Yes, I am also using citalopram and like you, I have also gained a lot of weight. Just lately I wondered if this was the reason why. I decided to take a look at the side effects and I found that it is a side effect. I have been on it for about 6 months. I think this will be my last week to take it because I have experienced a few other side effects too.
Was on 20mg citalopram for 5 months and weight was stable. Went up to 30mg and have put on 10kg within 3 months, just completed training etc for London marathon and gained even more weight. So the dose really matters, now slowly reducing.
Hi cordula I my self have been takeing citalopram for sevral months and have been putting on weight .I work out at the gym 4 days a week for 1 half hrs and still I put weight on.I lost 7kgs before I started the course of citalopram and have gained it all back plus more.
This sounds exactly like me.
kerrymacca wrote:
Hi Kerry,
How is the weight going?
I have been on cipramil for 7 years now, and gained about 20 kilo's.
I'm in 40 mg and started yesterday to take lower doses. Very gradually and slowly. I'm only doing this because I want to shed the weight.
tim
Quote:
I have just recently started taking these pills wasn't even taking it a month and i have gained 10 pounds that fast I am definitly not taking any of that again .......and now i have to start going to the gym to lose it
Hi,
I have been taking Citalopram for the last 7 years or so, on and off. regularly for the last 18 months and funnily enough I cam off them in 2010 and noticeably lost weight - I bought a dress in that time and then I went back on them - I have never got into that dress again despite doing Slimming World, lots of diets and fads, exercising - everything! Now, it has become clear! I weigh over 11 and a half stones and I feel dreadful! I stopped taking them abruptly 4 weeks ago and had such terrible dizzy spells that I was scared into taking them again but I am DEFINITELY coming off them now!
I am so glad there are websites like this as I was going mad...
I will repost once they are out of my system and advise on any weight loss... My mental state has massively improved to what it was so I was only taking them due to horrendous withdrawal but worth it to be slimmer again...
THANK YOU ALL - keep posting!
I have just ordered a book called DIETS DON'T WORK by BOB SCHWARTZ - wish I had read this forum first! lol
Kerry xxxx
Hi Kerry,
How is the weight going?
I have been on cipramil for 7 years now, and gained about 20 kilo's.
I'm in 40 mg and started yesterday to take lower doses. Very gradually and slowly. I'm only doing this because I want to shed the weight.
tim
Does anyone have experience with quitting the drug and losing the weight that was gained?
TimB wrote:
Tim,
Being honest, I became so ill in my mind when I came off the medication after 3 months that even though I lost weight - I felt my state of mind to be more important than being slim. I have gone back on 20mg per day to restore my very evident chemical imbalance and have tried to be careful about what I eat too much of. Being more knowledgeable and aware this time I can see that I do seem to crave carbs more at night. I am a recovering alcoholic so I have been a binge eater since quitting drinking!
My personal experience has taught me that a little bit of weight gain is okay, i would rather have peace of mind.
GOOD LUCK
kerrymacca wrote:
Quote:
I have just recently started taking these pills wasn't even taking it a month and i have gained 10 pounds that fast I am definitly not taking any of that again .......and now i have to start going to the gym to lose it
Hi,
I have been taking Citalopram for the last 7 years or so, on and off. regularly for the last 18 months and funnily enough I cam off them in 2010 and noticeably lost weight - I bought a dress in that time and then I went back on them - I have never got into that dress again despite doing Slimming World, lots of diets and fads, exercising - everything! Now, it has become clear! I weigh over 11 and a half stones and I feel dreadful! I stopped taking them abruptly 4 weeks ago and had such terrible dizzy spells that I was scared into taking them again but I am DEFINITELY coming off them now!
I am so glad there are websites like this as I was going mad...
I will repost once they are out of my system and advise on any weight loss... My mental state has massively improved to what it was so I was only taking them due to horrendous withdrawal but worth it to be slimmer again...
THANK YOU ALL - keep posting!
I have just ordered a book called DIETS DON'T WORK by BOB SCHWARTZ - wish I had read this forum first! lol
Kerry xxxx
Hi Kerry,
How is the weight going?
I have been on cipramil for 7 years now, and gained about 20 kilo's.
I'm in 40 mg and started yesterday to take lower doses. Very gradually and slowly. I'm only doing this because I want to shed the weight.
tim
Tim,
Being honest, I became so ill in my mind when I came off the medication after 3 months that even though I lost weight - I felt my state of mind to be more important than being slim. I have gone back on 20mg per day to restore my very evident chemical imbalance and have tried to be careful about what I eat too much of. Being more knowledgeable and aware this time I can see that I do seem to crave carbs more at night. I am a recovering alcoholic so I have been a binge eater since quitting drinking!
My personal experience has taught me that a little bit of weight gain is okay, i would rather have peace of mind.
GOOD LUCK
I had a huge weight gain from taking Citalopram -- 75lbs (34kg) in about a year of taking 20mg of Citalopram daily throughout 2009. It's been 2 years since stopping the drug and while my weight came down about 12 lb (5.5 kg) and the persistent weight gain stopped, the rest of the weight seems stuck on. Since taking this drug, I am not able to lose weight like I could in the past (with proper diet and exercise). I will always regret taking Citalopram and not being a little less trusting of the doctor and thinking more critically about taking the meds they dole out. All of us must report these side effects to the manufacturer. There must be better warnings. I'm worse off now than before I started taking this medicine as the weight gain only contributes to depression and social anxiety and not wanting to leave the house to go out and live life. I am a 28 yr old female. 25 at the time I started Citalopram.
Some people don't need to be 200+ though. You were small to begin with, remember.
Hi I'm Jan I'm 44 and have always been slight, I've now realised that this horrendous weight gain is due to 60mg citalapram!!!! I've been craving chocolate at night for ages I'm desperate to get the old me back :( How do I cut down from 60mg???? Help please x
How do I come off of 60mg of Citalapram per day? Can I go from 60 to 40mg?? They are not helping me and I've gained so much weight!!! I also CRAVE chocolate at night??? Weird!! Any advice would be hugely welcome :0)
I started taking Citalopram 5 years ago and have gained 70 LBS!!! SEVENTY!!!! it is HORRIBLE!!! I joined Weight Watchers, hired a personal trainer, joined a gym and work out for 2 hours a day 6 days a week and haven't lost 1 lbs!!!
my mother suggested that i check the side effects of Citalopram and i guess this is my answer! i am going to get my pills changed right away.....
my mother suggested that i check the side effects of Citalopram and i guess this is my answer! i am going to get my pills changed right away.....
Hi all,
I've just googled 'Citalopram and weight gain', I lost two stone, then since going on the med, I have put it all back on. In the last two months I decided enough was enough and have started a proper, healthy eating plan with a well know club and really increased my exercise, i am fitter than ever but can't shift the weight. In my first week I stayed the same, second lost 1lb, but that I am sure was because I went to a morning session and not the normal evening one.
Now Im not on the meds for being depressed about my weight, and am feeling much better and was considering coming off, and going to my GP about this, but i foolishly stared messing, not taking one day, then only 20 another then missing a day then 10 the next.... yes, stupid as i dont think i am ready to come off as I landed up in a babbling mess last Friday! The thing is, the weight gain and not being able to loose it is really depressing me, and I dont know what to do.
Some of you have said that you changed your meds - did you explain your weight gain to your GP and they changed you? What are you taking now?
Would love to hear from you
Hi there,
I have just drawn the conclusion that my weight gain is down to Citalopram. Like you I have also done other things, such as CBT, but putting the weight on is making me depressed. I have an appt. to see my GP about coming off this drug on Monday. What I am curious to know is have you continued to shed the weight and how long did it take to loose the gain after you stopped taking it. How long were you on the drug for. i have been on for almost a year to the date and have put on over a stone and a half. I'm desperate to loose it, i am working out loads and clearly wasting my money on slimming word whilst I am on this drug.
Hi
I have to be honest as I did keep losing weight however my anxiety and moods got so bad that I made the decision to go back on to Citalopram. For me, being a little curvier and having a healthy mind is far more important than being slim. I have watched what I have eaten and continued to exercise and I had not put on as much weight as before. Then, for the last two months I have been binge eating late at night on crisps and I have gained a STONE in weight! The thing is I KNOW that I have overeaten all of the wrong foods! I am now back on a healthy eating plan - NOT A DIET - and I have begun exercising too and I feel so much better.
I hope this is of some help. I take 20mg of citalopram and find it very useful.
Kerry (aged 42 - weight 11 stones 10 lbs currently)