Celexa

[ccgurl01]

Hi, My doc just put me on celexa for panic and I am terrified of gaining weight. Has anyone been on celexa and has it made you gain weight?

[juliana]

Hi there. I'll be honest with you about my personal experience with Celexa. I gained 30 lbs. during the 16 months or so I was on it. I'm only 5'4" so 30 lbs. was very significant.

I've read that it doesn't make everyone gain weight, though. I think my weight gain was quite uncommon. Everyone has different effects from these medications. Celexa isn't notorious for causing weight gain like Zoloft or some other SSRIs. (My sister gained 15 pounds in one month on Zoloft; she stopped taking it.)

Here's why I think I gained weight on Celexa. I had a persistent side effect of lethargy and inertia while I was taking it. It didn't increase my appetite like some SSRIs do, but I did become much less active. I hardly ever had the motivation for working out. I didn't feel like walking ANYWHERE and I went from doing power yoga 3 times a week and regular yoga twice a week to doing 1 or 2 yoga workouts per week if I was lucky. I could only manage to do regular yoga. I didn't have the energy for power yoga, so I wasn't doing much of anything to burn calories. I did a whole lot of sitting around doing nothing when I got home from work. So, I think it was the inactivity that caused the weight gain. Once I went off Celexa, the weight fell right off in a few months.

It had some amazing positive effects for me so it was worth the negative stuff I had to put up with. My advice would be to watch your activity level and make sure you schedule regular workouts so the weight doesn't sneak up on you. I was in the habit of not weighing myself because I had never had a weight problem. Celexa made me feel complacent and unmotivated when I was on my own, so I actually didn't notice that I was gaining weight until I had gained quite a lot! I also found I didn't have the motivation to clean my flat let alone work on a weight loss program while I was taking it. I just didn't care much about my weight while I was still taking Celexa. It made me very complacent and kind of oblivious to some things (like the size of my arse.)

Some people actually lose weight on Celexa though, so you might not have a problem.

Good luck and I hope it works well for you.

[Briarose]

hi there- i think it depends on if when you calm down and get a bit happier you tend to eat more or if when you are more depressed and miserable you eat more- so if the pill makes you feel better you could tend to eat more if you are like that!

[juliana]

That's a very good point, Briarose.

I wasn't eating a lot when I was on Celexa, but I probably was eating more than before I started taking it. I get nauseous when my anxiety levels are high, so it would make sense that I was eating more when my anxiety (and nausea) lessened on Celexa. I think it was the lazy feeling all the time that made me gain SO much weight, though.

Some people tend to get really lethargic when they're depressed. If Celexa lifts the depression, a person is likely to be more active and less likely to gain weight.

So, it's such a personal thing. I don't want my 30 lb. weight gain to scare anyone off taking a medication that could be really helpful to them. I have no regrets about taking Celexa. It helped me get my life back.

[ccgurl01]

Thanks for the replies. I tend to eat compulsively when I have high anxiety. So it may make sense that I may not gain if it stops my compulsice eating. I hate to seem shallow with the weight gain but I know the gain will lead to more anxiety :roll: I hope this pill helps me.

[Chelsea]

I was just prescribed celexa yesterday and am also nervous about weight gain. I'm already overweight so weight gain is a big concern for me. From what I've read online, it seems that some people gain, some don't. I'm also concerned about a decrease in energy. Is this is common problem for people on celexa?

[ccgurl01]

I am back to report that I stopped the celexa. I didnt even give it a chance to work and gained 3 pounds in 3 weeks. I stopped 2 and a half weeks ago and this past Sunday I had one of the worse anxiety attacks I in my life.