to yours. I was on the drug for approx 1 year in the beginning I didn't notice much weight change, but I worked out regularly and was always conscious of what I was putting in my mouth then in the last 4 months on it I gained about 20 lbs. I've been off it for about 3 weeks (completely off...it took about 6 weeks to ween myself off) and I have continued to gain. I also think the effexor may have caused issues with my thyroid. Please let me know if you have learned more.
3 Comments
Hello Oceangirl11, I left the comment above.. yours a while ago.. (I'm MsFitnessNY), and as more time has now passed.. I have learned more.. I went to see a Functional Medicine Doctor who is also a Chiropractic Doctor & Clinical Nutritionist. She extensively reviewed all of my medical tests for the last 5 years, pre-and post Effexor use. (Comprehensive Metabolic Panels, CBC panels, Creatine-Kinase Tests.. T3, T4 & TSH tests.. etc). She analyzed all ingredients in my vitamins & supplements, and a 10 page medical packet I filled out.
After doing all of the above, she put me on an "elimination diet" where for 2 weeks, I eliminated all of the following: all artificial sweeteners (even Stevia), all dairy, nuts, gluten, complex carbs, processed foods.. (I know what is left right? LOL) I was eating mainly fresh fruits, vegetables, eggs, bacon, fish & chicken, and I was doing my best to eat 5 meals a day, every 2 hours: 200 calories of a protein & 100 calories of low glycemic carbs) 3 meals & 2 snacks, and drinking a new type of protein I bought through her which has special liver detoxing benefits: it was called NuMedica: "Total Vegan" Vanilla Protein powder. (Mostly only doctors sell this, but I have seen it on Amazon.)
Finally after almost 2 years off Effexor and with regular exercise, weightlifting, running, walking and yoga and following her elimination diet, I started losing 1-2 lbs per day for 2 weeks straight! Mind you, I have exercised and ate pretty clean all along during and after my 1 year on Effexor, but I learned through all of this and seeing her, that I had developed food intolerances to dairy products, and some types of nuts (cashews and almonds), and gluten. I lost 14lbs so far after doing the elimination diet and I am still continuing to lose as she tweaks my regimen when I hit plateaus.
I learned through the process of the elimination diet.. I had developed food intolerances to dairy, gluten and some types of nuts (almonds & cashews). (And I never had this before.) Side note: I've also read in medical journal articles how Effexor changes the way our livers metabolize fats!
When someone has food intolerances or even food sensitivities.. it can keep you from losing weight!! This was truly eye-opening for me because over a 2 week period, I subtracted things from my diet like: all artificial sweeteners, complex carbs, gluten, nuts, dairy etc.. then, over the next 2 weeks, I added one of those eliminated things back once every 3 days to see how I tolerated them. For example, if I bloated out like I was 9 months pregnant and had stomach pain after eating nuts .. so I learned I have an intolerance, and intolerances halt weightloss efforts big time!!!
During the 2 weeks, I eliminated all of the above items.. I finally started dropping 1-2 lbs per day! It was amazing!!! Nothing else before this was working until now! Currently, I now do not eat any dairy products (not even coffee creamer that was hard), no almonds or cashews, and I've kept the weight off, and I am still continuing to lose! Hope this helps if you decide to give it try.. everyone is different of course but this finally worked for me & is still continuing to work...
After doing all of the above, she put me on an "elimination diet" where for 2 weeks, I eliminated all of the following: all artificial sweeteners (even Stevia), all dairy, nuts, gluten, complex carbs, processed foods.. (I know what is left right? LOL) I was eating mainly fresh fruits, vegetables, eggs, bacon, fish & chicken, and I was doing my best to eat 5 meals a day, every 2 hours: 200 calories of a protein & 100 calories of low glycemic carbs) 3 meals & 2 snacks, and drinking a new type of protein I bought through her which has special liver detoxing benefits: it was called NuMedica: "Total Vegan" Vanilla Protein powder. (Mostly only doctors sell this, but I have seen it on Amazon.)
Finally after almost 2 years off Effexor and with regular exercise, weightlifting, running, walking and yoga and following her elimination diet, I started losing 1-2 lbs per day for 2 weeks straight! Mind you, I have exercised and ate pretty clean all along during and after my 1 year on Effexor, but I learned through all of this and seeing her, that I had developed food intolerances to dairy products, and some types of nuts (cashews and almonds), and gluten. I lost 14lbs so far after doing the elimination diet and I am still continuing to lose as she tweaks my regimen when I hit plateaus.
I learned through the process of the elimination diet.. I had developed food intolerances to dairy, gluten and some types of nuts (almonds & cashews). (And I never had this before.) Side note: I've also read in medical journal articles how Effexor changes the way our livers metabolize fats!
When someone has food intolerances or even food sensitivities.. it can keep you from losing weight!! This was truly eye-opening for me because over a 2 week period, I subtracted things from my diet like: all artificial sweeteners, complex carbs, gluten, nuts, dairy etc.. then, over the next 2 weeks, I added one of those eliminated things back once every 3 days to see how I tolerated them. For example, if I bloated out like I was 9 months pregnant and had stomach pain after eating nuts .. so I learned I have an intolerance, and intolerances halt weightloss efforts big time!!!
During the 2 weeks, I eliminated all of the above items.. I finally started dropping 1-2 lbs per day! It was amazing!!! Nothing else before this was working until now! Currently, I now do not eat any dairy products (not even coffee creamer that was hard), no almonds or cashews, and I've kept the weight off, and I am still continuing to lose! Hope this helps if you decide to give it try.. everyone is different of course but this finally worked for me & is still continuing to work...
Also, my apologies if any of the above was slightly repetitive.. I was initially responding to two different posts in this thread, yours and another persons, but I just decided to combine my two responses into one.. LOL :)
One other thing I should note, in case you don't already know this.. Functional Medicine Doctors are not covered by health insurance, you have to pay out of pocket for all appointments, and tests.
However, I was very lucky that she only charged me $90 for all of the above help I received! She normally charges $250 for the initial consultation and $447 for food allergy tests, $250, $100 etc. for a bunch of other extensive medical tests they usually only cover for cancer patients she said, but instead I had asked her if she could just analyze all of the previous tests I had requested over a 5 year period from my primary care doctor to save on cost!
However, I was very lucky that she only charged me $90 for all of the above help I received! She normally charges $250 for the initial consultation and $447 for food allergy tests, $250, $100 etc. for a bunch of other extensive medical tests they usually only cover for cancer patients she said, but instead I had asked her if she could just analyze all of the previous tests I had requested over a 5 year period from my primary care doctor to save on cost!
I wanted to share my Effexor experience ....with the hope that I can help many of you, and maybe some of you could share your insights, and help me as well. I was going through a stressful time at my job, and many people were getting laid off. I was encountering what my therapist calls, situational-anxiety. My therapist is a holistic-psychologist, and seems to be against traditional meds for the most part, but my Primary Care Physician was quick to prescribe me 75mg of Effexor. Over the course of only one year to the month exactly, I gained 60lbs! (The massive weight gain is what made me stop.) Everytime, I weighed in at the doctors office, I gained 8lbs each visit. My doctor advised me, most people lost weight on Effexor, that is the only reason I agreed to try it.).
Let me first state, I used to be a personal trainer and fitness competitor. I am very knowledgable about what it takes to be fit. I am 5'8" and I used to weigh on average 150lbs off season, and 138lbs when competing. I now weigh 211lbs, and since stoping Effexor 6 months ago, my weight will not budge! I have done a Gladiator Bootcamp, trained with a personal trainer on my lunch breaks, I joined Crossfit, I eat protein shakes, I juice vegetables daily, and eat high protein, low carb, and lots of fish, I take supplements, I do cardio 3-5 times per week, and do not take in more than 1100 calories daily. I am starting to think ...I have developed hypothyroidism because I know my body, and I know something is definitely off! I am so frustrated....
Now to help others... I read endless blogs about getting off Effexor, and while I am not a doctor, I would like to share what worked for me to very easily get off Effexor without major withdraws.... I was at one point prescribed Prozac, and I had a left over bottle because it did not work well for me at all... But when trying to get off Effexor, it will be your perfect savior to get off Effexor with very little side effects. I read on a psychiatrist blog, about how some doctor was doing the following with his patients... I read... to immediately transition one night to taking only take Prozac, the lowest dose, because Prozac has a longer half- life in your body. Take the Prozac everyday for a week in place of your Effexor. Then, the next week, take one Prozac every other day. If necessary, go to the following week every other 2 days with the Prozac...by the 2nd week on Prozac,, I stopped cold turkey, and I had 0 said effects! This worked for me very well. So ...I hope my experience getting off this drug will help,many others not go through hell...
And, if anyone has anything to share about how to get this SNRI weight-gain off-please share your secrets to success.....because I am convinced my metabolism is forever changed! I stopped Effexor in August of 2013. This is now almost April, and I have not succeeded in losing 1lb with all of my rigorous exercise and clean eating! Thank you :)
Let me first state, I used to be a personal trainer and fitness competitor. I am very knowledgable about what it takes to be fit. I am 5'8" and I used to weigh on average 150lbs off season, and 138lbs when competing. I now weigh 211lbs, and since stoping Effexor 6 months ago, my weight will not budge! I have done a Gladiator Bootcamp, trained with a personal trainer on my lunch breaks, I joined Crossfit, I eat protein shakes, I juice vegetables daily, and eat high protein, low carb, and lots of fish, I take supplements, I do cardio 3-5 times per week, and do not take in more than 1100 calories daily. I am starting to think ...I have developed hypothyroidism because I know my body, and I know something is definitely off! I am so frustrated....
Now to help others... I read endless blogs about getting off Effexor, and while I am not a doctor, I would like to share what worked for me to very easily get off Effexor without major withdraws.... I was at one point prescribed Prozac, and I had a left over bottle because it did not work well for me at all... But when trying to get off Effexor, it will be your perfect savior to get off Effexor with very little side effects. I read on a psychiatrist blog, about how some doctor was doing the following with his patients... I read... to immediately transition one night to taking only take Prozac, the lowest dose, because Prozac has a longer half- life in your body. Take the Prozac everyday for a week in place of your Effexor. Then, the next week, take one Prozac every other day. If necessary, go to the following week every other 2 days with the Prozac...by the 2nd week on Prozac,, I stopped cold turkey, and I had 0 said effects! This worked for me very well. So ...I hope my experience getting off this drug will help,many others not go through hell...
And, if anyone has anything to share about how to get this SNRI weight-gain off-please share your secrets to success.....because I am convinced my metabolism is forever changed! I stopped Effexor in August of 2013. This is now almost April, and I have not succeeded in losing 1lb with all of my rigorous exercise and clean eating! Thank you :)
High dose of Magnesium will help your fibromyalgia. I am taking 1000 mg in the morning and 1000 mg in the evening. Both my PCP and Medical Oncologist know I am taking the dosage. Some days i take an extra 500 in the afternoon and/or in the evening.
I am starting my journey today of going off effexor. I pray this helps with weight loss. Please let me know what amino acids you were percribed because I am going to the doctors today.
Please keep posting because I am going to do the same thing starting today. I go to my doctors today. I'm on 75mg. Gained 40lbs in a year. Not good. I feel sluggish and not myself. Can't wait to be my spunky self again! Keep me updated (:
Wow Miss_Susy_Q today I am going to the doctors to start weening myself off the Effexor. I was on 75 mg for 2 years, I was put on it cause I had breast cancer but I'm trying to do the natural thing now. I too gained 60lbs! I hope that getting off this stuff helps. I don't want the withdrawl symptoms but I need to change some how. I miss the spunky me.
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