Stopped prozac - how long before weight comes off/metabolism

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Dear People trying to loose weight after Prozac: I too have been you. I gained 30 pounds on Prozac and when I got really sick of my weight I quit the Prozac. Then...I started and exercise and reasonable diet plan- and by the end of 9 months I lost the weight. 1) My exercise started out DANCING anyway I like to fast music in my room. For 30 minuites a day. 2) My diet was simply: 1 egg & 1 light bread (45 cal) with Olio fake butter. Lunch =3 fruits Dinner= Escarole salad w/ tomatoe, onions (whatever you like that isn't fattening) and 1 thin breast of chicken. Don't eat after 6pm AT ALL. But if you get hungry then....just eat diet Jello and whip cream all you want! And....every time during the day that you dance an extra 10 minuites- is terrific! Snack on a handful of nuts, and yes, you'll be a little hungry...but when the weight sheds....you'll be so glad.

I feel your frustration! It seems like Dr's don't realize just what these pills do or don't care. I have never ever had a problem with weight & after being on anti-depressants for anxiety I now have gained 10-15lb. So stupid that the drugs that are supposed to make you feel good make you depressed. I wasn't depressed before but I certainly feel bad about myself now! I have gone off the pills because of the weight gain & because my stress has decreased. I have only been off them a week but no change in my weight except up & down a couple of pounds here & there (mostly still up - ugh!). What's worse is I have a very small frame so if I told my Dr about the weight gain she would mostly likely think I needed to gain weight anyway & not see it as a problem. I am vowing to bust my ass exercising & do whatever it takes to get back to my normal weight & feel good about myself again. I will keep you all updated on my progress, we all have to stick together!

Same old story for me.

I was on Prozac for eight months, mostly for anxiety. For the last ten years, I've worked out six days a week (including high intensity interval training, weights, Pilates, speed walking, and yoga) and I'm very careful about my diet. Despite this, after about six months of taking the pills, I noticed I was starting to gain weight.

I started working out even harder and restricting my diet to 1,200 calories a day, and the weight wouldn't budge, which has never been a problem for me. In the past, I could do just a few intense workouts and any weight I gained would disappear. After months of this, under a doctor's supervision, I stopped taking Prozac. This was at the end of July. It's now almost the end of November and the few extra pounds I gained are sticking around, mostly around my middle (yay). The weight gain can't be more than 10-15 pounds, but I feel terrible, especially because my clothes are tight.

It's extremely frustrating to gain this weight and not lose it even though I work hard to maintain a healthy lifestyle--it just makes it seem like it's all for nothing. I've considered talking to a doctor about this, but I don't want to hear the same crappy advice so many people give to those of us in this predicament. "Exercise regularly and reduce your number of calories!" Thanks... That had never occurred to me.

I've actually stopped trying to diet and beating myself up with exercise because I was torturing myself to no avail. On the bright side, I haven't gained any additional weight in the last few months, but I still hate the way I feel. I guess I'm just hoping there are more people out there who have seen their anti-depressant weight fall off after being off the medication for a longer period of time.

If you're out there, please share your experiences and give the rest of us hope!

You aren't alone. I had a few experiences with antidepressants. The Doctors will tell you weight gain "is not in the literature" so don't bother going for an explanation. No one knows why these meds cause weight gain. Even when you stop the weight doesn't just come off. Extra exercise and calorie restriction will not help so don't bust your rear end because you will end up more depressed . I'll tell you one of my few stories with AD, this one is actually about Prozac. I had gained 30 pounds from Zoloft and after stopping it took a long time but I had lost 23 of those pounds. Mind you the 30 pounds gained was while running about 12 miles per week AND going to a boxing gym sparring etc. 4 x week. I was robbed of a body I worked so hard for. I was struggling psychologically so I first went on 10 mg of Prozac. No weight gain. I up it to 20/mg. No weight gain and I'm excited that I found an AD that will not cause weight gain. I then asked to be raised again. Doc ups it to 40 mg. I notice after a week I'm up 2 or 3 pounds.Immediately I discontinue all Prozac cause I was real concerned about gaining weight. I lie to you not, for the next 4 months while on no medication I gained 25 pounds. The next 4 months I was stable . Then I lost 15 pounds. Good luck !!

Ive also lost weight

For what it's worth, I actually started on 20mg prozac daily to cure my tourettes. It didn't do much for tourettes, but it actually made me LOSE weight. I have recently tapered off prozac and have gained back the weight, which is taking a long time to lose! I'm told that Prozac makes some people gain weight, other people lose it. Though right now it seems like I'm gaining weight as a symptom of getting OFF the drug! I think it's just different for different people.

Prozac DOES NOT cause heart failure. This is simply false.

Ever since my psychiatrist upped my dosage of prozac from 2 times and day to three I've notice a weight gain of about 20 pounds, I don't eat any differently than I did before so I think I'm gonna talk about lowering the dosage, I hope that'll help and get me back to normal.

How long exactly did it take to start losing weight for you? An approximation will suffice

Well I can tell you my experiences with this problem (with my bad english skills). At first I was on mirtazapine (15mg) about 1,5 month or so. My friends warned me that mirta causes weight gaining (of course doctors said that "so little pill will not cause any weight gaining, so no worries" ...) so I watched carefully what I put in my mouth. I weighted then 136lb. After 1,5 month on mirta (and after I TRIED put on my favorite pants) I go to a scale and it showed that I was 150lb! I didn't unterstand how that was even possible! I didn't do anything different than usually what could cause so big weight gaining! So I went to doctor and asked different med which doesn't couse weight gaining and then I got Prozac (15mg). I was on it 3 weeks but of course it too caused weight gaining (2lb per week) so I tossed it in trashcan...... And after that I haven't take those f*****g meds anymore.....

So my weight was 156lb after Prozac, and even tought I exercise 4-5 times per week in gym and eated healthy and walked every day 4 miles, I didn't lost any weight in next 3 months. I was so frustrated!!! I tried everything and nothing helped! I even got a Personal trainer to look that I am eating and training right and she say that everything is allright. So I didn't know what to do... but cry :/ ... But after that 3 months my metabolism started working again, at least a little bit and scale started move between 156-154lb (before scale didn't move AT ALL). Another 2-3 months went by before my metabolism started working little bit more and without trying I lost 4lb in 2 weeks! And now, after a month, I lost just like that another 4lb in one week ! :D Now I am 145lb :)

So I say samething as someone else said earlier here: exercise and eat healthy but don't push yourself too hard cause it doesn't help... in time your metabolism starts working again, just wait.

You give me hope! I have gained 50 pounds in 2 1/2 years on prozac and am going to come off of it starting this week! I think my weight being uncontrollable has been more depressing than anything! I don't care what doctors say - Prozac causes extreme weight gain for some people!

What ever you do don't take ability I gained 30 lbs o
In over a month I watch myself ballon. So this round of depression anxiety hopelessness, ( after being bed bound 10 years after interferon treatment ) so he tried welbritrin with Prozac and phentermine. Just wanted to get me out of bed worked couple weeks, ten my brother diagnosed stage 4 cancer and depression anxiety came through all meds nothing worked but that life. Anyway my husband started the new Atkins diet he is a retired cordon bleu chef so he really thinking how to rework food. He's lost 44 pounds me haven't budged in weeks no matter what I do the scale won't move and it so F---up that I can weigh 10 pounds heavier in one day and the next 10 pounds less. Can't do gastric bypass waited to long insurance won't cover it anymore plus got one cousin dead one very sick and my brother dying of cancer all had gastric bypass. So all I can. Say is that my psychiatrist really works with my meds he knows I will not take anything with side effect weight gain. I've gained over 100 pounds in 10 years and stuck in bed it's a daily struggle to just move on. I use to be an outstanding outgoing successful happy honest lady now I, old and feel worthless in losing everything I had everything I was even what I looked like. I went to bed at 45 I'm now 56 I shouldn't feel this way I should be happy to at least be alive. Please anyone who had any trouble gaining weight on everything please note. Thank you

hello, my first suggestion, don't get a primary dr. get a psychiatrist he knows meds better. plus beging cured from depression you just dont stop taking a med. you really need to lowly taper down. and depression meds cause weight gain and he right depression can cause it too but whats worse is whenthe meds your own slow your metabolism down so you can[t lose weight. ive been bedbound 10 years with a list of illnesses from taking interferon . trust all meds screw you up. you just gotta read and really look at what folks who have taken it say. and yes the new Atkins diet not the old one. the new one allows 40 gram of carb a day. instead of 20. plus you;ll get use to it pretty quick and pretty quick you'll feel better cause your body will go into ketosis thats when your body eats the stored fat for energy. there is so much bull sh*t out there but the diet industry and the pharmacuetical industry probably go on summer sales meetings in the carribbean together to celebrate the fortune. ha. anyway good luck. look up atkins..... it really not bad, you have to eat on it you really need to eat 5 times aday. 3 meals and 2 small meals keep- your body running kinda like gas in a car.. ps/ anything that says health food, or diet is probably really bad for you. all the ingredients that allow it to be packaged and stuff is posion and will eventually make you sick cause cancer or just flat out kill you. see at 56 ive deciced to learn all i can and make the last of my life the best of my life. good luck
beachbunny55

id go have blood work done now. prozac doesn't help you loose weight. and if your not trying there could be something internally off and you need to find out that your ok. so many illnesses start with unexplained weight loss. be smart. get check out.