Has Anyone Else Gained Weight From Taking Paxil?!
Question: Has Anyone Else Gained Weight From Taking Paxil!?
It has been helpful to me but I have gained about 40 lbs in the past 3 years that I've been on it!. Is this normal!? I am 47 and premenopausal with no underlying thyroid condition!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
Answers:
Weight gain is an associated long-term effect of these antidepressants!. Short-term, people may lose, gain, or stay the same!.!.!. long-term, weight gain is no surprise!.
Those affected have reported gains of this magnitude and more!.!.!. 60lbs, 80lbs!.!.!. and when reading individual reports you often find stated that this is a problem that appeared after the drug was started; those most scientifically persuasive state they had no exercise/eating/weight issues pre-drug (including individuals who were clearly athletes/very fit), and now find that despite unchanged eating/exercise routines, the weight either continues to creep up, or that they can maintain the current weight, but are finding it difficult/impossible to reduce the excess pounds!.
Equally disquieting are the replies many have received, along the lines of: you have depression therefore you eat too much, you really must watch what your weight; you have depression therefore you didn't eat enough, this is a sign you have got your appetite back, this is good progress; this has nothing to do with the drug; there are no calories in a Paxil pill!.!.!.
There is literature available on various hypotheses as to why this may be happening - e!.g!. metabolic drop, increased apathy/lethargy, anticholinergic effects, binding to the body's 'thin' receptors, affecting the 'I'm full' signal in the brain, blood sugar alterations, appetite alterations, cortisol/hormones - but the factual link between long-term use and weight gain has been noted for at least 10 years!.
Here's one person's experience as documented on You Tube!.
A google search on: Paxil "weight gain"; SSRIs "weight gain"!.!.!. and variants should start you off with articles from which you can further your research!.Www@Answer-Health@Com
Those affected have reported gains of this magnitude and more!.!.!. 60lbs, 80lbs!.!.!. and when reading individual reports you often find stated that this is a problem that appeared after the drug was started; those most scientifically persuasive state they had no exercise/eating/weight issues pre-drug (including individuals who were clearly athletes/very fit), and now find that despite unchanged eating/exercise routines, the weight either continues to creep up, or that they can maintain the current weight, but are finding it difficult/impossible to reduce the excess pounds!.
Equally disquieting are the replies many have received, along the lines of: you have depression therefore you eat too much, you really must watch what your weight; you have depression therefore you didn't eat enough, this is a sign you have got your appetite back, this is good progress; this has nothing to do with the drug; there are no calories in a Paxil pill!.!.!.
There is literature available on various hypotheses as to why this may be happening - e!.g!. metabolic drop, increased apathy/lethargy, anticholinergic effects, binding to the body's 'thin' receptors, affecting the 'I'm full' signal in the brain, blood sugar alterations, appetite alterations, cortisol/hormones - but the factual link between long-term use and weight gain has been noted for at least 10 years!.
Here's one person's experience as documented on You Tube!.
A google search on: Paxil "weight gain"; SSRIs "weight gain"!.!.!. and variants should start you off with articles from which you can further your research!.Www@Answer-Health@Com