Lexapro Weight Gain
UpdatedToday I visited my new family doctor. I began to explain to her that after starting my new job a year and half ago, I began to have the "normal signs of depression"- no motivation to do the things I normally loved doing (actually, no motivation to do much of anything), fatigue, memory loss, brain fog, not much of a libido (I'm 24 with a fiancé), etc. but never suicidal. I have a wonderful life, seemingly I am happy with everything, a great family so I guess depression actually isn't something one must "admit" and have a "bad life" which I had generally thought. (That's ignorance I know but now I do understand depression a bit more after reading up on it.) Anyway, my doc suggested Lexapro for an antidepressant and anxiety med. (Currently, I've been on Xanax for 3 years TID and am very happy with that dosage/med.) I asked what the side effects were and she that the main ones were weight gain and loss of libido. Okay, that sounds pretty depressing to me, but still am open to trying.
I came home to read more about Lexapro before picking up my script and am terrified to take this. I understand the benefits are tremendous, if it actually works but was wondering if anyone believed that body type/frame had anything to do with if one would gain/lose weight. This could be what I've been looking for, HOWEVER a weight gain would would be more depressing than ANYTHING I'm feeling now.
I am 5'1'' at 112lbs, obviously small framed. I generally keep a very healthy diet: no soda/fast food, raw veggies, water all day, etc. I workout very little (mainly because I have no motivation to do so), my fiancé always wants me to work out with him and run, but 9 out of 10 times turn him down. He went as far as buying me a treadmill- helped with motivation at first but even having to get dressed to work out and walk to the workout room isn't something I want to do. Sad, I know. My stressful job does keep me moving all day long so by no means am I lazy.
So, after all this: can anyone help me out a bit? Do you think your body frame has anything to do with whether you gain or lose? I do know that I gain and lose weight at an extreme rate- I am about 110 when I keep healthy, but a few days of being bad about what I'm eating will put me at 120 within a week, literally. Then, I'll go back to "healthy" and lose it immediately. Anything would be helpful, she was kinda one of those "You have 10 minutes with me" doctors.
1 Reply
Hi, Nickole! How are you doing?
No, your frame size usually has nothing to do with it. Some medications cause weight gain, regardless of how much you exercise, how healthy you eat, or what size you are, when you start taking them. I had it happen with one I took before and I am also very tiny naturally.
But the good news is that it usually does have a bearing on how much you gain, so your change won't likely be very significant. People that are already heavier tend to gain more, while those that are tinier usually don't gain as much. There's no explanation for why, but that's how it works for many people.
Learn more Prozac details here.
Learn more Wellbutrin details here.
The two that I've just linked to are not known to cause as many problems, but can treat the same types of conditions, so if you are really concerned, then you may want to ask your doctor about trying one of them.
On the motivation thing, while I know it's tough, if you make yourself do it a few times, then you'll find it getting easier and easier each time in the future.
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