Losing weight on antidepressants?

[jdubya]

I would love to lose 8-10 lbs by this summer. I am 5’1 and ~124 lbs. I’ve had three children, all c section, and I have mild diastasis recti resulting from this. For the most part I like my body but I carry all extra weight right in my stomach area where I am the weakest. I also take effexor for anxiety. I was wondering if anyone else is on SSRI’s and if it has made a difference on how easy/hard it is to lose weight?

 

[belledandy]

@jdubya I’m on Zoloft and while I don’t think it made it harder to lose weight, it certainly made it easier to gain weight! I gained 10 pounds in 8 months on Zoloft. Now I’m down 16 pounds. The losing has been easy, the maintaining will be hard.

 

[kimerella2]

@belledandy Is that because it increases your appetite? Or some other reason?

 

[belledandy]

@kimerella2 I think for me, my body stopped telling me I was full. I would just eat and eat and eat. I didn’t feel more hungry, I just never felt full. Part of my weight loss journey since August has been eating slower and listening to my body more. For example, when we go out to eat, I’ll check in with myself about halfway through my meal and if I’m no longer hungry, I stop. Before this I’d just pummel through my meal without regard to whether I was still hungry. Other times we go out to eat, I’ll tell myself ahead of time that tonight I’m only eating half my dinner and I’ll take the rest home. It’s been challenging but I finally feel in control.

 

[robderron]

@jdubya I’ve been on SSRIs since I was a kid, so I have no baseline for how easy it would typically be to lose weight. I’ve been able to lose 1 lb / week consistently by calorie counting (1500-1700 depending on activity level). I’m a stress eater, so I think reducing my stress levels via SSRIs probably makes it easier for my to stay within my calorie limit.

 

[csh97]

@jdubya Effexor is actually an SNRI! I don’t think it makes a huge weight difference, though when I was on 300mg I was always super sweaty, so maybe it influences water weight lol

 

[cledussnow]

@jdubya Your mileage may vary, but I ended up unintentionally losing weight on Effexor when I was younger, but it wasn't really a medication that worked well for me. Everybody is different, and losing weight when you don't have too much left to lose can be extra difficult.

Calorie counting (I lost a significant amount of weight in 8 months, roughly 50-60 lbs) was my go-to, and I will be using it again after pregnancy, if I feel I need it. I allowed myself 1500-1700 calories per day, and changed my eating habits for good. I exercised 5-6 times per week, and it was always sometime manageable that I enjoyed. It's been almost a decade and I've kept almost all of the weight off. Again, every body is different, so what worked for me may not work for you. Best of luck!